Design review board approves Elm Tree Station at 874 North Wright Road over public health and trail concerns

The Santa Rosa Design Review and Preservation Board voted 4–1 to approve design review for the Elm Tree Station project at 874 North Wright Road, a mixed convenience market and fueling site that includes six gasoline pumps, four electric vehicle charging stations, a roughly 3,500‑square‑foot general retail market with a residential unit above, and a 432‑square‑foot second retail building with a publicly accessible, privately maintained park‑style amenity.

The vote followed staff presentations that the City Council had already approved the land use — a conditional use permit and an addendum to the earlier initial study/mitigated negative declaration — and that the board’s current role was limited to the site and building design. Senior Planner Connor McKay told the board staff recommended approval and also disclosed a public‑notice issue: the DRPB email address was misconfigured so two members of the public attempting to comment had their messages bounce, a matter staff reviewed with IT before proceeding.

Why it matters: the project is subject to local design review after a long entitlement history, and the council’s August approval came after a 2022 city ordinance banning new gas stations grandfathered projects already in process. Opponents told the board they feared long‑term groundwater and air quality impacts from underground fuel storage tanks, neighborhood traffic and conflicts with the Joe Rodota Trail, while supporters and project designers emphasized trail access, a market that could serve trail users and neighbors, and landscape buffering.

Project details and design review scope Connor McKay described the site plan: Lot 1 contains the larger market building facing the Joe Rodota Trail with the single residential unit above; Lot 2…