City Council Weighs Moving Rohnert Park SMART Station

The Rohnert Park City Council last night agreed to ask city engineers to study what it would take to move the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit station from the Golf Course Drive station towards the center of town. The Council juggled two alternative sites: the soon-to-be-empty 300,000 square-foot and the near Public Safety Department.

“If that request is going to come forward, it needs to come forward very quickly,” said Chris Coursey, community outreach and education manager for SMART. “We’re getting ready to issue requests for proposal for contracts … to start building the stations this summer.”

The banter at the meeting was short and sweet. The Council asked how much it would cost the city to move the station, if anything; and whether it makes sense to have the Cotati and Rohnert Park stations located only a mile apart.

“Our staff is going to look at our options and see if there’s anything we can do,” Mayor Gina Belforte said.

“You can’t say it’s impossible to do something,” said Councilmember Jake Mackenzie, who represents Rohnert Park on the SMART board of directors. “Because in Santa Rosa the Jennings Avenue site is being changed to the Guerneville site, that’s happening right now.”

Coursey said he didn’t know if moving the Rohnert Park station would cost the city any money, but he said in Santa Rosa it was a long 18-month process.

“We first got a request from the city of Santa Rosa to move that station in early 2009,” Coursey said. “That decision happened in December of 2010.”

Belforte said she’d rather have the station be in the center of town.

Can we go back to the board and say we’re interested in a different location, somewhere in the center of downtown? she asked.

Councilmember Pam Stafford joked that Rohnert Park doesn’t have a downtown.

“We’re trying to build a downtown,” Belforte said. “You’ve got to start somewhere.”

“I see both sides,” said Councilmember Joe Callinan. “State Farm would be a great location, but we don’t have any control over that. If it’s going to cost the city money, I don’t think I’m in.”

Since we know for sure we don’t have access to the State Farm site, let's look at what we do have access to without having it cost us any money, Belforte said.

Stafford acknowledged that many people in Rohnert Park aren’t happy with the current station’s location, but said having the train stop every mile doesn’t make any sense.

“But I don’t see a problem talking about it,” Stafford said.

Councilmember Amy Ahanotu said he wanted to see the station moved.

“We have to look 10, 15, 20 years down the line and we have to make sure that we get it right,” Ahanotu said. “I strongly suggest Councilmember Mackenzie go back to the board and fight for Rohnert Park.”

“As your representative I’m discouraging you, but I will always represent the City Council’s wishes at the SMART board,” Mackenzie said.

Editor's note: Because of the Measure Q sales tax collection projection shortfall, Coursey said SMART's economic forecase is $200 million less than directors thought. Consequently, because sales tax collections are down in the early planning stages, SMART's bonding capacity has been reduced by about a third, or $100 million.

The SMART board voted in November to build the cut the 70-mile down to 37 miles connecting downtown Santa Rosa to downtown San Rafael in phases. Cloverdale and Larkspur will be added as funding comes in, Coursey said.

A public workshop for Rohnert Park and Cotati's station designs is scheduled for 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16 at the Cotati Room, 216 East School St., Cotati. Read the from last night to find out how the decision unfolded.