Sonoma Developmental Center Campus Specific Plan and Eldridge Renewal Project

The County of Sonoma, as lead agency, have begun crafting the Sonoma Development Center Environmental Impact Report and Campus Specific Plan in compliance with the April 2024 Superior Court ruling and subsequent final judgment and writ of mandamus on October 22, 2024 which alleged that the County had not complied with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). As the original plan and EIR were decertified, Permit Sonoma will create and analyze a new Specific Plan titled the Sonoma Developmental Center Campus Specific Plan. The new plan builds on the original while recognizing the changes to the site which have occurred since the original planning effort began. These include changes to the site boundaries and the submission of a Housing Development Project application subject to State Law. This process will also evaluate the proposed Housing Development Project at the site while addressing any inconsistencies between it and the Specific Plan and any environmental impacts identified in this process. In August 2023, Eldridge Renewal submitted a development pre-application vesting their rights under the Gov. Code § 65589.5(d)(5) provision known as the “Builder’s Remedy.” A full application package followed on February 16, 2024. The application was deemed complete on March 6, 2025, wherein Permit Sonoma determined the information received was sufficient to begin environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act and process the application. The project is a mixed- use development across three parcels on the Sonoma Development Center campus (APNs 054- 090- 001, 054- 150- 005, and 054- 150- 010) consisting of the following: 990 residential units with a diverse array of styles of attached and detached residential homes, apartments, cohousing, and independent living residences. The apartments and homes will range from 500 square feet to 3,200 square feet per unit and 200 of the 990 total units on-site will be affordable to lower income households. Additionally proposed is approximately 130,000 square feet of commercial uses, including office, retail, research and development, micro-manufacturing and other uses that form an active jobs center for the broader Sonoma Valley; and 150-room hotel and associated amenities (approximately 120,000 square feet in total) with a parking structure; and approximately 70 acres of outdoor public parks, active recreational areas, and open space areas including walking trails, sports fields, children’ s playgrounds, dog parks; and a community center and gym, and riparian corridors. Various public infrastructure and utility network improvements are also proposed.