A Transit Village at Port Sonoma?

It's a mess, and nobody even tries to deny it. The unused Yacht basin at the mouth of the Petaluma River in California is an ideal location, some people think, for a ferry terminal. Overlooking San Pablo Bay and located on the county line between Marin and Sonoma, Port Sonoma is close to both Novato and Petaluma, and about 20 minutes from Vallejo. Sonoma County has long resisted developing the unused land along the county line, but the proposal put forward by developers Jim Brecht and Larry Simons would solve a lot of transportation problems for the area.

Brecht and Simons propose the building of a 'transit village' which would include the ferry terminal; a light rail line connecting to the Northwestern Pacific lines; and a village based on the models designed by architect Peter Calthorpe, containing houses, apartments and businesses around the ferry and rail terminals. It would significantly reduce the use of cars for commuting to Marin and San Francisco, a major problem in this area.

There are opponents to the plan, and leading them is Bill Kortum, a retired County Supervisor who seems to have a real dislike of both Marin residents and commuters. He concedes that the transit network might make sense, but refuses to acknowledge the value of housing and businesses surrounding it. However, Calthorpe's models are the very essence of 'smart land' use, in which auto traffic is reduced for residents by close businesses and alternative transport.

Kortum is fiercely nationalistic regarding Sonoma County, but unless the people of the county think in larger terms, there's really no way to implement a northbay transportation network. His complaint is that the land in that area is needed to grow roughage crops for the dairy industry, but that's not a good enough argument to lose the opportunity for a ferry terminal. More important is the environmental concern; there are wildlife marshes in that area. But according to Sonoma County Supervisor Mike Kerns, the developer's plan is environmentally sound and conscious.

Environmentalists are in agreement about only one part of this plan; it would be a good idea to build a ferry terminal and light rail station. But anyone who has driven down highway 37 towards Novato knows a terminal in the middle of a marsh wouldn't be much use to anyone. Who would use it?

The Sonoma Land Trust controls hundreds of acres of wildlife habitat in that area, and they don't want it opened up to urban growth along highway 37.

Brecht and Simons have an option to buy Port Sonoma from the owners, a Watsonville company called Granite Construction. The 200-berth marina is virtually useless due to the heavy siltation from San Pablo Bay, and has been for sale for several years already. There is no better site for a ferry terminal in Sonoma County, say Brecht and Simons, and it would be difficult to find a better situation that hasn't already been developed.

The proposed Port Sonoma development fits into a larger concept for the California bay area having to do with enlarging ferry service. One of Bill Kortum's arguments against the proposal is that there is also a proposal to build a ferry landing and light rail terminal at San Quentin Point. But that location is a long way from Port Sonoma; it might be convenient to Marin, but it certainly wouldn't be for Sonoma residents. Why shouldn't there be a landing at both places? How can people be expected to leave their cars behind is they can't have access to alternative transportation? Another of Kortum's arguments is that the Port Sonoma development will only benefit people who work in San Francisco; but ferries and light rail would be as important to tourists and day-trippers into the city. Many people in this area won't ride the bus, but would take a ferry or a train. The bus system is slow, unwieldy and unreliable. Sonoma County desperately needs better transportation.

County Supervisor Mike Kerns agrees with this assessment, since Port Sonoma would connect Sonoma County with the rest of the bay area. Unfortunately, in this particular instance it doesn't seem possible to satisfy the environmentalists' longing to keep the area pristine and the need to provide alternative transportation in order to reduce freeway traffic.