The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors unanimously decided to scrap a plan to sell the former Sutter Hospital Campus in Santa Rosa to a developer that was planning to build 867 housing units on the site.
The vote last month puts an end to a developer’s vision to build a mix of housing on the 82 acre-property in Santa Rosa. After last year’s wildfires which destroyed thousands of homes, Sonoma County has been faced with increasing demand and low supply and availability of affordable housing.
The board chose not to appeal a July ruling from a Superior Court judge who said the county incorrectly decided the sale agreement with the developer was exempt from state environmental review requirements.
Supervisors instead directed county staff members to go back to the drawing board by offering most of the property for sale again. State law requires that the County offer the property for sale to government agencies and qualified non-profits first. Supervisors will give those groups the option to purchase the site, which is comprised of 13 separate parcels, either in its entirety or in smaller pieces.