Laura Sparks, Cotati City Councilmember

Help us plan updates to Putnam Park and Civic Center Park! Please follow the link below to take our surveys and provide feedback. Thank you for helping to continue making Cotati a great place to live, work, and PLAY!

https://bit.ly/cotatiparkssurveys

We will also be having a community workshop on these parks on Saturday, August 12 at 1pm at Cotati City Hall, 201 West Sierra Avenue. All are welcome to attend and take our surveys.

For more information or questions, please email [email protected].

Join the City of Cotati in celebrating Pride Month, June 2023!

To kick off the month, there will be a flag raising ceremony at City Hall (201 West Sierra Avenue), 11:00 am.

For those of you who don’t know me, I have been on the City Council for just 2 years, and am currently serving as Vice Mayor in 2023. There has been a lot of discussion on Next Door about a new proposed development called "La Plaza View Family Apartments," a five-story building to be located downtown, across from the fire station. Details here: https://www.cotaticity.org/228/Projects-in-Progress -505c-4f9e-b662-d94f4674ea44_3

I am responding to the post on Nextdoor, and also wanted to share this on Facebook so that it's available more broadly.

The City Council has very little we can do at this point to affect this housing development. The legislature passed Senate Bill 35 several years ago, which provides a “ministerial” review process for projects that contain a certain percentage affordable units. This means that the project can’t even come up for a vote at the council level, it has to be approved by city staff automatically if it meets our objective standards. Our planning director, Noah Housh, explains it like this:

“The developer of this project is requesting to utilize Senate Bill 35 and State density bonus law to both increase the number of residential units allowed on the site, and seek concessions from the City’s development standards, such as height limits and parking requirements.

Under state density bonus law, the city is required to grant any/all concessions or incentives the project qualifies for.”

What got us into this position? This law (SB35) kicks in when a community has not built enough housing to meet externally-provided targets, called our Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA), pronounced “REE-nah.” Over the past RHNA cycle from 2015-2022, Cotati did not build enough Very Low Income affordable housing. “Very Low Income” means that the housing is affordable to those who make less than 50% of the area median income. It is difficult for governments to ensure that communities meet their targets because in general cities do not build housing. Instead, cities approve projects that developers wish to build, and developers build the housing. It is often not profitable to build Very Low Income housing, and it didn’t get built in Cotati. During the last cycle (2015-2022), we were supposed to build 35 Very Low Income Units, and only built 13. We met our targets in all other income-level categories. We are not IN ANY WAY unique; our situation is shared by almost every jurisdiction in California. 377 cities and counties are subject to SB35, while only 13 cities and counties met their housing targets during the last cycle.

What can we do? In the short term, we have very little control. You can certainly contact the developer if you have questions or concerns about the project: Steve Leonard at [email protected]

In the long term, unless the law changes, the only way for jurisdictions to regain local control is to build more housing, especially difficult-to-build Very Low Income affordable housing, and show that we’re on track to meet our RHNA targets each year.
There are several things we can do that I would love your support for. We can promote our new, innovative Cottage Housing Ordinance, which provides incentives for developers to build “cottage court” type housing with smaller, more affordable units and shared community open space. We can incentivize “plex” housing, which is the conversion of existing lots into duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes that are more affordable by design, and don’t impact a neighborhood as much as a large multi-story apartment complex. We can incentivize folks to build Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and Junior Accessory Dwelling Units (JADUs). And we can set easily-understandable, objective design standards that work for our community, and provide a ministerial process so that folks who are acting in good faith to provide the lower-impact, “gentle density” that works in Cotati can get an approval without having to go before the City Council. I would love to see us speed up this kind of housing production so that teachers, recent grads, health care workers, service industry workers, farm workers, and all the other folks who we all depend on daily can have an affordable, decent place to live and not have to leave the area. Those are my ideas, but maybe you have ideas as well for how to reach our RHNA targets. I’d love to hear from you!

Every regular Cotati City Council meeting has a “Citizen’s Business” portion of the agenda in which members of the public can talk about whatever they wish. You can either come down to city hall in person or Zoom in. Here is a link to the Cotati City meeting schedule, and the Zoom link can be found on each agenda.

http://cotaticityca.iqm2.com/Citizens/calendar.aspx

If you made it to the bottom of this, I hope it has been helpful in understanding the issue. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or comments at [email protected]

Meeting Calendar - Cotati City, CA

There will be a very important special meeting tomorrow at 4pm to discuss a draft of Cotati's housing policies and procedures that will shape the future of housing in Cotati for the next 8 years. This is a long document, but it is extremely important! Tomorrow's meeting is a chance to give input. If anyone has questions, I'm here to help.
http://cotaticityca.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=1&ID=1885&Inline=True

Do you live in Cotati? Are you interested in bugs? Do you want to help your community behind the scenes? We have an opening on to represent Cotati on the board that oversees our local Mosquito and Vector control district. There will be a presentation on Zoom tonight at the Cotati City Council meeting, I invite you to watch if you want to learn more about what this group does. And get in touch if you're interested in getting involved!

Meeting starts at 6pm
Zoom Webinar ID: 813 8849 0855
Passcode: 095589

Powerpoint slides:

cotaticityca.iqm2.com

As Cotati plans for the future, we need your input on the 8-year Housing Element of the general plan. There are still several more opportunities to engage and make your voice heard. Check out these flyers for more info!

The Cotati City Council meeting for tonight (Tues. 5/10/22) has been canceled due to technical/IT issues, I'm so sorry to anyone who was trying to attend!

Opportunity to Serve City of Cotati | All Rights Reserved | Social Media Terms of Service | Powered by CivicLive | © 2022 Intrado Corporation.

I just spent the morning picking up trash out of the creek in my neighborhood as part of Creek Week. It was great knowing everything I picked up will NOT end up in the Pacific Ocean! There's still time to participate on your own with the Creek Week scavenger hunt! https://happeningnext.com/event/cotati-creek-week-clean-up-eid3a086u0la4

Cotati Creek Week Clean-Up | Pocket Park Food Forest, Santa Rosa, CA | September 22, 2021 Cotati Creek Week Clean-Up happening at Pocket Park Food Forest, Santa Rosa, United States on Wed Sep 22 2021 at 10:00 am to 02:00 pm

There are several substantial issues on the agenda for the Cotati City Council meeting at 6pm tonight:

Cottage Housing Ordinance: This is a new ordinance to encourage more "missing middle" housing to be built - smaller homes that will be more affordable built together around a shared open space to create a sense of community.

Cnsideration of Options to Further Explore Equity and Inclusivity in Cotati: A discussion about forming an ad hoc committee to look into issues of racism and racial equity in our community.

Local Hazard Mitigation Plan: A new formal plan/list of projects to prepare for and mitigate natural disasters such as wildfires and earthquakes.

I hope to see some of you there on Zoom!

Here is link to the meeting info (Zoom information is included in the Agenda) http://cotaticityca.iqm2.com/Citizens/Detail_Meeting.aspx?ID=2251

2021/06/22 06:00 PM Cotati City Council Regular Meeting - Web Outline - Cotati City, CA

Just a reminder there's still time to identify road safety hazards in Cotati. We need your feedback!

Thank you for your feedback Cotati! Safe streets matter to us, and we want to hear from you. Tell us where we can make improvements and why. We are taking feedback until July. Just head to our website to participate in this easy survey.

https://lrsp.mysocialpinpoint.com/city-of-cotati-local-road-safety-plan/map #/marker/204985

76.7% of Cotati residents age 12+ are at least partially vaccinated, keep up the good work! Healdsburg is still kicking our butt with 85.3%. If you've been holding off, now is the time. Vaccines are widely available, safe and effective. Let's end the pandemic together!

Today several amazing young people are ending their 266 march from Paradise to San Francisco in support of a Civilian Climate Corps, good jobs and a livable future with climate resilience in our community. I was proud to march with them from Santa Rosa to Cotati on Thursday.

Today you can join them to march across the Golden Gate Bridge at 11am, or meet up with them on the south side of the GGB at 12:30 to march on to lawmakers.

https://www.facebook.com/events/golden-gate-bridge/from-paradise-to-pacific-heights-youth-demand-a-civilian-climate-corps/309071234109139/

Free water-saving kits are available RIGHT NOW at Cotati City Hall (including a bucket to catch water for reuse, WaterSense labeled low flow showerhead, 5-minute shower timer, WaterSense labeled low flow faucet aerator, toilet dye test tablets, and a self-closing garden hose nozzle. You don't need to be a Cotati resident, anyone can drop by until 1pm today. Also available for free at 15 other locations throughout Sonoma, Marin, and Mendocino county: Free water-saving kits are available RIGHT NOW at the Ray Miller Center at Cotati (including a bucket to catch water for reuse, WaterSense labeled low flow showerhead, 5-minute shower timer, WaterSense labeled low flow faucet aerator, toilet dye test tablets, and a self-closing garden hose nozzle. You don't need to be a Cotati resident, anyone can drop by until 1pm today. Also available at 15 other locations throughout Sonoma, Marin, and Mendocino county: https://www.savingwaterpartnership.org/dropby/?fbclid=IwAR0jL7MC4xoAxA1B9ieOpgfdUAwn4Vs3w7kgu64bastPuPLx0f7-T3j8ImA

www.savingwaterpartnership.org

There is a lot of misinformation going around about the fireworks ban in Rohnert Park. Here is some clarification!

PD Editorial: Rohnert Park council didn’t flip on fireworks Despite some harsh criticism aimed at the three first-term council members who voted for the ban and then voted for an election, no one flip-flopped.

Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli must resign immediately. No other options. https://www.sfchronicle.com/projects/2021/windsor-mayor-dominic-foppoli-sexual-assault-allegations/

He’s a mayor and Wine Country ‘prince.’ Four women say he sexually assaulted them The allegations against Dominic Foppoli, the mayor of Windsor, range from groping to r**e, and track closely with his two-decade ascent to power in Sonoma County

The Cotati City Council will have a special meeting tomorrow night (Tues. 3/16 at 6pm) to do strategic planning, in which we begin the process of setting goals and priorities for the next fiscal year. You can comment at the start of the meeting or email public comments to [email protected]. I am also happy to hear your ideas if you email me at [email protected].

Link to meeting info:
http://cotaticityca.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=1&ID=1811&Inline=True

cotaticityca.iqm2.com

Laura Sparks, Cotati City Councilmember updated their info in the about section.

Laura Sparks, Cotati City Councilmember updated their website address.

Letter to the people of Cotati:

I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the people of Cotati for believing in my message and electing me to Cotati City Council. I am determined to serve Cotati with honesty and integrity, and to earn the trust you have placed in me. As a candidate, my platform focused on Inclusive Government, Climate & Environment, Affordable Housing, Anti-Racism, and Helping Local Businesses. I am looking forward to doing everything I can to tackle these issues, and I will need your help. I will keep an open door throughout my tenure on the City Council, and I am asking you to bring me your ideas large and small for building community and making us more resilient.

During the League of Women Voters Candidates Forum, I stated that I would like to help improve the diversity in city leadership. The first responsibility I will fulfill as a City Council person will be appointing someone to the Planning Commission and to the Measure G Citizen Oversight Committee. I invite any Cotati residents with an interest in local government to apply. We particularly need people of color, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, young people, and anyone who can bring a unique perspective to get involved. The decisions we make as a community are better when the conversation has a diversity of viewpoints. There is an application posted on the City of Cotati’s website that is due no later than December 17th.

Here is some information about the openings: http://www.cotaticity.org/headlines/opportunity_to_serve_on_the_planning_commission

Here is the application: http://www.cotaticity.org/UserFiles/Servers/Server_9669113/File/Application%20for%20Appointment%20to%20Advisory%20Body.fill%20in%202019.pdf

Thank you again, and I look forwarding to serving you!

Sincerely,
Laura Sparks

What Farmers Really Think About Measure P When Sonya Perrotti, owner of Coyote Family Farm in Penngrove, saw big signs lining nearby roads that read Farmers Say No on Measure P, she...

Proud to join this phenomenal group of candidates in the Sonoma County Conservation Action front yard!
https://www.conservationaction.org/pac/

I'm thrilled to announce that the Sunrise Movement and the Wine Country Young Voters have both endorsed my candidacy. I am devoting my life to working with young adults as a teacher at SRJC, and these organizations have seen that I will fight for the issues that are important to them. I am so happy to have their support. Thank you!

Check out this great opportunity! Urban Habitat’s Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI) trains and supports leaders from low-income communities of color to influence housing, transportation, and land use policies as decision makers. Please share with anyone you think would be interested!

Apply to BCLI | Urban Habitat Urban Habitat’s Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI) trains and supports leaders from low-income communities of color to influence housing, transportation, and land use policies as decision makers. We work with leaders committed to advancing equitable policies, help them get onto pub...

I am thrilled to announce that as of today I have been endorsed for Cotati City Council by the Sonoma County Democratic Party and the Sierra Club! I'm grateful to these organizations for helping me communicate my values to you.

Please help spread the word about the Zoom Candidate Forum on Monday at 6:30pm, sponsored by the League of Women Voters!

Youtube: https://youtu.be/4aVkSOdu8ZE
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lwvsonomacounty/live/

See Laura on TV (sort of)!

This coming Monday, 9/14 at 6:30pm the League of Women Voters will be hosting a Cotati City Council candidate livestream on Youtube. It will also be recorded for later viewing.

Share this with your friends and neighbors in Cotati, hope to see you there!

Candidates' Forum - Cotati City Council Candidates' Forum for those running for a seat on the Cotati City Council. Sponsored by The League of Women Voters of Sonoma County. Questions for the candid...

I'm proud to announce on Labor Day that the North Bay Labor Council has endorsed Laura Sparks for Cotati City Council! https://sparks2020.org/

Celebrate Labor Day by learning about the history and accomplishments of organized labor: https://aflcio.org/about-us/history

Excited to take the Green New Deal pledge today! Sunrise Movement

First campaign signs going up!

Laura Sparks, Cotati City Councilmember updated their business hours.

It's now easier to email Laura Sparks, Cotati City Councilmember