Vacaville City Council approves four items regarding Triad Communities' plan for Lagoon Valley; final map OK awaits.

02/23/2005 07:51:21 AM
Project at lagoon given 'go'City Council approves four items regarding Triad Communities' plan for Lagoon Valley; final map OK awaits.
By Tom Hall/Staff Writer

"It was almost eerily quiet," said Councilman Steve Hardy.

His dais-mates agreed: The night wasn't supposed to go this smoothly.
The meeting of the Vacaville City Council ended just two hours after it began Tuesday night, much to the surprise of many.

Expecting another marathon debate on the merits and faults of a planned development in Lagoon Valley, the council got exactly the opposite: a half-hour lovefest for the project.
Of the dozen residents and officials who spoke during the relatively short public hearing, only one - a Lagoon Valley resident - said he opposed the project. That's a striking difference from prior hearings held during the past 15 years on the same issue, when the opposition has been the vocal majority.

With one vote, the council unanimously approved all four items up for consideration regarding the project. That vote was followed by a raucous round of applause from supporters in the audience. Following the meeting, the council seemed shocked at the meeting's brevity.
"I can't believe it's three after 9 and we're out of here," Mayor Len Augustine said.
Marian Conning, an outspoken critic of the project and the spokeswoman for Friends of Lagoon Valley, said that the surprising silence wasn't planned.

"Our group is very grass-roots and it's very difficult to orchestrate anything - even cleanup after a picnic," she said. "People know where we stand."

Along with a subdivision map and a planned development permit, the council approved an obligations agreement that specifically outlines everything Seattle-based developer Triad Communities will give to the city in exchange for final approval.

Among those obligations are 71 acres of open space adjacent to Lagoon Valley Lake, a fully equipped fire station and roughly $4.5 million for the restoration of Lagoon Valley Park.
The development still awaits a final map approval from the city, which should come in 16 to 18 months, said city planner Scott Sexton. Leading up to that, the developer and city staff will work together to map out the project's infrastructure, including the water system.
In its current form, the development would create 1,025 homes on 860 acres in Lower Lagoon Valley just south of Interstate 80, along with a 240-acre golf course and a business village. The project would be markedly smaller than previous plans for the area had allowed for.

Tom Hall can be reached at vacaville@thereporter.com.