Creekwood Housing Development

The Creekwood Housing Development is subject to discretionary review and is thus subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). No prior environmental review has been conducted that considered project-level or site-level impacts. However, the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) prepared for the City’s General Plan assessed impacts citywide at the programmatic level, including the subject project site. To comply with CEQA, an EIR will be prepared.  

The environmental review for this project will be completed in 3 major phases: 

1. Notice of Preparation, Environmental Initial Study & Scoping Meeting;
2. Notice of Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Report (Draft EIR); and 
3. Final Environmental Impact Report (Final EIR). 

Phase 1: 

To inform the scope of the EIR, the City released a Notice of Preparation (NOP) and Initial Study on October 21, 2022. The Initial Study created for this project reviewed the possible effects to all resource areas named in Appendix G of the CEQA Guidelines. Based upon the analysis contained in the Initial Study, it was anticipated that the EIR will not need to further address the CEQA topics of Aesthetics, Agriculture and Forestry Resources, Air Quality, Cultural Resources, Energy, Geology and Soils, Hazards and Hazardous Materials, Land Use and Planning, Mineral Resources, Noise, Population and Housing, Public Services, Recreation, Tribal Cultural Resources, Utilities and Service Systems, and Wildfire.  

The City held a scoping meeting that was open to the public on November 14, 2022. The NOP-scoping comment period started on October 21, 2022, and ended on November 21, 2022.  

The Initial Study Appendices are available here:   

• Appendix A - Construction Health Risk and Greenhouse Gas Assessment 
• Appendix B - Geotechnical Investigation and Addendum  
• Appendix C - Phase I Environmental Site Assessment 
• Appendix D - Noise and Vibration Assessment  

Phase 2: 

On July 26, 2024, the City released a Notice of Availability of the Draft EIR to start a 45-day public review and comment period that will end on September 9, 2024. 

The Draft EIR was prepared pursuant to the requirements of CEQA and evaluates the potentially significant environmental impacts of implementing the Project and three alternatives, one of which is the No Project alternative. The Draft EIR identifies potentially significant environmental impacts to the following CEQA environmental factors: Biological Resources, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Hydrology and Water Quality, and Transportation/Traffic. The Draft EIR concludes that potentially significant environmental impacts related to the resource areas listed above can be mitigated to a less than significant level. However, significant and unavoidable impacts as it relates to greenhouse gas emissions and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) would result from implementation of the Project. 

The Draft EIR is organized into chapters, and the analysis within the Draft EIR is supported by technical studies that may be found within the appendices. 

Chapter 1 – Introduction

Provides an introduction and overview describing the intended use of the Draft EIR and the review and certification process, as well as summaries of the chapters included in the Draft EIR and summaries of the issues and concerns received from the public and public agencies during the NOP review period. 

Chapter 2 – Executive Summary

Summarizes the elements of the project, project alternatives, and the environmental impacts that would result from implementation of the proposed project, describes proposed mitigation measures, and indicates the level of significance of impacts after mitigation.  

Chapter 3 – Project Description  

Provides a detailed description of the proposed project, including the project’s location, background information, objectives, and technical characteristics.  

Chapter 4.0 – Environmental Setting, Impacts, and Mitigation 

Contains a project-level and cumulative analysis of environmental issue areas associated with the proposed project. The section for each environmental issue contains an introduction and description of the setting of the project site as well as an overview of regulatory context, identifies impacts, and recommends appropriate mitigation measures.  

Chapter 4.1 – Biological Resources  

The Biological Resources chapter of the EIR will summarize the setting and describe the potential project effects on rare, endangered, candidate, sensitive, and other special-status species that may inhabit the project site. This chapter of the EIR will also evaluate the project’s potential effects on sensitive habitats, including but not necessarily limited to riparian habitat and State or federally protected wetlands. Effects associated with all on-site and off-site improvements will be included in the analysis. Analysis in the chapter will be based on a Biological Resources Assessment prepared specifically for the project. Mitigation measures for all identified impacts will be developed consistent with applicable laws and regulations.  

Chapter 4.2 – Greenhouse Gas Emissions  

The Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions chapter of the EIR will include a discussion of the existing regulatory setting and context related to GHG Emissions, including Assembly Bill (AB) 32 and Senate Bill (SB) 32, and an impacts and mitigation section with quantitative data showing the project’s contribution to the generation of GHG emissions during the construction and operational phases of the project, as well as a qualitative discussion of project consistency with the design features required by BAAQMD. Feasible and appropriate mitigation measures to avoid or reduce adverse impacts will be identified, as needed.  

Chapter 4.3 – Hydrology and Water Quality  

The Hydrology and Water Quality chapter of the EIR will summarize setting information and identify potential impacts on stormwater drainage, flooding, and water quality, including stormwater runoff water quality. The Hydrology and Water Quality chapter will evaluate project-related increases in impervious surfaces and stormwater flows, increases in downstream flooding, and on-site facilities necessary to treat and detain on-site runoff. In addition, the chapter will evaluate impacts associated with alteration of the existing drainage patterns. The chapter will primarily be based on a project-specific Hydrology Analysis, Preliminary Drainage Report, and Storm Water Quality Report.  

Chapter 4.4 – Transportation

The Transportation chapter of the EIR will be based on a Transportation Impact Study prepared specifically for the project. Impact determination for CEQA purposes will be based on VMT, consistent with CEQA Guidelines Section 15064.3, which became effective statewide on July 1, 2020. The EIR chapter will also include an analysis of the project’s potential to conflict with applicable programs, policies, and ordinances addressing the circulation system, vehicle safety hazards, and emergency access. Feasible and appropriate mitigation measures to avoid or reduce adverse impacts will be identified, as needed.  

Chapter 5 – Statutorily Required Sections

The Statutorily Required Sections chapter of the EIR provides discussions required by CEQA regarding impacts that would result from the proposed project, including a summary of cumulative impacts, potential growth-inducing impacts, significant and unavoidable impacts, and significant irreversible changes to the environment.  

Chapter 6 – Alternatives Analysis

The Alternatives Analysis chapter of the EIR describes and evaluates the alternatives to the proposed project. It should be noted that the alternatives will be analyzed at a level of detail less than that of the proposed project; however, the analyses will include sufficient detail to allow for a meaningful comparison of impacts.  

Chapter 7 – EIR Authors and Persons Consulted

The EIR Authors and Persons Consulted chapter of the EIR lists EIR and technical report authors who provided technical assistance in the preparation and review of the EIR.  

Chapter 8 – References

The References chapter of the EIR provides bibliographic information for all references and resources cited.  

Appendices  

The Appendices to the Draft EIR include the NOP and Initial Study, comments received during the NOP comment period, and all technical reports prepared for the proposed project. 

• Appendix A - Notice of Preparation (NOP) and Initial Study  
• Appendix B - NOP Comment Letters and Summary of Verbal Comments  
• Appendix C - Biological Resources Assessment  
• Appendix D - Tree Protection and Removal Plan  
• Appendix E - Hydraulic Assessment  
• Appendix F - Stormwater Control Plan  
• Appendix G - Focused Traffic Study 

Phase 3: 

On December 6, 2024, the City released a Final Environmental Impact Report (Final EIR). The Final EIR contains agency and public comments received during the public review period of the Draft EIR. The Final EIR was prepared by the City of Petaluma, as Lead Agency, in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the CEQA Guidelines, Section 15132. The Final EIR is organized into the following chapters: 

 

Cover Page and Table of Contents 

1. Introduction and List of Commenters

Chapter 1 provides an introduction and overview of the document, describing the background and organization of the Final EIR. Chapter 1 also provides a list of commenters who submitted letters in response to the Draft EIR. 

2. Responses to Comments

Chapter 2 presents the comment letters received, responses to each comment, and includes five (5) master responses that address comments received on similar themes. Each comment letter received has been numbered at the top and bracketed to indicate how the letter has been divided into individual comments. Each comment is given a number with the letter number appearing first, followed by the comment number. For example, the first comment in Letter 1 would have the following format: 1-1. The response to each comment will reference the comment number. 

3. Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program

CEQA Guidelines, Section 15097, requires lead agencies to adopt a program for monitoring the mitigation measures required to avoid the significant environmental impacts of a project. The intent of the Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (MMRP) is to ensure implementation of the mitigation measures identified within the EIR for the Creekwood Housing Development Project. 

 Included with the Final EIR are 2 Appendices: 

Appendix A: Public Works Memo Regarding Adobe Creek Trail Bridge 

Appendix B: Public Works Memo Regarding Casa Grande Road 

Project Details

APN(s):	017-040-051, 017-040-016 & 017-410-042
Address:	270 & 280 Casa Grande Avenue
Zoning:	R4 (Residential 4) & OSP (Open Space-Park)
File Number:	PLSR-2021-0030
Applicant Contact:	Doyle Heaton Falcon Point Associates, LLC 3496 Buskirk Avenue, Suite 104 Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 [email protected]

Project Documents

Public Meetings and Hearings

• EIR Scoping Meeting - November 14, 2022 at 6:00PM
• A Neighborhood Meeting, sponsored by the applicant, is scheduled to occur on June 17, 2024, at the Petaluma Community Center at 7 PM
• Planning Commission – September 10, 2024 at 6:00PM
• City Council - September 16, 2024 at 6:30PM
• City Council - December 16, 2024 at 6:30PM