DEVELOPERS VERSUS NEIGHBORHOODS...WHO SHOULD HAVE THE FINAL SAY?

It is always exciting when there is a new infill project in a city. Sacramento is no different. We have some remarkable infill projects going...one of them the largest in the United States.

The Railyards has it's own set of challenges. It is a downtown infill and must deal with parking, city codes, and other downtown businesses. I would not pretend to understand all of the dynamics of this massive undertaking.

The project that is nearer my heart is between Land Park and Curtis Park. Curtis Park Village is a much needed development that is decades in the making. Paul Petrovich purchased the property 5 years ago and has been investing in it ever since. I am sure he thought his biggest challenge would be the 80,000 cubic yards of toxic soil left by the Union Pacific Railroad. After cleaning this up, an additional approximately 320,000 cubic yards of toxic soil was discovered. Basing his cost on the citys first estimate, his costs went up substantially. To recover this cost ($4000 per day), he has increased the size of the commercial portion of this development.

Now his challenge is not the toxic cleanup, but the neighborhood's reaction to the increase in commercial space. There is an atmosphere of entitlement by many in the neighborhood to have Curtis Park Village done their way.

So, how much input should a neighborhood have? Should they be able to demand specific features in the developement?