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Gateway to City is New Focus: Placerville Drive Property Owners Plan for Growth.

Posted on: Sunday, 26 March 2006, 15:00 CST

By Cathy Locke, The Sacramento Bee, Calif.

Mar. 26--A series of downtown improvements has helped preserve and enhance Placerville's historic core. Now, property owners and merchants want city officials to give similar attention to the future of the community's western gateway. "Placerville Drive has the potential to be a major liability or a major opportunity," Mike Kobus said. The owner of Koby Pest Control, Kobus appeared before the City Council on March 14. He said a group of Placerville Drive property owners had begun meeting to discuss a long-range vision for the street, which loops north from Highway 50 at Forni Road and rejoins the highway to the east, near the entrance to the city's historic downtown. But with improvements to Highway 50, scheduled to begin this spring, Placerville Drive will be extended under the highway and over Hangtown Creek to Main Street. That connection, Kobus said, likely will increase the pressure for growth along Placerville Drive. Kobus said he and other business owners want to ensure that development standards along the street are consistent and that new construction is in keeping with the community's foothill character. Kobus asked the council to commit funds to a planning process for Placerville Drive. "The goal of the preliminary planning," he said, "is to present citizens with options and choices." Council members said they welcomed the initiative by business and property owners. Mayor Pierre Rivas said the council has discussed the need for a plan to guide development on Placerville Drive, adding that Councilwoman Marian Washburn had organized meetings with area business owners. "I think it is extremely important with the number of under-developed lots," Rivas said. "The timing is key. If we don't plan it, someone else may plan it for us." However, the mayor said the Community Development Department has 30 to 40 projects in the works citywide, and they need to be prioritized to avoid a piecemeal approach. El Dorado County Supervisor Jack Sweeney, a Placerville Drive property owner, argued that the city needs to move quickly on a plan, recalling that he advocated for such an effort a decade ago. "I don't think you have more than about 18 months to get a plan in place," Sweeney said. Property owners might be prepared to invest in the effort, he said. "I would be willing to put up funds in proportion to the property I have left there," Sweeney said. Councilman Mark Acuna said the most expeditious approach might be to hire a planning consultant to work with city staff members and the Placerville Drive group. The city owes it to property owners to help them produce a plan in a reasonable time frame, he said. Kobus said the group would welcome the opportunity to work with a consultant with experience designing commercial areas. "Our goal is to put us on your radar," he told the council. Looking to the future, Washburn said, "It does seem like Placerville Drive is truly our greatest opportunity. It is a long street." To let it evolve without design guidelines, she said, would be a disservice to the city. Other communities are working to revitalize major commercial strips, Washburn said, noting that Rancho Cordova has plans to upgrade Folsom Boulevard, and Sacramento County is looking to improve Fulton and Howe avenues. Council members and others in the community have pointed to the Home Depot store, which opened last summer, as a model for development on Placerville Drive. The firm agreed to drop its prototype "big-box" design in favor of architecture more compatible with the foothills setting. The company also restored a section of Hangtown Creek to its original streambed along Placerville Drive and provided walkways along the stream. Kobus said he wants a plan that accommodates public transit as well as bicyclists and pedestrians. Washburn said Placerville Drive gives the city an opportunity to "take what we have that is old and substandard and make it an asset." Noting that 2006-07 budget preparations are about to begin, she asked that staff members develop a "kickoff" proposal for a Placerville Drive planning process. City Manager John Driscoll said they could provide a cost estimate and consider potential funding sources to help defray the cost. Steve Calfee, community development director, said he would present a report to the council in April.

------------ UP NEXT What: A meeting for business and property owners to discuss creating a plan for development on Placerville Drive When: 6 to 9 p.m. Monday Where: Board of Supervisors meeting room, 330 Fair Lane, Building A, Placerville

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Sacramento Bee, Calif.

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Source: The Sacramento Bee

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