Town Hall Meetings

February 9, 2014 Town Meeting

About 70 of your neighbors attended a Town Meeting on Sunday, 2/9, hosted by the Forestville Planning Association. The purpose of the meeting was to celebrate the Town’s acquisition of property for a long-desired Town Square and open space park that would allow the West County trail to connect directly with Forestville.

This was achieved through a public-private partnership between the Sonoma County Open Space District, the Forestville Planning Association, and a private investor group — the Town Square Associates.

The agenda of the meeting was primarily for Forestvillians to have input on the use and design of these new areas, which are dedicated to public use.

After a slide show of other town squares to peak our imaginations, we had small group discussions followed by suggestions from the whole group in response to three questions:

What activities would you want to happen here?
What physical characteristics should be included?
What are your biggest concerns/fears about the project?
After an extensive list of ideas was generated under each topic, we voted on the three top priorities in each category.

31 ideas were proposed for preferred activities. The highest vote-getters were:
Holiday Tree lighting, 17
Concerts/performances, 17
Bicycle parking and car parking, 16
Walking, 15
Farmers’ market, 15
Community gardening, 11
Natural plants, 10
Of the 40 physical characteristics suggested, the top votes were for:
As little as possible, 26
Stage, 19
Gazebo, 18
Water features, 15
Bathrooms, 14
Living Christmas tree, 12
Under the 14 concerns/fears about the project, the highest votes were:
For no duplication with the Youth Park, 25
Keep it simple and flexible so it’s achievable, 25
Financial resources, 22
Maintenance, 18
Parking conflict with pedestrian use, 16
No use of money from Quarries, 13
Design group’s ideas for a total design solution, 10
(i.e. How the commercial partners envision integrating their future development with the town Square.)
All the ideas generated in the Meeting will now be considered by the Town Square Planning Group, a design committee consisting of representatives from our community and from the private investors. Fortunately, this group includes 3 volunteer architects.

See all ideas below.

Preliminary designs will be based on the suggestions from the Town Meeting, on the input from the recent survey, as well as on what is workable and affordable.

The design may well have to envision phases or stages. Another Town Meeting will be held soon to review the Committee‘s design suggestions and to gather more input from you. → Continue to submit your suggestions.
Scroll down to Add Your Comments.

All ideas from the 2/9 meeting, submitted online and mailed in before the 2/9 meeting.
Number following each means how many people chose these ideas when asked to pick their 3 top choices in a category.

What activities would you want to happen here?
Meditation, 0
Community Pot Lucks, 1
Cooking Contests, 0
May Pole Festival, 0
Movies, 6
Natural Plants, 10
Learning Opportunities, 0
Dancing, 0
Sitting, 6
Playing Games, 2
Picnicking, 5
Concerts/Performing, 17
Child Play, 0
Weddings, 1
Beautiful, 3
Water, 7
Dog Park, 7
Marshmallow roasts, 1
Community Gardening, 11
Wi-Fi, 3
Farmer’s Market, 15
Shady Napping, 3
Socializing, 8
Christmas Tree Lighting, 17
Walking, 15
Biking, 6
Bird Watching, 3
Fund Raising, 1
Fair, 0
Bicycle Parking and Car Parking, 16
Taichi, 0
Total: 164

What physical characteristics should be included?
Bathrooms, 14
Gazebo, 18
Lighting, 3
Stage, 19
Comfortable Seating, 6
Solar Power, 2
Tree House, 4
Adobe Oven, 0
Trails, 7
Hardscape, 1
Water Features, 15
Book Exchange, 0
Bike Shop, 1
Horseshoe Pit, 1
Volley Ball, 0
Labyrinth, 1
Tether Ball, 1
Bird Feeders/Bird Houses, 2
Art Wall, 4
Peace Garden, 7
Remembrance Garden, 0
Bike Racks, 1
As Little As Possible, 26
Water Fountain, 5
Large Clock with Temperature, 0
Fencing for Dog Park, 3
Arbor with espalier, 0
Fireplace, 3
Living Christmas Tree, 12
Time Capsule, 1
Kitchen, 3
Outdoor Gallery, 0
Children/Community Rental, 0
Bocce Ball Court, 2
Permanent Ping Pong, 0
Swing, 0
Juice Bar, 0
Bulletin Board, 1
Pesticide Free Zone, 0
Total: 163

What are your biggest concerns/fears about this project?
No Duplication of the Youth Park, 25
E.I.R. Log Jam, 3
Parking Conflict, 16
Collaborate with School and Other Local Resources, 8
No Taxes, 9
No Money from Quarries, 13
Keep Simple, Flexible so its achievable, 25
Organize Volunteers, 2
Financial Resources, 22
Overall Plan with Phasing, 1
Vagrancy, 9
Vandalism, 1
Design Group’s ideas for total design solution, 10
Maintenance, 18
Total: 162