Sacramento City Council considers what to do with 102-acre Meadowview property
(FOX40.COM) — The city of Sacramento has a better understanding of what it can do with the 102-acre lot purchased in the Meadowview in 2022 after city staff made their first report to the city council on Tuesday.
In January 2022, the City of Sacramento closed negotiations to purchase an undeveloped 102-acre plot at 3100 Meadowview Road for $12.3 million.
The property was formally owned by the federal government as part of the Sacramento Job Corps Center Site.
“I’m excited we have this unique opportunity to build more affordable and permanent housing, and have access to land for the community, to co-create with the community and to dream big about what we envision for South Sacramento,” Councilmember Mai Vang said in January 2022.
New parking garage to add 5,000+ spaces at Sacramento International Airport
Tuesday’s report shed some light on the actual condition of the property and just how much these envisioned projects could end up costing.
Economic and Planning Systems, Inc. (EIC) provided the council with four options for the property.
• Option 1: Maximum Sports Complex
• Option 2: Sports Complex and Residential with Wetland Preservation
• Option 3: Sports Complex and Residential without Wetland Preservation
• Option 4: Maximum Residential
One of the key considerations noted by EIC was the current existence of man-made wetlands that could already be hosting species, which may require further investigation before any major changes are made.
$2.2M contract awarded for Weber Park reimagining
If the city chooses options 1, 3 or 4 and has full development of the site, costs could be up to $13 million in mitigation and environmental impact fees, according to the report.
That cost drops to around $9.21 million if option 2 is chosen and a portion of the property is preserved as wetlands.
“The provided cost estimate for development with wetland preserve is solely for preserving the wetlands in their current state. Additional expenses would be required to transform them into a functional and attractive open wetland preserve and open space amenity,” EIC noted in its report.
EIC’s report continues that after the initial costs of addressing the wetlands are completed, the cost of proposed projects could be from $52.2 million to $127.4 million depending on the project selected.
New Raising Cane’s location coming to Sacramento area
Option 1 would incur a cost of $127.4 million, render a revenue of $7.8 million over 30 years and end up running $119.6 million in the red.
Option 2 would cost around $98.7 million, bring in around $25.5 million from residential land sales and sports complex revenue and still run a deficit of $73.2 million.
Option 3 is similar to Option 2, would cost around $99.5 million, but bring in $37 million from the additional residential land sales and would run a lesser deficit of $59.1 million.
The only option to run a profit would be Option 4. Being fully residential, the full development costs would be $52.2 million, run a positive of $85.9 million from residential land sales and finish at $33.7 million in the black.
Lineup announced for 2024 Concerts in the Park
After the options were presented to the council and the floor was opened to public comment a handful of commenters pointed out the lack of options for the property to be used for homeless housing.
“The purpose and motive here is to try to get more property to house and shelter our homeless population,” one of the speakers said. “That was repeated twice, maybe three times by the mayor and the city manager when they were talking about buying this property.”
In FOX40.com’s previous coverage, a Safe Parking site was mentioned as a potential partial usage of the site.
People living in their cars could safely park and receive services that are similar to the Safe Parking site the city operates on South Front Street, south of downtown.
Roseville Electric increasing rates by 18% over 8 months
After public comment, Vang said that she had always seen the property as a “catalyst” for South Sacramento and could serve as a temporary shelter space.
“When we first identified this site and purchased the property there was a commitment from me and I said it pretty clear from the beginning, you all can PRA me, but my commitment was that this property was going to be a catalyst for South Sacramento and if possible, also short-term use as a temporary shelter,” Vang said, referring to Public Records Act’s initials.
If options 2, 3 or 4 are selected, 25% of the housing on the property will need to be slated as affordable due to the Surplus Land Act passed by the California state legislation.
Tuesday night’s presentation was only up for council discussion and no decision was made on which option to move forward with for the property.
The item will now be presented to the South Sacramento community throughout the spring and summer before returning to the city council for final direction to city staff in the summer or fall.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40.
