Laguna de Santa Rosa Trail Phase 1
Kelly Farm Trailhead
Background
The Laguna de Santa Rosa is the largest freshwater wetland complex in Sonoma County. Its 250 square mile watershed includes the communities of Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, Cotati, Sebastopol, Forestville and Windsor. The Laguna is the primary drainage of the Santa Rosa Plain and also functions as a major floodwater storage basin for the lower Russian River. The Laguna also provides habitat for diverse wildlife and plant species.
In September 2001, the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District (District) secured conservation easements over the City of Santa Rosa’s Alpha, Brown, Kelly, and Stone Farms. In February 2002, a conservation easement was obtained over 65 acres of the Balletto property. Subsequently, the Balletto property has been transferred in fee title to the County of Sonoma. All of these properties are located within the Laguna de Santa Rosa.
Laguna Trail Map (PDF: 15MB)In December 2006, the District Board of Supervisors approved the Laguna de Santa Rosa Protected Lands Trails Plan and adopted the Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration. The Trails Plan consists of proposed trails on five properties – the four farm properties owned by the City of Santa Rosa, and the privately-owned Balletto property. The goal of the Trails Plan is to balance recreation with the protection and preservation of sensitive natural and cultural resources, while creating public trails that allow users a variety of experiences in the Laguna de Santa Rosa, and the opportunity to appreciate its diverse ecological and scenic resources. The Trails Plan identifies trail alignments, public access and interpretive facilities to accommodate hikers, bicyclists, and equestrians. The trails and overlooks are sited and designed to provide Americans with Disabilities (A.D.A.) access, avoid sensitive habitat areas, and respect existing agricultural and other uses.
The District, Regional Parks, City of Santa Rosa, City of Sebastopol, and Sonoma County Water Agency are working in partnership to implement Phase 1 of the Trails Plan. The Phase 1 Project includes approximately 2.4 miles of trails over Kelly Farm, the Balletto property, and the City of Sebastopol’s Laguna Wetland Preserve. The Project consists of constructing two trailheads, disabled parking stalls, a 1.8-mile multi-use trail, a 0.6-mile pedestrian-only trail, bike racks, horse rail, tree planting, benches, gates, and an overlook area. The 8-foot wide multi-use trail will have a decomposed granite surface and the 4-foot pedestrian-only trail will have a dirt surface. The construction activities include: earthwork, drainage improvements, gravel paving, concrete paving, asphalt concrete paving, bollard and sign installation, temporary construction fencing, and erosion control.
Construction
Construction started on September 13, 2010 and is scheduled to be completed by the end of October 2010. The construction contract in the amount of $724,429 has been awarded to Cats 4 U of Healdsburg. The construction cost is funded by a $500,000 grant from the California Coastal Conservancy and $274,429 from the District’s sales tax revenue from Measure C.
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