Board of Supervisors decertifies EIR and repeals the approval of the Sonoma Developmental Center Specific Plan in response to court ruling

The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted to decertify the Environmental Impact Report and repeal the approval of a development plan for the former Sonoma Developmental Center campus in Glen Ellen in response to a Sonoma County Superior Court ruling that the County’s Specific Plan violated the California Environmental Quality Act. 

The board adopted the SDC Specific Plan, a document that guides development of the 945-acre campus, on Dec. 16, 2022. One month later, Sonoma Community Advocates for a Livable Environment, or SCALE, filed a lawsuit alleging that the plan’s environmental impact report failed to comply with CEQA. On Oct. 22, the court ruled for SCALE, the plaintiffs.  

The board on Tuesday decertified the environmental impact report and rescinded the adoption of the Specific Plan. The board stopped short of abandoning the SDC Specific Plan comprehensive planning initiative, the years-long process that included extensive community input. 

In August 2023, developer Eldridge Renewal, LLC submitted an application for redevelopment of the 180-acre core SDC campus. Under state law, the County is restricted in its ability to deny or reduce the density of the project, even if it conflicts with the General Plan or an adopted Specific Plan. The board decided to revise the Specific Plan and analyze the environmental impacts of the plan and development application. 

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Media Contact:
Matt Brown, Supervising Communications Specialist
publicaffairs@sonoma-county.org
(707) 565-3040