Golf Course Neighborhood Update

Can You Believe It?

On October 10, 2006 the City Council Voted and Approved the Golf Course (GC) Zone for Canyon Lakes and San Ramon Golf Courses. Bridges, the other San Ramon golf course, still remains as a Parks (P) zone and is inconsistent with the other two golf courses.

This San Ramon City Council story is more like a saga then a short story. The City Council could have taken care of this issue nearly a year ago and saved the San Ramon Taxpayers money, not to mention the wasted time they incurred on themselves and the San Ramon Citizens.

On July 25, 2006 after seven long months and many meetings with hundreds of people standing up before the Planning Commission and, urging the City Council repeatedly not to change the zoning of the golf courses, and, to KEEP the golf courses (Canyon Lakes & San Ramon Golf Club) zoned in "Parks" (where it has always been) and, NOT to change them to Commercial Recreation (a new land use developed by the City Council/Planning Department which is Commercial Development with many unrelated uses to a golf course), the Council completely ignored the wishes of the people and VOTED AND APPROVED THE NEW ZONE CALLED "COMMERCIAL RECREATION (CR)."

A group of citizens filed an Initiative with the City of San Ramon soon thereafter, and, they need 4,000 signatures to put it on the Ballot for November 07, in order to let the citizens of San Ramon decide the future of the 250 acres of golf course open space, not the City Council.

In August, 2006, Mayor, Abram Wilson announced on Channel 30 TV the City Council has changed their minds and, now realize the CR zone was not the best for the City, and will now begin the process to Re-Zone the two golf courses from CR to a Golf Course Zone. It will take another three meetings with the Planning Commission and, another three meetings with the City Council to vote and approve it. Why Mr. Mayor and Council did you waste the Citizens time by refusing to listen to us and, then to do what we asked for after you rezoned to CR and, to use City funds of over $20,000.00 to fix your error?

The Bridges Golf Course (the newest golf course on Bollinger Canyon Road) was annexed to the City of San Ramon in 2001 and, the City chose to leave it zoned under, "Parks." That way it cannot be touched by developers.

On October 10, 2006 after three more months of meetings, the City Council Voted and Approved the Golf Course (GC) Zone for Canyon Lakes and San Ramon Golf Courses. Bridges still remains as Parks (P) zone and is inconsistent with the other two golf courses.

The Council created a window of opportunity for the owners of the golf courses when they rezoned the 250 acres of Open Space from Parks (P) to Commercial Recreation (CR) on 7-25-06 that continued through 10-10-06. The Council was warned by Citizens multiple times that this rezoning would create legal entitlements for the owners of the golf courses if they choose to sell or develop the golf course property.