Supervisors To Vote On Stone Mill Center Project
Sonora, CA — The Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors will hold a special evening session to review the Stone Mill Center project proposed near the intersection of Parrotts Ferry Road and Union Hill Road.
The Planning Commission approved the project with a 5-0 vote at a meeting in early January. A week later, an appeal was filed by Barbara Farkas, representing the group Citizens For Responsible Growth. The group argued that a full Environmental Impact Report should be completed, claiming that this is the first part of a larger project. It also voices concerns about increased traffic, noise and watershed impacts.
The project up for review includes three commercial buildings that will total a combined 15,933 sq. ft. They would be situated along 2.1 acres.
Speaking about the benefits of the project, Stone Mill Center project consultant Ron Kopf says, “A key tenant is the Sonora Regional Medical Center Prompt Care and primary care facility that has executed a lease with the developer. That will provide needed services for Sonora, Columbia and other county residents. We also have other commercial space available that can provide other services as well.”
Responding to concerns about increased traffic, Kopf says, “Tuolumne County has been approved for grant funding to improve the Pedro Wye intersection at Highway 49 and Parrotts Ferry Road. Right now there is an unsafe condition at that corner, but it is going to be improved, and the county has grant funding to do that. This neighborhood commercial center is estimated to provide about 2.6% of the traffic that will be on that road. So, it has a very small impact on the overall traffic, and the road will be improved.
Kopf argues the project has been designed in a manner to protect and improve the scenic quality along Parrotts Ferry Road, and also enhance the gateway to Columbia State Historic Park.
The public hearing on the project, where residents on both sides of the issue will get a chance to weigh in, begins at 6pm, this Tuesday, in the Board of the Supervisors meeting room in downtown Sonora.
