State budget includes funding for key Sonoma County priority projects

The agreement reached today between Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state Legislature on California’s 2023-24 budget includes more than $7.5 million for Sonoma County programs including affordable housing, regional park renovations, food security and firefighting equipment.

“With this injection of state funding, the county will be able to accomplish more than our own budget anticipated,” County Administrator Christina Rivera said. “We thank our state legislators and Governor Newsom for including these important Sonoma County projects in the state budget.”

The county’s Community Development Commission will receive $3 million for an affordable housing and commercial development project in Roseland. The funding is for backbone infrastructure for Tierra de Rosas, a mixed-use affordable housing and neighborhood center development project in the Roseland area of Santa Rosa. The project includes Casa Roseland, a 75-unit affordable housing project within Tierra de Rosas.

“This is a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to support housing in one of the most historically underserved communities in Sonoma County,” said Supervisor Chris Coursey, chair of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. "With the addition of the state’s funding, combined with an allocation of $7.7 million from the county’s most recent budget and an additional $2 million I committed from district-specific infrastructure funds, we have made substantial progress in narrowing the $18 million gap that stood before us. The combined investment brings us closer to breaking ground on this long-promised project and demonstrates our collective dedication to supporting the resiliency of our county and its residents.”

Under the 2023-24 state budget, which was approved in both the state Assembly and Senate today, Sonoma County Regional Parks is set to receive $2.25 million for two parks in Sonoma Valley. Maxwell Farms Regional Park will get $1 million to renovate and improve existing facilities as well as add new features as envisioned in the 85-acre park’s master plan. Another $1 million will help renovate Larson Regional Park, addressing referred maintenance, improving recreation and enhancing safety at the well-used neighborhood park. The final $250,000 will fund the Sonoma Valley Wildlands Collaborative, a partnership between the county and conservation groups that works to maintain and improve ecosystem health, increase resilience to wildfires and climate change, and reduce future impacts of wildfire to communities in the Sonoma Valley.

“Residents of Sonoma Valley should be thrilled with this funding for our beloved parks,” said Supervisor Susan Gorin, who represents Sonoma Valley. “Thank you to our state representatives for supporting our budget request.”

Additional funding for Sonoma County in the state budget includes:

• $1 million for the Sonoma County Fire District to purchase a new wildland firefighting apparatus
• And $1 million for the County of Sonoma to give to the Ceres Project, a Santa Rosa nonprofit that grows and prepares meals for people living with chronic illness

Learn more about the state budget at ebudget.ca.gov/. Governor Newsom is expected to sign the budget legislation before the start of the fiscal year on July 1.