Redevelopment Future, Firework Sales and Dutra Just Some of the Issues Before Council

The City Council has some important decisions to make at Monday’s meeting, including whether the city will remain a plaintiff in the ongoing case against Dutra Materials, which has been approved to build an asphalt plant at Haystack Landing.

Over the past several weeks, project on the council through letters, emails and phone calls, urging the city to stay the course as they prepare to take the decision to appellate court. Others say the city should not continue spending its limited cash on the legal fight because it has other priorities.

Tell us what you think by taking our poll

Also on the council’s agenda—a vote on whether the city will become the , following a California Supreme Court decision banning redevelopment agencies. Money the city collected via its redevelopment district will now go to fund schools and police, but it will likely result in layoffs at city hall, since numerous salaries were directly funded by redevelopment monies.

And it’s still six months to go before the Fourth of July, but Petaluma Fire Chief Larry Anderson is expected to make a recommendation that the city not add another day to its fireworks sales to match nearby Rohnert Park and Sebastopol. According to Anderson’s report, there is no evidence that Petaluma residents leave town to stock up on fireworks or that local nonprofits (who sell the fireworks to raise funds) lose out on revenue.

Also, at least one of the companies (Phantom) that sells fireworks throughout the county made nearly twice as much from Petaluma sales as it did from Rohnert Park, despite one day less of sales, according to a staff report.

And finally, the council will vote on a resolution requesting that Congress amend the U.S. Constitution regarding . A 2010 Supreme Court decision, Citizens United v. Federal Electoral Commission ruled that election spending by corporations could not be restricted because it impinged on their freedom of speech.

If passed, Petaluma will become one of dozens of cities around the country opposing corporate personhood, which critics says give corporations unlimited power to sway elections.

Monday’s meeting starts at 7pm, but the public can also comment on the Dutra issue at 5:15pm before council's closed session meeting.