SMART Maintenance Facility a No Go, Says Spokesman

A maintenance facility in the heart of Petaluma is a “non-starter” said the spokesman for the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit at a meeting of business leaders Tuesday morning.

The possibility of having a train repair and storage facility next to the depot at Lakeville and D streets has caused alarm among some city leaders, who worried that the decision would impact proposed revitalization and development of the area.

But Chris Coursey, a SMART spokesman, laid those fears to rest during a Chamber of Commerce breakfast at by saying that the agency was looking at other sites.

“We know Petaluma does not want an industrial site on the property,” Coursey said. “As far as we are concerned, it’s a non-starter.”

However, the maintenance facility is a big-ticket item for SMART and will cost upwards of $50 million, so the agency is looking at where it can cut costs, he said. During the talk, Coursey also mentioned that each station would have a shuttle connected to it, which would make stops at local grocery stores, the Santa Rosa Junior College and “other job centers” before returning to the SMART station.

 One concern some have had about the SMART train is that might block traffic at intersections when it pulls into a station. But Coursey said the train would only have three cars, which have designed to fit into the length of a city block.

 Trains would come every 30 minutes during peak hours, with an average fare of $4.50. There will also be space on the trains for bicycles.

One proposed cut that is still very much on the table is delaying construction of the Corona Road site. An estimated $6 million will be needed to acquire the land around the site and another $5 to build it, according to SMART.

The fate of the Corona Road station will be discussed at the next SMART meeting scheduled for April 6 at 490 Mendocino Ave. Suite 103 in Santa Rosa. Starts at 10am.