Telling the Tale of the Tail That Wagged the Dog
By Elizabeth Patterson (Benicia Mayor 2007-2020), May 29, 2025
The tale is about Sky Valley development for thousands of homes and businesses. Business as usual with city officials and land developers. “Gotta” build in the next undeveloped land. Need more housing to bring revenues to the city. We must grow more housing to survive. I always wonder how far we need to “grow” – to Fairfield, to Sacramento, to Reno? In other words, it makes no sense to say “we have to grow to survive”. What is the alternative? Let me make a suggestion or two.
When there was city leadership driving the development for Sky Valley (this is the Lake Herman area), residents began to question the collective vision of the city. This city vision is required by the State – known as the General Plan. Bob Berman, a planner and leader for smart growth and open spaces – testified and wrote that Sky Valley was the tail wagging the dog. He campaigned for updating the General Plan that would be the legal vison of the city. This was a pivotal moment for Benicia.
There was a citizen driven petition to stop the Sky Valley project. By a city council one vote margin the city driven development for Sky Valley was scuttled. The city council in the mid 90s by resolution created an advisory task force on the nature and extent of updating the General Plan. And by resolution established a seventeen-member General Plan Oversight Committee (GPOC) to prepare the General Plan.
The GPOC decision making was by consensus during open meetings that were scheduled to encourage public participation. Common and shared values were identified and agreed upon by consensus. Each goal and policy had to meet those common and shared values by consensus. Each legally required element and optional element had to be integrated. A kind of holistic process. The future vision was adopted with clarity and purpose. Each element – housing, transportation, conservation, economic development, heathy community – was driven by sustainable development as the overarching goal.
The Urban Growth Boundary Line restricting urban development replaced the thousands of proposed suburban houses. The Benicia Industrial Park association waged a stellar campaign to prevent changing zoning from light industrial to commercial and mixed use with their focus on expansion for industry along East Second. Their point was to avoid conflict with future residents who would complain about industrial noise, big trucks and other incompatible activities.
The GPOC appointed by the council and made up of voices from every corner of our community was tasked with drafting the general plan. GPOC held nearly a dozen panels of specialists on geology, property rights, economic development, urban design, affordable housing, community health, and hazardous waste to inform the committee and public. We had experts educating citizens so that opportunities and constraints – that is what trained urban and regional planners practice – were known and vetted in public.
So is the potential Valero closure the tail wagging the dog of development? Best to start with what are the objective standards for sustainable development. It sure is not building housing that creates more vehicle trips – in fact there is a state law that says just that.
And what does resiliency mean? Public Resources Code 71360 (Senate Bill 246, 2015) established the Clearinghouse to support holistic, science-based climate resilience decisions, planning, and projects across local communities, regions, and the State. Clearinghouse resources include toolkits and templates, example plans and projects, curated case studies, scientific studies, tools and data, guidance documents, and more.
Lastly, homage to historic downtown Benicia is perfect. There are approximately 482 historic towns and cities in California, though none as special as Benicia. And there is only one Historic Arsenal in California, here in Benicia – which is slated through the congressionally established Delta National Heritage Area as a destination for visitors and residents alike.
The current Benicia General Plan stipulates that goals and policies must meet sustainable development overarching goal. Decision makers for “cohesive new neighborhoods like Rose Estates, [Historic Arsenal] Jefferson Ridge and the Valero property” are not the unifying consensus vision of Benicians. Once again, the tail is wagging the dog of Benicia’s future.
Elizabeth Patterson, Mayor 2007-2020
This is a pivotal moment in our city’s history. The potential Valero refinery closure isn’t just a challenge—it’s our opportunity to reimagine Benicia’s future.
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