Hey Focus fans!
The heat is getting turned up under Riverbank’s controversial River Walk proposal, a 1,000-acre expansion indirectly subject to a Nov. 3 vote by city residents.
River Walk, which could bring stores and 2,400 homes west of Riverbank and south of the Stanislaus River to McHenry Avenue, represents needed housing to some and dreaded urban sprawl to others.
Opponents collected enough signatures nearly two years ago to force a citywide vote but missed a deadline for the fall 2024 ballot by a few weeks, pushing it to this November.
Meanwhile, work continued on required environmental studies and a roadmap called the River Walk Specific Plan. With that wrapping up, the city scheduled a 6 p.m. Aug. 4 hearing before the city’s planning commission in the Riverbank Community Center, a larger-than-normal venue to accommodate an expected big crowd.
The Riverbank City Council would have a final say, and another layer of approval by a regional agency with power over annexations (and subject to various political pressures) would come eventually.
Some observers accuse the city of ramming through local approvals before regular people can vote on Measure M, the name recently given to the Nov. 3 citywide vote. It doesn’t directly address River Walk, but would give Riverbank residents authority to veto such projects embraced by city leaders.
Asked for a response, City Manager Marisela Garcia noted that the city and its consultants have been working with supporters on River Walk and required studies since it was first proposed in 2021.
“These documents are now considered complete, and the project is ready to move forward,” she told me in an email.
Opponents seem more organized and better funded than many I’ve seen in years of covering land-use issues, so buckle up. This promises to be a wild ride.
With only a couple of weeks left in the filing period (it closes Aug. 7), potential candidates are coming forward for public office in Modesto and Stanislaus County.
For example, Matthew Gonzalez pulled papers to challenge incumbent Nick Bavaro for his Modesto City Council seat in District 4, according to the city clerk’s online candidates tracker.
Pulling papers is a first step. It becomes official when the clerk’s office verifies candidacy, noted on the same website – for example, Bavaro’s reelection run was verified Monday.
Juan Telles, a previously announced candidate, also pulled papers to challenge incumbent Eric Alvarez in District 2, and District 5 incumbent Jeremiah Williams has taken the same preliminary step with no challenger so far.
The Modesto city clerk’s office also runs elections for the Modesto City Schools board, where incumbents Chad Brown and Jolene Daly are not seeking reelection.
Longtime incumbent Cindy Marks may face a challenge from Nefi Lopez (both pulled papers) in Area 1, and incumbent Adolfo Lopez has no challenger yet in Area 7.
Stephanie Poulsen pulled papers for Brown’s Area 3 seat, and Debra Brady and Michelle Tomlinson are going for Daly’s Area 5 seat.