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"The bottom line is our city is doing very well," said Mayor Bob Woerner at the start of his State of the City address Thursday, summarizing the city's overall standing.
The Wine Country Luncheon hosted by the Livermore Valley Chamber of Commerce was attended by more than 200 people, including local business leaders, elected officials, nonprofit representatives, educators, city staff and residents for Woerner's first in-person State of the City presentation since his 2020 election to mayor.
In his report, Woerner said that the city boasts of healthy finances with roughly $63 million in General Fund reserves as well as emergency preparedness, new housing on the horizon, progress on the downtown revitalization plan and an overall "resilient economy" that has bounced back "really well" from impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Great Recession.
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Among the ongoing housing projects, Woerner highlighted the Legacy at Livermore development currently in construction downtown at the corner of First Street and South L Street, the "Vineyard 2.0" supportive housing and services development which broke ground in April of this year and the Avancé apartment complex for adults with developmental disabilities located at 4260 First St., which was formerly Sunflower Hill Livermore.
He also mentioned the future Lassen Road townhomes and trail set to begin construction next summer and the Isabel Neighborhood Specific Plan, which would allow development of 4,095 new multi-family housing units and approximately 2.1 million square feet of net new office, business park, and commercial development, among other amenities. Woerner cited the project as the key to meeting 50% of the city's Regional Housing Needs Allocation.
The contentious affordable Eden Housing project was discussed later in the presentation. "I think most everyone is familiar with what's going on there or maybe not going on there," Woerner quipped while introducing the topic.
The 130-unit affordable housing project is currently in litigation following a lawsuit filed by citizen group Save Livermore Downtown, which is advocating for the project to be moved to another location and for a community park to be placed on the city-owned site located at the southeast corner of Railroad Avenue and L Street. Though their initial lawsuit was denied in court earlier this year, the group has since filed an appeal.
In his comments about the project, Woerner briefly addressed the recent resident-submitted referendum on it. "Unfortunately, there's a lot of false information being circulated about this," he said.
He continued, "The key legislative policy decisions were made many years ago and are no longer referendable. All the environmental clearances are being signed off by the relevant regulators and the frivolous lawsuits are needlessly delaying this essentially shovel-ready project."
Woerner shared the quote "No good deed goes un-litigated" from San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, which Woerner said he felt was applicable to the ongoing Eden Housing debate.
Despite the issues surrounding Eden Housing, a number of other downtown revitalization projects are making progress which Woerner also highlighted, including the newly-completed Livermorium Plaza and the opening of Quest Plaza at Stockmen's Park — a 5,000-square-foot outdoor science exploration and community space which will serve as a hub for Quest-sponsored programs and science events until the Quest Science Center building is built.
He also mentioned the recent completion of the new I Street parking garage and highlighted projects soon to come, including the boutique-style wine country hotel set to begin construction in Spring of 2024, the SPARC TheaterLab — which will be an art and culture community space — and the planned Blacksmith Square expansion proposed by Pleasanton-based Red Bear, Inc. which was founded by the two sons of the late NFL icon and businessman, John Madden.
The project includes a 2,800-square-foot addition to the existing building along with a 3,600-square-foot standalone building that will include an expansion of the existing Blacksmith Square courtyard. There will also be a 6,800-square-foot two story building with a roof deck on the vacant land next to Uncle Yu’s restaurant.
"It's just another great addition by the Madden family who have committed a lot of time and money over the years and helped us develop just a great downtown," Woerner said, adding that he's personally excited to experience dining on the rooftop deck when it opens.
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Among the many new and budding businesses in Livermore, Woerner named Locanda Wine Bar, Manor Market, Bath & Body Works, Sons of Liberty Alehouse, Charming Fig Catering and The Cheese Parlor.
The Cheese Parlor is also one of the members of the city's Small Business Scholarship Program in partnership with the chamber. The program aims to support the establishment of small businesses by connecting them with chamber resources. Through the scholarship, participants receive funding to cover their first year of chamber membership. The recipients so far also include AJ's Bike Service, Stacked Paddys Sports and Purple Hayes CBD.
As for Livermore's future, Woerner expressed confidence in the direction that the city is going to continue "setting the stage for success." However, he will not be experiencing the changes ahead as an elected official. After 11 years total on the City Council and two as mayor, Woerner will be stepping away from city government at the end of his term, choosing not to seek re-election this year due to health concerns.
He said the city plans to continue moving forward with the vision for downtown, addressing homelessness, investing in its "award-winning" schools, prioritizing public safety, managing assets and infrastructure and supporting the arts.
Woerner noted during his talk that the city will also continue its support of expanding the Livermore wine country, including a proposed ballot initiative to extend sanitary sewer service beyond the urban growth boundary to serve wine country uses. At its last regular meeting, the City Council approved the finalized language for the initiative and is set to vote on a resolution to place the initiative on the Nov. 8 general election ballot on July 25.
A copy of Woerner's powerpoint presentation and notes used during the speech is available to view on the city's website. City officials said a recording will also be available soon.
