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Press Release

November 9, 2006

Contact:
Christina Wong, East Bay Field Representative, (925) 932-7776
David Reid, Field Director, (415) 543-6771 x312

Antioch Annexation Allowed

Many Say Move Will Increase Traffic, Problems Caused by Uncontrolled Growth

The Contra Costa Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) agreed yesterday to allow the annexation of Roddy Ranch to the City of Antioch. Local residents and environmentalists opposed the annexation, claiming it would harm the city’s quality of life and wildlife habitat. Annexation to the City of Antioch allows the city to approve as many as 700 new houses in the rolling hills south of the city.

“Antioch’s pressing problems of traffic congestion, air pollution, lack of high-paying jobs for local workers, and growth problems will not be solved through annexing Roddy Ranch,” said Christina Wong, East Bay Field Representative for Greenbelt Alliance. “The City of Antioch should focus on real solutions to these problems through investing in and revitalizing the city.” 

Roddy Ranch’s history of controversy peaked last year, when Antioch voters passed Measure K, establishing an expansive Urban Growth Boundary which includes the 1,000-acre Roddy Ranch. The land includes the Roddy Ranch Golf Course, which was approved amid much controversy in the late nineties. Part of that approval required that no homes be built around the golf course.

Roddy Ranch is identified as high-value wildlife habitat in the East Contra Costa County Habitat Conservation plan, which was finalized this year. Experts are concerned that development in the area will impact kit fox and other wildlife moving between Black Diamond Mines and Cowell Ranch State Park.

In addition, the project will add hundreds of new cars to Antioch’s crowded streets and the traffic-plagued State Route 4. Opponents are also concerned about stretching the city’s services too thin.

“Antioch has thousands of acres of vacant land inside the city. Why does it need more land outside the city? The city is just digging itself into a deeper hole,” said Wong.

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For 50 years, Greenbelt Alliance has been the San Francisco Bay Area's advocate for open spaces and vibrant places, with offices in San Francisco, San Jose, Walnut Creek, Fairfield, and Santa Rosa. www.greenbelt.org