Modesto's Tivoli annexation wins easy approval

By ADAM ASHTON
aashton@modbee.com

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Modesto's largest land annexation since 1991 sailed to approval with no opposition from residents at a public hearing Wednesday night.

The Local Agency Formation Commission, a five-person body that gets the last say on land use in Stanislaus County, unanimously voted to let Modesto annex 471 acres north of Sylvan Avenue that one day could contain as many as 3,200 homes.

Supporters of the Tivoli planning area face one more test before they can submit plans for specific projects and begin building. Residents in the planning area get a chance to protest the annexation later this summer.

But the lack of opposition to the project at the LAFCO hearing showed that Tivoli's backers have settled most of the arguments that could have sidetracked their proposal.

They've been working on it since the late 1990s, and won a citywide vote in 2001 that set up Tivoli's eventual annexation.

"This represents the culmination of almost 10 years of my life," said Dave Romano. He's the engineer who worked with different interests in the Tivoli area to guide the proposal through rounds of government reviews and negotiations with neighbors.

Russell Harrison, a Modesto engineer who lives near the Tivoli planning area, submitted written comments to LAFCO, criticizing the annexation. He argued that Tivoli's planning documents didn't account for its full traffic impacts.

Two resident groups, one on Mable Avenue and one on McReynolds Avenue, that have fought Tivoli in the past did not attend the hearing. They persuaded the developers to modify their plans and ease impacts on residents at a City Council meeting in February.

A lawyer for the Mable Avenue group sent a letter to LAFCO saying his clients reserved the right to protest the annexation during the upcoming vote.

City Planning Division Manager Patrick Kelly called Tivoli "a milestone" for Modesto, noting it was the largest since LAFCO approved the 1,700-acre Village I annexation in 1991.

He said residents should see the area change slowly.

"It's not going to happen overnight," Kelly said. "It's going to happen in various phases overtime."

Planners say they don't expect to see residential development take place in Tivoli in the near future, because of the region's housing downturn. The project includes 67 acres zoned for commercial projects off of Oakdale Road that could develop more quickly, officials have said.

The project contains 286 acres for residential building, 31 acres for new and expanded roads, 30 acres for parks, 14 acres for a new school, 14 acres for neighborhood businesses, six acres for other commercial businesses and two acres for offices.

Tivoli's developers include three Bay Area groups and two local ones. One from Modesto is led by PMZ Real Estate President Mike Zagaris; the other consists of current and former Mid-Valley Engineering executives.

Bee staff writer Adam Ashton can be reached at aashton@modbee.com or 578-2366.