Webinars planned for Woodland’s proposed Research and Technology Park – Daily Democrat


Webinars planned for Woodland’s proposed Research and Technology Park – Daily Democrat

A presentation of a draft specific plan for Woodland’s 351-acre Research and Technology Park has been scheduled by the city in a webinar.

Two webinars are scheduled at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Feb, 9; and Thursday, Feb. 11. City staff will provide the presentations and offer an opportunity for questions and answers.

The second webinar, scheduled for Feb. 11, is dedicated for residents of the Spring Lake Subdivision, but all are welcome to attend.

To attend the meeting, people should go to https://zoom.us/j/95100895874; or telephone 1 (669) 900-6833; the webinar ID is 951 0089 5874.

The envisioned Research and Technology Park on what is now farmland southeast of Woodland was given tentative approval in whole by the Woodland City Council in late November, but now a “specific plan” is being considered which will get down to the nitty-gritty of developing a timeline for construction, location of various housing, business, and recreational sites along with other details.

People can view the draft specific plan on the city’s website at https://www.cityofwoodland.org/ResearchPark.

Future outreach sessions will be scheduled as the project moves toward final hearings in May 2021.

The November hearing before the council required no action and was meant to provide a broader perspective of how the development is expected to grow, the number of people and businesses anticipated, and how it will draw agricultural entrepreneurs from UC Davis and the world at large.

In general, the proposed, mixed-use development would feature nearly 2.2 million square feet of office and research buildings in a “campus-style” setting and 1,600 homes with a 10-acre central park and 22 acres of parks in all separating the neighborhoods from the offices and a small commercial area on 351 acres. It would be located south of Woodland, east of Hwy. 113, and west of Harry Lorenzo Drive in the Spring Lake area, and south of Farmers Central Road to just south of County Road 25A on property now owned by five different landowners.

Proposed by the Woodland Research and Technology Group, and developer John Hodgson, the project has the potential of bringing hundreds of both blue- and white-collar jobs. It has been discussed for at least five years and has been incorporated into the city’s General Plan as the next major phase of growth for the city. Buildout isn’t anticipated for at least 20 years and could be phased to provide a complex of office buildings at the southern end of the property, followed by residential.

While offering no specific business names, Hodgson told the council he’s seeing “considerable interest” and that it wasn’t necessarily he or his firm reaching out to prospects, but people calling him. Some of the interest is coming from a “major state agency” who’s interested in the high tech and sustainability features of this project, “a number of ag tech operations” planning to grow or expand and some professional offices looking to expand.

Hodgson also said interest has been expressed from a South Korean company, which is staff by a number of “PhDs who are all graduates of UC Davis,” a COVID-19 testing firm, and companies from Sweden and Holland.

As for the design, Hodgson said the “residential villages district” would consist of 135 acres with 1,600 residential housing adjacent to the Spring Lake area with higher and lower-density development as well as a village center that includes a town center to serve as a gathering space offering “informal networking” a mobility hub, leading to 11 acres of linear park.


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