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Trestle History - 4/19/06 to 4/20/10

Date	Event or Document	Image or PDF
4/19/06	Chris forwards documents pertaining to Trestle rehabilitation to City Manager, Mike Bierman. These include an earlier estimate of cost per foot, analysis of pile foundation, wood trestle designs from MKM, and Dutra's cost estimate for restoring Trestle. Anchor-test
5/31/06	Chris Stevick makes presentation to the Petaluma City Council, explaining how the trestle can be saved and advocates for an Historic Structure Study (HSR) of the Trestle. Council unanimously passes resolution to ask city staff to prepare an RFQ & RFP (prerequisite to HSR) in cooperation with Chris & Katherine J. Rinehart.
6/1/06	Katherine J. Rinehart met with Project Manager Jeanne Miche to discuss producing the RFP
7/1/06	Memo summarizing the City Council's intentions regarding Trestle Rehabilitation directing Public Works to produce an RFP preliminary to the formal Historic Structure Report (HSR), including some of the requirements. (This document was in Chris's possession without date or attribution, but a date of July 2006 was penciled in at the top)
8/15/06	After not hearing much since the City Council meeting on May 31, Katherine Rinehart writes to Jeanne Miche, copies Chris, prompting him to write Mike Healy (member of City Council sympathetic to Trestle preservation) requesting a timetable for RFP. Healy's reply clearly reaffirms that staff was supposed to meet with them and prepare the RFQ/RFP. Mike Healy replies, "The Council's clear direction at the budget workshops in May & June was for staff to work with Chris & Katherine to define a scope of work that the City could put out for an RFQ/RFP in early fall to move the trestle replacement forward. If there is not progress sufficient to keep that goal on track, I will need to re-agendize it for the next Council meeting on September 11. Please let me know whether or not I need to do this."
9/13/06	Editor’s note: The following entry is the first appearance of Larry Zimmer, Capital Improvements Division Manager, Public Works Department. He will be overseeing the Trestle Rehabilitation project as it develops. Jeanne Miche, a Project Manager and Diane Ramirez, a Capital Improvements Project Manager both report to Larry Zimmer.
9/13/06	Larry Zimmer writes to Chris Stevick to state what he currently knows about the trestle project and to say Jeanne Miche, Project Manager, is working on an RFP for the HSR, to be completed in a few weeks. He says "If anyone would like to make additions or corrections please let me know."
11/17/06	Jeanne Miche sends out first draft of RFP for HRS, dated 11/7/06
11/22/06	Katherine Rinehart forwards the revised RFP to Marianne Hurley, Historian for California State Parks, and Marianne Hurley replies: Upon reviewing the revised RFP, Marianne Hurley emphasizes the need "to include the potential significance of the trestle in the RFP. In addition to the trestle being a contributor to the downtown district... it also appears eligible for the National Register as an individual linear resource property. This makes it significant and as such must be treated as a historical resource under CEQA." and "The potential for individual significance (as an historic structure) should be indicated in the RFP too, so the future consultant knows they are working with an eligible property."
11/27/06	Chris recommends Marianne Hurley to Jeanne Miche to represent Preservation interests as one of three judges reviewing the applicants to create the HSR
12/14/06	Final Request for Proposals (RFP) for a Historic Structure Report (HRS) is approved and sent out to potential consultants during December 2006
4/1/07	P A S T Consultants, LLC, gets the contract to prepare the Historic Structure Report (HSR). They in turn hire Creegan + D'Angelo Engineers to provide cost estimate for trestle reconstruction to be included in the HSR.
4/5/07	Dutra estimates Trestle reconstruction at 1.2 million
4/15/07	Chris writes to thank City Council “for allocating funds for the Historic Structure Report” and suggests “it seems only reasonable to set aside funds which allow for the possibility of saving this treasure.”
6/6/07	City of Petaluma MEMO from Public Works to the City Manager. This memo acknowledges the City’s agreement to pay for the HSR (Historic Structure Report) as the necessary preliminary to rehabilitating the Trestle. This memo is also included as an attachment in Agenda Bill to Community Development Commission of 1/7/08
6/14/07	Fitzgerald & Associates reports to City Engineer of Petaluma, clarifying who owns the Trestle and who has title to the property where the Trestle is located. The Trestle itself belongs to SMART, as successor to P&SR/RR, but the land where it is built is considered State Lands (owned by the Citizens of California) which would fall under the jurisdiction of the State Lands Commission.
9/27/07	Flynn & Associates Wood Science & Technology hired by Creegan + D’Angelo to perform limited examination and evaluation of the timbers and piles supporting the railroad trestle. Table 01 (2 pages) at end show conditions of stringers, bent caps etc.
9/28/07	Creegan + D'Angelo Engineers (hired by P A S T) put together a Limited Structural Assessment of the Trestle (submitted as part of the HSR by P A S T). On pg 18 of the assessment they estimate itemized trestle reconstruction w/o unnecessary new stringers at $2,000,000. Editor’s note: Closer inspection of the table on pg. 18 shows that the first three items listed (total value = $210,000) were already completed and reimbursed by the State Coastal Conservancy as of the date of the assessment. The total cost of line items = $2,000,000, but this is misleading as the total remaining costs were only = $1,650,000, which is 17.5% less. 17.5% is not a big difference, but between 2007 and 2014 you can observe a pattern in Public Works actions and statements. Staff and their contractors keep saying, "Let's preserve the Trestle, we're happy to work with historical preservationists," yet they keep coming up with very pessimistic interpretations of the reports. After scant examination they assume most existing components will need replacing, often with expensive technologies like the steel torque piles and labor intensive methods like disassembling the stringers to add steel reinforcements. The cost estimates for historic preservation keep rising and they lean towards non-historic solutions like replacing wood components with concrete, or just tearing the whole thing down and making a replica out of modern materials. These versions might be simpler to execute but they aren’t cheaper, and they preclude getting funding for preserving an historic resource.

Date	Event or Document	Image or PDF
11/30/07	The HSR prepared by P A S T Consultants, LLC, reports that the Trestle is recognized as a contributing structure to the Petaluma Historic Commercial District and would be eligible for the National Register District once restored. From page 25: 1. "The Petaluma Trestle appears eligible for the California Register for its association with Petaluma's time of greatest growth as the "World's Egg Basket," under the themes of agriculture, industry, commerce and transportation." 2. "The Petaluma Trestle is eligible for the California Register for its association with George P. McNear, who is indelibly linked to the development of the Petaluma & Santa Rosa Railroad Company and the subsequent construction of the West Petaluma Spur and associated Trestle." 3. "the Petaluma Trestle appears eligible for listing as a contributing structure, to the local Petaluma Historic Commercial District and/or the National Register District.” 4. “Simply put, the first alternative, rehabilitation for pedestrian load, will result in greater retention of historic fabric, as wholesale replacement of piles and stringers (which are very significant, character-defining features) would not be necessary. In addition, most of the piles could likely be retained, but they would have to be wrapped with newer material (polyethylene and/or concrete) to increase capacity and/or prevent further deterioration.”
1/7/08	Agenda Bill - Presentation of the Railroad Trestle Historic Structure Report to the Community Development Commission (CDC) Introduces a summary of the completed HSR (11-30-07) and includes 2 attachments: 1. the Memo of 6-6-07 (see above) 2. the 10 page Executive Summary from the HSR itself
1/10/08	Pam Torliatt shares a letter from Paul Siri, of the State Coastal Conservancy, with Chris and other stakeholders. This includes Paul's idea for a State Coastal Conservancy Trestle grant "I'd like to suggest we have a chat about initiating a conversation with the State Coastal Conservancy to replace the railroad structure as part of their urban water front program. They don't get many proposals in this area. A year ago when Kate and I hosted the senior SCC staff... we gave them a tour of the completed Water Street redevelopment which is a direct result (after considerable time) and success of the river master plan funded by the Conservancy."
1/30/08	Argus-Courier runs poll asking the public whether Trestle should be restored. Respondents voted 90.4% in favor of renovating the Trestle
2/21/08	Diana J. Painter of Painter Preservation & Planning writes to Diane Ramirez about historic significance of the Trestle in the context of the Commercial Historic District. She is enthusiastic about the Trestle as an historic resource, and quotes from a letter from Cassandra Chattan of Archaeological Resource Service from 3/1/03 (see above). “The river and the railroad spurred the economic development of the city and were the reasons for its existence and success as a port city. They also established the pattern of physical development that the city would take from that point to the present.” “There are few resources left - the trestle and a handful of warehouses - that show us how this worked and why the city developed the way it did. This makes preservation of the trestle and remaining warehouses all the more important.” “I support PAST Consultants' recommendation that the trestle is eligible for listing on the National Register under Criterion A (association with local history) and Criterion B (association with persons important to our history)” “John Fitzgerald's November 12, 2007 letter on the Historic Structure Report, which documented the importance of public use of the trestle with many photographs of people observing the Petaluma River Festival from the trestle, as well as enjoying the waterfront in general, prior to the trestle's closure in 2003.”
7/24/08	Chris contacts office of City Manager John Brown to set up a meeting to address a list of specific questions pertaining to Trestle restoration, grants for funding, and dealing with SMART. Around this time the surface of the Trestle was fenced off for safety reasons. 1. ...I have multiple sources for funding grant research showing ways to pay for saving the trestle" 2. A letter from the city was sent to SMART regarding the trestle, early this year. 3. What is meant by 'enforcement' in "I need to contact SMART and talk with them directly, as a letter didn't work, and I'm not in favor of initiating enforcement until we've talked informally." 4. An issue regarding the trestle fencing came up last week, due to a citizen complaint.
9/15/08	Writing to Jane Hamilton Chris sends the same list of advantages of a restored Trestle that he sent to the City Council 1/2/02 (see above)
Early 2009	City Council and stakeholders establish goals for grant and application. Pamela Torliatt leads City Council to pursue grant from State Coastal Conservancy for Trestle restoration. She introduces Chris Stevick to Paul Siri who works for State Coastal Conservancy (see 1/10/08 above) Paul Siri, consultant for the State Coastal Conservancy, lets Pam Torliatt know the Conservancy execs are pleased with the way Petaluma spent SCC grant money developing the Theater District on the river, and thinks a further grant for preserving the Trestle would be very likely to be approved.
4/13/09	First meeting with representatives of the State Coastal Conservancy considering a grant for Trestle restoration at the Applebox Cafe. Chris Stevick, Paul Siri, and others attend.

Date	Event or Document	Image or PDF
4/20/09	Chris Stevick tells the City Council that the State Coastal Conservancy will fund the planning and design of the Trestle rehabilitation. At the end of the meeting the Council resolves to apply for the Grant "APPROVING APPLICATION TO THE COASTAL CONSERVANCY FOR A SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA CONSERVANCY PROGRAM GRANT TO REHABILITATE THE DOWNTOWN TRESTLE" "NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Petaluma City Council hereby: 1. Approves the filing of a grant application to the Coastal Conservancy for a San Francisco Bay Area Conservancy grant for the Downtown Trestle 2. Authorizes the City Manager to sign the grant application."
4/22/09	Email from Pamela Torliatt - announces that the MTC planning grant of $80,000 for Trolley and Trestle has been approved. "It was an $80,000 scope of work, cash $4,743, in kind $4,433 and the grant amount was $70,824"
7/8/09	Letter to Vincent Marengo, Director, Department of Public Works, from Chris Stevick, Vice-President of the Trolley Group, requesting to be included as the City puts RFPs together, like the application for Feasibility Grant and the State Coastal Conservancy Grant to re-build the Trestle.
7/14/09	Letter to Chris Stevick from Larry Zimmer, Capital Improvements Division Manager, says now is not a good time for State Coastal Conservancy grant application. File it later. "Christopher, As previously discussed the State Coastal Conservancy informed me that due to funding, it is not the best time to submit an application. They will keep me updated as to when the funds may become available." Editor’s Note: The City held off applying for the SCC grant until 4/20/10, 8 months later, and was not accepted until 12/6/10, 17 months later.
7/16/09	Argus-Courier runs article about City Manager John Brown, who embraces Petaluma Economic Development goals (which included Trestle rehabilitation).
7/23/09	Chris tries to convince Heritage Homes board members to pay for WRA consultants to assist in creating the application for the State Coastal Conservancy grant. (Trolley Group actually pays for contract with WRA on 2/26/10) WRA wrote to Chris: "see if Heritage Homes would be interested in providing funding for us to assist in the preparation of the grant." Chris wrote to HH Board "We ask heritage homes to fund this grant to bring 2 million which will save the Trestle. If you think this worthy, I will make a formal letter to you requesting the $5,000 Grant application funding to set up the distribution and performance earmarks."
2/26/10	Trolley Group contributes $5,000 for contract with WRA to prepare grant application.
3/15/10	City Council resolves to authorize $13,000 to apply for a Caltrans grant of $80,000 to study feasibility of Historic Trolley (which is dependent on Trestle rehabilitation)
4/20/10	City submits application for State Coastal Conservancy grant. Document shows preliminary budget totaling $500,000.