Cloverdale, aye

Cloverdale residents tonight begin a discussion that likely will lead to a 2008 ballot measure to establish an urban boundary.

If you are interested, the session sponsored by the Cloverdale Committee for an Urban Growth Boundary, Greenbelt Alliance and Sonoma County Conservation Action convenes at 6:30 p.m. at the Cloverdale Citrus Fair Tea Room. The City Council and Planning Commission will hold a joint public workshop on a proposed UGB at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 17.

Since 2000, Cloverdale has been the last hold-out, the only Sonoma County city, among nine, without a voter-approved development limit.

Now a majority of the City Council supports the concept. A debate about where the line should be drawn is sure to follow. In an era in which cities must rely on sales tax revenues, a car dealership in Asti becomes a popular attraction. In the meantime, the public debate will be changing. Santa Rosa -- see the editorial above -- and other cities are now focused on new modes of development, and Cloverdale is poised to join that conversation.