Healdsburg Train Station Debate Takes Another Turn With Councilmember's Survey

HEALDSBURG, CA —Healdsburg Councilmember Ron Edwards and District 2 council candidate Scott Pratt have launched two surveys to gather local transit data as SMART reconsiders where to build Healdsburg’s train station.

Edwards announced the partnership Wednesday, saying the pair wants to give SMART’s board detailed information about residents’ travel needs and the needs of local businesses and employees.

One survey asks residents about travel habits, needs, and preferences. The other seeks input from business owners and employees.

“When it’s time to present data on the SMART board, we want to ensure they have detailed, accurate information straight from Healdsburg,” Edwards wrote in announcing the surveys.

He asked people to share the surveys with neighbors and friends and said he would be visiting businesses within a half-mile of the depot.

The effort follows a recent contentious City Council meeting where residents challenged SMART’s push to reconsider plans to build Healdsburg’s station on Hudson Street.

Healdsburg council members voted 4-1 in February 2024 to proceed with that site.

SMART staff now favors a Downtown West Plaza site on Vine Street, just under a half-mile away from the original site.

Agency officials laid out the reasons for reconsidering the location at a Sept. 21 Healdsburg City Council meeting.

The announcement appeared to surprise council members despite Councilmember Ariel Kelly’s seat on SMART’s board.

Councilmember Evelyn Mitchell said the renewed deliberation left her feeling “blindsided.”

Edwards, who is the city council vice-mayor, said that after watching the Sept. 16th SMART Board meeting and reading news reports that he was "shocked to hear there is even a question about where the Healdsburg Station should be located."

“Didn’t we figure this out in 2024,” he said today.

Local Needs, Tourism

The council’s 4-1 vote to proceed with Hudson Street followed resident input and previous studies, Edwards said.

That decision also shaped planning for Healdsburg’s southern entrance and future development around the depot.

Edwards said he remains unconvinced that SMART’s explanation of changed circumstances justifies moving the station.

He sees a tension between the agency’s regional priorities and local concerns about whom the station would serve: residents, commuters, or visitors.

The surveys seek to move those arguments beyond assumptions and personal preferences. Pratt is gathering residential input, while Edwards plans to contact businesses within a half-mile of the depot.

They want information about employees’ actual work hours, parking habits, and transportation needs to present to SMART’s board.

It is not clear whether train schedules would accommodate employees who work late, including those whose shifts end around 11 p.m.

Hotels, wineries, and restaurants have concerns that easier downtown access could encourage day trips rather than weekend stays.

Stakeholders lack data about potential lost opportunities based on projected riders and their preferences.

Business opportunities and resident preferences are blanks that the surveys are intended to fill in.

Support for the two sites varies locally, too. Edwards said Mill District apartment residents contacted council members to argue that Vine Street offers a more central location.

Edwards said he forwarded more than 72 individually written emails supporting the depot location to SMART’s board after Sept. 21.

Among six additional emails, four came from people outside Healdsburg who favored downtown for its convenience.

“There are no guarantees in this,” Edwards said, but he hopes the surveys will help residents organize and give the board a clearer account of local needs before it chooses a station site.

SMART officials said the fully funded $269 million Healdsburg extension, rising ridership, and progress toward extending service farther north justify another look at the station location.

They expect Healdsburg to serve largely as a destination station for workers and visitors.

Planning Manager Zoe Unruh said 84 percent of Healdsburg’s workforce lives outside city limits. The West Plaza site also has 84 percent more jobs within a quarter-mile walk than the Hudson Street location, she said.

Council members questioned whether that analysis gave enough weight to future development. Unruh said staff used 2023 jobs data, existing census data, 2025 travel data, and the current street network.

Hudson Street supporters argued that relocating the stop could undermine decades of planning for housing and development around the depot and south of the Russian River.

Vine Street supporters emphasized access to existing businesses and services.

SMART General Manager Eddy Cummins said the decision is not a “done deal.”

He said the SMART board wants to hear public feedback.

But he told council members that SMART’s board ultimately holds the authority to choose the location.

Cummins said the last thing he wanted to do was build a station somewhere that’s not right and regret the decision after it’s too late.

Surveys

The two new surveys are meant to give SMART’s board a clearer picture of Healdsburg’s transit needs, according to the announcement.

The resident survey asks about travel habits, needs, and preferences, while the business and employee survey gathers input from local employers and workers.

Those businesses include the Relic and Revival Collective, Fogbelt Brewing Company, several tasting rooms, and Thumbprint Cellars.

Edwards encouraged residents to share the surveys with neighbors, friends, and business owners and said he would begin visiting businesses within a half-mile of the proposed Hudson Street depot.

SMART plans to hold its own community meeting in October and launch a public survey. Staff expects to bring an analysis of the feedback to the Healdsburg City Council and SMART board in December.

The agency’s general manager promised an open house that presents both sites’ advantages and disadvantages.

Officials also said they could separate Healdsburg residents’ survey responses from regional results.

SMART rejected suggestions for multiple Healdsburg stops, saying extra stops would lengthen trips and reduce rail’s competitiveness with driving.

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