Santa Rosa Southeast Greenway

Santa Rosa’s Own Central Park

The Southeast Greenway is now permanently protected as public land.
Through a historic collaboration, Sonoma Land Trust, the City of Santa Rosa, the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District, and the Southeast Greenway Campaign, alongside many community partners and supporters, successfully completed the acquisition of nearly 47 acres of former Caltrans right-of-way in southeast Santa Rosa. What was once planned as a highway extension is now secured for recreation, conservation, and community connection. 

With the acquisition complete, the project is entering its next phase: a comprehensive, community-driven master planning process..

This long-neglected and vacant property will become the City’s own “Central Park,” threaded with paths for cyclists and pedestrians and populated with community gardens, pocket parks, art displays, and new opportunities for outdoor play and education for nearby, underserved schools. The Greenway vision began in 2009 when community members recognized that this vacant property along the Highway 12 corridor could, one day, be transformed into a world-class urban parkway for Santa Rosa.

shaping the future together

The Greenway will offer many environmental and social benefits, providing thousands of city residents with access to a park within a 10-minute walk from their homes.

Stretching approximately two miles from Farmers Lane to Spring Lake Regional Park, the Greenway offers a rare opportunity in the heart of Santa Rosa to expand equitable access to nature, restore creeks and native habitat, and connect neighborhoods through safe, car-free pathways.

Rather than replicating historic park models rooted in displacement, the Southeast Greenway is being shaped by local voices, local needs, and environmental stewardship. The Master Plan will determine how the land is restored, where trails and gathering spaces are located, what amenities serve surrounding neighborhoods, and how the park is built over time.

The Greenway has the potential to link Spring Lake Regional Park, Howarth Park, Trione-Annadel State Park, the Prince Memorial Greenway, SMART rail, and regional trail networks. It will bring thousands of residents, particularly those in nearby higher-density neighborhoods, within walking distance of open space.

Public engagement opportunities for the Master Planning process will be announced soon. The Southeast Greenway exists because of community leadership, and its future will continue to be shaped by the people it serves.

Together, Santa Rosa is transforming former infrastructure into a lasting landscape for connection, resilience, and shared stewardship.

Project documents for the Greenway, including the proposal as adopted through the City of Santa Rosa’s General Plan Amendment, can be viewed here.

Additional Resources

To learn more about the Santa Rosa Southeast Greenway or for ways to get involved, visit www.southeastgreenway.org