Farmland advocacy group in Modesto area files petition to stop Riverbank housing project
RIVERBANK (CBS13) -- There's fertile ground behind Barney Aggers' property and he has concerns about a housing development housing there.
"This is just in the best area for food production, harvesting, etc.," he says. "There needs to be a balance of housing and where to put it and not take jewels like this that are meant for growing food."
It's not a typical anti-housing stance. It has to do with the land in this area, some of the most fertile in Stanislaus County. The area also sits adjacent to the Stanislaus River and is atop a major aquifer.
"That is groundwater recharge," Aggers says. "Developments around here, Del Rio, draw out of that aquifer."
Former Modesto City Councilman Denny Jackman is helping spread the word.
"There's no attempt here to stop housing," he tells CBS13. "There's an attempt to not take the best soils to house ourselves. We want to continue to be an ag and urban area so we can continue to be that by doing our development on the lesser soils, not on the prime farmland. That is absolutely stupid."
Jackman says that there hasn't been much of a response from the Riverbank or Modesto City Councils. Councilors were either out of office or did not respond to requests for comment on this story. Jackman, Aggers and others are hoping to introduce a ballot measure in the 2024 election.
"We're doing what citizens can do," Jackman explains. "We're petitioning our government through the collection of signatures."
The development would involve the city of Riverbank annexing nearly 1,000 acres of farmland and adding the development which would introduce roughly 2,400 homes. Jackman is worried about the balance of sustainability while the state tries to address its' housing goals to combat the homelessness crisis.
"If 100 years in the future we've wiped [places to grow food and get water] out and put it under concrete and asphalt, it doesn't make any sense," concludes Jackman.
