
The site on which The Petaluman will sit is an empty, former Chevron gas station on the corner of B Street and Petaluma Boulevard.
Interestingly enough, this environmentally friendly, mostly Petaluma-made-art-filled hospitality hub fits the bill for every one of the categories I generally cover on Southern Sonoma Country Life, with the exception of my 'Anglo' category - though having said that, I do think that The Petaluman will be of huge appeal to visiting Brits as well as people from all around the world increasingly headed to Southern Sonoma County for our unrivaled agri-tourism tastes and attractions.
As for us locals, there are roof bars and garden, a cool vantage point for private parties or to watch the Butter and Egg Days parade go by and a new farm-to-table restaurant with subterranean Cave Bar featuring local produce in its food and drinks (some of it grown on the roof)
Full Story as Featured on Sister Site West Petaluma Living
An official planning application for ‘The Petaluman’, a long-awaited, landmark 54-Room luxury boutique hotel in downtown Petaluma’s bustling historic shopping district was submitted for formal approval to the City of Petaluma Planning Department, on Thursday, October 31st, 2013.
Owner/Architect and Developer, Ross Jones and his Petaluma-based creative team have designed the showcase project as a legacy, landmark property intended to serve the community as a contemporary hub of hospitality and innovation, as well as providing an extraordinary, state-of-the-art respite for visitors.
Speaking to the history of the people of Petaluma, with a refreshing, modern approach, this exemplary, four-story property is poised to transform a prime, empty corner lot of Petaluma Boulevard South and B Street, with a projected opening in December 2015. “The Petaluman is designed to be the heart of soul of downtown,” says Jones, who, along with his project development team, has spent the past seven months working with focused community input to further refine and enhance initial, ambitious plans for a boutique hotel with unprecedented high quality caliber of architecture, building materials, art and service.
Jones anticipates a six-month time frame from submission of plans to the first public hearing. Once City Planners give the green light for groundbreaking, an estimated 150 construction jobs will activate a hive of activity on the empty lot that formerly housed a Chevron Gas station owned by the developer’s grandmother.
“Once The Petaluman is open for business, our focus will be on hiring around 24 full-time employees as hotel concierge/ambassadors with exemplary knowledge of the Petaluma area and its history,” says Jones, whose primary goal is to showcase the agrarian flavor of the city and surrounding communities in a first-class facility built to last and packed to the solar-paneled rafters with original, made-in-Petaluma art and eco-friendly design.
“It’s all about healthy living, providing a warm welcome with extraordinary comforts, community involvement, slow food and friendly service,” says Jones. The hotel’s design team, the hotel’s design team, under the direction of Monica Binsfeld of Petaluma-based Ecco Mi design, has incorporated plans for a 100-person capacity, underground Warm Cave Bar, a farm-to-table themed Streetside Bistro, Rooftop Juice Bar and Cocktail Lounge, rooftop event space for parade viewing, private parties and receptions, plus a Rooftop Urban Farm for youth training and community service.
“The Petaluman will be unique in its value as an amenity within the community,” says Binsfeld. “Picture the sort of sophisticated yet casual boutique hotel with public bar and restaurant with a vibe that you’d expect to find in a city like Chicago.”
“The Cave Bar will be visible from street level and its ambiance is designed to appeal to people of all ages,” says Binsfeld. “That’s the beauty of this hotel.”
Another unique element that incorporated into the plans for The Petaluman is the presence of five designated Wellness Units – rooms that provide a home-from-home environment for guests who might benefit from sleep therapy stays in which the environment is entirely
allergen and mold free, clean air contained, offering aromatherapy, chromatherapy bath or shower facilities and some physical therapy.
Exterior of The Petaluman will feature earth tones and sustainable materials, balconies overlooking Petaluma Boulevard and B Streets and a plaza at the corner of two prominent downtown streets, anchored with a monumental metal art sculpture sourced from contemporary American sculptor, Carole Eisner. “The sculpture we have selected is Eisner’s ‘The Dancer’, currently housed at Syracuse University, in New York,” says Binsfeld
The Petaluman has been carefully designed to represent the best of early 21st Century architecture so that future generations of Petaluma will have a continuing high benchmark in which to aspire in its classic downtown redevelopment.








