The Vacancy Project – Mapping Petaluma's vacant lots and empty storefronts

The vacancy walk

Walk with us from the train station down D Street into downtown.

Here’s what we see.

Stop 1 of 13 An abandoned bar and grill greets us at the station.

Stop 2 of 13 Behind the depot, acres of vacant land sit behind chain-link fencing.

Stop 3 of 13 Across East D Street, an overgrown lot waits for what’s next.

Stop 4 of 13 Another large vacant parcel down the street.

Stop 5 of 13 The scale of it is hard to miss.

Stop 6 of 13 Farther on, a fenced lot holds a rusting tanker and standing water.

Stop 7 of 13 From the D Street Bridge: a dilapidated warehouse, more open land.

Stop 8 of 13 At Petaluma Boulevard, another fenced corner lot.

Stop 9 of 13 A lovely park sits across from a boarded-up grill.

Stop 10 of 13 Around the corner on Fourth, a cracked, empty parking lot.

Stop 11 of 13 And another abandoned restaurant sits on a pad of weedy asphalt.

Stop 12 of 13 A former bank sits vacant nearby.

Stop 13 of 13 Past a beloved hardware store, another empty corner. At least the mural here is magnificent.

Petaluma has a vacancy problem

Dozens of vacant lots and buildings sit near downtown — some for decades. The good news: every one is an opportunity to reinvest. See the map.

Vacancies hurt everyone.

Blight, graffiti, and nuisances increase
Property values and city revenue fall
Neighborhoods decline and investment dries up

How vacancies drain momentum from downtown.

Left unchecked, vacancies feed on themselves — less foot traffic, falling property values, stalled investment. The same thing happens when growth gets pushed to the edges of town instead of reinvested in our downtown area.

See the map Read the data In the news

Block by block

How we mapped it.

We spent months walking every block of downtown, photographing and documenting each vacant site. The result: an interactive block-by-block map — with a photo gallery outlining the property’s history and its status.

Visit the map →

Sources: City of Petaluma Zoning Map · Sonoma County Tax Collector · Regrid.com · CA Secretary of State business search

Found an error, or have a question? Reach the team at TheVacancyProject@urbanchat.org.

Circular preview of the Petaluma vacancy map

The path forward

We can fix it

Redevelopment brings housing, jobs, walkability, shade, and economic life.

What we’ve tried. Thirty years ago, the City adopted a plan to revitalize downtown and the industrial spaces east of the river, then largely left it to private developers. Some progress happened, but many projects stalled on cost, delay, and contamination — leaving uneven growth and empty lots behind. It’s a clear sign we need a new approach, and we’re ready to help build it.

What other cities have done. Cities that turned vacancies around took an active role — partnering in development, not just regulating it. Their playbook: cut red tape, invest in infrastructure, create new funding tools, and clean up contaminated sites.

What other cities have done → Join us as we build Petaluma’s version →

Be part of it

Join the coalition

The Vacancy Project held its first organizing meeting on June 24, 2026, co-sponsored with Renaissance Petaluma. Subscribe for updates or join the coalition.

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