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The California State Route 12 freeway in Santa Rosa

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The California State Route 12 freeway through Santa Rosa is a limited access corridor which opened during December 1964.  The fully limited access corridor spans from Fulton Road/Wright Road eastward through downtown to Farmers Lane.  This freeway corridor was developed with the expectation that it would continue east of Santa Rosa towards the community of Kenwood.  The undeveloped portion of freeway has forced California State Route 12 onto an impractical routing along Farmers Lane towards 4th Street.  

In 2024 much of the right-of-way held by Caltrans to construct the California State Route 12 east of Farmers Lane was purchased by Santa Rosa.  This blog will examine not only the history of the California State Route 12 freeway corridor but the numerous the alignments the highway has had in Santa Rosa.  The blog cover photo is an eastbound look at the end of the California State Route 12 freeway approaching Farmers Lane.  




Part 1; the history of California State Route 12 in Santa Rosa

Santa Rosa is the County Seat and largest City in Sonoma County.  Santa Rosa was settled in 1833 in Alta California and was named after Saint Rose of Lima.  When California became an American State, Sonoma County was one of the original counties.  The original County Seat of Sonoma County was in Sonoma, but it was soon moved to Santa Rosa by 1854.  In 1867 Santa Rosa became an incorporated City as it was one of the few major communities north of San Francisco Bay.

During the 1919 Third State Highway Bond Act Legislative Route Number 51 was added to the Highway System.  Legislative Route Number 51 as originally defined was aligned between Santa Rosa east to Schellville.  The original alignment of Legislative Route Number 51 east of Legislative Route Number 1 (the Redwood Highway and future US Route 101) branched away via 4th Street from Mendocino Avenue.  Legislative Route Number 51 can be seen branching east of Santa Rosa towards Sonoma and Schellville on the 1920 Division of Highways State Map.


In 1933 Legislative Route Number 51 was extended west through Santa Rosa to Sebastopol.  Legislative Route Number 51 multiplexed US Route 101 along Old Courthouse Square and Santa Rosa Avenue before splitting west along Sebastopol Road.  The 1934 California HIghways & Public Works would announce a portion of California State Route 12 as being overlaid onto Legislative Route Number 51. 



California State Route 12 can be seen passing through Santa Rosa in detail on the 1944 United States Geological Survey map. 


The November/December 1948 California Highway and Public Works described a proposed divided bypass alignment for US Route US 101.   





The opening of the so called "Santa Rosa Freeway" as the then new alignment of US Route 101 was featured in the May/June 1949 California Highway and Public Works.  The Santa Rosa Freeway opening ceremony was held on May 20, 1949.  Note: the term "freeway" was used for any divided roadway which included a grade separation.  The Santa Rosa Freeway is described as a 4.3-mile section of new highway.  









Subsequent to US Route 101 moving to the Santa Rosa Freeway the alignment of California State Route 12 in downtown was altered.  California State Route 12 was shifted off of 4th Street approaching downtown and was realigned to meet US Route 101 via College Avenue.  US Route 101 and California State Route 12 multiplexed on the Santa Rosa Freeway southward to Sebastopol Road where the latter split west.  The 1950 Division of Highways State Map was the first edition to display the Santa Rosa Freeway.


The 1954 United States Geological Survey displays the downtown realignments of California State Route 12 and US Route 101 in detail. 


On January 24, 1957, the California Highway Commission adopted a resolution declaring all of California State Route 12 between Sebastopol through Santa Rosa east to Kenwood to be a freeway.  The adopted freeway alignment originated at existing California State Route 12 in Sebastopol eastward towards Farmers Lane in Santa Rosa.  East of US Route 101 the freeway routing was aligned mostly along Hoen Avenue towards Kenwood.  The Division of Highways reached freeway agreements with Santa Rosa on August 20, 1958, and May 5, 1959.  The department would also reach freeway agreements with Sonoma County on September 29, 1958, and July 14, 1959.

The November/December 1963 California Highways and Public Works announced that the new freeway alignment of California State Route 12 in Santa Rosa was slated to open in Spring 1964.  The freeway corridor is described as being 4.3 miles originating east of Sebastopol and crossing through Santa Rosa. 


The May/June 1965 California Highways and Public Works Guide announced that the California State Route 12 freeway through Santa Rosa was completed during December 1964.




California State Route 12 appears as a freeway in Santa Rosa on the 1965 Division of Highway State Map.  The initial freeway segment terminated east of downtown is shown terminating at Farmers Lane.  California State Route 12 was rerouted from the end of the freeway up Farmers Lane to reach the existing alignment on 4th Street near Santa Rosa Creek. 


The portion of the California State Route 12 freeway from Farmers Lane east to Kenwood was never constructed.  Much of the reserved right-of-way purchased by the Division of Highways east of Farmers Lane following Hoen Avenue can be seen clearly on the 1983 United States Geological Survey map.  


Since the 1960s Santa Rosa has experienced rapid growth which has seen it become the largest city on the Redwood Highway corridor of US Route 101.  Locally there was considerable resistance for extending the California State Route 12 freeway east of Farmers Lane through Spring Lake Park.  During May 2014 the California Transportation Commission proposed vacating right-of-way east of Farmers Lane due to lack of support to extend the freeway.  It was reported during July 2023 that the Santa Rosa City Council intended to purchase 49 acres of right-of-way from Caltrans to construct 244 apartment units and a park.  This purchase was expected to be finalized during January 2024. 



Part 2; scenes from the California State Route 12 freeway in Santa Rosa

This photo is from northbound US Route 101 approaching the California State Route 12 freeway at Exit 488B in downtown Santa Rosa.  Sebastopol and Sonoma are listed as control cities on the overhead gantry.


This view is along the eastbound California State Route 12 freeway approaching Farms Lane.  Thru traffic is directed onto Farmers Lane, and an unused eastbound segment of the freeway can be seen branching towards Hoen Avenue.  Heading westbound this freeway segment is accessible from Hoen Avenue.  

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