The City of Rancho Cordova is making significant progress toward developing Mills Crossing, a 10-acre urban hub located right in the heart of our community. This public-private partnership aims to transform a city-owned parcel into a vibrant space focused on the arts, health and wellness, cultural and community spaces, creative maker spaces, and housing and retail options. The goal is to create a beautiful, sustainable area that benefits all residents.

Mills Crossing is strategically located on Folsom Boulevard, adjacent to Folsom Lake College/Rancho Cordova Center and across from the Mills Station Arts & Culture Center (The MACC). The project will feature both indoor and outdoor flexible gathering spaces, market-rate townhomes, and multi-family housing. It will also include commercial buildings such as a health clinic, small business incubator, and other community services, enhancing the functionality and appeal of the area.

Mills Crossing will be located on Folsom Blvd., adjacent to Folsom Lake College/Rancho Cordova Center. It will be across the street from The MACC and the Mather Field/Mills Light Rail Station.

Starting in 2023, the project team has made a significant effort to involve the local community in the planning process for the project. This includes six community events to gather feedback on project renderings and concepts. These events have allowed community members to engage and share their unique perspectives and innovative ideas.

The project team has been actively listening to community members' feedback and considering their suggestions as they move forward with the project. The project team is incorporating the community feedback received and will be finalizing design and development plans in fall of 2024. The major opportunities for final feedback before construction begins including one Planning Commission meeting and two City Council meetings between June and September. The project team can be contacted directly outside of these meetings and remains committed to continuing their efforts in gathering community feedback and ensuring that the final project aligns with the needs and desires of the local community.

Construction is expected to begin in Spring 2025 and take between 2-3 years, with leased spaces being filled in 2026 or 2027.

The final draft site map is currently undergoing the entitlement application process through the city’s Planning Commission and City Council. The final map will go to City Council for approval in September 2024. Based on feedback and direction received from the City Council at the March 18, 2024, project update, major alterations to the current design are not anticipated.

Throughout the planning process for the proposed project, the City Council took proactive steps to ensure that community members, local businesses, and other interested parties had ample opportunities to provide feedback and contribute to the decision-making process. The City Council organized four open work sessions designed to facilitate productive discussions and gather valuable insights from a diverse range of stakeholders.

These work sessions proved incredibly beneficial in helping the City Council identify a suitable location for the project and evaluate various layouts that would best meet the community's needs. By considering extensive public feedback and engaging in thoughtful discussions, the City Council established clear priorities for the project's potential uses.

The project is envisioned to serve various purposes, including providing spaces for visual and performing arts, health and wellness facilities, flexible indoor and outdoor community meeting spaces, and residential and business incubator areas. These priorities reflect the community's needs and desires and will ensure that the project serves as a valuable resource for years to come.

The arts center and 300-seat black box theatre will hold regular events drawing visitors from across the Sacramento region and will support the growth of Rancho Cordova’s multitude of diverse arts and theatre groups. The community, nonprofit, and business incubation building will provide additional high-quality space for small and medium-sized gatherings. The small-business incubator, over time, has the opportunity to generate significant economic impact through facilitating the creation of new businesses, and will focus on serving residents from the diverse neighborhoods around Mills Crossing.

The project will not have a significant impact on the environment. The city has conducted a thorough environmental review of the project through an Environmental Impact Report. This report will be open for public comment in June 2024 and will be finalized and brought to City Council for adoption in September 2024. As an infill development project on a vacant, former commercial center adjacent to high-quality transit options, the project will fill in a significant gap in the urban fabric of Folsom Boulevard.

Based on the findings of the traffic study the project will not create any significant impacts to traffic volumes on La Loma Drive, El Caprice Drive, or Folsom Boulevard. There will be additional vehicle queuing at existing traffic lights, which will be further impacted by the timing of light rail trains. However, normal queuing is not anticipated to exceed current capacity. No additional traffic lights are proposed as part of this project. The city may adjust traffic light timing or dedicated left turn lane lengths to accommodate the increase in traffic.

The city anticipates that many of the potential users will use personal vehicles to visit Mills Crossing. The project team has prepared a detailed parking analysis to accommodate the peak demand for each of the proposed uses. The site plan, as proposed, will, at times exceed this demand with available parking on site. Additional parking for overflow events is available at nearby surface parking lots. The city will encourage the use of alternative transportation by providing bicycle parking and comfortable pedestrian amenities for nearby residents. Light rail and four bus lines operated by Regional Transit also conveniently serve this location.

The project team has made significant progress on refining the conceptual site plans, building footprints, uses, and architectural design. The project plans and designs are now under review with the city for formal approval. This will involve multiple meetings with the city’s Planning Commission and City Council, including public hearings. 

The estimated cost of the project for the three proposed community commercial buildings and the 2.5 acres of public open space is approximately $100 million.  Of this amount, approximately $20 million has been secured through grants. The City of Rancho Cordova is expected to contribute up to $46 million towards its funding.

Regional Transit’s Gold Line light rail currently serves this location at 15-minute intervals during most daytime hours on weekdays and weekends. This level of service is expected to continue.

The City of Rancho Cordova, as Lead Agency, intends to prepare a Draft Subsequent Environmental Impact Report (SEIR) for the Mills Crossing project (Project).  In accordance with Section 15082 of the CEQA Guidelines, the city has prepared this Notice of Preparation (NOP) to provide responsible agencies and other interested parties with sufficient information describing the Project and its potential environmental effects. The Project to be evaluated is consistent with the approved concept below and will include approximately 130,700 SF of community-commercial buildings, up to 120 housing units including multi-family apartments and zero lot line townhouse-style homes, up to 2.5 acres of public open space, and a parking structure with up to 325 parking stalls. The Community-commercial component will include health and wellness, community serving commercial, an arts center with black box theater and flex studios, a community event hall and retail.

The public review and comment period for the NOP ended on February 6, 2023 at 5:00 PM. The NOP can be viewed and/or downloaded here.