MARTINEZ — A hotly contested housing development that has been on-again, off-again ever since it was proposed a few years ago is back on track to be built on a golf course that closed in 2015 .

The Martinez City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a final map of the planned development, allowing Concord-based developer DeNova Homes to begin grading the site, laying pipes and assembling the infrastructure needed to support 65 homes and an 8.2-acre public park at the former Pine Meadow Golf Course.

The council’s decision was a big step forward following years of public debate that generated lawsuits and an election with competing ballot measures.

It came after a prolonged standoff between DeNova Homes and city officials, who wouldn’t sign off on the project out of concern the proposed park’s basins for capturing stormwater runoff were poorly designed and could send water flooding onto Vine Hill Way.

In response, DeNova Homes in November sued Martinez for “dragging its feet” and sought $35 million in damages, which if awarded could have bankrupted the city. The developer contended its concrete drainage basins would reduce overall flooding at the park.

A compromise subsequently was reached over the size and placement of the basins, though the design has not been finalized. Still, DeNova has not withdrawn its lawsuit and is still seeking damages for the delay.

The council on Tuesday directed a city commission to now focus on the proposed park’s design and schedule public hearings for input.

“This marks a watershed moment we’re about to embark on,” Councilman Mark Ross said. “It’s a legacy in how to eventually, if thornily, come to an agreement on how to use property in an urban setting in the future.”

Public debates about whether the land at Vine Hill Way should be developed at all predate the shuttered golf course’s creation,  Ross said in an interview.

At forums to be held by the city’s parks and recreation commission, the public will get some say on what amenities the park should offer, such as basketball courts and playgrounds.

Though the site currently is open space, stormwater that drains off the homes and walkways to be built there will need to be caught by large drainage basins.

The Martinez City Council discusses a proposal to develop the city’s former golf course during a meeting on Tuesday, August 17, 2021. (Screenshot) 

At Tuesday’s meeting, Tim Platt, a member of Friends of Pine Meadow, urged the developer to make the park as pedestrian-friendly as possible.

“Our first new park in 20 years is of great importance to Martinez residents and we are trusting you to stand up and do what is in the best interest for all of us,” Platt said.

Friends of Pine Meadow is a community group that initially opposed the housing development but entered into a settlement agreement in 2019 with the city and DeNova after the developer promised to pay $1.5 million to build a large public park at the former golf course site.

The proposed development was also contested in a 2018 election. Residents approved a ballot measure that requires any changes to open space designations to get the OK of voters; the losing measure would have exempted private land from the voter requirement. Although the private golf course property was designated open space/recreational in city documents for about 40 years, the City Council had changed its designated use to allow housing.

In 2019, an appellate court ruled against DeNova and the city in a successful effort by community preservationists to overturn the developer’s original plan for a 92-unit development over 27 acres.