The Stewart Cannery at Railroad Square

The Stewart Cannery at Railroad Square (source: The Press Democrat)
The brick facade on the old cannery building was kept and reinforced with steel, creating an outdoor community area at the new Stewart Cannery Apartments. (source: The Press Democrat)
The Stewart Cannery at Railroad Square under construction.
Contractors pouring the 2nd level slab during construction.
The old cannery building before demolition in 2005.

The Stewart Cannery project transformed the site of a long defunct cannery in the Historic Railroad Square District in Santa Rosa into a 6-story 129-unit affordable housing building with many amenities, including a computer lab, multiple courtyards, dog run, shaded deck, fire pit lounge, tot play area, and expansive lawn. The two remaining historic brick walls, metal canopy, and concrete loading dock were preserved and incorporated into the building creating a beautiful combination of old and new which honors the history of the area.

Located adjacent to Santa Rosa Creek and the Prince Memorial Greenway multi-use path, the project also created a pedestrian promenade aligned with the Fourth Street corridor allowing for enhanced pedestrian circulation connecting Prince Memorial Greenway with the Downtown Santa Rosa SMART station. The access driveway from Third Street was designed to meet public street standards in anticipation of future development of adjacent lots which will eventually create a new public street connecting Third and Sixth streets. Construction began in October 2022 and was completed in January 2025.

Project Details

Client: The John Stewart Company
Project Architect: Saida + Sullivan Architects
Date: 2020– 2025
Location: Santa Rosa, CA

Pedestrian-friendly location with easy access to bus routes, SMART station, and Prince Memorial Greenway multi-use trail.
Site amenities include multiple landscaped courtyards and gathering spaces, computer lab, laundry rooms, dog park, playground, and fire pit lounge.
Meets several Cal Green tier two criteria.

Awards

Excellence in Construction 2025 – North Bay Business Journal

Services Provided

Helped guide the project through expedited entitlement process under SB35.
Creative site design to protect historic loading dock and brick walls while meeting fire protection standards, LID requirements, providing wet and dry utilities, and private access road built to public street standards in advance of future extension, which will create a new public street.
Site constraints due to preservation of historic loading dock led to innovative stormwater treatment design, which has since been added to the City of Santa Rosa Standard Details.
Survey services include topographic mapping, boundary resolution and Record of Survey, lot line adjustment, easements, and construction staking.