Voters for Farmland

Voters for Farmland Urban Limit Initiatives for cities by voters to save farmland and reduce the cost of sprawl! City and County governments have similar land-use authority.

To help, please mail donations to VFF PO Box 94 2801 Mitchell Road Ceres, CA 95307 or Venmo Stamp Out Sprawl is committed to improving certainty within Stanislaus County land-uses. Prime and statewide important farmland classifications surround our urbanized areas. SOS encourages elected leaders to protect our best farmland. Their tools include; retaining tightly regulated agric

ultural zone uses for agriculture/non-urban uses; improving urban use efficiencies (infill); adopting high standards and densities for urbanization; planning for ag and not urbanizing certain areas; directing development away from higher quality soils; directing urbanization into cities; include soil quality considerations to limit urban conversion; direct/restrict urbanization to within the Spheres of Influences of our nine incorporated cities.

08/31/2026

Riverbank and Stanislaus County...This community holds a rare combination of assets — premium farmland, healthy rivers, and open space — that together support local food production, clean water, recreation, and quality of life. These features aren't just scenic backdrops; they're the foundation of what makes the area economically resilient and genuinely desirable to live in.

That value is now at a crossroads. As the urban community grows, it must choose between unmanaged sprawl that consumes farmland and open space, or deliberate growth that directs development toward existing urban areas while protecting the natural resources that define the community. The choice isn't growth versus no growth — it's whether growth strengthens or erodes what residents value most.

08/19/2026

Stop the River Walk Project...

08/19/2026

August 22 Riverbank City Council meeting..

Dear Interested Party: The City of Riverbank City Council will hold a Public Hearing on the proposed River Walk Specific...
08/19/2026

Dear Interested Party:



The City of Riverbank City Council will hold a Public Hearing on the proposed River Walk Specific Plan and Final Environmental Impact Report on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at 6:00 p.m., at the Riverbank Community Center located at 3600 Santa Fe Avenue.



The River Walk Specific Plan and Final Environmental Impact Report are available for public review on the City’s website at https://www.riverbank.org/609/River-Walk-Project or in person at City Hall and the Riverbank Public Library.



The Final EIR is provided in multiple volumes in English and Spanish. Due to the size of the files, downloads may take several minutes to complete.



The City Council agenda, staff report and instructions for attending the meeting in person or remotely will be posted on the City’s website as required prior to the hearing.



Thank you



Joshua E. Mann

Community Development Director



Phone: (209

PROJECT LOCATION: The proposed Project is located in the unincorporated area of Stanislaus County and adjacent to the City of Riverbank, north of Patterson Road/State Route (SR) 108, east of McHenry Avenue, and approximately two miles northwest of downtown Riverbank. PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The propose...

08/18/2026

Anthropogenic means caused, produced, or influenced by human activity. In other words, for our area, irrigation by farmers!

This map shows the high water recharge area north of Modesto and west of Riverbank. In addition the same area has the h...
08/18/2026

This map shows the high water recharge area north of Modesto and west of Riverbank. In addition the same area has the highest soil qualities for growing food, probably in the world! Don't bite the hand that feeds you!
Modesto is the brown area in the center of the map while Riverbank is the brown area north and east of Modesto. Urban areas generate low water recharge of the aquifer.

08/07/2026

Importance of water recharge areas

Areas within Stanislaus County have a real need — some might even argue an emergency situation — concerning groundwater. In some areas, groundwater tables have dropped as much as 90 feet from optimum levels. Less impacted areas are still down 55 feet from only a few years ago.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of **San Francisco** and **Modesto** using the latest U.S. Census estimates:| Metric ...
08/06/2026

Here's a side-by-side comparison of **San Francisco** and **Modesto** using the latest U.S. Census estimates:

| Metric | San Francisco | Modesto |
| ------------------------------ | -----------------------: | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------: |
| **Population (2025 estimate)** | **826,079** | **219,652** ([Census.gov][1]) |
| **Land area** | **46.9 sq mi** | **43.05 sq mi** ([Census.gov][1]) |
| **Population density** | **~17,600 people/sq mi** | **~5,100 people/sq mi** (2020 Census density; using the 2025 estimate gives about **5,100/sq mi** as well) ([Census.gov][1]) |

# # # What this means

* **Size:** The two cities are surprisingly similar in land area.

* San Francisco: **46.9 sq mi**
* Modesto: **43.05 sq mi**
* **Difference:** San Francisco is only about **3.85 square miles larger** (roughly **9%** larger).

* **Population:**

* San Francisco has about **826,000** residents.
* Modesto has about **220,000** residents.
* **San Francisco has about 3.8 times as many people** living in nearly the same amount of land.

* **Density:**

* **San Francisco:** ~17,600 people per square mile.
* **Modesto:** ~5,100 people per square mile.
* **San Francisco is about 3.4–3.5 times more densely populated** than Modesto.

# # # Visual comparison

```
Land Area
San Francisco ██████████████████████████████ 46.9 sq mi
Modesto ███████████████████████████ 43.1 sq mi

Population
San Francisco ██████████████████████████████ 826k
Modesto ████████ 220k
```

The comparison highlights that **Modesto occupies almost as much land as San Francisco**, but with **about one-quarter of the population**. This is reflected in Modesto's wider streets, larger residential lots, more single-family neighborhoods, and lower building heights, whereas San Francisco's denser development supports many more residents within a similar footprint.

[1]: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/modestocitycalifornia/LND110210?utm_source=chatgpt.com "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Modesto city, California"

Explore U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts for Modesto city, California. View current, authoritative statistics on population, demographics, income, housing, and business.

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