The Grupe Company, the Stockton-based developer partnering on the large-scale Sonoma Developmental Center redevelopment, is facing scrutiny over its past business practices.
The Press Democrat reports Grupe was selected to build the controversial project due to its experience with massive developments. However, public records show the company has a history of political disputes and controversies, including a noted incident in 2005 where it paid a city nearly $500,000 for a plan update that heavily benefited the developer.
The company denies the relevance of past controversies to the SDC project, which remains paused after a judge invalidated its environmental report earlier this year.