Pacific Union College officials formally submitted their 391-home eco-village development proposal to the county last week, revealing a more detailed look at their bid to transform Angwin and build an endowment for the college.

The proposed eco-village, which would have several environmentally friendly elements but would cause substantial growth in the mountain community, has drawn controversy for months. The college's original plan for nearly 600 new homes was redrawn after meetings with community members.

"The application demonstrates our intent to pursue the project," said PUC President Dr. Richard Osborn in a prepared statement. "I'd like to thank our neighbors for providing constructive input during the design review process. That dialogue resulted in a smaller and better project."

In the proposal, college planners estimate that with more environmentally friendly building materials and solar paneling, the eco-village would generate about 30 percent more power on sunny days than it consumes, allowing PUC to pick up the extra. As for water, the college plans to transform its 20th-century wastewater processing system into a 21st-century system capable of pumping out recycled water for irrigation.

That recycled wastewater will be used to conserve sources of drinking water and enable the village to use no more groundwater than PUC currently uses. PUC planners claim sustainable energy features in the construction of the eco-village homes will allow the proposed community to use half the water that normal homes use.

The college also said it plans to set aside 70 homes in a special local preference designation and laid out preliminary plans on how it will keep some home units purchased by local employees.

"Incentives may include purchase price discounts for those who work in close proximity to the eco-village, or reduced fees for mandatory participation in local transit and car-share programs, community-supported agriculture, and infrastructure maintenance," the proposal stated.

It also said a more comprehensive plan would be announced in the future, especially given that the county is considering an ordinance to promote workforce housing.

Critics of the eco-village plan have expressed concern about increased traffic on local roads and other aspects of the plan, with some stating they want to see PUC build no more than 200 or so homes.

Critics expressed no qualms with PUC officials embarking on a formal process, especially one that would involve public hearings before the Napa County Planning Commission and the Napa County Board of Supervisors.

"This is standard procedure," said Duane Cronk, a member of Save Rural Angwin, a community group opposed to the eco-village. "I understand that they bring it to the planning commission and they hold hearings and we would welcome those hearings."

Cronk indicated much of the wrangling would be over the details, such as the PUC plan to induce local employees to buy local preference housing.

"I think that is a move in the right direction, but in the larger context those would probably be the units that would be dedicated to local faculty and staff and all of the rest would have to commute off the hill. That is not in keeping with the contemporary principles of smart growth," Cronk said.