City Council meetings in Oakley were once quiet displays of civic government, with the only outbursts an occasional round of applause after a city proclamation.

But that has changed in recent months because of a rift between city leaders and some residents who have emphatically opposed two development proposals. Meetings have, at times, been interrupted with people shouting at the council.

Their frustration? They say the projects threaten their way of life, and that they're examples of the city growing in the wrong way or too fast.

Resident Don Scheer went door-to-door soliciting signatures for a referendum petition against zoning for Cedarwood Estates on rural Knox Lane. He heard many residents' frustration firsthand.

"I'm sensing that a lot of the residents are not anti-growth, but they want to see slower growth and (less dense housing)," said Scheer, who also supports another petition to stop the rezoning for Rosewood Estates along Laurel Road and Rose Avenue.

Residents aren't happy with the projects by Discovery Builders, part of the Seeno family of homebuilders, for different reasons. Some suggest a high-density project, such as Rosewood, could bring in low-income renters from the federal Section 8 housing-assistance program, unnecessarily increase the housing inventory at a time when there is already excess supply, and strain police services.

Rural residents oppose Cedarwood because of its use of flag lots, a

Final plans for both developments need to come before the City Council for approval. Discovery Builders has been working to redraw maps, and has met with residents who oppose both subdivisions.

Oakley's General Plan allows for the developments as proposed, and council members have said they are reluctant to amend the plan because it could be costly. Scheer said money isn't the issue.

"It can be changed; it's just that they don't want to," he said.

City Manager Bryan Montgomery has met individually with residents to further understand their frustrations. Oakley held a work session on the general plan Nov. 11 to help educate residents on the direction the city is moving and why the city believes development is important for growing revenue and expanding city services.

Montgomery said the meeting was a success, as did several residents who attended, including Knox Lane resident Julie Fierros. Still, changes should be made to the general plan, she said.

"I appreciated they took the effort to have the workshop, but I think they need to have not just one meeting, but several, and I think the general plan needs to be amended," Fierros said.

Councilwoman Pat Anderson said the general plan predicts the city will have approximately 68,000 residents by 2020. Oakley's population was 34,458 as of the beginning of the year, according to the state Department of Finance.

Oakley grew by 3.9 percent, or 1,279 people, in 2008 — the most of any city in Contra Costa County, according to the department — and saw its population jump 30 percent from 2000 to 2008.

The city's housing growth has also outpaced the rest of the county. Oakley had 7,847 occupied households in 2000 compared with 10,322 in 2009 — nearly a 32 percent increase.

Resident Susie Clark said she understands the council's desire to move toward the goals in the general plan but doesn't want the city to focus completely on adding homes to attract businesses.

"I think (the council) started seeing dollar signs, and they didn't want to miss the gravy train," Clark said. "Housing is not a need that exists now."

The council, however, doesn't believe the city is growing too fast. Because of the recession, new development has been stagnant.

An Oakley school district employee, Councilwoman Anderson points out that the district's revenue, which is tied heavily to attendance, is declining.

"That's a perfect illustration in my mind that we have not grown too fast," Anderson said.

The council adopted the general plan in 2002, with the public invited to offer input. At that time, residents agreed on the zoning and the plan, which is based on "gradual growth," Councilman Kevin Romick said.

He believes some residents' fears of high-density housing are irrational.

"They're demonizing people because of the lot size they'll be on," he said.

Tensions began running high in September, when Fierros and other Knox Lane residents opposed Cedarwood Estates.

At the Sept. 22 council meeting, many residents who sought to voice opposition to Rosewood Estates were cut off mid-sentence after their allotted three minutes expired. When people have praised the council in the past, they typically were allowed to continue past their allotted time.

At the Oct. 13 council meeting, several residents felt shut out when they weren't allowed to comment on a second reading of an ordinance to rezone the property for Rosewood Estates. Clark shouted for a chance to speak before her request was granted.

"That was the most disappointing thing I've seen in my 12 or 13 years here," she said. "We need a City Council that has some respect for its constituents."

The petition to place the rezoning of land for Cedarwood Estates before voters fell short of the required number of valid signatures to qualify for the ballot. But Fierros is still hoping for changes to the project.

"The majority of the citizens in Oakley want a more rural atmosphere," Fierros said. "We don't want to be another Antioch, and we don't want to be another Brentwood."

Jonathan Lockett covers Oakley. Reach him at 925-779-7174. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jonathanlockett.