Call to Order and Approval of Minutes of 1-12-22.
Present: Katrina Frey, Jini Reynolds, Christine Boyd, Dolly Riley, Sattie Clark, Trent Taylor Planning and Building consultant, Jeff Box, Marybeth Kelly, Travis Killmer, Pien Ris-Yarbrough, John Burkes, Beth Salamone, Sheliah Rogers, Adam Gaska, Supervisor Glenn McGourty, Sheriff Matt Kendall, Ron Edwards, Bree Klotter, Zoe Bigelow, Rick, Kitty Loberg, Gizmo Henderson. Meeting called to order at 5:02. Dolly- The public health officer still recommends meeting virtually, and we want to continue in a safe fashion. Dolly conducted a roll call vote on adopting findings to allow virtual meetings provided Covid conditions continue: Jini, Katrina, Chris, Sattie, Adam, Pien, Dolly voted yes. Discussion and vote for 1-12-22 Minutes. Corrections: Chris-Note correct spelling of Council. - Adam was discussing Proposition 13 assessment values hold steady when structure is burned down. Add that individuals faced with that should contact the assessor's office. Rather than putting minutes in “I and me”, we should use the third person. Schoeneman spelling correction. Pien asked that minutes be delivered in Word format. With those comments and verbal corrections, Chris moved to approve, Jini seconded. Dolly took a rollcall vote, Katrina abstained, otherwise unanimous.
Public Comments
Sheilah- We are concerned about fire prevention and readiness efforts. The Black Bart trail is now collaborating with a ranch in Potter Valley to create a new evacuation route, with efforts between Potter Valley and Redwood Valley. Hopefully, we will have a third route. Pien- clarified details about the lawsuit between the Willits Environmental Center (WEC) and Mendocino County, which was won by WEC, and centered around the 'Facilities Expansion’ in the recalled part of the Cannabis ordinance (22.18). The expansion ordinance was suspended but the lawsuit was won. Chris asked- What kind of escape route grant are you guys going for? Sheilah- There was money designated from the PG&E lawsuit, but unknown exactly where the money is coming from. Travis Killmer stated the County has money from the sequoia analysis, and submitted request for the Black Bart trail project.
Report from County and Agencies on Current Events Guest Speakers: John Burkes of Planning and Building, and Sheriff Matt Kendall regarding cannabis enforcement. Sattie stated that the community has changed negatively. We see how virtually impossible the situation has become for the small craft legal (cannabis) growers, we want to hear what you have to say about addressing the illegal cannabis operators in the county. When do we declare a state of county-wide emergency? Sheriff Matt Kendal- If we ring the bell for a state of emergency it would do nothing because we would be asking the sheriffs in every single county the same thing they are asking me. We have a donor sending donations to help us do environmental reviews, but we have to wait in line. Last year we did 68 cases, we seized 60,000 pounds of unauthorized plants and 45 firearms. We would be asking a forensic officer to help. We want to support a legal market because eventually, it will undercut the black market. Prices have tanked and the market is terrible because of the illegal market. We need pretty extreme enforcement because the only thing that makes it a felony is environmental damage. Just growing illegally is only a misdemeanor so there is no real incentive to not do it. Sattie- Can we bring in resources? Matt- When I ask for peace officers it can’t be from the Feds because it's still illegal. Occasionally the DEA will come to help us but they haven't taken a case in years. Filing a state of emergency doesn't do much. I've been pushing for more enforcement officers because we don't have the personnel to deal with the problems we are creating. Funding has been split between multiple counties, but we aren't sure how much of it will even be spent because we only have two people working marijuana. Bree stated she remembers several months ago decided to beef up the funds for cannabis control activities. We had enough funding to hire more officers. What happened to that. Glenn- That money went to Code Enforcement but we are hopeful. Sattie- What will this look like when the enhanced cannabis enforcement plan kicks off? John Burkes- Hiring staff, training staff, is happening in stages. One, for creating a structure for departments, and two, for hiring and training, which is where we're at now. We don't have a lot of coverage given how large the county is. We are now bringing in the field officers and were really hoping the get into the stage three element before the end of summer. We are unsure what the market will look like at the end of summer. At the beginning of 2021, we had 117 complaints 16 of which are still active. What you can expect is that we have extra funding but hiring those people has been difficult. We anticipate change within the next 3-6 months. We will blend in direct enforcement as needed. Tom- What about these people that are permitted but have profits drying up? Are we doing anything about that? Pien- If a grow doesn't get a permit and continues growing then it's illegal right? John- Yes there is a referral program, if someone applied for a permit and was denied they can be referred, this takes some weight off of our shoulders as well as theirs. We are currently hiring and looking to bring on up to seven more people. Ron- The division of cannabis control is doing metric inspections. We are considered the smallest and therefore the resources are split into different larger ordinances. If a grow is noncompliant then every office is notified. Sattie- Who gets notified how does this work? John- There is a backlog of around 80 or 90 complaints. We are trying to solve problems related to code enforcement on sites that happen to be listed. Sattie- If a complaint about a grow seeking a permit where would that go? John- Code enforcement is a complaint hub! If you have any complaints send them here and we will get them in the right hands. Glenn- We are also working on an aerial contract. John- Yes we are working on aerial surveillance, it is a supplement to set the stage when verifying what the complaint actually is. We are excited to see how this will be used moving forward. Sattie- Have you been sending out letters to properties in violation? Is that active? John- Yes, we do but not to anything that we don't have the resources to engage with. We will incorporate some concentrated areas but at a later date. If you get a letter you are already under investigation. Adam- when people complain, like about the hoop houses, there's nothing stopping you from putting up hoops all over not even necessarily for cannabis. Some of them are legal some of them are not. Glenn- Yes it was disappointing when that was overturned, we wanted to get the plastic out of the market because it would be better for the environment. Ron- An open conversation is the only way to have a functioning ordinance. Sattie- You briefly touched on the fixes that were rescinded especially the environmental part of 10A17. Glenn- I really don't have an answer because it allowed an exemption for the EIR but they went ahead. Expansion should be outdoors, not with plastic not with water hauling. All those things were written into the legislation because people don't like cannabis already. If we want to see 10A17 change we need to do an EIR which will take around 4 years. My biggest concern is when we start to go backward to residential five acres. We have cannabis in suburban areas and that has an impact on people's lives. We don't have a lot of flexibility without triggering CEQA and having to start over. As it stands the market is collapsing. Ron: the market is tough. We are discussing the ability to follow to allow the market to recover. It's going to take state-level changes. Were seeing the state level proposing six plants a felony again. Dolly asked for any final questions. Gizmo- Is this just the statewide market? How do we open up the markets? Ron- There is no worldwide market, opening it up might not help. We have a glut in many places and not many buyers. It's a mess and it will take a while to sort itself out. CPUC written response to MAC's 10-20-21 letter re PG&E clearcutting. Does the MAC wish to appeal the CPUC decision? Dolly- PG&E has now relabeled their Enhanced Vegetation Management Program on clearcutting to be called the Transmission Expansion and Right Of Way Program, and they told the CPUC they are only cutting in a 15-foot clear cut, which is untrue as they have cut a 100' swath of trees. Any appeal to the CPUC stating PG&E is doing everything correctly, must be based on new information or PUC error. We would have needed to appeal within 15 days, but we meet every 30 days so we would no longer be timely and we would need to appeal PUC error and timeliness. Glenn- The county has sent protest letters and we did get a response from PG&E, but this has been taken up by organizations such as RCRC many people have been protesting. PG&E is an incredibly powerful company, and we have a lot of negative engagement. Dolly- asked and acknowledged that there is no member interested in composing an appeal, and added it wouldn't do any good since the CPUC did not listen to the first set of facts regarding PG&E's violations. Update on UUSD sale/trade of RV School property. Any response to Adam Gaska's letter republic's right to use tennis courts? Dolly- The letter was sent, and Dolly received an email from UUSD saying they would review the issue. Marybeth- stated she spent a while going through past minutes trying to find the viability of shutting down the school. The board minutes from 2007 to 2017 seem to not be digitalized. Glenn- That doesn't seem right, please go in and speak to someone about that. Additionally, he asked Bea Arkin to be guest speaker from the board. Marybeth- stated she would like to invite prospective buyer Gary Breen to the MAC meeting. Redwood Valley water issues updates. Does the MAC wish to advocate for continued water release to Lake Mendocino? Dolly- stated she sent a personal letter to Congressmen Jared Huffman requesting he not advocate removal of Scott Dam. She added that in a drought we look for water reservoirs, and we need to keep Scott Dam because it allows water to be pumped over the hill into Potter Valley then to Lake Mendocino, benefiting Redwood Valley farmers. Tom- Stated he thinks Jared Huffman is getting the message that this is political suicide to tear this dam down. He's no longer talking about Scott Dam. There was a letter-writing campaign and I think he's starting to understand. We're still sending too much water out of Coyote Reservoir. The dam is at a spillway stage, PG&E hasn't been upfront either, there's an overflow going on. In terms of our water district, it's looking better, but we still don't have water. It's going to take the politicians to get along and get something accomplished. It's going to take major changes and this major catastrophe has got people thinking. Next Thursday is the Redwood Valley Water District meeting. Katrina- It seems that Senator McGuire and Congressman Huffman are in opposite camps. Tom- I agree McGuire is much more workable but we will continue the pressure Huffman. Katrina- Asked what is the best way to voice concerns, and noted she has written a letter. Tom- stated he thinks letters work because the grape growers have got the power. When our lake is empty and we can't sell wine the growers are going to want to talk to Huffman. You guys are the contributors to the campaign and tax basis. The Mendocino Ag Commission is dying without water. Katrina- Have you reached out to the AG commissioner to participate in this discussion? Glenn- Typically they try to be apolitical but those that have been active in the past include Mendocino County Farm Commission and Russian River Water District. With redistricting, Mike Thompson is going to be responsible for Lake County completely and he won't just sit on the sidelines. Dolly- stated her letter to Congressman Huffman requesting Scott Dam remain is now outdated because PG&E stated the power station will be repaired, but I may write another letter. Tom- This thing has changed completely in two years, and this has cost a fortune in legal fees, we don't know why it's not running as a power source, we can make it capable as a release source. Marybeth- Did you ever get another water board member? Tom- Next Thursday we will be chatting with a couple of people we interviewed. Gizmo- Even though PG&E changed their deal are we still receiving half the water? Do we have to mitigate either of these power generators? Why are we only getting half the water? Tom- PG&E is playing everybody. We don't know how much water we will be getting in the next three years. The flow from Pillsbury won't change the lake but it hurts to look at that and imagine the water that would've been in there. PG&E says they are repairing a transformer but it would be a couple of years. Dolly- so writing letters does help. Bree- stated that one of the things about PG&E that we need to be aware of is that they agreed to fix the turbines allowing water to flow. This is up to 10 million in two years. The flow will be restricted but they could be putting water through the bypass tunnel. As far as I know, right now they are only putting out the minimum to satisfy Potter Valley. They will make us pay the cost of repairing the turbine, but it will be worth it in a couple of years. PG&E has a water right to that water, when PG&E goes away, do we get to buy up those water right? Katrina- We are going to be the ones to pay for all this. Redwood Valley Grange updates. Marybeth stated she sent out the ballots and will know the results by Friday. The Grange got a swamp cooler and a stove replaced. Katrina- stated the Grange received approval from NCO to use the funds, and can submit invoices up to five thousand dollars. Marybeth- asked if there a timeframe. Katrina- No. Jini- We are doing the seed giveaway this Saturday. Pomona is doing a huge seed swap due to Anderson Valley being canceled. Both Redwood Valley and Willits are doing seed and scion exchange. Our Easter Bake Sale is the day before Easter- the 16th of April. Adopt-A-Road. Next 3-19-22. Jini- Meredith is not with us tonight but she is going to be moving out of the county. We need someone who is willing to take over the road cleanup.
Cannabis Policy Standing Subcommittee: Patricia, Sattie Sattie stated she is interested in any fixes to the cannabis program. Can this be done with an EIR? Chris- stated she noticed the ad hoc committees are now called standing committees, and as such need to be Brown Act compliant. Dolly- stated she believes the subcommittees are already. Dolly added that if the MAC would like a guest speaker to speak about licenses for cannabis growers we can ask for that. Glenn- Dolly’s son William is on the staff now so if we need to hear something directly from the department we can ask him.
Development Review Standing Subcommittee: Marybeth, Jini, Patricia Marybeth- stated that she has checked the county website, there are no new permits for February. She did find an invitation from the project leader for the Chevron gas station proposed. We missed the site review, but I sent the RVMAC reply in which the MAC voted our wishes to deny the station. Chris- What were our formal reasons for denying? Marybeth- There is no real demand for another gas station in an age where we should be pursuing electric, and we fear an increase in accidents at the HWY 101 lane crossover turnout. Gizmo- The Hwy 20 bridge project: it’s crucial that our emergency crews have access to the fire trails. He stated "I sent a message to the Fire Chief about the pellet piles near the dry grass, since I sent that, the piles have been moved back a little which makes me think how terrible it would be if that caught fire, not to mention the chemicals that would reach the river and affect the surrounding counties. I'm going to attend the fire meeting and I'm going to request that any contractor that comes through our area abide by our rules. Specifically, the monthly fire safety meetings, and don't speed. It’s imperative that we prevent fires, chemical leaks, and injuries of workers."
CAP: Interim Community Action Plan and Design Review: Chris, Sattie
MAC approved the Community Action Plan 7-15-20. Katrina- stated she thinks we should bring someone in to talk about it. Dolly- It was supposed to be approved by Planning and Building but that hasn’t happened yet. Katrina- I don't know if it's strategic to ask them again or if it's pointless. Glenn- I know there are some ongoing things that are taking a while to work through, I will mention it. Chris - Cliff Paulin is now on the Planning Commission which should be helpful, since he helped write our CAP. Sheilah- stated she thinks it's really critical that the RVMAC continues to be engaged in this with the larger Mendocino County plan. Dolly stated agreement.
Officers and Members Reports and Announcements The MAC voted on whether to renew Secretary approval (Nov. was for 3 months. Jini motioned, Sattie seconded. Dolly took a rollcall vote, it was unanimously approved. Dolly state a review of RVMAC bylaws will remain on the Agenda until completed. Dolly asked members who they would like to be the next guest speaker. Gizmo- Thanked Meredith for all she's done keeping the roads clean. Chris- I think we should invite someone from Planning and Building. Sattie- Developer Gary Breen, the potential purchaser for the RV school grounds, would be a good person to have a conversation with. Katrina- I know him through the wine industry so you could throw my name in there. Dolly- Glenn if you could copy me into that email that would be great that way we can see if we can invite Julia Krog from P&B into the meeting. Gizmo- Can we get the new CHP Captain to come down, I haven't met him yet, but he seemed very positive. Dolly- I invited him to attend our meetings. Ron- Thanked everyone for working to improve the county.
InterMAC Engagement Standing Subcommittee: Sattie, Adam, Jini
County MACs' shared issues. Dolly stated that if there is an issue shared by MACs that lights a fire, then that's where we will get cooperation. Jini- There have been a couple of people from the MOVE 2030 BIG MAC and one young woman from a MAC in Laytonville who will hopefully attend our next meeting.
Adjournment. Next meeting 3-9-22.