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Yesterday, Tuesday, was a good day.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I have the best 100,000 bosses in the world. I’m honored to work for all of you. Thank you for making Tuesday possible.
Because of you, we were able to take a huge leap forward towards creating two future West County parks. This step was funded by a sales tax that all of us pay into… a sales tax approved by the voters of Sonoma County!
Yesterday, the Board of Supervisors — serving as the Directors of the taxpayer-funded Agricultural Preservation & Open Space District — voted to spend $6.18M to facilitate the acquisition of Russian River Redwoods. In a separate action, we also voted to approve $2.225M to support the acquisition of St. Dorothy’s Rest (now known as “Camp Meeker Forest Open Space Preserve.”)
Russian River Redwoods is the property formerly known as “Silver Estates,” 394 acres that was slated to be logged outside of Guerneville. It includes the magnificent old growth redwood Clar Tree as well as a one-mile stretch of the Russian River. The Camp Meeker Forest Open Space Preserve is a similar size, comprising 356 sprawling acres crisscrossed with trails in beautiful Camp Meeker.
I worked for years on these two projects and I’m thrilled that they are officially funded. There are many steps still to come. It will be a while until these parks open to the public. But we are on our way! And it took local leadership to bring these exciting projects forward. That’s the best part of my job: working with my awesome bosses to turn good ideas into reality. We wouldn’t have been able to support the acquisition of St. Dorothy’s Rest by the Camp Meeker Rec & Park District without the leadership of Dewey Watson and Gary Helfrich. Similarly, the Guerneville Forest Coalition along with Forest Unlimited fought for years to protect Russian River Redwoods from logging, and were key supporters of the property acquisition. Thanks to Save the Redwoods League, who stepped in as a conservation buyer in the nick of time before the property could be logged, we are conserving our natural resources and will be able to offer recreational opportunities to the public at Russian River Redwoods in the future. And of course, the amazing staff at the Open Space District got all of this across the finish line. (Which is really the starting line. But regardless, it’s a line, and we just crossed it!)
Yesterday was an exciting day overall for West County. In addition to funding these two future parks, we also approved funding for Black Cod Week, an initiative to promote and support our local fishermen by showcasing locally caught black cod. Our fishermen are key to our coastal economy and culture. They are deeply dedicated to sustainable stewardship of our coastal resources — and we want to do everything we can to support them during these challenging economic times, which is why we’re working on Black Cod Week and other initiatives. Stay tuned for more information on Black Cod Week in future newsletters.
Finally, after heartfelt, heartbreaking testimony from local renters and a lengthy deliberation process, we voted yesterday to move forward an ordinance to enhance tenant protections. Is the new ordinance perfect? Absolutely not. Will it solve all of our problems? No. But it’s a step in the right direction, and the Board also decided to form a working group of tenant and landlord stakeholders to refine the ordinance and discuss future programs and steps to support housing stability.
If you’d like more information about tenants rights, please consider attending our upcoming session with a local eviction defense attorney, "What Renters Can Do Prior to an Eviction.” Led by local lawyer Josh Katz, it will cover essential information and practical steps renters can take if facing eviction. The session will take place August 28 at 6pm in the 5th District Satellite Office (B of A building in Guerneville.)
Thanks again, bosses, for letting me work with and for you!
-Lynda
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