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Time Description 4:05 p.m. Continued meeting from April 1, 2008 called to order at the Mariposa County Government Center. Kris Schenk, Planning Director; PUBLIC WORKSHOP to Consider Definitions and Criteria for Agritourism and Nature Tourism, and to Provide Recommendations for Actions that Will Allow Agri-tourism and Adaptive, Visitor-Serving Uses in Mariposa County BOARD ACTION: Sarah Williams/Deputy Planning Director, Karen Robb/Farm Advisor, Andy Hauge/Hauge Brueck Associates – Project Manager, and Blake Roberts/Hauge Brueck Associates, were present. Kris Schenk arrived later. Karen Robb provided input on the two Saturday workshops that were held. Andy Hauge gave an overview of the reference to agritourism and nature tourism in the General Plan, of the workshops and input that has been received, of the recommendations, and the next steps in this process. Chair Turpin provided input on the format for this workshop and he asked that each speaker limit their comments to three or four minutes. Input from the public was provided by the following: Kris Casto advised that she and her husband own a vineyard and winery in the Mountain Home land use classification; and she recommended using the guidelines discussed versus the use permit process. She provided input on the Agriculture/Working Landscape zoning and the small family farms that are in Mountain Home; and she questioned whether use permits should be required for people who have tours of their agritourism or nature tourism use two weekends a year. She suggested that the next step in the process could be to have a small group of people look at the issues of intensity. She agrees that agriculture is important and feels it needs a market place. Speaking for the Ag/Nature Trail, she urged attendance at their upcoming event and advised that this is an opportunity for people to see what they do. Paul Chapman commented on agritourism being addressed at the State level to save family farms; and he feels the people that have been in business for 150 years have rights. He asked about the status of hiring a Williamson Act contract compliance officer. He does not feel that agritourism is allowed on contracted land, and he feels there should be a buffer zone and a no trespass ordinance. Ken Pulvino, Greeley Hill rancher, referred to his involvement in agritourism workshops and noted that he was the first person to request this use in the County. He questioned the workshop process and feels that outside experts should have been involved. He does not feel that the use permit process should be required where the primary use of the land is for agriculture, and he feels we should be helping ranchers to prosper. Dave Pearson, ag economist, provided input on his background and he presented input on the definition of agritourism and stated he feels that this means there is a movement that has gone on and he doesn’t feel the workshop addressed this. Dave Breemer, land use lawyer, stated he is a relatively new citizen to the area. He feels this document is “ag wordism” and that agriculture is discussed, but tourism is ignored and that we need to do something about the economics. He feels the definition is too narrow and that there should be a list of permitted uses with size limitations; and if the size limitations are exceeded, then a conditional use permit (CUP) would be required. Steve Saunders commended on his experience in attending the first workshop. He feels they should have been presented with options of what is occurring in other areas so they would have MARIPOSA COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS April 2, 2008 (Meeting Continued from April 1, 2008) ---PAGE BREAK--- 2 4-2-08 background information and could make choices. He feels this is designed for failure, and he feels the Board should get more information to make an informed decision. He questioned what the threshold is for agritourism use. He feels this is more regulation to limit agriculture. Theresa Castaldi, with Coyote Springs Ranch, feels that what is being presented to the Board is centered around trying to shut down Coyote Springs Ranch. She feels guest ranches are permitted uses in agritourism and she presented information on the definition of agritourism. She requested that their project be grandfathered in. Fred Friedland stated he has a cattle ranch near Coyote Springs Ranch and he does not object to their project, but he is concerned that there is no plan for the final project. He is concerned with water impacts and feels the project should go through the proper process. He feels we need to maintain the beautiful community. Mindy asked whether agritourism policies were obtained from other counties for review in this process and to help people understand what agritourism is. She feels the CUP would deter people from getting involved in this and would make it difficult to show people what they are about. She questioned whether they would be required to obtain a CUP for their pumpkin patch under the policy; this would hurt the small agricultural operations. She asked why horticulture and agribusiness was taken out of the definition. Don Starchman stated he feels the proposal goes from permitted uses to restrictions, and he thought these issues were decided in the General Plan. He could understand this for issues that are brought up that were not considered, but he feels the Board should not be going back and redefining this – they should be making what we have a workable document. He feels we need to have permitted uses and should not be looking at small scale uses that are family operated. He feels that if we are looking at large scale, then you are looking at a General Plan Amendment, and he would like to see the process in writing so it will be known if the requirements could be met. Bart Brown referred to the input by Don Starchman and stated he thought we were in the process of doing this with the implementation of the General Plan, just as Title 17 needs to be redone. He asked what the method will be for determining if there agricultural activity on site and how substandard parcels will be handled. Cathie Pierce, cow/calf operator in Catheys Valley, noted that agriculture people are not ignorant as she has heard said. She stated there is a difference between large and small operations and there is nothing wrong with either and she is not opposed to agritourism. But she feels that if the Board is not careful, you will not be able to stop people from doing whatever they want under agritourism. She feels the workshops were done well. She referred to the County’s Agricultural Crop and Livestock Report and stated she feels it is inaccurate as ranchers are not going to disclose all of their information. She does not feel that this issue has to do with any particular rancher, but is for the County and all of the small communities that makeup our County. She feels there are uses that a CUP should be required for, especially things that will impact neighbors with lights, noise, dust and with activities that occur at night. She feels that being a “good neighbor” is important. She referred to Title 17 and stated she does not see agritourism as a permitted use. (She corrected this statement later in the meeting.) She referred to AB 1258 that was enacted in 1999 and the Home Stay Act and requirements for agritourism with things like ADA compliance, food handlers, and business licenses, and stated she feels the laws of the State need to be considered. She referred to a meeting in May 2006 when 32 of the largest ranchers in the County got together and answered a questionnaire and she referred to the results and the strong support of agriculture. Cathi Boze, Agricultural Commissioner, referred to her educational background and the Crop Report and her involvement in agritourism. She advised that she sees this as a way for people to keep their agricultural land and she provided input on the impact agriculture has on the economy of the County. She feels it is important that the primary use is agricultural production and that agritourism is secondary. She referred to her personal application experience for a bunk house. She agrees that there needs to be guidelines for small vendors and she expressed concern with bio-security issues, water quality, and erosion. She feels the uses need to comply with all laws and be good stewards of the land. She feels small uses should be allowed without requiring a CUP. ---PAGE BREAK--- 3 4-2-08 Ken Pulvino referred to the history of the Home Stay Bill and advised that it was not designed to restrict agritourism; it was for those who do not want to go through the commercial restaurant use process. Steve Saunders referred to his discussion with Dennis Bunning relative to horses and whether they are a part of agriculture and a legitimate activity under the Williamson Act; and his subsequent discussion with a State attorney on this matter. Linda Sinclair, previous Fair Manager, provided input on her experiences with these activities – bull riding and roping type events are considered sporting events. She agrees with agritourism and the educational value. She referred to Coyote Springs Ranch and stated she feels that everyone needs to follow the rules. She stated she feels we need to be careful how agritourism is defined. Joe Simon, Catheys Valley, referred to Chapter 17.40 and AB 1258 and stated he does not know why people are scared of the CUP process. He referred to his experience in processing a hunting club use. He noted that water is a problem, his springs have gone dry. He referred to his conversation with Dick Tally, who spent his life being a cowboy in the area. Art Richards, cattleman, feeder and trucker, stated he supports agritourism, but he feels issues such as bio-security and the transportation of animals’ interstate, need to be considered. He commented on the dangers with foreign visitors carrying spores on their clothes and transmitting diseases that could impact agriculture. He feels that protection is needed and the liability issues should be addressed. He referred to the history of the Williamson Act contracts and his involvement. He stated he is in favor of the efforts of Coyote Springs, he loves to rodeo, but those events are insured separately and appropriate permits are obtained. He also noted that most of the places where these events are held have sewer stations and facilities to accommodate travel trailers. Linda Sinclair referred to her experiences with the Fair events and with the Tourism Advisory Council; and she agreed with Art Richards that these types of events are event oriented and people only visit the site. Manual Souza referred to his experience in putting on an alcohol and tobacco free event, and commented on the community support. He noted that the bulls, cows and calves that do not meet the grade become meat. He stated he feels that roping and rodeos are more than just a sport – these activities began as a way for ranchers to show each other how they did things. He referred to the workshops and stated he feels that we need a plan to succeed. We need to create businesses and give people a reason to stay here. He feels the consultant should have talked with the people in the area, and he feels that everyone has a different definition of agritourism. He feels that some guidelines should be set so that people’s rights are respected and people are encouraged to move forward. 6:02 p.m. Recess 7:17 p.m. Mindy suggested that policies be obtained from five counties similar to Mariposa for comparison in relation to our General Plan and that a subcommittee review this as a basis to start the process. Sheryl Leisure, business owner and has a small ranch, advised that she attended the second workshop and was overwhelmed. She is okay with the existing description and asked why a new one is being proposed. She feels requiring CUP will limit applications. She suggested that hypothetical case studies be created to help people understand what the CUP process is. She expressed concern with the term “existing ranch” and asked if that means that someone could not purchase a ranch in the future and participate in agritourism. She feels the definition should be broad and vague and that this should come back in a year. Cathie Pierce corrected her earlier statement and advised that Title 17 does reference agritourism. Tony Toso, cattle producer and agribusiness in Hornitos, stated he feels agritourism is a good thing and he is pro-business. He agrees with preserving the agricultural land. He does not feel that income should be considered, just intensity, and he noted that requiring a CUP is common. He noted that our winter grass is a commodity that does not exist in the East and is integral to the cattle industry. ---PAGE BREAK--- 4 4-2-08 Dennis Bunning stated he has a commercial poultry farm and he feels there should be a review process. He noted that lights and noise past dark would impact his operation; and he feels we need to protect the existing operations. Discussion was held relative to the Weekend in the Country event and small producers and whether there should be any permit requirements. Kris Casto provided input on the Weekend in the Country event and other activities that she feels should be considered events, such as apple picking for three weeks in the fall. Further discussion was held. Thomas P. Guarino, County Counsel, provided input relative to the event activities and land use regulations; and he advised that staff would need direction on the policy decision relative to regulating a level of activity. Supervisor Bibby asked for clarification of the definition of temporary camping and expressed concern that the definition does not address a limit to the number of campers. Supervisor Pickard suggested that the next step be to bring in an expert in the field who could give a presentation to help bring everyone to a common understanding of agritourism. Karen Robb noted that there is a workshop in Tuolumne County on April 25th relative to agritourism. Supervisor Pickard further suggested that someone who has experience in agritourism, and he noted that there is a rancher in Tehama County that might be able to help, be invited to share their experiences to help in this process. Supervisor Bibby noted the CUP and Negative Declaration process provide an opportunity to educate the applicants on the existing rules and provides staff with an opportunity to review all of the issues. She questioned whether there is a streamlined process for a Negative Declaration for these use. Karen Robb advised that other counties have a streamlined process and an administrative review process. Chair Turpin asked the Farm Advisor to bring something back to the Board in a couple of weeks to schedule a workshop as suggested by Supervisor Pickard. Karen Robb suggested that the information for the workshop include an educational component of what people are doing and varying definitions; and more information from the presentation that was given to the Board in October 2007. Supervisor Bibby asked that information be included such as operational hours and small and large scale uses. 8:19 p.m. Adjournment. Respectfully submitted, MARGIE WILLIAMS, Clerk of the Board LYLE TURPIN, Chair, Board of Supervisors