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1.
This time around the Council is again going to tackle the General Plan
(same part as last meeting) and, unfortunately, we have to keep on showing
up until its done. There's no telling what will be in there if we
don't. Check the list of changes the Council is
still dealing with. Tuesday, 6 PM, Vintage Hall.
2.
Another reason to go is the Small Winery Ordinance -- it's the very
last chance to get your voice in there if you live on a street with the
issue. Here are some of the remaining points to make on that one:
A.
There is no assurance for the neighborhood of a limit to events. The
neighborhood will have to lobby for that with each permit. Therefore, there
will be different limits all over town and perhaps the feeling that those
limits are politically determined. B. Requirement of green
winery rules. Many here already do that but it would be good to have them
required with new permits since these wineries will be close to
concentrations of people (think pesticides, etc.). C. I am not sure
if the use permit will stay with the property or with the owner. This
could be an issue if the next owner is not very caring with the neighbors
-- especially since the wineries can be sold without residences involved to
anyone from anywhere.
3. This week, there was a turning
point of sorts in that the legal people weighed in on the Hunter issue and
found that there was no cause to prevent the EIR from being accepted and
that means the project will go ahead -- if I have that right. If that's the
case, then it makes good sense to extend Adams St. and have a new bridge --
a wider one!
4. New on the website are the official projections from the Association
of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) on what demographics we can expect in Napa
County up to 2035 -- very interesting. It's why we have to have a
decent General Plan -- it goes to 2030. Please note the Census article in the Register today --
the last line says that poverty among children here in Napa County jumped
from 7.4% to 20.5% in 2012, in one year! It's shocking and sad and why
there must be affordable housing built into our General Plan. St. Helena is
not immune. Note also the NYTimes article today about the mental
strain of poverty when it happens to anyone. Responsible planning can do
wonders for these social issues that we will surely find ourselves dealing
with in the future.
5. And on the Home page (link below)
in the Hot Button Box is the list of which streets in town will get
resurfaced in October -- a present for you since I'm not sure the
City notifies individual addresses.
So far no negative
protests against my letter campaign, so thanks for hanging in there with
me. I am quite eager to get back to main life again but the campaign
should really continue until the Council decides to govern for the benefit
of the whole town and not just the east side. Thanks again!
Sandy
P.S.
If more people had better information then there would less pressure to
make change on the ones with it -- rescue yourselves, let others know
about the website!
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