By TONY REED Staff Writer -

Updated:  06/25/2009 07:58:13 AM PDT

Ft. Bragg Advocate-News

At its regular meeting June 22, the City Council unanimously opposed a massive “mixed use specific plan” for Ukiah’s former Masonite plant.

The resolution follows a similar June 3 resolution by the Ukiah City Council, which unanimously opposed the plan.

A plan submitted by Mendocino Crossings proposes to build 650,000 square feet of commercial space and 150,000 square feet of residential space on the 74-acre property northeast of Ukiah. Developers Diversified Realty Inc. (DDR) owns the land and is one of the country’s largest retail developers.

According to the resolution, city staff members reviewed the plan and believe it would have a negative impact on the City of Ukiah, as well as the rest of the county. The resolution was later amended to say the Fort Bragg City Council reviewed it.

The site is designated as industrial, zoned as I-1 (Limited Industrial) and I-2 (General Industrial) for industrial use under the county’s general plan.

Despite its name, the 310-page plan is less than specific and many pages contain a boxed disclaimer saying, “The location and types of land uses, roadways, and buildings illustrated above are conceptual and subject to change.”

A possible loophole

During the meeting, speakers and council members repeatedly said the initiative is an attempt by the property owner to avoid public hearings, county zoning requirements and an environmental impact report.

Page B-228, Chapter 8.5 of the plan starts, “Pursuant to Section 15378 (b)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines, “the submittal of proposals to a vote of the people of the state or of a particular community that does not involve a public agency sponsored initiative is not defined as a “project.” Consequently, this Specific Plan is not classified as a project’ by State law and is exempt from the CEQA process.” However, the plan does say impacts will be mitigated whenever possible.

According to a ballot initiative study prepared for the Board of Supervisors under the direction of the County Administration Office, the proposed initiative would modify the existing land use designation of the site from Industrial to “Mixed-Use Specific Plan.” The plan designation will allow for development of up to 800,000 square feet of building area, 150 residential units and a variety of uses including light industrial, retail, commercial, residential, office, hotel, entertainment, educational, public facilities, utility installations, parking lots and structures, and open space.

“In the case of using the ballot box initiative process to create land use changes, the standard planning process would not be required and the results of the vote of the general electorate would determine if the project could be developed,” the study reads. “Procedural requirements (i.e. notice, hearing and findings) necessary for adoption of a specific plan, adoption of a general plan or amendment of the zoning code do not apply if the same measure is adopted by initiative so there is no public input except by the yes or no ballot vote. There would be no required mitigation other than that identified within the text of the initiative.”

The plan also mentions the Fort Bragg mill site as one of a few “vacant industrial areas available for use.”

The council’s resolution concluded that such development would have negative impacts on water, fire and police services, traffic safety and aesthetics.

“We urge all citizens to study the Mendocino Crossings Mixed Use plan and to become informed about the potential size, magnitude and intensity of its build-out and the implications of rezoning the Masonite site,” the resolution reads.

“The Mendocino County Tomorrow ballot initiative eliminates the public hearing process which is an important opportunity for citizens and their elected representatives to engage in a deliberative dialog about the pros and cons of the project,” said the council resolution.

From the council

Council member Dan Gjerde and Mayor Doug Hammerstrom brought the resolution to the meeting. They said the ballot initiative would give DDR special considerations not afforded to any other county developers. Gjerde explained that the initiative, if passed, would allow DDR to rezone a section of property and be exempt from California Environmental Quality Act requirements. He said the property owner would not be required to mitigate the impacts on neighbors, the City of Ukiah or others.

In a statement that would be repeated several times Monday evening, Gjerde said, “I felt this was basically a bad idea.”

Gjerde said the proposed development would be 13 times bigger than Fort Bragg’s Safeway supermarket.

He said the additional retail space would devastate Ukiah’s commercial sector, complicate traffic and undercut the efforts of county supervisors who require every developer to follow the same rules. He said the size and scope could also change, based on the property owner’s discretion. The plan proposes five extra stoplights be installed on State Street to handle traffic.

Hammerstrom had similar concerns, saying the wealthy developers opted for a ballot initiative in order to avoid the lengthy regular processes. He said later that a ballot measure will supersede laws that typically provide protection for all residents.

“I don’t think any of our citizens would say they want a decision made just with a ballot measure,” he said.

City Council member and Local Agency Formation Commission Chairman Jere Melo said LAFCO’s job is to ensure that services can be provided to a proposed project. He said the area’s water district has a waiting list of over 300 people wanting to hook up to the water supply there. He said the project would stretch fire and sanitation district resources.

Melo referred to a letter written by attorney Marguerite Mary Leoni, which said LAFCO improperly used public funds to campaign against the project. The letter refers to a service impact report written by LAFCO CEO Frank McMichael.

Leoni’s letter demanded that the LAFCO board declare that the service impact report was not approved by LAFCO, was not based on factual information, and that McMichael does not have the knowledge to make claims about potential water impacts. Melo said the board reviewed the letter and did none of those things.

Other input

Ukiah City Council member Benj Thomas called Leoni’s letter “an attempt to muzzle McMichael.”

Thomas was direct in his description of what the plan would mean to county residents.

“It means an end to regional planning … it’s a violation of all the procedures that we have invested in county planning because it bypasses those. It bypasses the state regulations regarding CEQA and, as Dan said, it’s a bad idea,” Thomas said. “It’s the substitution of a propaganda-driven political campaign for thorough and valuable planning processes.”

Thomas said that if the countywide initiative succeeds, it would likely be the first of many to come.

“We are all vulnerable to this kind of attack,” he said. “I think it’s risky. I worry that an issue this complex should not be decided by people who have not been exposed to the full complexities of the issue.”

Guinness McFadden, a Potter Valley farmer and SOLE (Save Our Local Economy) spokesman, called the 310-page DDR plan “illusionary vision.” He said page 42 of the plan contains a disclaimer that its contents are conceptual. He said the ballot requires that the county General Plan be changed if it conflicts with the DDR plan.

“None of us like planning. We’d all just like to do what we want to do,” he said. “Why should these people be allowed to do what they want to do when everyone else in the county has to get a permit to build a doghouse? It’s just not fair.”

McFadden said the project would also cause severe traffic impacts.

“If you like the traffic in Santa Rosa, you won’t have to drive as far to get it,” he said. “You’ll get it in Ukiah.”

Miles Everett, chair of the Fort Bragg council’s Economic Development Action Committee, said the issue will continue and that the council and voters need to keep informed. He said the Democratic Party of Mendocino County will continue to fight the initiative, and asked council members and voters to participate.

Jeff Tyrrell, representing the Mendocino Coast Democratic Club, said he opposes any initiative designed to circumvent the environmental impact report process.

Fort Bragg resident George Reinhardt noted that Ukiah area people had come “over the hill” to speak to the council on the issue.

“I hope we don’t have to go over the hill to speak to people in Willits and Ukiah when some madcap, ill-advised corporate vision is trying to be imposed on our community for this former [G-P] mill site that we all are talking about and have great hopes for,” he said.

Vice-Mayor Dave Turner said the council needs to be firm in opposing the initiative, because of its precedent-setting potential.

“If you want to know that you are satisfied with this, you need to read and understand every bit of the ballot measure,” he said.

Hammerstrom’s statement inspired McFadden to drop the 310-page document on the table in front of the council. He said a vote against the initiative means you support your locally elected officials, rather than attorneys representing corporations with special interests.

“I find this whole thing offensive and frightening,” said Council member Meg Courtney, who recalled being “accosted” by a hired petition signature-gatherer at Safeway. “From the beginning, it’s been a nightmare.”

Council members opposed the initiative unanimously, prompting applause in the room.

The county Board of Supervisors approved the ballot measure to place the initiative in the November ballot.

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20090603/ARTICLES/906039828?Title=Ukiah-council-takes-stand-against-development-ballot-measure

By GLENDA ANDERSON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Grass-roots resistance will prevail over corporate power in the upcoming electoral fight against DDR Inc., just like it did in the historic Measure H campaign of 2004.

That’s the prediction from Cliff Paulin, chair of Save Our Local Economy (SOLE), the coalition that has formed to oppose the ballot measure sponsored by Developer’s Diversified Realty, Inc. (DDR), an Ohio-based shopping center developer

DDR reported  April 30 that it had submitted enough petition signatures to qualify its own custom-written General Plan amendment for the ballot for Mendocino County.  If certified by the County Clerk, the measure will go before county voters in November, 2009.

“It’s no surprise that DDR got enough signatures,” said Paulin.  “We know the company recruited 20 full-time signature gatherers from outside Mendocino County, and paid them $2 per signature.  These petitioners were telling people anything to get them to sign.  There were three indepedant letters to the editor in the Ukiah paper from people who said they were told the petition was ‘to clean up the Masonite site.’ These signature gathers used tactics ranging from deceit to intimidation to violence in one case.  What we saw was an all-out blitz for three weeks by this well funded corporation, and it’s just the tip of the iceberg of what we can expect in the coming months.”

One DDR paid petition-gatherer was hit with a restraining order because of his aggressive tactics of hounding shoppers in front of a Laytonville market.

“The fact DDR had to lie to induce people to sign is indicative of lack of support for their project.  These tactics are representative of what we’ve seen from DDR in the past and what we can expect in the future,” said Paulin.  “Many well meaning people signed the petition with the best of intentions to clean up the Masonite site.  Had they known the actual purpose they would not have signed, as evidenced by the record number of people who submitted letters to the elections office to remove their name from the petition.”

The DDR plan would revoke the industrial zoning for the former Masonite site and allow DDR to build a shopping mall up to 800,000 square feet in size, with a parking lot for 3,000 cars.

Paulin said that the opposition to DDR would focus on the need to keep the Masonite site available for new industrial jobs, rather than the low-wage chain store jobs that DDR’s mall would provide.  “Studies show that every new job in a big shopping mall causes the loss of 1.4 jobs in local stores that lose business,” said Paulin.

“Voters will think twice when they learn about how DDR is exempting itself from any environmental review under state law,” said Paulin.  “There will be no environmental impact report that will verify that North State Street can handle the traffic or that the Russian River can supply the water.”

Paulin pointed out that DDR’s plan would mandate a total of 7 traffic lights on a 1/2 mile stretch of North State Street in front of the shopping mall.  The plan would also allow the company to put up 6 huge signs along nearby roads and the freeway, the largest 100 feet tall.  This is four times the height that would be allowed under County Zoning Laws, which the ballot initiative would preempt.

“This kind of corporate arrogance won’t play well with the independent-minded voters of Mendocino County,” said Paulin.  “We can never match the money that DDR plans to spend on this election, but we will counter that with person-to-person outreach.  We’re the home team.”

SOLE points out that such a huge shopping mall could be profitable only by sucking up all the retail business of the area, turning existing downtowns and shopping centers into ghost towns.

“We have absolutely no need for a new mega-mall,” said Paulin.  “The City of Ukiah alone has 95 vacant acres of retail-zoned land.  Costco was in advanced negotiations to locate in the Redwood Business Park in Ukiah before DDR persuaded them to back out.  When DDR is defeated, Costco and other stores can locate in existing retail districts if they’re still interested in the Mendocino County market.”

SAVE OUR LOCAL ECONOMY (SOLE) is an all-volunteer local group–the Home Team–that has organized to work for a “No” vote on DDR’s ballot measure.

To participate in our campaign,Please visit our sign up page.

Donations to “SOLE” are gratefully accepted at SOLE, P.O. Box 1530, Ukiah, CA 95482.  For amounts of $100 or more, FPPC rules require that we know your employer & position.

Guiness McFadden, a farmer and grape grower, who lives and works near Ukiah, California is a member of SOLE, a local grass-roots organization whose name is an acronym for Save Our Local Economy. In the conversation with Radio Curious host and producer, Barry Vogel, recorded on April 20, 2009, McFadden discusses the efforts and consequences of this mega-mall project, promoted by Developer’s Diversified Realty, the largest shopping mall builder in the nation, whose corporate stock fell from approximately $90.00 per share in 2007 to approximately $2.00 per share.

McFadden also reminds listeners that many people were misinformed about the purpose of the DDR initiative petition and they can “unsign” it by sending a form letter to County Clerk-Recorder Susan Ranochak. 

We would like to thank Barry Vogel for allowing us to link to his interview here. We hope you enjoy it.

http://www.radio4all.net:8080/files/curious@radiocurious.org/1197-1-mcfadden_interview_bcast_04-20-09.mp3

Judge grants restraining order against signature gatherer

By ROB BURGESS The Daily Journal

Updated: 04/23/2009 12:02:42 AM PDT

http://www.ukiahdailyjournal.com/ci_12206210

ust after 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in Courtroom G of the Mendocino County Courthouse, Judge John Behnke granted a temporary restraining order against Jay Taylor of H and H Petitions as requested by Geigers Long Valley Market co-owner Michael Braught, of Laytonville, through his attorney Barry Vogel.

Over the course of the last two weeks, H and H Petitions, along with several volunteers, has been gathering signatures around the county. Partial site owners Developers Diversified Realty have been engaged in an effort to put on the ballot the question of whether or not rezone the former Masonite site from industrial to mixed-use to allow for the construction of the Mendocino Crossings retail center.

Vogel said the complaint was being brought forward because of an alleged altercation between Taylor and a 67-year-old customer last week outside the store.

“What we’re asking for is safety in the county from people who are blocking a business and carrying out violence against the citizens of this county,” Vogel told Behnke. “That’s not how you go about collecting signatures for a ballot initiative.”

Braught, who owns the market with his wife, Shanna, said the petitioners showed up at the front entrance early on April 13.

“There was no call made and no permission was granted,” he said. “I had no idea who they were. They asked if I’d like to sign the permission. He said he didn’t need permission. I asked him if he would seek signatures elsewhere. He said he could call the sheriff, so it was gloves off from the beginning.”

Braught said the petitioners were standoffish and carried no identification, unlike others who had stood in front of his store for other causes.

“This is the first time this has happened,” he said. “Every other time we’ve dealt with it on a man-to-man basis.”

Braught said things escalated at around 2:30 p.m. April 16 after Taylor arrived in Laytonville after being asked to leave Keith’s Family Food Center in Covelo.

“He arrived with an agenda,” he said. “He was going to stay there every day until dark all week. It was amplified from before.”

Braught said that Taylor made “every attempt” to bait him into attacking him while standing in front of the store.

“At around 2:30 p.m. this customer walked into the store and asked (Taylor) to leave. There was an altercation.”

Braught said the customer swung at Taylor in self-defense and was then knocked to the ground.

“He hit his head on the asphalt,” he said of the customer who was then escorted to his vehicle. “It was necessary for me to calm myself. I went home and changed. At that point I decided that my rights as a property and business owner had been violated.”

In the end, Behnke ruled in favor of the issuance of the temporary restraining order, but continued the matter of whether or not to do the same for H and H Petitions as a whole to a later date.

Though no one from H and H Petitions showed up for the proceedings Wednesday, Vogel said he had informed Dan Harwig, owner of the company, of the change in date of the proceedings from Tuesday in Willits to the Wednesday date.

A message left on the office number for H and H Petitions was not immediately returned.

Brian Sobel, project spokesman for DDR, said Wednesday he didn’t have a comment yet on the incident because he “didn’t have all the facts yet.”

Behnke set the next court date for 1:30 p.m. today in Courtroom E to hear the amended complaint and an additional appointment for 11:15 a.m. May 1.

Rob Burgess can be reached at udjrb@pacific.net.

The following was published in the Press Democrat Santa Rosa,  CA

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20090416/OPINION/904159907#

Masonite Industrial Site In Ukiah, CA

MARI RODIN

Published: Thursday, April 16, 2009 at 3:00 a.m.

Mari Rodin is a member of the Ukiah City Council.

For additional information:
Cliff Paulin  707-463-0413
Mari Rodin 707-272-1937
Guinness McFadden 707-743-1122

New Citizen Coalition Will Oppose DDR’s Attempt to Buy Approval of Zoning Change to Allow for Mega- Mall

A new coalition has formed to lead Mendocino County’s opposition to a ballot initiative funded by Ohio-based Developers Diversified Realty, Inc. (DDR) that would change the zoning of the former Masonite site to allow development of a mega-mall.

Save Our Local Economy (SOLE) will counter the corporate funding of DDR’s campaign with grassroots organizing, education, and fundraising.  SOLE’s website is www.NoMegaMall.com and e-mail is

DDR’s paid signature gatherers, working under the name of “Mendocino County Tomorrow,” have been telling County residents a number of misrepresentations and false statements to induce them to sign the petition. A typical opener heard from their signature collectors is, “This petition is for the cleanup of the Masonite site.”

“These sorts of misrepresentations are not surprising given that Mendocino County Tomorrow is actually ‘Astroturf’ (fake grass roots)—backed financially by DDR,” says Rodin. County residents should be aware that if they signed the petition they can write to the County Elections office to request their name be removed.

In a contrasting spirit of openness and transparency, SOLE is dedicated to educating County residents about the reality of the initiative. As a first step, SOLE will post on its website www.NoMegaMall.com the only electronic copy of DDR’s proposed initiative—something which Mendocino County Tomorrow has refused to do thus far.

DDR, based in Ohio, is one of the largest shopping center developers in the country with $10 billion assets.  It has encountered business setbacks and its stock fell to about $2 per share last year and its debt was downgraded to junk bond rating.  There is some question whether DDR has the financial resources to actually build its proposed shopping mall.  SOLE spokesperson Guinness McFadden said that it is possible that if DDR succeeds in getting approval of its ballot measure, it would simply sell the site to a better-financed developer for a profit.  “DDR would get a good price because its ballot measure would give the property owner the right to do anything it wants without any local government review.”

If you want to help and/or contribute, please contact us by mail ,visit our sign up page ,

Save Our Local Economy (SOLE)

P.O. Box 1530

Ukiah, CA 95482

or email us at:

sole@pacific.net

Cliff Paulin at (707) 463-0413
Mari Rodin 707-272-1937
Guinness McFadden 707-743-1122

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

DDR lost their majority on the Board of Supervisors so now they want to try an end run around good planning and the democratically elected representatives we chose to serve us as Mendocino County Supervisors.

The DDR initiative is a bold and total usurpation of all local government authority and local government planning.  It allows a Mega-Mall even larger than originally suggested by DDR when it first acquired the Masonite Site

The initiative is 310 pages long and was prepared by DDR’s high priced Orange County Consultants.  It basically says DDR can do virtually whatever it wants.

If passed the intiative will become law without any environmental review of any of DDR’s plans.

That’s right, no EIR, no mitigations, no public hearings, no discussion.  Just what ever the DDR Corporate bosses in Ohio want in the Ukiah Valley.  Isn’t that Wrong?
That’s just the tip of the iceberg….

It creates zoning like no other in the county without local input on what happens there.

Any county ordinances that conflict with the Initiative are declared inoperative.

All vehicle access to the site will come from North State Street.  [None of the new access roads envisioned in the Ukiah Valley Area Plan are included].

A total of 5 new traffic lights would be installed on North State Street, This would bring the total number of traffic lights in the 1/2 mile stretch from Ford Road to Orr Springs Road to 7.

This would render North State Street virtually impassable for thru-traffic.  But it would apparently still function well enough to get shoppers off and on the freeway to enter Mendocino Crossings….and that’s all that matters to DDR.

There’s much much more in the 310 pages from Orange County.

The Ukiah Valley Smart Growth Coalition has continually and wholeheartedly opposed this rezoning and urges you to participate in the defeat of this initiative.

Join the fight to protect our community character, quality of life and the future opportunity for good paying careers in our community.

The Ukiah Valley Smart Growth Coalition is not going to lead this fight.  The UVSGC is a not a political or campaign committee.

A new county wide group called “Save Our Local Economy” will be coordinating and working with groups countywide in all Mendocino county communities with residents and businesses.

“Save Our Local Economy” will be a Fair Political Practices Commission registered campaign committee.

You can contact them now at:

sole@pacific.net

or

Save Our Local Economy
Post Office Box 1530
Ukiah, CA 95482

When you contact them please give them your name, address, email address and phone number.

Let them know you are part of ” The Home Team” and are willing to contribute, time, energy and money to this important campaign.

One of the largest shopping center corporations in the U.S. is trying to circumvent the planning process, avoid all environmental review and buy direct voter approval for rezoning of the last large industrial tract in the Ukiah Valley.

Developers Diversified Realty Inc. (DDR), acting through a front-group called “Mendocino County Tomorrow” will circulate an initiative petition to put a measure on the county ballot to force a General Plan amendment and rezoning to allow a huge shopping mall at the old Masonite plant site just north of Ukiah.

The hijacking of this industrial site for a shopping mall is opposed by the majority of the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors and the Ukiah City Council. That’s why DDR plans to spend lavishly to pass its 310-page Specific Plan.

DDR’s plan would harm Mendocino County because:

• It’s a killer of good jobs. DDR’s giant shopping mall—up to 800,000 square feet of stores and a parking lot for more than 3,000 cars– would act like a vacuum-cleaner on existing retail employment throughout the county, sucking up the dollars that support jobs elsewhere and replacing them with low-wage positions in the chain stores in their mall. Forget about the good jobs that could return if the Masonite site is kept available for new industrial development.
• It dodges all environmental review. By getting approval directly from a ballot measure and not the Board of Supervisors, DDR would exploit a loophole in state law and dodge the requirement for an environmental impact report….that means no proof that water supply is adequate, and no proof that North State Street will still be passable with 7 traffic lights in a stretch of only ½ mile.
• It would turn Ukiah into a ghost town. DDR’s plan is classic urban sprawl, that would cannibalize existing retail districts in Ukiah and build a brand-new 76-acre town center on the outskirts. Ukiah’s existing retail districts—the downtown and the shopping centers along the freeway—would become a desert of empty storefronts. Public services in Ukiah would be crippled by loss of tax funding.
• We don’t need DDR’s mall to get more stores. There already are 95 acres of vacant retail-zoned land in Ukiah. These sites are properly located and don’t squeeze out future industrial jobs. Costco was in advanced negotiations to build in Ukiah’s Redwood Business Park until DDR got in the way.
• Big corporations shouldn’t be allowed to buy government decisions. DDR is confident that by spending millions on paid signature-gatherers, consultants and election advertising, it can dictate the future for our community. Don’t let them! Mendocino County isn’t for sale!

Stop the Corporate Takeover – No on DDR’s ballot measure