Public Workshop on Winery Event Centers, Nov. 16

To All,

Come to this workshop to Preserve our Rural Character and protect our rural lands from the impacts of EVENTS

County Planning Dept. – Public Workshop on Events
Monday, November 16, 2015 @ 6:30 pm
LOCATION  Glaser Center 547 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa 95401

Tasting rooms and wineries co-existed with neighbors for decades – until the “Arms Race” for ever-more facilities with intensive events turned tasting rooms into event centers and de-facto restaurants.  Don’t allow Sonoma County to become Napafied!

Attend the Workshop to ensure meaningful standards that:

·      Address neighborhood compatibility and road safety issues;
·      Protect Ag lands from highly commercial entertainment uses;
·      Provide the balance necessary to preserve rural character!

A large public presence is critical NOW – Ensure your voice is heard while standards are being developed: Otherwise, the county may adopt policies that intensify impacts by allowing:

·      Event centers on narrow rural roads with inadequate emergency vehicle access and unsafe site distances
·      On-site cooking and daily food service at tasting rooms
·      Outdoor events on parcels with NO winery or tasting room
·      Multiple tasting rooms on a single parcel
·      Dozens of events per facility for hundreds of people held after
5 pm tasting room hours – with drinking up to 10 pm.

PRSC supports the development of meaningful zoning code criteria and standards for use permits that:
Balance the rights and welfare of adjacent property owners,
Address cumulative impacts from over-commercialization, and
Protect Sonoma County’s differentiating asset – rural character –
and the attributes critical to remaining a premier destination.

To learn about the Winery Working Group policy options, visit:
http://www.sonoma-county.org/prmd/docs/wineryevents

Preserve Rural Sonoma County  https://www.facebook.com/preserveruralsonomacounty