Local HEROES Clean Water

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Around ForestvilleGOT NEWS? Vesta Copestakes • vesta@sonic.net • 887-0253Misty Humphrey has a new career…Misty has started a career in health andnutrition. She’s offering classes on howpeople can “take charge of their bodies,”and they are an affordable $10 perclass. Her new 12 week series of classesstarted on the 13 th – but heck – maybeshe can squeeze you in – 887-0561SAV E THE BELL TOW ER! I’vewritten about the Leaning Towerof Forestville in the past and nowthe Methodist Church is reachingout to the community for some help.They are having a CONSTRUCTIONBANQUET on Saturday, February 21 st .There’s a Silent Auction and a LiveAuction as well, so you might want tocall to see if there’s something you candonate to help the cause. Items theyhave so far include fancy hotels, catereddinners – you name it. Reservations arerequired since seating is limited – 887-2020 Dinner is a mere $15 for adults, $10for children and children 5 and undera free. There’s a maximum charge of$40 per family so this is an affordableway to have dinner, enjoy the companyof others and contribute to the cause.Come by-have a good time!Peace Vigil…participants read a listof people who were killed in Iraq andAfghanistan each week…one bellring for each name. People take turnsreading the names. Drop by someFriday evening at 6:30pm. It’s one wayto put your heart toward peace on ourearth. As Sarah Wright said, “Hearingthe daily accounting of death is difficult,but there’s nothing else that bringsme closer to my appreciation for thefreedoms we have and my love of thiscommunity and our country”. They areexpanding this program to honor ourcommunity members who are servingin the military. A collage of picturesand information will be displayedduring the Peace Vigil. Please send aphoto and the name of your loved onewith their Branch, title or rank andservice locale to: FUMC, 6550 CoveyRd, Forestville, CA 95436The Green Valley Restoration Teamworked almost every month of 2008to ensure the restoration project thatwas started a few years back on theMartinelli Ranch had continuedsuccess. Whether or not the plantedtrees would survive the ‘08 drought was“iffy” as it got toward the fall seasonand still no rain. Happily, the creek andthe restoration area have never lookedbetter! Many of the trees are in the 10to 15 foot height range and most ofthe instream structures are intact. TheRestoration Team will be out there againa little later in the year for continuingrestoration and protection but I thoughtyou should know that Forest Unlimitedis having its annual tree planting Fridayand Saturday, Jan. 9 and 10. Over fifteenhundred redwood trees were plantedover two days. Larry Hanson thanksall who participate and the restorationcrew are seeking ore volunteers asspring approaches. Keep in touch.Forestville wine goes to Washington!John and Chris Mason of EMTU EstateWines were invited to have theirwine poured at ten of the presidentialingaugural dinners. The dinners will beput together with local farmers marketsand cooked by Alice <strong>Water</strong>s of ChezPanisse and a group of other famouschef’s including Jacques Pepin, NancySilverton, Suzanne Goines etc.. Thisis a $500 per plate dinner will benefitsome local causes. Speaking of Chris &John, they are off to Peru right now todo their winter work of helping people.They will be reporting in next month.Hollydale Community Club…Join us Saturday February 21st for theClub’s annual Country Breakfast from9:00 until Noon.Congratulations to Scott Lykken &Jordan Condon, 2008 recipients of theTaylor Atkins Memorial ScholarshipAward…these Graduating Senior’shopefully will find good use for thefunds while pursuing their highereducation. $600 Distributed in 2008.The 20 09 Lifetime HollydaleCommunity Club Member selectionis Jay & Brenda Eldridge. Long-timemembers and Forestville residents whosupport the monthly Clubhouse eventsand it’s inner workings by volunteeringtheir time and energy to maintain thefacility and help organize the events.Thanks goes out to them from ourcommunity for all their help.$450 in Hollydale Happiness Fundsdistributed over the holidays, thesedonations from Club members andguests during the last year helped bringa little cheer during the holiday seasonto two Elmo students, one ForestvilleElementary student’s family and alocal family of 4. Feels good to spreadthe positive vibe and help where andwhen we can. Thanks to all those whodonated to the fund...let’s keep it full.Coming up:Sat. February 21st Clubhouse CountryBreakfast 9:00-NoonSat. March 14th Corned Beef &Cabbage Feed 6:0030 - www.westcountygazette.com - 1/15/09THE FPA REPORTSThe Forestville Planning AssociationBy Richard Naegle, President - www. forestvillefpa.orgCanyon Rock QuarryA number of people have askedme about the current status of thelawsuit brought by Citizens for SensibleGrowth against Canyon Rock Quarry.The suit was instigated against theQuarry and Sonoma County; it claimedthat the environmental impact report(EIR) approved by the County Boardof Supervisors regarding CanyonRock’s expansion plans was flawedand inadequate. The court found somemerit in the original suit and awardedCFSG its attorney’s fees. CFSG has sinceappealed aspects of the judge’s ruling.It is hard to get the “facts.” So Iinterviewed both Wendell Trappe,ow ner a nd operator of Ca nyonRock Quarry, and Sig Anderman,spokesperson for Citizens for SensibleGrowth (CFSG). I have summarizedeach of their perspectives on the facts,and present, with their approval, myreport of them below. I have tried to onlyuse their language. I apologize ahead oftime for any inaccuracy; I have tried mybest to be neutral and objective.The Quarry PerspectiveThere has been a citizens’ appeal ofthe EIR which is going to the appellatecourt. We are now waiting for a courtdate which may be in January orFebruary or later in the year. CFSGwon its original suit “on the language”regarding importing rock. Of CFSG’sthirteen charges, the judge onlysupported this one. He therefore madeCanyon Rock pay $150,000 to CFSG forits attorney fees.Canyon Rock and the Countyreturned to the judge with a suggestionthat would not require the entire EIR tobe redone. They asked that the amountof imported rock be cut in half, i.e. bedecreased by 60,000 tons. The judgeapproved. It is that decision which theCFSG has appealed.Things are therefore at a stalemate.The bypass is being delayed andperhaps killed. [Editor’s note: CountySupervisor, Mike Reilly, does not agree.While the building of the bypass isbeing delayed, he is convinced that iteventually will be built.]Canyon Rock’s existing permit isgood until 2011. Wendell has enoughrock to keep mining under his currentpermit.The CFSG PerspectiveIn the original suit, the judge ruledin favor of CFSG that the permit givento Canyon Rock by the County wouldhave allowed 62,000 cubic yards moreof production than was described andcertified by the EIR. If allowed, therewould have been an additional 4400truck trips per year through Forestville.CFSG has filed an appeal onthree issues which it did not win inthe original hearing: the failure toadequately evaluate and mitigate airquality impacts; the failure to analyzeand mitigate the impacts associatedwith rezoning to Mineral Resourcethe entire parcel owned by CR; andinconsistencies with the general plan.About half of the fees that CanyonRock was required to pay were incurredin CFSG defending against the discoverypropounded by Canyon Rock on ourattorney’s fees motion. For example,Canyon Rock was demanding lists ofmembers and names of people who haddonated to CFSG; and was threateningto depose people who testified againstthe project at public hearings.The FPA on the QuarryThe Forestville Planning Associationis a non-profit educational corporation.It is a different organization from theForestville Citizens for Sensible Growth,which is a private political activistgroup. Regarding Canyon Rock’sexpansion plans, the FPA held severalTown meetings to explore all sides ofthe proposals and their ramifications.Representatives from Canyon RockQuarry were invited to and were activein each of these meetings. Finally, aTown Meeting vote was taken and wasso divided that the FPA took no positionon Canyon Rock’s proposal to expand.We continue to acknowledge thevaluable contributions which WendellTrappe, his family, and family businesshave made over the years to ourcommunity. Our goal has been toeducate residents of Forestville on theimpacts of quarry expansionso that youcan make your opinions heard.The FCSG did bring the FPA, asa more neutral party, into its legalnegotiations with Blue Rock Quarryto help broker a settlement aroundBlue Rock’s expansion plans. Thosenegotiations resulted in the GoodNeighbor Agreement, which includedimportant environmental mitigationsby Blue Rock as well as funding for theForestville Community Fund. The FPAhas continued to work cooperativelywith Blue Rock Quarry to assure abetter environment and more positiveeffects of Quarry activities on theForestville community. This has beenthrough the Good Neighbor WorkingGroup, composed of local citizens andBill Williams, General Manager of theBodean Company (owner of Blue RockQuarry). The Good Neighbor WorkingGroup has invited representativesof Canyon Rock Quarry to join theirmeetings. However, Canyon Rock hasdeclined until legal matters with CFSGare completed.
Meanwhilein Graton…By HolLynn D’Lilgratoncolumn@comcast.net(707) 829 9440A new year begins for our zip codedonut hole town, and in contemplatingthe young year with its unwrittenpages, it’s comforting to review a fewchapters from Graton 2008.We started out making the news when“Eye on the Bay,” of CBS televisionfeatured Graton as one of the BayArea’s remarkable small towns. InFebruary, we enjoyed the Third AnnualGraton Variety Show sponsored by theGraton Community Club. The Club alsoprovided two more flower show events,completing a run of 84 annual flowershows. In recognition of the club’slongstanding service to the community,the U.S. government awarded the clubwith status as a nonprofit organizationpredated back to 1957.Graton’s Love Your Neighbor ThriftStore moved to Santa Rosa. Neda andJessica sold their organic producemarket, Vincini’s. At that site now isValley Oak Real Estate Investments.Graton’s Trail Stewards and Keepersconducted several trail keeping daysto keep the blackberries in line on theWest County Trail. They also tossedout more native wildflower seed balls,some of which are producing newcrops for 2009. Two benches wereadded to the trail, contributions fromthe Christensen Family and FarfetchedJewelry’s Richard Wolf. The TrailStewards also landscaped the GreyStreet entrance to the trail with nativeplants that mostly survived our dryyear.The Graton Labor Center, Centro Laboralcelebrated its first year anniversary inSeptember. In June, members of CentroLaboral spent a day sprucing up MissHallberg’s Butterfly Garden to getit ready for the annual open house.(Miss Hallberg turned 90 this year,too, another event well celebrated. Hercousin, Hazel Jens also turned 90 andmoved to Fairfield. She is greatly missed,especially att h e G r a t o nC o m m u n i t yClub.)In December,the memberso f C e n t r oLaboral onceagain pitchedin to removea n d t r i mb l a c k b e r r ybushes on theWest CountyTra i l. Th e i re n d e a v o r su n c o v e r e de i g h t o a ksaplings near the Grey Street entranceto the trail. Below are photographs ofthe members with Graton volunteersand Sonoma County Regional Parksrangers. Featured is Antonio Leonproudly displaying some blackberryroot trophies.Graton became a two-stop town, thanksto the advocacy of Graton Projects. OakGrove students cleaned up after theadults again during their annual creekcleanup day. At the Graton CommunityClub, Jane Kurtz and Randi Francisconducted a community meetingabout how to COPE - CommunitiesOrganizing to Prepare for Emergencies.Neighbors at Donald/Brush/Shirley/Arroyo Court held a COPE meeting inDecember. If others have held meetings,please let me know! We need to knowhow well Graton is prepared foremergencies.The Board members of the GratonServices District which runs theGraton Sewer served another yearin their arduous course to meet newCounty, State and Federal standards.Jane Eagle, board member reports thatthe community’s presentation beforethe North Coast Region <strong>Water</strong> QualityControl Board resulted in an extensionof a looming deadline. The extra timewill allow Graton to apply for moregrants to make Graton’s innovativesewer more efficient to meet newmandates. We owe many thanks to thehard-working members of the SewerBoard.And, of course, Gratonians enjoyedanother annual event that makes Gratonthe sweet, friendly neighborhood it is- the Graton Fire Pancake Breakfast.Late Breaking News about the GratonFire Folks is that they have actuallybegun consideration of the possibilityof letting their corner lot become apark for Graton. This was learned atthe December meeting of the GratonFire Board. What the Graton Fire needsto make the park possible is supportfrom the community they serve toraise funds to build their new facilityon Gravenstein Highway. A park attheir present location will connectthe parking lot on the West CountyTrail with downtown Graton andserve the businesses well, in additionto providing a playground for thechildren. Hopefully, 2009 will see uswell on our way to creating Graton’sfirst park.Hopefully, 2009. . . . That just about sumsit up, doesn’t it?Thank you everyonewho makes Graton sucha fine home for us all.Occidentalneedsa newColumnistI confess I’ve lostmy SECONDOccidental columnist to my desireto keep the Community Columnsfocused on community-building - notcommunity complaints. It’s not alwayseasy to refrain from pointing a finger atdisruptive individuals or people doingthings that seem contrary to our hometowns - but - there are other placesfor those comments. The LETTERS orFORUM section of this newspaper is agood example.The community column is a placefor good news about our homes,opportunities to connect with eachother through events and projects,etc. This is a good place to announcemeetings - like water, sewer and firedepartment meetings, etc. that keeppeople informed and part of theprocess of running a town. It’s also agood place to give credit to individualswho make a town home - the volunteersand coordinators who run the show ona very local level. Take at look at theGraton and Forestville columns to getthe idea. If anyone wants to take thison, please give me a call at 887-0253 ore-mail me at vesta@sonic.net.Harmony Village MeetingThe Occidental Center for theArts will be hosting a question andanswer meeting with Orrin Theissen,developer of Harmony Village, onJanuary 27th, starting at 7pm at theUnion Hotel in downtown Occidental.This is an excellent opportunity tosee what Orrin has planned for thecommunity.Harmony Village was born out ofthe old harmony School which closedits doors and moved students to theSalmon Creek campus. The projectincludes business offices/commercialspace, residences, a community gardenand mini-park and a new home for thearts center. You’ve seen the tractorsmoving soil, now see the plans.This project has been at the center ofmany of the upgrades to Occidental’swater and sewer infrastructure. It willgive Occidental a refined arts centerand provide more downtown homes.For all the people who have beenwondering what it looks like, how bigit will be, etc. this is your chance tofind out.1/15/09 - www.westcountygazette.com - 31
Page 2 and 3: Dear Readers,New Year’s Day does
Page 4 and 5: ADVERTISERS INDEXActive 23-230 Club
Page 7 and 8: Choosing OptimismBy Vesta Copestake
Page 9 and 10: WATER cont’d from page 1These pro
Page 11 and 12: WORK cont’d from page 10In this c
Page 13 and 14: I’M A WHALEby Bethany ArgisleWe
Page 15 and 16: School Garden NetworkSupports Local
Page 17 and 18: Chinese MedicineBy Marcy Basel •
Page 19 and 20: Business & Community ProfilesA Nexu
Page 21 and 22: Paying AttentionLocal Issues on our
Page 23: Nightingale BreadsTakes FlightBy Be
Page 27 and 28: Shark BaitBy Debra A. Newby, Attorn
Page 29: Fire Department NewsChristmas Tree
Page 35 and 36: Listening 2ChildrenBy Sharon Ann Wi
Page 37 and 38: Artist ProfileBy Barbara Shulabshul
Page 39 and 40: New Years ResolutionsHappy New Year
Page 41 and 42: MeetingsJan 15 ~ Russian River Rede
Page 43: BENEFITS:Jan 17 ~ Chautauqua Road S
Page 46 and 47: With our lowwater situation, itwill

Local HEROES Clean Water

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