Agenda-Item-Number-10-Appeal-of-Planning-Commission-Decision-for-TUP-for-Horizn-Shine — Sebastopol City Council, November 15, 2022 (part 3 of 3)

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This CMP shall be a binding document. Failure to adhere to the CMP may result in a “Stop Work Notice” being placed on the project. An electronic copy of the APPROVED CMP shall be submitted to the City, and may be posted to the city’s website. The CMP shall be updated as project conditions warrant. Updates to the CMP shall be provided to the City for review and approval. The CMP shall include but not be limited to:
a) Work schedule (start of construction date, road or lane closure intent/dates, important milestones and proposed final dates)
b) Construction Hours
c) Travel routes and turn-around locations with staff approval • Impact to state highways
d) Road and/or lane closures (Applicant to provide information on how many anticipated road closures, and the reasons for each road closure). e) Worker auto parking space locations/construction parking f) Phasing (if applicable)
g) If construction improvements are located in areas of slopes 15% or greater, the Contractor shall provide safe temporary hard surface stair access to the improvements, unless waived by the Building Official. This access shall be shown on the CMP.
h) Projects that require a grading permit shall comply with the City’s grading ordinance.

The CMP may be more stringent if the project is located close to schools or in impacted neighborhoods. A CMP may be required to be modified if a neighborhood becomes “impacted” during the course of the construction. Impacted neighborhoods are defined as areas in geographic proximity (i.e. using the same streets for access) with a significant number of simultaneous construction projects.

The hours of construction activity shall be limited 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturdays with staff approval, depending on scope of work being done, or unless modified by a project’s Specific Conditions of Approval.

A24-inch by 36-inch weatherproof copy with items A-F posted on site. The remaining Construction Management Plan shall be made available on site. The Construction Management Plan shall be posted on the site as part of the job site signage and should include:
a) Address of the project site.
b) Permitted hours of construction and of deliveries/off-haul. c) Name, e-mail address and direct phone number of the General Contractor. d) Name, e-mail address and direct phone number of the person responsible for managing theproject.
e) Name and direct phone number of the party to call in case of an emergency. f) City of Sebastopol Building Department (707-823-8597).

8. All construction materials, debris and equipment shall be stored on site. If that is not physically possible, an encroachment permit shall be obtained from the Public Works Department prior to placing any construction materials, debris, debris boxes or unlicensed equipment in the right-of-way. The fee for using the right-of-way for storage of construction materials or equipment is $10.00 per day. A minimum of 11’ passable auto traffic clearance (paved travel way) shall be maintained at all times along the roadway. The placing of portable restroom facilities in the City right-of-way will not be Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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permitted.

9. All portions of the job site shall be maintained in an organized and professional condition. All trash, debris, construction scraps and broken/deteriorated machinery shall be removed from the site by the end of each week. If off loaded construction materials are not used within 2 weeks, they shall be screened from public view. All sidewalks, driveways and public/private roadways fronting the subject site shall be broom cleaned at the end of each business day.

10. A pre-construction meeting is required with city staff for projects that:
a) Require a City encroachment permit, a Caltrans encroachment permit, or a City grading permit; or
b) Have 5 dwelling units or more; or
c) Have a total of 5,000 square feet of building or more; or d) Have a creek setback requirement; or
e) Are required to have a pre-construction meeting under a specific condition of approval.

11. All permits and/or inspection fees required shall be paid in full prior to final occupancy being granted unless otherwise stipulated by the City.

12. All required construction signage and any required tree-protection shall be posted and available for City inspection at the time of the Pre-construction meeting or, if no preconstruction meeting is required, prior to commencing construction. If these measures are not in place at the time of the pre-construction meeting, a re- inspection fee will be required, and issuance of building permit will be delayed.

13. The Planning Director shall interpret applicable requirements in the event of any redundancy or conflict in conditions of approval.

Planning Department Standard Conditions of Approval:

14. This approval is valid for a period of three (3) years during which time the rights granted must be exercised. However, the applicant may request one (1) one-year extension of this Use Permit from the Planning Director, pursuant to Zoning Ordinance §17.400.100.

15. The light source for all exterior lighting fixtures shall be shielded from adjacent properties. Cut sheets for all exterior lighting shall be submitted as part of the Design Review or other planning application.

16. For projects with new foundations or retaining walls less than 10’ away from a required setback property lines shall be physically identified (string line or equal), and the applicant shall submit a letter or certificate from a licensed surveyor that confirms that the structure complies with the approved setbacks prior to placing the foundation. For any project that includes new foundations or retaining walls more than 10’ away from a required setback, the applicant may apply for a waiver from this requirement from the City Engineer and Planning Department.

17. For any project that includes new structures within 2 feet of the allowed height limit, a letter or certificate from a surveyor confirming that the height of the roof complies with Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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the approved plans shall be submitted to the Planning Department at the earliest point possible.

18. All landscape and irrigation plans must be designed in accordance with the most current City of Sebastopol landscape requirements. Prior to providing water service for new landscape areas, or improved or modified landscape areas, the Planning Department must review and approve the project’s working drawings for planting and irrigation systems. Any question regarding the City of Sebastopol current water conservation and Landscape Ordinance should be directed to the Planning Department.

New construction and rehabilitated (renovations or changes made to sites with an existing irrigation system) landscape projects will be affected by these requirements if the altered landscape area is greater than 500 square feet.

19. For any new housing unit development, the developer/owner shall submit the total amount of fees and exactions associated with the project prior to issuance of certificate of occupancy or final inspection.

Engineering and Public Works Department Standard Conditions of Approval:

20. All projects are subject to Impact Fees as adopted by the City Council, which are due at the time of issuance of the Building Permit unless otherwise stipulated by the City.

21. An Encroachment Permit is required from the Public Works Department for any and all work within the public right-of-way. If the work is within a CalTrans right-of way, an Encroachment Permit from CalTrans shall also be procured by the applicant.

Encroachment Permit shall not be issued until the City Engineer approves the applicant’s site improvement plans.

22. Construction within the public right-of-way is limited to that necessary to support the lot's use. This may include but is not limited to: driveways, sidewalks and any utility connections. For all improvements within the public right of way, the applicant shall submit plans to adequately describe the work. Plans shall include but not be limited to drainage details, cross-sections, driveway/roadway grades and utility locations as necessary.

23. The applicant shall prepare and submit site improvement plans for the construction of all improvements including water, sanitary sewer, storm drain, water quality facilities, roadway improvements, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, elevated or structural pedestrian walkways, landscaping, landscape irrigation, signing, striping, joint trench and streetlights. All design and construction shall conform to the latest edition of the City of Sebastopol Design and Construction Standards and other applicable codes, standards, guidelines and specifications. Public improvement drawings shall be drafted in the City-approved sheet format.

24. Once approved by the City Engineer, the applicant shall submit PDF files of the signed improvement plans. As-Built record drawings shall also be submitted as PDF files.

25. Deviations from City Standards and applicable Code requirements shall be approved by the City Engineer. The applicant’s engineer shall request all design exceptions in writing.

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26. Any improvements, public or private, damaged during construction shall be replaced, by the applicant, in-kind or with new improvements. All cracked, broken, or uplifted sidewalk, driveway and/or curb and gutter fronting the property shall be replaced.

Applicant shall coordinate with the Public Works Department prior to the first submittal of project improvement plans to identify the extents and limits of replacement.

27. An erosion and sediment control plan are required as part of the building permit application. The plan shall be prepared by a certified erosion control specialist and in full compliance with CASQA standards, The plan is subject to review and approval by the Engineering Department prior to the issuance of the building or grading permit. No modifications to the approved plans shall be made without approval of the City Engineer.

28. Mailbox plans and locations shall be approved by the Sebastopol Postmaster prior to improvement plan approval. The developer shall provide a letter and exhibit showing mailbox locations from the Sebastopol Postmaster approving mailbox locations.

29. City Public Water and Sewer and Drainage utility easements as required by the City Engineer utility companies shall be provided within the development. Easement locations shall be subject to review and approval by the City Engineer.

Roadway Improvements:

30. The improvement plans for the first phase of development shall include and provide for the construction of all offsite improvements as required to support full project buildout. Each subsequent phase of development shall construct sufficient onsite roadway and utility improvements to support the cumulative development proposed to be constructed as approved by the City Engineer.

31. Road closures, if permitted by the Project Approval, will only be permitted with prior authorization from the Public Works Department consistent with the City's road closure policy. Signs containing details of the proposed closure must be posted 48 hours in advance. Coordinate road closures with the Sebastopol Public Works Department.

Contact the Public Works Department at 707-823-5331 to obtain a road closure permit.

32. An emergency vehicle access, meeting the requirements of the Sebastopol Fire Department shall be constructed.

33. All private driveway areas less than 24-foot wide shall require the approval of the Sebastopol Fire Department.

34. Sidewalk warps shall be provided to allow a clear five-foot walkway at all locations, including areas where mailboxes, street furniture, streetlights, street signs and fire hydrants are to be installed, or as otherwise approved by the City Engineer.

35. The structural section of all public road improvements shall be designed using a soil investigation which provides the basement soils R-value and expansion pressure test results. A copy of Geotechnical report and structural section calculations shall be submitted with the first improvement plan check.

36. The structural section of the private on-site drive aisles and parking areas shall meet the requirements and recommendations of the geotechnical report for the project.

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37. Retaining walls and retaining curbs may be required to protect damage to trees as determined by a licensed Arborist. All retaining structures shall be designed and constructed to minimize damage to trees.

38. Pedestrian curb ramps, meeting City standards and current accessibility requirements, shall be provided at all intersections and crosswalks where sidewalks are proposed.

Drainage Improvements:

39. All project related flooding impacts shall be mitigated by the project developer.

Drainage improvements shall be designed by a Civil Engineer registered in the State of California in accordance with the Sonoma County Water Agency's Flood Management Design Manual (FMDM). Public and private drainage improvements shall be shown on the improvement plans and the City Engineer may require the applicant to acquire the review and recommendations by the Sonoma County Water Agency (Sonoma Water) prior to approval by the City Engineer. Private storm drain easements will be required for any portions of the private storm drain not entirely located with the lot being served or for any portion of a private utility located on an adjacent parcel.

40. No lot-to-lot drainage will be allowed between the project site and any adjacent parcels. No concentrated drainage may discharge across sidewalks. All site drains must be connected to the public storm drain system or discharged through the face of curb or to an established waterway.

41. Plans and certifications shall demonstrate compliance of all improvements, including building finished floor elevations, with the City's Flood Ordinance, to the satisfaction of the Building Official and City Engineer. Building finished floor elevations shall be constructed at a minimum of 2 foot above the 100-year storm event water surface elevation as determined by the City and certified by the project engineer. The Engineer of Record shall provide a signed and stamped letter indicating the project meets the requirements of the Ordinance before plan approval.

Stormwater Quality:

42. Projects that create or replace 10,000 square feet or more of impervious surface area are subject to design and construction requirements of the most recent edition of City of Sebastopol Low Impact Development (LID) Technical Design Manual.

Improvement plans with required LID design features shall be approved by the City Engineer.

43. Projects that will disturb 1.0 acre or more of developed or undeveloped land shall provide evidence that a Notice of Intent (NOI) has been submitted by the applicant and received by the State Water Resources Control Board for a General Construction Activity Storm Water Permit. Two copies of the project Storm Water Pollution Protection Plan (SWPPP) shall be provided to the City prior to issuing a grading permit, encroachment permit, or building permit.

44. For required LID features constructed on private property or on street frontage, the owner shall provide a Declaration Letter to the City Manager regarding the owner’s commitment to ongoing maintenance of said LID features (LID Declaration) prior to occupancy.

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Grading:

45. The improvement plans shall include a site-grading plan prepared by a Civil Engineer registered in the State of California as part of the required improvement drawings. Lots shall be generally designed to drain to public and private streets or parking areas, unless otherwise approved in the interest of tree preservation or other unusual circumstances.

46. The City of Sebastopol shall require a grading permit for projects that meet these requirements.
a) Cut or fill exceeding 50 cubic yards
b) Cut or fill greater than 3 feet in depth
c) Cut creating a cut slope greater than 5 feet in height and steeper than 2 units horizontal to 1 unit vertical
d) Fill intended to support a structure or surcharge greater than 1 foot in depth or placed on terrain with a natural slope steeper than 15 percent

47. When required by the Building Official the applicant shall submit to the City for review and approval, a detailed Geotechnical Report prepared by a Geotechnical Engineer registered in the State of California. The grading plan shall incorporate the recommendations of the approved Geotechnical Report.

48. Where soil or geologic conditions encountered during grading operations are different from those anticipated in the Geotechnical Report, or where such conditions warrant changes to the recommendations contained in the original soil investigation, a revised soil or geologic report shall be submitted for approval by the City Engineer.

It shall be accompanied by an engineering and geological opinion as to the safety of the site from hazards of land slippage, erosion, settlement, and seismic activity.

49. Existing wells, septic tanks and/or underground fuel storage tanks that are defective or will no longer be in use shall be permanently destroyed or removed under permit and inspection by the Sonoma County Permit and Resource Management Department, Well and Septic Division and/or Sonoma County Environmental Health or other designated agency. Underground fuel storage tanks are subject to UST regulations of the State Water Resources Control Board.

50. The grading plan shall clearly show all existing survey monuments and property corners and shall state that they shall be protected and preserved. Should monuments be damaged or destroyed during construction, they shall be replaced by the developer.

51. Improvements plans shall include an erosion control (winterization) plan. The plan shall include an order of work and staging/scheduling component indicating when facilities must be installed and when they may be removed.

52. Sewer services and laterals shall be CCTV inspected to determine if the service needs to be removed and replaced. A copy of the CCTV report shall be provided to the City Engineer. A waiver for CCTV inspection may be waived by the City Engineer, if the sewer lateral has been replaced within ten years of the submittal of the improvement plans. A copy of the documentation evidencing such replacement shall be included in the submittal package.

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53. If the proposed project is located in or adjacent to a waterway, within an area designated as habitat for threatened or endangered species, or other special status area, it possibly falls under the jurisdiction of another agency such as the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the California Regional Water Quality Control, or the California Department of Fish & Wildlife, U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, etc. These agencies shall be contacted to determine if the project lies within their respective jurisdictions. All necessary permits and/or approvals shall be obtained prior to the City issuing any permits. If permits are not required, a letter stating so shall be submitted to the City as part of the record.

54. Trees and vegetation shall be trimmed according to Section 8.12 of the Sebastopol Municipal Code. Trees and shrubs shall be kept trimmed so that the lowest branches projecting over public properties provide a clearance of not less than eight (8) feet over sidewalks and not less than twelve (12) feet over streets.

Fire Department. Standard Conditions of Approval:

55. The address shall be posted in accordance with requirements of the California Building Code and California Fire Code. The Fire Chief shall review and approve all requests for new addresses. Inspection and signoff of address posting shall be coordinated through Building Department.

56.Smoke and CO detectors shall be installed in accordance with the California Building Code. Final inspection and signoff of smoke detectors shall be coordinated through Building Department.

57. Noncombustible roofing shall be provided for:
a. All new roofs shall be non-combustible.
b. Roof Repairs or replacement:
i. Less than 25% - no requirement
ii. 25Hr to 50% - Class C minimum
iii. 50% or more — Non-Combustible
c. In no case shall the roofing material used to be less fire resistive than the existing roof.

NOTE: A "noncombustible" roof is a Class A roof (for other than Group R Occupancies, a Class A or Class A assembly) as defined in the California Building Code and approved by the Building Department.

58. Prior to occupancy, a spark arrester shall be installed on the chimney(s) 3/8" mesh minimum.

Building Department Standard Conditions of Approval:

59. All construction shall comply with all applicable Title 24 Codes in effect at the time of building permit submittal. It is the responsibility of the designer(s) to ensure that all applicable Title 24 codes, as well as any applicable Sebastopol Municipal Codes are incorporated into the design.

60. The project shall comply with the Green Building regulations contained in the Sebastopol Municipal Code that are in effect at the time of building permit submittal.

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END OF STANDARD CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
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From: B
To: Mary Gourley
Subject: City Council October 4, 2023
Date: Monday, October 03, 2022 11:38:41 AM
Hello, Mary.

Please include my comments to the Sebastopol city council members during tomorrow’s meeting.

Thanks so much, Barbara A Harris
I SUPPORT efforts to continue funding for Horizon Shine and Park Village unhoused programs.

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From:

To: Mary Gourley
Subject: Council Promised 1 year; Now It"s 3 - The SAVS RV SITE - Public Comment 10/4/22 Date: Tuesday, October 04, 2022 3:20:33 PM
Dear Council Members,
SAVS - No Exit
I have been writing letters in regards to the exit strategy for the residents of the SAVS RV site for over six months. When the site was being discussed, I asked similar questions on how the SAVS program was going to transition people into permanent housing, jobs, mental health care and drug treatment. I asked why, if SAVS had been working with people on Morris Street for a year, had no one moved into permanent housing.

Council Promised Site Would Close - December 2022
When the site was implemented, the Council, on numerous occasions, said, in public meetings, the site would only last through December 2022.

Below are just a few quotes from Council Meetings taken from the minutes of meetings Nov 30-Dec 7th, 2021:

Mayor Glass: The goal of a site like this is to provide transition for people to get their lives together. There are some people that may want to live in RVs permanently. But this is not a permanent site. What we need to work on as a county, permanent locations for RV villages and this is not that prospective site. We may, if we get this site going, we will immediately be looking for new permanent sites. Around West county.

Council Member Hinton: I just wanted to remind the public it's a one-year program.

Council Member Rich: We wanted to make sure everyone understands this is in fact a temporary one year urgent use.

Funding for the site, a mix of left over COVID funds and County bridge funding, only extended through that time period.

Does Council have to keep their word when it is given in public on multiple occasions? Does the Council have an obligation to uphold their promise when it is made at a Council meeting?
The Ad Hoc Committee on the Unhoused has been extremely vague and opaque in their reports. For instance, they simply had "site relocation for the RV Village" drop off their agenda at the last meeting.

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Rich U-Turns - Now 2 More Years?
Now, we find out that Council Member Rich wants a one to two year extension for the RV Site. Agenda Item 6b.
https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/getattachment/Meeting-Event/City-Council/2022/CityCouncil-Meeting-October-4,-2022/Agenda-Item-Number-6-b-St-Vincent-de-PaulSVdP-Resolution-Of-Suppport-845-Grav-N-Site.pdf.aspx Is this the type of community transparency and honest communication we want from our City Council?
SAVS Understaffed, Under Resourced
From item 6a, we learn that the SAVS facility is understaffed and does not have appropropriate staffing for the mental health and addiction issues of occupants.

In addition, a violent occupant was asked to leave the facility and SAVS has a restraining order against this person. This leaves the public wondering if the person is still in our community with their mental health needs unattended and their violent tendencies unaddressed.
https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/getattachment/Meeting-Event/City-Council/2022/CityCouncil-Meeting-October-4,-2022/Agenda-Item-Number-6-a-Informational-Reportfrom-SAVS-For-Horizon-Shine-RV-Village.pdf.aspx "Not one, but two, of our core case managers have had serious health issues that kept them off work for many days."
"In the middle of some major revamping, our village manager resigned without notice."
"There are villagers with addiction problems, and we’ve tried many paths to treatment for this serious illness. Recently, we tried again to connect with Narcotics Anonymous. They told us that they are getting requests from other encampments and are currently stretched thin. We’ve happy to see more homeless people and homeless advocates looking for this kind of help. We only wish there were more addicts in recovery willing to do this difficult and important work." "Two villagers moved out in this quarter. One gentleman was asked to leave due to violent behavior and the Sonoma County Superior Court imposed a restraining order to prevent him from harassing our staff. The second villager was accused of theft when a visitor’s valuable item disappeared. He was asked to leave. This incident is under investigation and a decision on whether to invite him to return is under review." I am grateful to Adrienne Lauby for her honesty. I think her report underscores the Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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fact that many homeless individuals are suffering from untreated addiction and mental health issues. It also underscores the need for the funding for mental health and addiction treatment. The County has spent over $92,000,000 in the last 2 years and has not increased mental health beds or addiction treatment to even begin addressing the needs of our current homeless population. Our mental health beds are at numbers lower than a decade ago.

Thus the funding for these sites are probably not the $680,000 allotted for the 10 month period of the SAVS village but the $3,400,000 annual budget of the Sebastopol Inn.

Questions for Council Member Rich:

1. Where is the funding for the site coming from so that it could operate for 2 more years?;

2. If SAVS does not have the current staffing resources to address the mental health and addiction needs of the site's occupants, does that impact the community and neighborhoods immediately around the site? Are there more drug dealers, petty crime and unstable individuals within close range of a public trail and a K-8 school that might negatively impact our students, families, visitors, walkers and bicyclists? Does this impact our community businesses?;

3. Each occupant of the RV Village will have received 10 months free rent, free food, free utilities. Are they required to become sober, get jobs or any in way move toward self sufficiency?;

4. Will drug use still be permitted on the site if Council grants this extension?;

5. Were all the terms of the Original Agreement met and do they continue to be met?;

6. What is the neighborhood input on this site?;

7. What do community businesses have to say about the site?;

8. Is this site legal?:

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9. Can anyone put RVs onto a piece of commercial land and let people live in them within the City Limits or is this only something that Council can do?.

Best,
Kate Haug
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From:

To: Mary Gourley
Subject: Encouragement to continue Support for Horizon Shine Village Date: Tuesday, October 04, 2022 4:06:28 PM
Thank you to all members of the City Council of Sebastopol for your support for Horizon Shine Village for this past year. It has brought to the people at the Village a stability they did not have on the street.

Now provided are regular sanitation services, showers, water and electricity, and regular meals. And important support services being offered the villagers can focus beyond basic survival.

They have a
place to sit down by themself or with others to take on their own affairs.

It is important that your support continues and hopefully expands--and deepens. If not there is no place to go for those without a housing option.

Change (as through skills, habits, experience) take time. We live in this most wealthy country that can make big changes. We need the will along with an outbreak of the imagination to make sure all people are provided for.

Barbara Renzullo
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From:

To: Mary Gourley
Cc:

Subject: Homeless services for Sebastopol area unhoused Date: Tuesday, October 04, 2022 3:59:11 PM
Hello MaryI see that the Council agenda tonight includes requests for funding for SAVS and WCCS at Horizon Shine. If funding is not forthcoming it is likely that the 25 people now being served will end up in circumstances where they are again scrabbling to stay alive in our City and outlying areas. The report from SAVS indicates that in the 9 months that Horizon Shine has been open, about 10 % have been able to get jobs and/or permanent housing. This is pretty good when you consider that most of the HS clients have been chronically homeless. That means they have some kind of disability which has contributed to their being unhoused for at least a year, but more likely at least 5 years. Two of the biggest barriers to moving into jobs and housing are mental issues and abuse of alcohol or other drugs. Services to overcome those barriers are generally provided by gounty governmnet and they are in very short supply.

While I think it is critical to keep continued funding from the county to continue providing shelter and services at Horizon Shine and ask that you provide some of them and request them other funders, , I hope you will consider making requests that Sonoma County alcohol, drug and mental services be provided in amounts directly proportional to the population of the Sebastopol Area. We are fighting an uphill battle with chronically unhoused people unless they can access such services more often than is now the case.

Sebastopol has been and is spending nearly 50% of its General Funds for police services. I believe that calls for services have declined in s=respnse to the housing that has recently been provided at Park Village, Elderberry Inn and Horizon Shine. IF WE CAN INCREASE THE SUPPORTIVE SERVCES SUCH AS AODS AND MENTAL HEALTH, IT IS LIKELY THAT THE CALLS FOR POLICE SERVICES CAN DECLINE.

Please request continued funding for Horizon Shine, and request funding from AODS and Mental Health Services for Sebastopol Area clients proportionate to the poulation of our area.

Sincerely
Gale Brownell
Housing Advocate
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From:

To: Mary Gourley
Subject: Horizon Shine and Park support
Date: Monday, October 03, 2022 11:47:34 AM
Hello,
I am asking you to give your support for the unhoused programs. They need all the help they can get. And please remind yourselves that most if not all of the unhoused chose to be that way.

Cheers,
Denny Petersen, Sebastopol
Sent from my iPhone
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From: Heather Stone <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 4, 2022 10:07 AM
To: John Jay
Subject: Proposed 2 Year extension to RV encampment at 845 Gravenstein I am vehemently Opposed to the two-year extension on the RV encampment that was sprung on the residents of this area of Sebastopol without any notice, opportunity to comment or due process.

As an attorney, a resident, and an investor in local real estate, I am appalled by the total disregard shown for the hardworking tax-paying Sebastopol residents.

The crime, garbage and drugs this encampment has brought to our neighborhood is obvious to all who live nearby. I no longer feel safe walking to the store or walking my dog in the evening here. I pay hefty property taxes for the privilege of living here. Local property values are being crushed by the improper installation of this homeless encampment in our backyard. One might call that it unconstitutional “taking”of property rights. You have shifted a problem that was developing near the Barlow onto our backs and we had no say. We also pay hefty taxes and contribute mightily to the Sebastopol economy.

Solving homelessness is a challenge, but This project has been undertaken in the wrong way from inception, without participation from the neighbors or the local community, it’s been rammed down our throats without proper notice, without properly following the the law or exploring alternatives.

Now. The promise “That this is only a one year emergency project and it will be over in December 2022” is magically reversed? A 2 YEAR EXTENSION? No!
I have endeavored to keep rents low at investment properties I have purchased. I am keeping people comfortably housed, choosing humanity over profit. I am doing my part already. Seek alternatives as promised.

I cannot attend the meeting tonight, but I know I speak for many.

Heather Stone Esq.

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From:

To: City Council
Subject: RV Village concern
Date: Tuesday, October 04, 2022 10:41:16 AM
Hello,
I live fairly close to this RV "village" and am very concerned about what I read yesterday. Is it true you want to extend this by 2 YEARS? After promising and reiterating many times last December that it would be for only ONE?
Has anyone seen the garbage, grocery carts and other items accumulating around this area? I have, and have also seen members of the community picking it up. They shouldn't need to do that!
My husband and I used to walk through the alley way from Norlee towards 116. We no longer do this after more than a few times, there were unhoused people there yelling, camping, and rummaging through the garage. No - they might not have been from across the street, but there is a definite increase of people and garbage there. Also the area behind the business where the Ceres garden was. There are encampments there that I have seen. People who live near the village say they hear yelling and fighting nightly.

Anyway - I hope this is just a rumor about the 2 more years. We know people who are moving from the area because they no longer feel comfortable here. We could be next.

Thank you for reading.

Sent via the Samsung Galaxy A12, an AT&T smartphone
Get Outlook for Android
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WEST COUNTY HOMELESS ADVOCATES (WCHA) LETTER OF SUPP0RT FOR PARK VILLAGE AND HORIZON SHINE AGENDA ITEM 6 RESOLUTIONS Dear Council: On behalf of West County Homeless Advocates (WCHA) of which I am chair, this is to urge your support of Resolutions in Agenda Item 6 tonight 10-4-22 calling for continued funding for Park Village and the Horizon Shine RV Village for persons who might otherwise be unhoused. WCHA, as you will recall, as an ad hoc volunteer group drawn from churches, service organizations, and interested and activist citizens.

Horizon Shine specifically is at risk of losing its funding by the end of the year. This would expel its residents back onto city streets or outlying areas that are even more unwelcoming than when Horizon Shine was created earlier this year, defeating everything that the Council and the City’s various departments including police, planning, and public works, and Sonoma Applied Village Services (SAVS) has accomplished in the past year.

The effort expressed in creating Horizon Shine and the continuing support for Park Village, and the related unhoused outreach contract caseworker Jennifer Lake with WCCS, are the admirable legacies of this Council, and should neither be abandoned nor left to whatever an incoming and perhaps differently-directed Council may decide after elections just more than a month away. This Council should stand with the proposed Resolutions which reflect the history and accomplishments of this Council for as long as this Council as presently constituted remains seated.

Horizon Shine as a housing alternative was a key legal element to the clearance of Morris Street and similar encampments, in conjunction with the City’s revised parking ordinance which banned all RVs from all city streets except for a late night/early morning window of time. Shifting unauthorized RVs out of city limits onto outlying areas was frankly stated by former Police Chief Kevin Kilgore in Council testimony as a related device to clear Morris Street and environs. Termination of Horizon Shine simply spills all of its residents back out into wherever they might relocate in unorganized encampments without services.

There has yet been a failure of higher government entities to address this problem here, and the proposed resolutions tonight call on higher government to act. That action must be more than expanding tolerance county-wide for encampments, which we see already encroaching onto the City Plaza. It is well-established that housing, even such as Tiny Homes, or RV villages, is key to recovery for the unhoused, with drug and mental health services. Horizon Shine is a model for meaningful response.

The quarterly report of SAVS provide to the Council is admirable in its honesty. While documenting its successes, it does not sugarcoat its problems. These problems are not failures. Rather they speak to the enormity of the task in assisting the unhoused who are disadvantaged in a variety of directions. SAVS staff and volunteers have been shocked as they intimately encounter situations they formerly knew closely but at arm’s length. This is a process of education for all. A reported reduction in the homeless count does not mean the problem is close to being solved; it reflects only a beginning. The task undertaken by SAVS cannot be allowed to lapse.

One can care not at all about the unhoused themselves, yet decide to assist them because it is better for the City in every way, than to have them back randomly and unsupported on streets, in the Laguna, in neighborhoods, or on outlying private lands. Even as some blame the unhoused for their predicament as a result of bad choices (ignoring mental health challenges that may go back to childhood and early youth), we do not vilify the tobacco smoker with lung cancer for his/her decisions or deny him/her insurance coverage: programs/treatment/hospitalizations exist to help.

Unhoused unfortunates deserve no less.

Respectfully submitted,
Arthur George
Chair, West County Homeless Advocates (WCHA)
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EXHIBIT B

FINAL CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
Temporary Use Permit for a
24-7 Safe Recreational Vehicle/Vehicle Parking Site
845 Gravenstein Highway North
APN 060-261-030; File 2022-73

1. The Use shall be in substantial conformance with the proposed operations as described in the application materials prepared by Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS), and received on September 22, 2022, and on file at the City of Sebastopol Planning Department, except as modified herein:
a) Enhance coordination with Police for monitoring area surrounding site as a neighborhood watch function.
b) Provide quarterly reports to the Planning Commission as a regular agenda item. c) SAVS shall plan for the transition of residents at the end of the program. Reports on this plan shall begin on the 5th quarterly report at the latest.

2. This use is authorized to continue for two years commencing January 1, 2023 and ending December 31, 2024. This use is an interim use only, and shall not be allowed to be a permanent use on the site.

3. All operating conditions and requirements contained within Exhibit “A”, the Sonoma Applied Village Services “SAVS 24-7 Safe Parking Operations Manual” dated December 3, 2021, and the “Village Rules and Responsibilities”, dated September 22, 2022, shall be maintained for the duration of the operations.

The Applicant shall forward any substantial modification to its program, policies, or procedures to the Planning Department for review and approval by City staff. If City staff determines that any of these modifications are not in substantial conformance with the Use Permit, those changes shall require an Amendment to the Use Permit be reviewed by the Planning Commission through the public hearing process.

4. SAVS shall continue to conduct resident outreach program and neighborhood outreach programs on an ongoing basis.

5. The City of Sebastopol and its agents, officers and employees shall be defended, indemnified, and held harmless from any claim, action or proceedings against the City, or its agents, officers and employees to attach, set aside, void, or annul the approval of this application or the environmental determination which accompanies it, or which otherwise arises out of or in connection with the City’s action on this application, including but not limited to, damages, costs, expenses, attorney’s fees, or expert witness fees.

6. The Planning Director shall interpret applicable requirements in the event of any redundancy or conflict in conditions of approval.

7. This approval does not include any signs. Any new signs that will identify the use of this property are subject to the prior approval of the Design Review Board or City staff, as appropriate.

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EXHIBIT C

STANDARD CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
Temporary Use Permit for a
24-7 Safe Recreational Vehicle/Vehicle Parking Site
845 Gravenstein Highway North
APN 060-261-030; File 2022-73

1. All plans shall include a brief description of the project on the cover sheet.

2. All submitted building permit plan check sets shall include a plan sheet incorporating these conditions of approval.

3. Except as otherwise noted in these conditions of approval, the plans submitted to the Building Department for plan check shall be in substantial conformance to those approved by the review body. If any changes are made to submitted plans which were approved by the review body the applicant shall work with the Planning Department to determine if the changes are significant enough to once again be seen by the review body, or if staff can approve the changes. Any changes that have not been approved by Planning staff are not approved. Construction or demolition work that does not conform to the Planning approval is not valid and shall be subject to stop work orders and may require removal.

4. Site landscaping shall be generally consistent with the Landscape Plan included as part of “Exhibit A” on file with the Sebastopol Planning Department. The final landscape plan shall be stamped by a licensed landscape architect and filed with the Planning Department prior to occupancy. Plans for any irrigation of the site shall be incorporated into the landscape plan. All planting shown on the approved plan shall be installed prior to occupancy of the proposed project. Upon the request of an Applicant to receive a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy and at discretion of the Planning Director, landscape installation may be suitably guaranteed by posting a cash bond equal to l00% of the cost and installation of any landscape improvements.

5. Acceptance of the construction drawings and specifications does not release the applicant and owner from correction of mistakes, errors, or omissions contained therein. If, during the course of construction, the field conditions or other previously unknown conditions require a modification or a departure from the accepted plans, the applicant shall provide the modifications or departure and specify the correction of mistakes errors, or omissions in compliance with the CBC and City Standards.

6. The City of Sebastopol and its agents, officers and employees shall be defended, indemnified, and held harmless from any claim, action or proceedings against the City, or its agents, officers and employees to attach, set aside, void, or annul the approval of this application or the environmental determination which accompanies it, or which otherwise arises out of or in connection with the City’s action on this application, including but not limited to, damages, costs, expenses, attorney’s fees, or expert witness fees.

7. A Construction Management Plan (CMP) shall be submitted to the City as part of the Building Permit and/or Grading Permit and shall be incorporated into the plans, unless waived by staff. The City’s CMP template, provided by the Planning Department, may be used for small, infill projects. Revisions to the CMP to increase or add on time to the construction timeline shall be coordinated with the Building Official and any additional requests will be at the applicant’s responsibility.

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permitted.

11. All permits and/or inspection fees required shall be paid in full prior to final occupancy being granted unless otherwise stipulated by the City.

13. The Planning Director shall interpret applicable requirements in the event of any redundancy or conflict in conditions of approval.

Planning Department Standard Conditions of Approval:

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the approved plans shall be submitted to the Planning Department at the earliest point possible.

Engineering and Public Works Department Standard Conditions of Approval:

20. All projects are subject to Impact Fees as adopted by the City Council, which are due at the time of issuance of the Building Permit unless otherwise stipulated by the City.

Encroachment Permit shall not be issued until the City Engineer approves the applicant’s site improvement plans.

24. Once approved by the City Engineer, the applicant shall submit PDF files of the signed improvement plans. As-Built record drawings shall also be submitted as PDF files.

25. Deviations from City Standards and applicable Code requirements shall be approved by the City Engineer. The applicant’s engineer shall request all design exceptions in writing.

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Applicant shall coordinate with the Public Works Department prior to the first submittal of project improvement plans to identify the extents and limits of replacement.

Roadway Improvements:

Contact the Public Works Department at 707-823-5331 to obtain a road closure permit.

32. An emergency vehicle access, meeting the requirements of the Sebastopol Fire Department shall be constructed.

33. All private driveway areas less than 24-foot wide shall require the approval of the Sebastopol Fire Department.

36. The structural section of the private on-site drive aisles and parking areas shall meet the requirements and recommendations of the geotechnical report for the project.

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38. Pedestrian curb ramps, meeting City standards and current accessibility requirements, shall be provided at all intersections and crosswalks where sidewalks are proposed.

Drainage Improvements:

39. All project related flooding impacts shall be mitigated by the project developer.

Stormwater Quality:

Improvement plans with required LID design features shall be approved by the City Engineer.

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Grading:

It shall be accompanied by an engineering and geological opinion as to the safety of the site from hazards of land slippage, erosion, settlement, and seismic activity.

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Fire Department. Standard Conditions of Approval:

56.Smoke and CO detectors shall be installed in accordance with the California Building Code. Final inspection and signoff of smoke detectors shall be coordinated through Building Department.

NOTE: A "noncombustible" roof is a Class A roof (for other than Group R Occupancies, a Class A or Class A assembly) as defined in the California Building Code and approved by the Building Department.

58. Prior to occupancy, a spark arrester shall be installed on the chimney(s) 3/8" mesh minimum.

Building Department Standard Conditions of Approval:

60. The project shall comply with the Green Building regulations contained in the Sebastopol Municipal Code that are in effect at the time of building permit submittal.

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END OF STANDARD CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
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1 City of Sebastopol
Planning Commission Staff Report
Meeting Date: October 11, 2022
Agenda Item: 5A
To: Planning Commission
From: Kari Svanstrom Planning Director
Subject: Temporary Use Permit, More than 6 Months (Use Permit) – Request for a Temporary Use Permit to allow the continued temporary residential use for a24-7 safe parking for RV (Recreational Vehicles) for two years at 845 Gravenstein Highway north (aka the “Horizon Shine” RV Village) Recommendation: Approve with Conditions
Applicant/Owner: Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)/St Vincent De Paul (Owner) File Number: 2022-073
Address: 845 Gravenstein Hwy North
CEQA Status: Exempt
General Plan: Commercial
Zoning: General Commercial
Introduction:

This is a Temporary Use Permit requesting approval to place and operate a Temporary Recreational Vehicle 24-hour safe parking village as a Temporary Residential Use on the vacant site at located at 845 Gravenstein Highway North.

Project Description:

Operation of a temporary 24/7 safe parking program at the site for 20-22 lived-in vehicles for currently homeless persons. The operator, Sonoma Applied Village Services, will provide site management including sanitation, waste management, security, food access, and supportive services.

Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS) received funding to create and operate a Pilot Program for a safe and legal place for unhoused residents to park their recreational vehicles, and providing a monitored site managed by the non-profit. The intent of the program is to provide community members who are experiencing homelessness a place to safely park their vehicle or RV and is meant to lessen the impacts of homelessness on the broader community. Dwellers have access to essential services such as portable toilets and handwashing stations, refuse containers, and showers, which will mitigate many of the public health and safety impacts that occur in encampments. SAVS works closely with WCCS to provide supportive (wrap-around) social services to the inhabitants.

In addition to the 24-hour site manager, the operations of the SAVS Horizon Shine Village are structured to have a number of ‘good neighbor’ policies within the neighborhood, including noise ATTACHMENT 4:

PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT AND MINUTES
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2 (music, generators, dogs); prohibiting parking on neighboring streets (parking is provided within the site); no loitering or trespassing at adjoining, no possession of firearms, open fires, etc. (see attachments “Villager Rules and Responsibilities” item). The site also includes gate monitors at the entry, quiet hours, and a number of other policies to ensure compatibility with the surrounding uses.

Project Location and Surrounding Land Uses:

The site is located in the General Commercial zone on the northern part of Sebastopol (sometimes referred to as the “Northern Gateway”). Surrounding uses include residential to the east and south, commercial (with residential) to the north, and commercial to the west. The site was most recently used as an Amerigas propane tank outlet. It has been empty for several years and has been vacant aside from a small deteriorate 1950’s retail structure and gravel parking area. The structure was removed prior to the SAVS village commencing operations in February 2022, and minor site improvements done to provide a level gravel site, installation of electrical to service the temporary restrooms, and construction of a site fence. Many of these improvements, such as the building demolition and fencing, were completed by St Vincent de Paul, which purchased the site with the intent of building permanent housing in the near future.

The site is arranged to provide space for 18-20 RVs, and currently has 18 RVs/25 clients.

There is a 24-hour on-site manager, as well as gate monitors at the main gate (at the south / main access point). The site also provides a Common area, showers and bathrooms, and administrative area where services are provided to residents. (See attachments for site plan) A loop driveway is provided, which serves as the emergency vehicle access (fire access, or EVA) route, as well as site circulation to the sites and the small shared parking area by the community uses. The driveway also helps to delineate the setback to adjoining properties.

Prior Site History/Use:

A project approval was granted in November 2016 for a mixed-use development that included a two-story mixed-use development with commercial uses on the first floor and residential uses (11 units) on the second floor. The first floor was proposed to include 12,008 square feet of commercial space, and the second floor proposed to have eleven apartments of various sizes for a total of 10,508 square feet residential floor area. The building proposed total gross floor area of 22,516 square feet. This project received both Design Review approval (with conditions),with a Categorical Exemption under Section 15332: Class 32. This approval has since expired and is no longer valid. In discussions with the property’s realtor, the current owner no longer is interested in developing the project that was proposed.

The prior approval did include a Traffic Study, which included analysis of impacts from the mixed use project (both the 13 apartments and the 12,000 SF of commercial space). The estimated number of vehicle trips was for a total of 86 trips for the apartments (estimated at 6.65 each unit) and 532 trips for the commercial uses, for a total of 618 trips (equivalent to 80-90 dwelling units), far greater than would be anticipated by the proposed use.

General Plan Consistency:

The proposed Temporary Use also needs to be consistent with the City’s General Plan Land Use (General Commercial, which allows affordable housing, homeless shelters, and similar uses as a Permitted Use), as well as the General Plan’s policies. The provision of this site for temporary housing for homeless individuals complies with a number of the Adopted General Plan Housing Element policies, including:

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3 Policy D-2 – Encourage expansion of housing opportunities for extremely low-income households, in that it provides temporary location for temporary housing at the site for unhoused individuals.

Policy D-6 – Work to prevent homelessness and support housing services to the homeless, in that a number of non-profit organizations, including SAVS but also Gravenstein Health Center and West County Community Services, are able to provide ‘wrap-around’ supportive services both to support potential transition to permanent housing as well as other needed services such as health care, meals, etc.

Additionally, the City adopted a Resolution in 2018 declaring a local Homeless Emergency and Shelter Crisis in 2018 (Reso No 6213), and Adopted a Resolution on November 30, 2021 proclaiming the existence of a Local Homeless Emergency (Reso No 6386-2021).

Zoning Ordinance Consistency:

The site is in the General Commercial (CG) District provides areas for commercial uses with clusters of street-front stores. This district permits primarily local-serving retail establishments, specialty shops, banks, professional offices, motels, residential uses, and business and personal services that are typically appropriate along major thoroughfares as well as regional commercial uses.

Although 24-7 hour ‘safe parking’ is not included in the City’s municipal code, the Planning Director has determined that it is defined as a temporary residential use, similar to a “Temporary Care Unit” which is defined in the code (for the reasons of housing a caretaker, Zoning and Project History:

The original RV Village was slated as a 12-month use (January 2022 to January 2023) when originally proposed. As such, it was classified under the definition if a Homeless Shelter (see below), as the RVs are not fully functional dwelling units; communal facilities for living will be provided by SAVS; the operation will be for a limited time frame; and, the use of the site will be to accommodate persons and families who are currently homeless:

Zoning code definitions:
“Homeless shelter” means a residential facility operated by a provider which provides temporary accommodations to persons or families with low income for a period of generally not more than six months. Such use may also provide meals, counseling and other services, as well as common area for users of the facility.

Such facility may have individual rooms, but is not developed with individual dwelling units.
“Temporary Use” means a non-permanent use on a site, which can events, but also temporary storage yards, trailers, and similar uses as defined by the Planning Director.
“Temporary care unit” means a manufactured home, recreational vehicle, or park trailer used as a temporary dwelling unit associated with providing care to one or more persons due to an age-related, health, or medical condition The SAVS program residents are temporary by nature, but would not be required to leave after a certain period of time. SAVS has reported that some residents have left, either due to cause, or because they have transitioned to permanent housing, but the majority have been there the 9 Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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4 months it has been in operation, and the intent from SAVS is that they would be able to continue to live at the site.

The use is considered temporary as neither the support units or the RVs are permanent structures; the use is for a limited time; nor are there any site or other improvements to the property which would be permanent.

With the transition to a longer operational timeframe (from 12 months to 36 months, with the 2 year additional time extension being requested in this application), the Planning Director has determined that definition of the use will change after the initial one year period to be classified as a ‘temporary residential use,’ as the turn-over of residents would exceed time period (“for a period of generally not more than six months”) with the extended use. The Planning Director has previously determined that uses beyond six months, but for a limited duration of up to five years are classified as “Temporary uses” and subject to the Temporary Use Permit process, and subject to Planning Commission review. This requirement has several precedents, including permitting of two micro-shelter temporary residential use structures at the Community Church of Sebastopol and the recycling can redemption center at 1000 N Gravenstein Highway, the Peacetown concerts and Headwest Marketplace (once these uses exceeded one season and/or six months). The micro-shelters were permitted for five years, and the “CRV” redemption station for approximately two years (from August 18, 2022 to June 30, 2024); both are longer than six months but limited duration similar to the proposal before the Commission for this Project. This process allows for the impact of uses longer than six months to be reviewed through the public hearing process as described below.

Section 17.430 of the Zoning Ordinance allows for a Temporary Use Permit for non-permanent uses with the approval of the Planning Director (for uses six months or less) and by the Planning Commission for uses longer than six months. This Section also provides that the “decision-making authority may designate such conditions as determined to be necessary in order to secure the purposes of this code, and may require such guarantees and evidence that such conditions are being, or will be, complied with.”
The RV Village is requesting an extension to operate as a 24-7 (24 hours a day/7 days a week) safe parking site, as it has operated since February 2022, for an additional 2 years beyond January 2023 (the one year originally envisioned). The use is still considered temporary as they are not proposed to be permanent, nor do they include any site or other improvements to the property which would be permanent.

Site
The site was reviewed prior to its commencing operations for consistency with the General Commercial zoning requirements.

These requirements include:
• 20 rear yard setback (When adjoining residential)
• 0’ side yard setback (a 20’ setback was maintained)
• 35’ height limit (one-story structures only)
• 6 foot fence height at sides/rear and past the front setback • Parking: while a Homeless Shelter would only require 1 parking space per 10 beds, the City required 1 parking space for each RV space. This is more consistent with a Studio residential unit and greater than required for the use.

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5 Required Findings:

The Findings required for a Temporary Use Permit are similar to a regular (permanent) Conditional Use Permit, in that it “may only be granted if the establishment, maintenance or operation of the proposed use applied for will not, under the circumstances of the particular case, be detrimental to the health, safety, peace, comfort and general welfare of persons residing or working in the neighborhood of such proposed use or development, or be detrimental or injurious to property and improvements in the neighborhood or to the general welfare of the City.”
Analysis:

This Temporary Use Permit request would allow for the site to operate and house homeless individuals for up to an additional two years. It is anticipated that St Vincent de Paul, the site’s owner, will begin construction of a permanent affordable housing at the site (anticipated spring 2024).

Need
The City adopted a Resolution in 2018 declaring a local Homeless Emergency and Shelter Crisis in 2018 (Resolution 6213), and Adopted a Resolution on November 30, 2021 declaring a Local Homeless Emergency. These resolutions identified the growing issue of homelessness with the City and the State, and the need for additional resources to address this and associated issues.

During the intervening time, the City applied for, and received, a Homeless Emergency Action Grant (HEAP) to install two Temporary RV pads/spaces at Park Village Mobile Home Park. The City has also permitted temporary residential shelters at the Community Church to assist with providing some of these services. The provision of this larger site for use as a 24-7 safe parking site for RV and vehicle dwellers similarly provides a needed social service within the City.

Issues
The main issue identified with the use does not appear to come from the SAVS Horizon Village operations or residents themselves. The adjoining neighbors have reported what has been described as ‘overflow’ issues – issues related not by the Village itself, but from other individuals outside of the site. These include reports of RVs parking (for the neighbors just outside city limits given the City’s RV Parking Ordinance and SAVS rules regarding not parking in the neighborhood), littering, shoplifting, and other petty crimes.

These issues would potentially be worse if the SAVS site were closed, as there would be additional unhoused individuals in RVs looking for locations to stay. However, there may be ways to partner with SAVS as a ‘neighborhood watch’ given their gate monitor and on-site manager, and presence of other social service providers at the site during the daytime.

Other potential concerns raised include health and sanitation. City staff reviewed these conditions closely prior to the initial start of operations in February 2022. While the RVs are not connected to permanent utilities, the communal showers and restrooms are connected to city sewer. Additionally, SAVS coordinates weekly servicing of RV waste tanks. SAVS also provides safe water through large tanks (the same type utilized in rural settings where water or well is unavailable). SAVS also provides electrical service to all the community services areas. The on-site manager and other SAVS staff and volunteers monitor the site for compliance with the Village rules. Staff is recommending that these operational aspects be required to be continued in any approval for continued operation.

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6 Environmental Review:

The temporary use is categorically exempt from the requirements of CEQA pursuant to Section 15304, Class 4, which includes minor temporary uses of land having negligible or no permanent effects on the environment. The use is consistent with this categorical exemption as this is a temporary use and does not require permanent improvements.

City Departmental Comments:

The following City Departments and outside agencies have reviewed the Temporary Use Permit request: Planning, Fire, Public Works, Building and Safety, Police, Engineering, City Manager, City Attorney, and City Clerk.

Most departments commented and included requirements prior to the SAVS operations beginning in early 2022. The current site set-up and operations are consistent with City departmental requirements for the temporary use. These requirements included the following:
• Fire lanes as appropriate throughout the site (reflected on the site plan) • Connection to the city sewer for the shared use restrooms provided at the site, as well as site kitchen.
• Service of RV waste tanks on a weekly basis
• Provision of water tanks for the site’s water supply
• Adhere to City’s Noise Ordinance restrictions regarding generator use (electrical connection was completed in spring 2022 and has been in use since then) • Observance of ‘quiet hours’
• Electrical connection for community uses and limited use by residents • Fencing the property and monitoring of entry/exits
• Site management and security, including gate monitors at the entry/exit The only additional comments received from City departments were from the Police Department. They noted potential additional areas of coordination between SAVS and the City Police Department for opportunities to enhance safety in the area. These include:
• Increase cooperation with Police to notify them of potential issues outside of the SAVS site so that Police can better address issues outside of the site / in the neighborhood.

While the Police and SAVS coordinate regularly, Police staff believe that the addition of these conditions, particularly taking a lead as a ‘neighborhood watch’ for surrounding areas, will assist in alerting the Police to potential issues before they become embedded in the area or are allowed to escalate.

Public Comment:

As prescribed by Section 17.460 of the Zoning Ordinance, the Planning Department completed the following: (1) Provided written notice to all property owners within 600 feet of the external boundaries of the subject property; (2) provided a written notice that was published in the Press Democrat; and (3) posted three written notices publicly on and within vicinity of the subject property.

Public comments received as of this staff report are included in the Attachments to this staff report.

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7 Recommendation:

Staff believes the proposed use is compatible with the site, and recommends approval, subject to the following key conditions:
• Maintain operational policies as presented in the application (Village Rules and responsibilities” and “SAVS 24-7 Safe Parking Operations Manual”), including, but not limited to: gate monitors, on-site manager, SAVS outreach, etc. • Enhance coordination with Police for monitoring area surrounding site as a ‘neighborhood watch’
• Continue quarterly reports to the City, to be reviewed as a regular item at future Planning Commission meetings.

If it is the consensus of the Planning Commission that the proposed use is compatible with the site and surrounding uses, staff recommends that the Commission adopt the draft Resolution and approve the project approved based on the facts, findings, and analysis set forth in this staff report and as found in the Resolution, and subject to the Recommended Conditions of Approval found in Exhibit B, and any additional or modified conditions the Planning Commission determines is appropriate.

Attachments:

Application Documents, including operating documents and lease agreements DRAFT Planning Commission Resolution
Exhibit A – Operational Parameters (SAVS operational manual and village rules) Exhibit B – Recommended Conditions of Approval
Public Comments
(p 71) (p 114)
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11 SONOMA APPLIED VILLAGE SERVICES
● Keep their pets
● Gain the ability to live with spouses or intimate partners ● Find a sense of place, privacy, and personal space
● Develop communication and basic management skills
● Gain a sense of self-worth, purpose, direction and recognition of their value to their own success and to the success of others.
● Increase their ability to derive an income.

The Council is not meant to bestow greater power than that of any other resident. Those elected to the council are given the task of responding to incidents when a community agreement is broken and recommending an appropriate level of intervention as specified in this manual. When an incident occurs that is not described in this manual, it is up to the Village Council and staff managers to determine the appropriate level of intervention.

All Council decisions are potentially subject to review by the entire village at a Village Meeting following the Appeal Process. In this way, service on the Council is much like any other form of contribution to the operation and maintenance of the village. For incidents resulting in suspension or expulsion, the offender must be given a chance to appeal before taking their leave.

Exception: Possession of guns, firearms, and weapons of any kind; violence; and drug dealing are not permitted. Anyone committing these offences will be asked to leave the premises immediately. There is no appeal in these cases.

SECTION VI – Resident Selection
Client Acceptance Policy
SAVS’ Safe Parking Program shall adhere to federal, state, county, and city government guidelines for aiding individuals and families who qualify as homeless according to the definition of homeless under 401(1) McKinney-Vento Act. SAVS Safe Parking manager shall be responsible for reviewing and approving eligibility determination in order to ensure that all national and local program goals are achieved. All clients must meet minimum eligibility requirements, which include current license, vehicle registration, and insurance. There is the option to register the vehicle as non-operational.

Disability and English Proficiency Policy
It is the policy of Sonoma Applied Village Services and the Safe Parking Program not to discriminate based on disability and to ensure that all villagers, volunteers and staff comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). When asked, staff will make reasonable accommodation for all program participants with disabilities or Limited English Proficiency. During intake and/or as needed, these needs will be identified, and the SAVS Manager will be advised to ensure accommodation. Every effort will be made to provide meaningful access to the program and its services and/or access to a translator.

All complaints regarding ADA violations should first be referred to the SAVS Manager who will attempt to make reasonable accommodations. Any person who believes that he or she has been Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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1 APPROVED MINUTES

PLANNING COMMISSION

CITY OF SEBASTOPOL
MINUTES OF October 11, 2022

PLANNING COMMISSION:

The notice of the meeting was posted on October 6, 2022.

CALL TO ORDER:

Chair Oetinger called the meeting to order at 6:00 P.M. and read a procedural statement.

1. ROLL CALL: Present: Chair Oetinger, Vice Chair Fernandez, and Commissioners Burnes, Fritz, and Kelley

Absent: None
Staff: Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director

2. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC ON ITEMS NOT ON AGENDA: None.

3. STATEMENTS OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST: None.

4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES:

Due to an error regarding the minutes date, Approval of Minutes was continued until the next Planning Commission meeting to ensure proper noticing.

5. PUBLIC HEARINGS
A. 845 Gravenstein Highway North “Horizon Shine” – Temporary Use Permit request – The Planning Commission will consider an application from Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS) for a Temporary Use Permit greater than six months. The application is to allow the continued temporary residential use as a 24/7 safe parking for RV (Recreational Vehicles) for an additional two years at 845 Gravenstein Highway North.

Director Svanstrom presented the staff report.

Chair Oetinger asked for Planning Commission questions of staff.

City of Sebastopol
Incorporated 1902
Planning Department
7120 Bodega Avenue
Sebastopol, CA 95472
www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us
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2 Linda Kelley, Commissioner
Under Definitions on page 3 of the Staff report it says Homeless Shelter, Temporary Use, Temporary Care Unit. With the temporary care unit definition, is there a time period attached to that temporary care, or how is that dealt with? Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
That isn’t directly applicable to this use. This is under the second definition, Temporary Use, a non-permanent use of the site, which can be any of the uses listed, and again, that temporary use was the same classification as the Community Churches’ shelters. But to clarify, a temporary care unit is generally for a single-family property or another private site where it’s more one-on-one and can request from the Planning Department a temporary use permit as well; that’s the process for these things. There is not a limit on it, however, in terms of the time. For that we do have similar requirements as the SAVS site has, such as connection to the sewer, electrical, water, etc., so they have utilities and there is proper health and sanitation at the site. The temporary care unit, I believe our code requires it to be renewed on an annual basis, so it would require a certification of some sort for that, and then we would just ask for renewal of that, and the temporary care unit in this case can either be a caretaker or the person who is giving the care.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
I’m trying to understand the City funding aspect of this. So the City has been making lease payments so far this year, and so you’re saying that they got money from the County to make those lease payments, is that correct?
Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
I believe so, and I’m going to ask Patrick from SAVS to address that, because I know he was more involved with City management on that.

Patrick O’Loughlin, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
You have it right. The money flowed through the City, but it came from the County, and that’s already taken care of. I will point the City has put no money into it and has no plans to put money in next year, so as a general welfare to the City, I think this is giving a lot; it’s really providing a lot.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
I had a clarification. In the conditions of approval, Exhibit B, page 105, Condition #5, says, “The approval for the temporary use permit to operate the SAVS,” it says, January 1, 2022.

Should that be 2023? Is that when this temporary use permit will start, January 1, 2023 or are we going retroactively?
Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
Yes, it would start this January 1, 2023.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
So that needs to be updated in the conditions.

Deborah Burnes, Commissioner
In reading the report I thought I had read that there wasn’t funding, but a need for security and additional hours where there wasn’t any right now. I just wanted clarification on that.

Also, originally I thought it was the intent to help the residents find longer term housing, permanent housing, but now it seems like they’ll be here, the same residents, for two years, so is that anywhere in the plan?
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3 Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
I think the applicant could probably best answer both of those. I do want to move back to Commissioner Fritz. Exhibit B on that page—I’m going to share my screen—the note regarding the temporary use permit, I’m going to suggest we combine this one and Item 2, because it’s redundant. Item 2 has the correct January 1, 2023, ending December 31, 2024.

I think this statement that it’s an interim use only and shall not be allowed to be permanent can go up under Item 2, and so I suggest we strike Item 5 and move that up in terms of any further changes to those. This could not be a permanent use. It is not zoned for a mobile home park, which is what a long-term use of this would need to be, such as Park Village has the two RVs that are down there.

Patrick O’Loughlin, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
There are two parts to Commissioner Burnes’ question. One was about finding long-term housing, and that is our goal. We are dealing with long-term homeless clients, which are more difficult to place. We are always working on that goal and moving people forward.

We’re dealing with some mental illness and some drug addiction while we work on those issues to move people forward. Our goal is not to find a home for our clients here permanently, but there are more difficult to place clients that we are working really hard with. That’s just the honest truth about it, and that’s why on our application we’re honest about putting someone in there for six months is not going to solve their issue of being unhoused. They need some more support and more guidance to get their life put more together, which we’re working on. With regard to additional funding, I’m not sure the exact piece you were talking about. We are working on additional funding in general for this site that is separate from the permit, and we’re working with the County on those as well, but the permit is not dependent on us having funding; otherwise we’re funded right now to be operating through the current permit just fine and we don’t need additional funds.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
I have a question of Planning Director Svanstrom regarding page 5, the analysis. You were mentioning that St. Vincent de Paul has plans for construction beginning in spring of 2024.

At any time have you had discussions with them regarding the dismantling of the SAVS facility or the plans for moving it to another site? Has that ever been part of your conversation with St. Vincent de Paul?
Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
No, it has not. They are at the very initial stages. I don't know if you have any specific means about this other than they’ve asked us and talked about what the past approvals were for to get a sense of what the past approval was, which is pretty typical of an applicant.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
So if they did come forward with a plan that we were considering, would they need to have plans for site preparation and that would be part of that proposal? Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
Are you asking would they need a transition plan for the SAVS? Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Yes, that’s the question. Or would their approval be conditioned on a plan for it? It’s usually we require them to do some sort of site preparation and you can’t just approve a project with this situation.

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4 Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
I do know that SAVS and St. Vincent de Paul are working very closely, and I see Adrienne from SAVS has her hand raised, so I’m going to ask her if she has any information on that.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Okay, or maybe we can discuss it later when they’re giving their presentation.

Chair Oetinger asked for further Commission questions for staff. Seeing none, she asked for the applicant’s presentation.

The applicant gave a presentation and was available for questions.

Chair Oetinger asked for Planning Commission questions of the applicant.

Evert Fernandez, Vice Chair
What’s the process of how individuals come to stay at that site? Is there any consideration for people that are more local?
Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
Everybody is local. In our contract we have agreed to keep it to Sebastopol. Once we get Sebastopol solved, we’ll maybe open it up to Graton, we don’t know yet. Originally the people who came were from Morris Street. I think we got all but two or three vehicles off of Morris Street, and we’ve had very little turnover, so that’s mostly it, but we do have a waiting list. People call us every day, and they’re people who live in Sebastopol.

Linda Kelley, Commissioner
A follow up to the question of the local preference, is the waiting list possibly attracting folks to camp near and around the site waiting for an open spot? I know there aren’t very many, but do you have a sense of if the folks that are on the waiting list are also waiting on our outskirts?
Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages, (SAVS)
We actually discourage that and tell people if they camp close by they’re likely to get bumped out of the top level. I don’t think it happens very much, maybe one person that I can imagine. It’s just not a way to get to the Village, and we tell people that.

Linda Kelley, Commissioner
That’s a very interesting occurrence, because they coincide together, and I’m glad to hear your answer. Do you all still have the resident, board, and self-governance group, and how is that going?
Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
It’s been a bit rockier than I would want. I think we’re on our third or fourth iteration. We found that people were not interested in doing the work. It’s taken awhile to find people who want to make a commitment to actually do it, because it requires homework and showing up and being reasonable. But we have a good crew now, and we’ve got another set of how they’re governed and what their goals are. I’m optimistic, let me just say that.

Linda Kelley, Commissioner
That’s great. I know that would be hard. We have a couple of co-housing projects, and the one that’s a rental that was established near where Palm Drive Hospital used to be, because it’s a rental project it was a concern about getting as much buy-in as like our co-housing Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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5 that is owner-occupied/ownership, and so I can understand that and I’m glad to see you’re continuing to want to do that, because it seems like a very worthy goal.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
I wanted to follow up on the funding question. I appreciate the fact that you need our approval to get certain funding sources and all that, but I’m curious what happens if you don’t get all the funding that you need by January 1st? How much money do you have that you know you have? Could you operate at least through June or next October, or do you have a sense of what that is with the funding that you do have lined up at this point? Patrick O’Loughlin, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
We are set to operate through the end of the contract, which is December 31st, and that’s what our funding will cover, and we are not funded beyond that. Any funding we need beyond that will go into our own direct money that we have as an organization, but our plan is to close the program if we don’t receive any funding. We do have an exit plan for our residents, and it needs to be fleshed out further, but overall it’s working with INDT team and West County Community Services in trying to place that. Lots of other Villages have been broken up in the past and we’ll use their playbook in order to try to use all the existing services in Sonoma County to place them, but that’s going to be a difficult task and it will be a rough few months for us and the clients that are there, but if the money is not there, the money is not there and we’ll only operate it when we can operate it fully.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
I’m also wondering if in your communication with St. Vincent de Paul if there has been any talk of—and I realize there would be a gap—if and when they do develop housing on that site, would any of your residents be offered opportunities to be permanently housed in that development? I’m an architect and I just finished an affordable housing project and there was a transitional housing site that then became a permanent housing site, and the people were temporarily relocated and then they were offered houses once the new construction finished, so I’m wondering if you had any conversation like that as a way to get these people permanently housed on the same property.

Patrick O’Loughlin, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
That would be a great solution, or converting the site to an RV park as is and changing the structure of it, what it is legally, would be really interesting. But no, we haven’t had that specific discussion, and we would have that if we get funded, because we recognize and acknowledge at the end of 2023 that St. Vincent is taking over and developing long-term housing. So to answer your question, not in the current residence, because it’s too big of a gap, but at the end I’m sure we’ll have those discussions, because they would be great clients.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
Can you explain a little bit about the current staffing situation? You mentioned there’s a person who is there 40 hours a week. What other staffing do you have onsite beyond that at this point?
Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
We’ve had illnesses, so we’ve had one guy who’s been out for two months with an illness, and I think he’s due back full time starting the 8th. We have a full time Village manager, and then we have security people who divvy up the hours, and we also have Whitestar Security who do the overnight shifts for security. We have a resident who lives there and is also part of the staff, and he’s there 24 hours a day, and we have a couple of other people who live Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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6 there who are short or part time, but they’re also available when they’re needed. I don't know if that’s clear enough for you. I feel a little muddled about it.

Deborah Burnes, Commissioner
I wanted to follow up on what one of the Commissioners had asked about discouraging people to be close by and are the residents local? Having a warehouse on Morris Street, I’ve been up close and personal to all these people since they first started moving to Sebastopol, knowing most of them very well. It was very transient, the people were not originally from the area, but this is where they called home. I don't know if any of us are originally from here, so I don’t see it as encouraging other people to be there to get into the Village necessarily, just because this has been something that’s been here for many, many years.

And yes, Morris Street did start out small and then we kind of expanded, but I don’t think that that’s actually what’s happening. We just have more of a problem with people not having homes than we have homes for them, so we will find more people moving here. Just being here since the very beginning, I don’t think that that is really an issue, and they’re all local now. This is where they’ve chosen for their home, so there you go.

Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
They’re definitely people who have deep roots in Sonoma County, and I remember somebody talking to me about graduating from Analy High School, and they’re certainly sons and daughters of long-time Sebastopol residents.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
I have a question of the applicant that goes back to your transition plans. I know that first you need this approval and you need funding, but at some point down the line the people who have trailers there are going to have to find another place to move their trailers, and I was wondering if there was a timetable for planning that? I know if you don’t get your funding you’ve got an immediate plan to work with West County Community Services and other organizations to do that. Is that what you would be starting to do at some point down the road as we get closer to January?
Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
We started to do that the second week we moved in, and right now we’re trying to do another whole level of the bureaucracy to do all of that, but yes, it will be sort of panic time and a lot of focus time if we have to close in January. Other than that, it’s long and slow, and finding another spot for your RV, or maybe you’d be happier in an apartment and you’d want to give your RV up, these are long conversations, because people feel pretty insecure, and understandably so. But yes, at some point everybody has got to be off the lot, that’s clear, and we’ll just keep working on that.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
It’s a shame, because that lot is so close to so many services and stores, and if you find a country property that’s available, it’s a long way from anything.

Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
But most people have cars. It’s a big surprise, but some people have more than one car.

Deborah Burnes, Commissioner
When they do need to move their vehicles off of the lot, is there funding in place for that as well? Is that part of the funding? I know some of those vehicles aren’t drivable anymore, and some of them are. Is that something that we’ll be able to help the residents with? Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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7 Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
That is a really good question. Our intention is to do some of that, but there are major, major costs, and if we have to close by January, I don't know how much we’ll be able to do.

The long-term level, yes, that’s an ongoing process. We’re trying to get people registered and get their whole scene set up so that they’re more independent.

Patrick O’Loughlin, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
We will also plan our exit budget that way, so we may close a few weeks earlier in order to have the funding to handle the tow costs and other costs associated with it. We’ll just shorten the end of the actual closing date in order to have the funding, so we don’t sit there and say there’s nothing funded, now we’re just going to stay here. We’ll be out on the date we need to be out.

Linda Kelley, Commissioner
An infrastructure question. I see that there is electricity to the common areas. I assume there isn’t electricity to each of the trailers? The second question is are people still using generators?
Patrick O’Loughlin, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
Actually there is electricity out to every trailer, so there are no generators. And we even got through a hot summer and had no issues with that.

Chair Oetinger ask for further Commission questions of the applicant. Seeing none, she opened public comment.

Heather Stone and Ken Mitchell
We are homeowners back behind the Hurlbut, and we are also investors in the local community. We actually are providing low-income housing downtown and below-market housing. Our issue is mainly with process. I’m an attorney and with compassion for the situation that the homeless find themselves in, I feel like there was a total disregard for process in informing the local homeowners, local businesses, and giving people an opportunity to participate and have their thoughts heard. I feel like from an emergency standpoint, okay, but then a two-year extension on top of that? Help works properly when there is participation from all interested parties, including local businesses and local residents, and I feel that we haven’t been included in this to the extent that we should have been, because it affects our day-to-day lives and it’s our taxpayer dollars. I have no problem with something being situated there once the normal process has been followed and people have had notice and a chance to voice concerns and participate.

Suzanne Lande
I’m a longtime volunteer both with the residents who were in the Morris Street area, or in the Laguna without a vehicle, and at Horizon Shine I’d say at least a year and-a-half, so I’ve known people a long time. I’m a retired nurse. I keep my RN license active in order to help homeless people. The comments that I got from residents, on Morris Street and that area it was so hard and people would be mad at each other and smash something or whatever. It’s not like that at Horizon Shine. People who at one time did not get along at all now are offering to help with something physical, or if one person has a car several others might get a ride. People lone the tiniest bits of money, like $3 or $5, and I know they pay it back; it’s because the need is so real. As a nurse I see that the homeless people there do not have just ordinary I could call my uncle or my sister and they would help me problems, they have big, big problems. There is a lot of mental health, really a lot of issues. There are some people who have been unemployed for a very long time. Of course there are some substance abuse things, but there is help for it. There have been people who probably Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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8 would not be alive if it weren’t for some of the services they’ve had. And then there’s the outreach clinic, the medical stuff that I help with through Third Street House in Guerneville with an excellent doctor and nurse. They now also have a social worker that is a therapist, and an additional social worker is coming. I just think we have a sense from the residents there that it’s really a community, and that is a blessing and will help them get further.

Zack Imbrogno
I’m commenting on behalf of a neighborhood group, Friends of Northwest Sebastopol. We filed a letter of objection to the two-year temporary use. As written, we find issues with the site as it relates to City zoning code, including the fact that there is not a temporary residential. Furthermore, the Department’s findings brush over the very real, very serious environmental impacts to the neighborhood. I’m speaking on behalf of neighbors who have come to me in increasing numbers over the last several months to report increasing problems. Many say they’ve lived here 30 years and have never seen anything like this in the area. Whether it’s tools stolen from someone’s yard, gas drained from a car, trespassing, being harassed for money, witnessing verbal assault on others, being unable to walk on a sidewalk with someone passed out on it, passing by drug deals at Exchange Bank, and endless amounts of noise complaints both day and night. I am also speaking for area business owners who are afraid to speak out for political reasons, but go to a business in Redwood Marketplace across from the site and speak to a manager or clerk and they will tell you shoplifting, dumping, and loitering has increased since the opening of the encampment.

If you need proof, consider the fact that Redwood Marketplace hired a full-time security guard three months into the camp’s opening to mitigate these issues and ensure a safe and sanitary environment for shoppers. For related images and video, please review the impact statement included in our letter of objection. It’s impossible to know how many of these issues have arisen directly from residents of the encampment itself or have come as a result of other transients seeking services or shelter there, but the bottom line is clear, the findings in this report ignore the very real change in the character of the area that is happening right before our own eyes. We request the Planning Commission consider our letter of objection and forthcoming appeal to address the issues of the zoning code and the environmental impact to either deny this permit, make the changes needed to make the site legal, or know that we are prepared to take further legal action.

Vanessa
I have a question regarding the process. During the City Council meeting last week the St.

Vincent de Paul representative had mentioned at the very earliest, assuming everything works out really well, it will be two years. My understanding is the extension is basically to keep the RV village there until St. Vincent de Paul is ready to break ground and start building the brick and mortar. My question is if that gets pushed back five or ten years before they’re able to actually start building the affordable housing project, how does the process work then? Does it just keep getting extended at two-year increments, or is it two years and then it can’t be extended past that, because then that exceeds the emergency homeless village as it’s not zoned as such?
Bea Lineatus
I would like to echo the initial comments about process and the lack of involvement of the public, the adjoining neighbors, and the neighborhoods in this process from the very beginning of the site selection that was abruptly changed to this site with very little to no public notice or involvement. I respectfully request that the public be involved in this process and that this Commission delay a decision on this request for a CUP until a valid and thorough public engagement to hear community concerns can be carried out. I would like to echo what Zack had to say. We live just around the corner from this site and I have seen a marked increase in what appears to be transient individuals moving up and down the Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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9 highway carrying their belongings and setting up shop, if you will, not too far from the site.

They may not be associated with the site, but I do believe that the site attracts additional homeless people that may be performing the unlawful activity that Zack mentioned. I’ve seen people sleeping rough on the sidewalk, I’ve seen people sleeping rough out by O’Reilly Media Center, and it disturbs me. We moved to this area to get away from that kind of life, and I’m disappointed to see that it is an attractant.

Angie
I am a participant at the SAVS Village. I’ve been there since the beginning and it’s been a very positive experience for me. I’ve been able to park my RV there and have it be a safe place so that I could then go and try to get a job and try to advance myself out the homeless situation that I found myself in starting about a year ago. Since I’ve gotten to SAVS they’ve involved me in many of the different things that they’ve been trying to do. I know that Adrienne sent out a schedule of things that she had hoped to accomplish with the project, and when I went back and reviewed it, as I am trying to start a blog right now about the progress of the project, she has actually been successful in putting forward all of the programs that she had planned. I have been able to get medical care. I’ve been able to get dental care. We got our showers and our power and everything hooked up, and we’ve really all tried to work together as best as we can to get and keep it going. I recently got a full-time job at a bed and breakfast in Occidental and I’m doing phenomenal compared to how I was doing when I very first met some of the SAVS people on the street. Suzanne Lande, who spoke earlier, has been absolutely instrumental in my success. She’s a volunteer, but she is so important to me. She has really helped me get a lot of things done.

When we see different things happening in the neighborhood we do try to address them if we know the people. We don’t always know the people that are at the shopping centers that are doing different things. Sometimes they’re not people that we are friends with in this community, and they are sometimes people that we know, and when there are problems we do address them directly and we do try to discourage whatever it is that they’re doing, and if it’s something that bothers the neighborhood it’s usually something that we can help immediately. We know what’s going on and we try to stop it. I really do think that this is a situation that is happening all over California, and it’s unfortunate that it’s increasing, but it’s increasing everywhere and it’s not just entirely because of the community here. Either way, there’s only so much we can control in our community, but we really do try to address anything going on outside.

Arthur George
I’m chair of an ad hoc volunteer group called West County Homeless Advocates that consists of a variety of volunteers from service organizations, churches, and interested and activist citizens. We’ve spoken before the City Council numerous times in support of safe parking, sanitation, and housing. I have provided written comments to the Commission, but I’d like to supplement those in response to some of the questions and comments I’ve heard tonight. First of all, I’d like to address the concerns of Chair Oetinger and Commissioner Burnes about the relocation of vehicles if the Horizon Shine Village were to close. Those vehicles are likely just to spill back out onto the street where they started, through no fault of SAVS. SAVS has provided Horizon Shine to get those vehicles and their occupants off of City streets, off of Morris, and without Horizon Shine they would be back somewhere. All ending the Village really does is expel all those people back out onto the streets. The new police chief, Ken Nelson, suggested last week before the City Council that there is no identifiable link that Horizon Shine is a magnet to other unhoused people. He suggested that if there are additional unhoused camping rough along the Norlee Street, the former Lucky site, the former Mary’s Pizza site, the former Chase Bank site, these are vacant properties in the Redwood Marketplace that predate Horizon Shine for various business reasons, and he suggested that with the sweeps on Morris and Laguna homeless individuals Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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10 are going to go someplace, and they go to places that are dark and concealed, and the Redwood Marketplace certain meets those definitions, so those people who are camping rough opposite Horizon Shine are not Horizon Shine residents. The Horizon Shine residents were tucked away safely back in their RVs sleeping. Higher levels of government than the City are going to have to come in and assist with the relocation of the RVs and all the other unhoused individuals, and the failure for that to happen is not due to Horizon Shine or to the City. Diana Rich has tried to find other sites; none of them exist. In terms of process, we are here engaging in a process. Courts have reviewed the prior process and found it adequate and lawful, and the tens of thousands of dollars that have been expended by the City and the Friends of Northwest Sebastopol who oppose the Village could have been much more adequately spent in providing the services that these people so desperately need, and I say that acknowledging that everybody has a right to pursue their litigation, but we should look at how money is spent, where it goes, and what it does.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Were there questions? I didn’t take notes, but I did hear some.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
I believe some of the questions were about the transition, and there were a couple of statements about the process. The Planning Department was not involved with the prior process, so as Mr. George said, the prior process has been through the courts and so what we’re at now is a public process. This is a temporary use permit. It is being heard by the Planning Commission because it’s more than six months, as required by our code, and any decision of the Planning Commission is appealable to the City Council, and it sounds like some folks are aware of that. This was noticed. We certainly sent to the neighbors and I’m glad that many of them were able to join us here tonight and hopefully start some of the discussion and be more informed and involved in the discussions. I believe the only question that I had from Vanessa was the process of if St. Vincent de Paul is delayed further would this be continued? This does need to be a temporary use, as noted. This site is not zoned for this use as a permanent use, just like the Community Church site was not zoned for the smaller residential structures that are there. It’s a single-family zone, so they could put a single house on it but not the parking and the community shelters that are there, and so that also required a temporary use permit such as this. What we’re looking at tonight is a two-year extension. There is a potential that it could be extended if the applicant requests.

They would have to go back through this same process, and I think at that point, and possibly tonight, there are already discussions about this is supposed to be a temporary emergency thing, what is the transition and the need for a transition plan. The Community Church micro-shelters were permitted for five years; I certainly would not consider it a temporary use if it were ten years, but whether it’s two, three, four, or five years, I’m not sure. We don’t have a definition of temporary in our code other than something that is not a permanent structure, a permanent use of the site. They have requested two years, and so that is what we review as the Planning Commission.

Chair Oetinger closed public comment.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
I’d like to confirm with Kari that nothing has changed to make today any less of an emergency than a year ago when this first condition of approval was approved.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
I can go back to that portion of the staff report to clarify. There was not a conditional use permit of any sort when this use was originally done. It was done under the local homeless emergency adopted by City Council on November 30, 2021. That has been renewed, so that Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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11 is still in place, and the local homeless emergency shelter that was adopted in 2018, I believe that is still in effect, although I would have to check on that. I know that was done so that we could apply for temporary RV spaces that we installed at Park Village specifically, and that was funded entirely through a State grant. In terms of the context for this particular use, that resolution of local homeless emergency was adopted last year. The use that was proposed was for 12 months or less starting in February and ending in January. As a short-term use stay like that it could be defined as a homeless shelter. In our code a homeless shelter is defined as a residential facility operated by a provider to provide temporary accommodations for two persons or families with low-income for a period of not generally more than six months. In this case it was 12 months, and that’s the part that they’re not proposing at this point, which is why it would need to be done through the temporary use permit process. A homeless shelter is permitted “by right” in the General Commercial zone in which the site is located, so anything that is permitted by right does not require a conditional use permit. The permitted use of the homeless shelter would only need to have all of the City requirements that we would normally have, and those are the utilities, health, sanitation, and electrical that they had to provide to the site, etc., so those were all reviewed as part of that, but done as a permitted use. To extend requires the conditional use permit that you’re reviewing tonight for the temporary use.

Chair Oetinger asked for Commission questions or comments.

Evert Fernandez, Vice Chair
I wanted to address one of the public comments regarding some of the crime issues at the Redwood Marketplace. I don't know if it’s happenstance related to the SAVS site, or if we have any police reports. I wanted to make sure we address that, and any of the SAVS staff might also want to address that.

Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
What we’ve heard from the police is that the need for them to police this particular group of people has plummeted, so they saved a lot of time on that and they’re very supportive of how we’re doing things. There are occasions when they get called into the Village for one reason or another; sometimes it’s false alarms or someone being concerned about something that’s really not a big deal. Other times, I think maybe once a policeman had to come and stand beside somebody who was yelling at somebody else; I think that might have happened, but it’s very rare. Usually the police come, they’ll say we hear this or that, maybe they’ll come and check about it, and then they leave. We just don’t have a lot of police involvement.

Evert Fernandez, Vice Chair
Also, address some of the comments that were made about issues at the Redwood Marketplace or other businesses. I’m trying to see if there’s a connection with that.

Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
I guess I have to lean on the police chief at the City Council meeting who said he just didn’t see any real link. There have been changes of policies at the City level and sweeping people around and taking them out of particularly the Laguna, because a lot of people were camping down there and felt pretty out of sight out of mind, and now they’re not out of mind or sight. I think what Angie from the Village said is also true, we really do try to address it one by one, and I would urge people to get in touch with me if they’re having specific problems that they think might be related to the Village. Like Angie said, we can’t control everything, but sometimes we do actually know the person and we can say you’ve got to get along with the neighbors. This is a community here; we’re trying to be a positive Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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12 part of the community, not harmful, and they really respond to that and take their business somewhere else or just not doing whatever it is that’s objectionable.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
And Vice Chair Fernandez, I can address that. Our police chief, Ron Nelson, was going to be in attendance. I have had conversations with him about this. As we do with all use permits, this was routed to all the City departments and we routed this the same just to make sure that everything from the technical side, like the water and sewer, there weren’t additional requirements for an extension. I did specifically speak with the police chief on that. He concurred with what Adrienne just said in that the Village itself is not terribly problematic. I do know that there has been far less stress on both Public Works and police in terms of Public Works was pulling out a garbage truck full of stuff on Laguna every day and trying to maintain that area. A lot of that has obviously calmed down or just gone away. The one thing that Chief Nelson did recommend—and this is the recommended additional condition of approval—is having more coordination with SAVS, not for inside but if they see things outside. Also, if there’s a way that the neighborhood groups could assist with that, I think that would be helpful. I do know that it came up at Council that some of the areas are not in the City of Sebastopol proper, since the site is somewhat close to City limits on the east side, especially on Hurlbut. That doesn’t mean that people can’t necessarily drive down the street and not sometimes discourage things, just the eyes on the street and the presence, especially if they’re in police vehicle. So Chief Nelson did definitely feel that some of that overflow issue could be dealt with more proactively, and so that is definitely one of the things that we would want to look to. The city manager and myself have also had conversations with the owner of Redwood Marketplace, and yes, there are definitely some issues there. I wouldn’t say that he associated them with the SAVS Village, and in fact it sounds like there has been a homeless issue behind some of the stores at that place for some time, and so whether or not that has grown or not he did say that that was part of the issue and one of the reasons why they had gotten the security guard to assist there. They are unfortunately also dealing with the chronic vacancy at the CVS there, which is not owned by the Redwood Marketplace; it is owned by CVS and they are basically just not interested in renting it to anyone unfortunately. I can tell you that the Burger King that is vacated right now is actually going to be a Starbucks; that went through the Planning Commission review and design review and I believe they’re about to submit their building permits and sign permits. Who knows what attracts people, but we are certainly looking forward to the Starbucks revitalization and having that be a hopefully fairly busy outlet.

Deborah Burnes, Commissioner
Vice Chair Fernandez, to speak to your question as well as something I read, there was also a concern by the neighbors about people also camping outside where Sterry Garden is down by Rileystreet building. I am there often and I have noticed that as well, that there are a couple of people there and a lot of trash and debris. But I will say from being a business owner on Main Street for going on 25 years, and having a warehouse for almost 25 years on Morris Street where the encampment was, that I understand what the neighbors are going through. We saw a lot of stuff on Morris Street, but I don’t think that this has anything to do with the Village and this community, and the reason why is it being here for so long. Before there was an issue on Morris Street we had theft on Main Street. We had the police number right on our wall because we would have people who had mental disabilities who would be running up and down Main Street causing havoc. There has always been this type of activity and I’m sure that it’s growing, however, I believe that it is growing more in society, so it doesn’t feel justly put upon this situation since I’ve been here for so long and none of this is new. I will say that the solution here is not to look at whether this is the issue and are these residents living there causing it, but what can we do to help with the people who aren’t housed still so that we’re not having this situation. Lastly, the Laguna has been a Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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13 longstanding issue with people camping there, and the City has really tried a lot. It’s been a longstanding issue long before Morris Street was there. But a question I do have is what is the security like at the site? I know that the gates close I believe at 10:00. Is there security at the site? Are most people in every night? What happens if somebody is not in? Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
There is 24/7 security, so there’s always someone on duty. We don’t enforce the residents to stay at home; that’s not our job. They’re human beings, they’re adults, but we do check them in and out in the evenings after 10:00, and we have a pretty strong visitation, who comes and goes, with some people not allowed in the Village at all. I hope that answers your question.

Deborah Burnes, Commissioner
It does, and I absolutely agree with you, these are adults, they don’t need to be home. I’m trying to address some of the concerns of the neighbors. I did sit out there and I listened to some loud drumming, but it wasn’t coming from the Village, it was in the Laguna. We’ve had that forever here. This seems like we have two separate issues going on. One is is the Village causing any liabilities to any of the citizens of Sebastopol, and what do we do about this other issue, because it’s been an ongoing issue? I will say this has really helped Morris Street. The business owners there, we never experienced any theft or anything with people on Morris Street, but it was a lot, so I think we need to remember to separate these issues.

The reason I was asking that is it seems like you guys have a pretty clear picture that even if they’re not there in the evening that some of the thefts and the issues going on for the neighbors are not associated with your residents, is that accurate? Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
I think that’s pretty accurate. I think that’s very accurate.

Linda Kelley, Commissioner
My house is by the Joe Rodota Trail, and I certainly do hear some lively conversations at time, and there was a fire from probably someone camping. It has certainly gotten worse over time. I got scared one time when I was coming home late at night from work thinking that there was someone stalking me, so I understand the concerns. However, I’m satisfied that two more years is tolerable, especially if issues at the Redwood Marketplace are being dealt with, and hopefully our Parking Ordinance is being administered if there is neighborhood parking that’s within the City limits. It sounds, especially from the woman who spoke who is a resident there, my heart just opened up to possibilities that you are providing there. You can’t fix the mental health issues and the drug issues, and there was a letter to us about we should be lobbying stronger for mental health services on demand, drug treatment on demand; that’s a huge problem. I’m a registered ICU nurse, and I’ve taken care of many, many homeless folks over the 38 years I’ve been at Memorial.

Sometimes we are only there to show love and respect and can’t fix all the social problems, but I’ve been very proud of Sebastopol trying, and we do need to have a facility like this.

Then we have strengthened our Parking Ordinance, and to the chagrin of many people, because it’s pretty strict. But I’m happy with a couple of additional conditions that staff has recommended, and so I’m ready to move forward, and God bless you for having put this together.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
I agree with a lot of what’s been said by other Commissioners. I would also like to reiterate that this is the public process. I realize the original approval of this went through a different kind of process, but this is the opportunity for the public to make their voices heard, and I appreciate the emails and letters that we’ve gotten, and the public comments tonight. I Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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14 think that is an important part of the process. Bottom line is we need more permanent supportive housing, period. We just don’t have enough. I’m an architect and I’ve worked on these kinds of projects for permanent supportive housing, and they are few and far between, and they take a long time to put in place, so thinking this problem was going to go way within a year was magical thinking, and I think that the problem was worse when many of these people were on Morris Street or spread around town. This environment, like we heard from the resident that spoke tonight, and Adrienne, a community is being creative, people are supportive of each other, and I think that support is really important and it was very heartwarming to hear Angie speak tonight. That’s exactly why we need to do these types of things, because having a stable place to live, even if it is in your RV, that helps you move on, so I think this is an important project. I totally hear the neighbors’ concerns. I live in town and I have definitely seen an increase in my daily routine of homelessness and people sleeping on the sidewalks and more trash and things like that, and it’s something we’re all dealing with. It’s certainly not limited to Sebastopol, not even just California; this is happening across the country unfortunately; it’s just a dire situation. I do believe that the fact that half of the Redwood Marketplace is vacant certainly doesn’t help. That is the kind of place that attracts homeless people, because there is less oversight and less people going by on a regular basis and it feels a little more out of the way. I think it’s unfortunate it’s across the street and there seems to be some kind of correlation, but I know the owner of that shopping center and I know there has been issues of people living behind there for years, it’s not necessarily a new thing, and maybe it’s becoming more out in the open now that Mary’s Pizza is closed too; the whole end is just dead. But from a land use standpoint this is the process that we go through for this kind of use. It’s a temporary use permit, this is the public process, and this is the legal process. I’m supportive of this from a land use standpoint, and if people have concerns that the City Council said this is only going to be for a year, that’s an issue to take up with those Council members and that’s a political issue and not necessarily a land use issue, but as a Planning Commissioner reviewing this application we have before us tonight, I’m inclined to grant the two-year extension request.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
My concern is not really with clearing the site at the end of two years, it’s making sure that the people who live there have a place to go before the last minutes, because one of my concerns when they first went there is that it’s only temporary, they’re still going to need to find a another place, and finding that other place isn’t going to happen overnight. I’m wondering if other Commissioners would be interested in adding a condition that at the quarterly report at some point in the process SAVS begins to define the process and the actual numbers for places where people will go so that in those last three months they’re not in a crisis situation. I know that’s a huge ask, but it’s just really painful to think of having this two-year time period and allowing people to be evicted without a plan for them to be transitioned. Kari, is that a reasonable addition to add that number or some evidence of that plan through the quarterly reports?
Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
I think as a conditional use permit for a temporary use, to understand how it’s going to be closed, is absolutely appropriate. And I know that SAVS has been looking at other sites and things like that, but I think that especially if this is transitioning to permanent affordable housing by St. Vincent de Paul, there will be a need to do that.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Is the last six months too late? I mean, it can take years. At what point do you think something like that should kick in if there is evidence of something else in the works? Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
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15 I would say if it’s a two-year that at the beginning of that second year there start to be an understanding of what the options are and how those develop. I’m not a social service provider, but I would suspect, just how I’ve seen others work, that it’s probably not one solution, it’s probably going to be a mix of an opportunity for three people here, five RVs here, and that kind of thing. Even if it’s not resolved, to make sure we’re talking about it earlier, even if it is we’re still having some of these issues but we’re looking at some of these things, I think that would be in the best interest of everyone.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Yes, I would feel more comfortable. I know there’s no way to enforce it. I just think we need some way to prompt that so we begin to feel that something is happening.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
Yes, and I think it’s fine to ask the applicant halfway through how long this type of planning would take, and then start reporting on it. That’s what I would recommend, and I think that’s an excellent point.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Can I ask either of our applicants representing SAVS here today if that’s something that they feel they could add to their quarterly report if we requested? Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
Yes, I think we can do that. You’re right, it’ not an easy thing, but it’s in line with what we want to do. I’m hoping that all of the people that we have there now will be somewhere else by the time the St. Vincent de Paul goes on, but we’ll have new people, and we’ll be just as concerned as you that they not just be kicked out.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Yes, it feels awkward to move somebody in and get all set up and organized with them only to have to send them back to the street a week later.

Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
It’s heartbreaking to even contemplate it; we know these folks.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
Chair Oetinger, I did want to note, I know Vice Chair Fernandez has his hand up. He had asked the question of the police earlier. I was able to get ahold of Police Chief Ron Nelson and he is here now, so Vice Chair Fernandez, I don't know if you’re able to repeat the question you had earlier, and then get any comments from Chief Nelson.

Evert Fernandez, Commissioner
Thank you. First of all, along with Chair Oetinger, I’m in support of getting that report as informational, and I am quite convinced that the SAVS group and organization is as concerned as we are about making the transition and working on that part of it, so I will look at it as giving us information for us to prompt them, but more for information as to how things are going along, and maybe somehow we can help or at least let the public know what’s going on. Chief Nelson, thank you for being here. Comments were brought up by some of the neighbors making the connection that perhaps some of the crime issues or problems in the area were directly related to the Village residents, and I’m not sure if that’s something that can or cannot be commented to say this person was from the Village or not, but I was curious to any general comment regarding neighbors’ concerns that by having that organization there and those people there that it has directly resulted in more crime issues.

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16 Ron Nelson, Sebastopol Chief of Police
It’s not a simple answer; I’ll start with that. I think you’re talking about two issues really. I don’t have any information that correlates any of the Horizon Shines residents being involved in any of the criminal activity that’s occurring proximate to that facility. It’s my belief that the majority of the residents there are abiding by the rules as best they can.

Now, that’s not to say that there might not be an attraction for non-residents to visit the site or to come into the area to hang out with their friends, that’s normal human interaction, but I’ve requested that should the extension be granted that Horizon Shine institute some additional procedures to track who is going in and out, set visiting hours, set some restrictions to try to limit some of that periphery perception that some of the issues that are going on in the neighborhood are directly associated with Horizon Shine. The other piece of the pie there is that directly across the street you have the Lucky supermarket shopping center, and due to our economic situation nationwide and in the state, and in Sebastopol as well, we’ve had businesses there close. As I mentioned in a previous meeting, homeless folks, unhoused folks, are forced in a way, due to the lifestyle and their situation, to be opportunistic, and they will look for vacant properties, vacant lots, spaces like the Laguna de Santa Rosa, to bide their time during the day as well as finding places to land at night to be able to sleep in their cars and essentially have a safe spot in their mind where they can be. That shopping center itself, by the fact that there’s less traffic, there are vacant businesses, there are loading docks that are now not being utilized, they utilize that opportunity for them to use it as a landing spot. I think a good majority of the increased crime, it’s serious to the people that are affected, but I would characterize it as nuisance crimes. They’re low-level petty thefts, drinking in public, things like that, quality of life issues, which make no mistake, they do affect the quality of life to the residents in that area. I don’t have statistical data to substantiate this, but my instincts are telling me that the majority of any increase is directly related a lot to that site being vacant, and also to the fact that we have non-residents of Horizon Shine who may be hanging in the area or passing through, and during their “rounds,” so to speak, are probably committing some petty offenses in neighboring shopping centers, such as the one that holds the Ace Hardware and the Pacific Market.

Evert Fernandez, Commissioner
Thank you, and thank you, Commissioner Burnes for your comments. I also am satisfied as to the Village/SAVS and what they’re doing. I believe that if they weren’t doing the job and providing a place for people to be, and a place where they need to abide by certain rules and so forth, that there may be more issues that would be happening in the neighborhood, outside the neighborhood, all around, so the fact that those unfortunate incidents happen, I don’t believe that it can all be because of direct relation to the site being there. In fact, I think it’s quite the opposite, that it’s been very helpful. I’m certainly in support of the program; I really appreciate what they’ve done. As far as what individuals have commented about the process, as Commissioner Fritz had mentioned, prior to us getting this it was going to Council and they went through their own process, but for us as Commissioners, notice was put out. This is the forum for people to make those comments, as they have, and also they have the opportunity to submit an appeal to City Council as well. I’m happy to support this project, and I think we have certainly done our due diligence as best as we can.

Deborah Burnes, Commissioner
I just wanted to thank all the people involved and also my support for the project as well. I do want to also say as we support this that I think all the Commissioners are feeling very understanding of the concerns the neighbors have, and I want to reiterate, we have two separate buckets here. One is the Village and the other is the other issues that have been longstanding in Sebastopol and it seems like are getting worse, so at another time it would Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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17 be appropriate to look at what more we can do, because as this escalates we can see more problems all over town, so the correlation between that and the Village I don’t substantiate with my many, many years of being in the epicenter of this, but I’m in complete support. I feel very lucky that they came in and helped in the way that they did. So, with saying that, I was wondering if we could put forth a motion now?
Kathy Oetinger, Chair
I’d be happy with that. Do you have one?
Deborah Burnes, Commissioner
Yes.

Linda Kelley, Commissioner
Chair Oetinger, before we move, since we have the police chief here, there was a question about enforcing, or have we had a need to enforce, our Parking Ordinance for neighborhood parking around this area?
Ron Nelson, Sebastopol Chief of Police
We’ve had some sporadic incidents throughout the City where we’ve had folks attempting to park their RVs, but frankly not a huge number. When we’re notified about it, or when our parking person becomes aware, she makes contact with the individuals, explains what they can and can’t do, and also we always try to offer services and enlist the help of our liaison and see if we can get them additional services. I think Vice Chair Fernandez touched on it:
this is a managed approach, and it’s a temporary solution to provide resources and a hand up to people to try to get them on a path where they’re able to reintegrate into society.

Prior to Horizon Shine being there, essentially it was a free for all, and we saw the result of that on Morris Street and it was starting to spread out throughout the City, and as we’ve seen through the managed approach and this resource being available and all the wonderful work being done by our advocate community and by Horizon Shine, we’ve been able to lessen the impacts of this. If this facility were to not exist we’d be right back to square one, and my guess would be that it would probably continue to grow and spread throughout various other areas of the City, because Morris Street was impacted to the point where there was no more room and we were starting to see that happen. Is it ideal? No, there is no ideal one size fits all solution, but I think this managed approach is the best that we can do in our current situation and in the current time frame, and I could see it being somewhat disastrous if this facility and a lease extension were not granted. If we think we have impacts now, you haven’t seen anything as to what it would probably look like.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
And Chief Nelson, you did miss one of Chair Oetinger‘s conditions, so just to reiterate the conditions, because it sounds like we’re looking towards a motion. We do have the condition of approval that Chief Nelson had recommended regarding additional coordination from any SAVS folks, and again, Chief Nelson, I also volunteered any neighbors who have issues that they be able to proactively contact the police and the police can proactively deal with that and try to address some of those issues not involving the SAVS Village, but use those as some of the eyes on the street, especially with the vacancies, so that is in our conditions of approval. I did not include the condition regarding visitors, because this is actually part of their operations already, and all visitors must log in and out and they have visiting hours between 8:00am and 10:00pm. Overnight visitors need to be approved by submitting a request form no later than noon of the day of the overnight. No more than six overnight guests at the site at any one time. Requests must be first come, first served, with a maximum of two overnight guests per person and a maximum of two consecutive nights per guest. So there are a number of rules that they’ve actually implemented and that actually Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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18 covered beyond what you had suggested. This is a two-year approval. Chair Oetinger had requested in the quarterly reports by the time we get to the beginning of year two that there start to be reports on how to transition the RV folks to more permanent or other locations so that there isn’t a last minute scramble, and Chief Nelson, just so you know that we’re not in this situation at an 11th hour and no one feels forced into additional extensions and things like that, the Planning Commission is probably the better group to do the preliminary review on that. Chair Oetinger, did you have specific wording that you wanted for that, or do you want me to try to come up with something quick? Kathy Oetinger, Chair
I would appreciate you coming up with it.

Evert Fernandez, Vice Chair
If I could make one reminder comment regarding when Adrienne was speaking about a board or a group that meets and specifically addresses any concerns of the neighborhood, I’m wondering if perhaps that contact information could be displayed on their sign on the outside of the fence? Contact information for any kind of issues, because it sounds like they have that specifically to address any neighborhood issues, so it might make it a little bit easier for someone who might have a concern to contact, because maybe they can’t get ahold of anybody from the City, and generally that’s our go-to. The police have other things also and I’d hate to have them bogged down with that, so maybe a first contact with the SAVS organization might be a good first step.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
I wasn’t sure if that was a condition you were adding.

Evert Fernandez, Vice Chair
No, it was just a suggestion to SAVS.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
And Vice Chair Fernandez, you may want to get a response from SAVS. That is something that we have made conditions of approval and good neighbor policies in the past, and so Patrick or Adrienne, if you could address how you’re currently doing that, if a neighbor needs to contact you about something.

Adrienne Lauby, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
We do have our 24/7 contact line that we publicize. That’s on the outside of the gate.

Nobody ever calls it. I think Mr. Fernandez’s idea might be useful. We do have a small number of people who show up at our monthly meeting to talk about things, but mostly we hear from the City, or we hear from the police, or we hear from somebody who contacts Hector directly that there’s a problem. Sometimes people just walk over and knock on the door and say can you help, and then we do what we can.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
If I can follow up on that, I was going to suggest maybe when you have a meeting date scheduled, hang a sign that says community meeting on X date so residents in the area see that. That might be a helpful way to announce.

Patrick O’Loughlin, Sonoma Applied Villages (SAVS)
We can do that on our website as well.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
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19 Chair Oetinger, I believe I have a draft of the conditions, and I can write it out in a Word document too if you want to tinker with it. It didn’t sound like Vice Chair Fernandez was asking that his comment be a condition, just a suggestion. So for the transition plan, “SAVS shall plan for the transition of residents at the end of the program. Reports on this plan shall begin on the 5th quarterly report at the latest,” and we can change it from 5th quarterly report. I just couldn’t figure out in my head what date that would be, but that’s basically the beginning of the second year.

Paul Fritz, Commissioner
How about first quarterly report of 2024?
Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
Thank you, that works. And I’m saying at the latest, but we’d love to hear thoughts and ideas sooner too, of course.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
And you were also striking Item #5.

Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
And combining the second sentence of that with Condition #2, and that gets rid of the error that Commissioner Fritz has and the redundancy with the time frame of January 2023 to December 31st.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
So if I were making a motion, would it be appropriate to adopt the draft resolution with edits to Exhibit B, striking #5, adding the quarterly reports at the first quarter of the second year, approved base of the facts and finding analysis set forth, and subject to the recommended conditions of approval? Is that enough for a motion? Kari Svanstrom, Planning Director
Yes, and I’m assuming that’s given the wording, “The SAVS shall plan for transition of residents at the end of the program. Reports on this planning shall begin the first quarter of 2024 report at the latest.”
Paul Fritz, Commissioner
And I second that.

Kathy Oetinger, Chair
Thank you. So moved and seconded, as stated in the record.

Chair Oetinger made a motion to adopt the draft resolution with edits to Exhibit B, striking #5 and adding the quarterly reports at the first quarter of the second year, approved base of the facts and finding analysis set forth, and subject to the recommended conditions of approval. The SAVS shall plan for transition of residents at the end of the program. Reports on this planning shall begin the first quarter of 2024 report at the latest.

Commissioner Fritz seconded the motion.

AYES: Chair Oetinger, Vice Chair Fernandez, and Commissioners Burnes, Fritz, and Kelley.

NOES: None
ABSTAIN: None
ABSENT: None.

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17.430.010

17.430.020

17.430.030

17.430.040

17.430.050
Chapter 17.430

TEMPORARY USE PERMITS
Sections:

Purpose – Applicability.

Term.

Conditions.

Findings.

Decision-making authority and public notice, public comment, and public hearing requirements.

17.430.010 Purpose – Applicability.

The purpose of these provisions is to set forth the requirements and procedures for the review of specified temporary uses. The requirement for a temporary use permit shall apply to temporary uses, including contractor storage yards, temporary trailer offices for businesses, and circuses and carnivals and other temporary uses as determined by the Planning Director. A temporary use permit shall not be required for events that are subject to a City special events permit, or for circuses, carnivals, and festivals sponsored by the City, with such sponsorship identified by resolution of the City Council, places of worship, or community nonprofit organizations on land controlled by said organizations or by public agencies, or for events which occur in theaters, meeting halls, other permanent public assembly facilities, or for private social gatherings. (Ord. 1111, 2018)

17.430.020 Term.

The Planning Director may authorize temporary uses for one term of up to six months and may approve one extension of up to six months; terms, other than extensions, in excess of six months shall be subject to Planning Commission review. (Ord. 1111, 2018)

17.430.030 Conditions.

The decision-making authority may designate such conditions as determined to be necessary in order to secure the purposes of this code, and may require such guarantees and evidence that such conditions are being, or will be, complied with. (Ord. 1111, 2018)
Ch. 17.430 Temporary Use Permits | Sebastopol Municipal Code Page 1 of 2 The Sebastopol Municipal Code is current through Ordinance 1142, and legislation passed through May 17, 2022.

ATTACHMENT 5: TEMPORARY USE PERMIT

ORDINANCE
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The Sebastopol Municipal Code is current through Ordinance 1142, and legislation passed through May 17, 2022.

Disclaimer: The City Clerk’s Office has the official version of the Sebastopol Municipal Code. Users should contact the City Clerk’s Office for ordinances passed subsequent to the ordinance cited above.

City Website: www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us
Code Publishing Company

17.430.040 Findings.

A temporary use permit may only be granted if the establishment, maintenance or operation of the proposed use applied for will not, under the circumstances of the particular case, be detrimental to the health, safety, peace, comfort and general welfare of persons residing or working in the neighborhood of such proposed use or development, or be detrimental or injurious to property and improvements in the neighborhood or to the general welfare of the City. (Ord. 1111, 2018)

17.430.050 Decision-making authority and public notice, public comment, and public hearing requirements.

Refer to Table 17.400-1 for identification of the decision-making authority for approvals and appeals and to Table

17.400-2 for public notice, public comment, and public hearing requirements. (Ord. 1111, 2018) Ch. 17.430 Temporary Use Permits | Sebastopol Municipal Code Page 2 of 2 The Sebastopol Municipal Code is current through Ordinance 1142, and legislation passed through May 17, 2022.

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From: Arthur George <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 1:10 PM
To: Kari Svanstrom; Planning Technician
Cc: Diana Rich; Una Glass; Lawrence McLaughlin
Subject: Public Comment re Horizon Shine; Planning Commission 10-11-22 Attachments: Sebastopol Planning Commission 10 11 22 re Horizon Shine Renewed Authorization.docx
Dear Ms. Svanstrom: Attached is written Public Comment on behalf of West County Homeless Advocates (WCHA) re: tonight's hearing on Horizon Shine and 845 Gravenstein Highway North. Please convey these comments to the Commissioners.

Thank you for your assistance and consideration.

Arthur George
Chair, West County Homeless Advocates
310 Schuh Lane, Sebastopol 95472
707-827-6068
ATTACHMENT 6: PUBLIC COMMENTS
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WEST COUNTY HOMELESS ADVOCATES (WCHA) LETTER OF SUPP0RT

FOR HORIZON SHINE RENEWED AUTHORIZATION
Dear Planning Director Kari Svanstrom and Planning Commission:

On behalf of West County Homeless Advocates (WCHA) of which I am chair, this is to urge your support of renewed authorization for the Horizon Shine RV Village for persons who might otherwise be unhoused. WCHA is an ad hoc volunteer group drawn from churches, service organizations, and interested and activist citizens, which has addressed the City Council numerous times supportive of Safe Parking, Sanitation, and Housing (e.g., Tiny Homes, Safe Parking areas) alternatives, and has worked in collaboration with the Police Department and its Chiefs Kevin Kilgore and Ron Nelson, West County Community Services, and the Council’s Ad Hoc Committee on the Unhoused, and the Horizon Shine management entity SAVS to address and remedy unhoused issues.

Horizon Shine remains presently unfunded and is at risk of losing its funding by the end of the year. Nevertheless, approval of renewed use of the 845 Gravenstein Highway North site for Horizon Shine is a necessary first step, as efforts continue for funding from sources such as the County or State higher than the City of Sebastopol. The City appears to have approached its limits of what it can do financially. Even while no funding for additional use has yet materialized, authorization for continued use is necessary while the search for funding continues.

Closing Horizon Shine would expel its residents back onto city streets or outlying areas that are even more unwelcoming than when Horizon Shine was created earlier this year, defeating everything that the Council and the City’s various departments including police, planning, and public works, and SAVS have accomplished in the past year. Timed with the creation of Horizon Shine, the revised City parking ordinance prohibits RVs from parking on any streets except for a narrow late night/early morning period.
• The burden would fall not only on the unhoused, but also on the citizenry and business community which once again would have the unhoused randomly in their midst, even worse now as the County Community Development Commission (CDC) has called for liberalized street camping, which while softening criminalization, does nothing to solve the unhoused situation. Termination of Horizon Shine simply spills all of its residents back out into wherever they might relocate in unorganized encampments without services.

There will likely be opposition from those who will assert that Horizon Shine was only to be for one year and now "The City" (perhaps including the Council, specifically Diana Rich and Una Glass; Planning; City Manager and City Attorney) is trying to sneak in an extension. There is nothing covert. As before, and as have been reviewed and found without defect by the Sonoma County Superior Court, the proper application and hearing procedures are being followed, upon the Council's finding that there is a continuing homeless emergency. It is true that representations (but not promises) were made of a one-year term, to "buy time" hoping that some other site would be found, or that the County would step up with some land alternative (e.g., county fairgrounds or satellite sites.) • Despite a rigorous search by the Council's Ad Hoc Unhoused Committee (Diana Rich and Una Glass), no alternative has been forthcoming: there are no other sites available in Sebastopol: either property owners are unwilling, properties are otherwise encumbered by liens, or have some other difficulty. I have personally contacted Supervisor Lynda Hopkins and the funding unit Continuum of Care (COC) to suggest use of county properties other than the present Sebastopol site. No properties have been identified or advanced.

As the problem continues, through no fault of the City, SAVS, or Horizon Shine, so must Horizon Shine. This application should be viewed as a renewal of Horizon Shine’s authorization, for a new 2-year term, rather than a prolonged oer indefinite extension. The use is finite, as the property owner, St. Vincent de Paul plans to break ground for affordable housing on the site in 2024, and just last week commenced an effort before the City Council to seek loan funding from outside providers. While homelessness may continue indefinitely for a variety of societal factors, at some future point, Horizon Shine at 845 Gravenstein Highway North will terminate.

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However, the remedial work with Horizon Shine residents has just begun; to close it would be akin to closing a hospital where people are just beginning treatment. Neighbors to Horizon Shine who complain of more camping in the area cannot attribute that to Horizon Shine. Horizon Shine residents are not are not camping rough, they are sleeping safely inside the Village. Even Police Chief Ron Nelson has said there is no complete link between Horizon Shine as a magnet to other unhoused; just as likely is that with sweeps of Laguna and Morris, unhoused go somewhere, and an opportunistic choice is the darkened empty storefronts of Lucky's, Mary's Pizza Shack, Chase Bank in Redwood Marketplace shopping center, pre-existing vacancies due to business events not part of Horizon Shine.

It is well-established that housing, even such as Tiny Homes, or RV villages, is key to recovery for the unhoused, with drug and mental health services. Horizon Shine is a model for meaningful response. The quarterly report of SAVS provided to the Council is admirable in its honesty. While documenting its successes, it does not sugarcoat its problems.

These problems are not failures. Rather they speak to the enormity of the task in assisting the unhoused who are disadvantaged in a variety of directions. Even SAVS staff and volunteers have been shocked as they intimately encounter situations they formerly knew closely but at arm’s length. These problems are not a creation of SAVS or Horizon Shine; they are existing problems which SAVS and Horizon Shine seek to remedy. This is a process of education for all. A reported reduction in the homeless count does not mean the problem is close to being solved; it reflects only a beginning. The task undertaken by Horizon Shine cannot be allowed to lapse.

One can care not at all about the unhoused themselves, yet decide to assist them because it is better for the City in every way, than to have them back randomly and unsupported on streets, in the Laguna, in neighborhoods, or on outlying private lands. Even as some blame the unhoused for their predicament as a result of bad choices (ignoring mental health challenges that may go back to childhood and early youth), we do not vilify the tobacco smoker with lung cancer for their decisions or deny them insurance coverage or programs/treatment/hospitalizations to help. Unhoused local unfortunates deserve no less.

Respectfully submitted,
Arthur George
Chair, West County Homeless Advocates (WCHA)
707-827-6068
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From: Kari Svanstrom
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 4:13 PM
To: Planning Technician
Subject: Fw: Horizon Shine use extension
From: Barbara Harris <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 1:12 PM
To: Kari Svanstrom <[email protected]>
Subject: Horizon Shine use extension

Hello.

Please accept this communication as my request to Sebastopol City Council to extend the use of 845 Gravenstein Highway for Horizon Shine.

Thanks so much, Barbara Harris
583 Harrison Street
Sebastopol, CA
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From: Kari Svanstrom
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 4:12 PM
To: Planning Technician
Subject: Fw: Horizon Shine
From: Eileen Bill <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 1:42 PM
To: Kari Svanstrom <[email protected]>
Cc: Eileen Bill <[email protected]>
Subject: Horizon Shine

Dear Planning Director Kari Svanstrom,
There has been such an invaluable service for all in Sebastopol provided by Horizon Shine. I am sure the people at The Barlow are very happy to have the trailers off of Morris Street as are the shoppers and others visiting the Barlow.

But, primarily, it has been such a boost to the residents of Horizon Shine. The development is providing a safe place where the residents can work on getting their lives together - healthwise, education-wise and job-wise! Also, the increased sense of well being must surely be enhanced.

I understand there have been no significant problems by these residents being dealt upon their neighbors. Many volunteers have provided support, as well.

Please extend this very beneficial project for two more years. It will be a great service to the residents and all of Sebastopol and the rest of the county.

Thank you very much for your consideration.

Eileen Bill
1945 Long Drive #43
Santa Rosa, CA 95405
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From: Kari Svanstrom
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 4:14 PM
To: Planning Technician
Subject: Fw: Public Comment for SAVS Permit - 10/11/22
From: Kate Haug
Sent: Sunday, October 9, 2022 1:15 PM
To: Kari Svanstrom <[email protected]>
Subject: Public Comment for SAVS Permit - 10/11/22

Dear Commissioners,
SAVS - No Exit
I have been writing letters in regards to the exit strategy for the residents of the SAVS RV site for over six months. When the site was being discussed, I asked similar questions on how the SAVS program was going to transition people into permanent housing, jobs, mental health care and drug treatment. I asked why, if SAVS had been working with people on Morris Street for a year, had no one moved into permanent housing.

Council Promised Site Would Close - December 2022
When the site was implemented, the Council, on numerous occasions, said, in public meetings, the site would only last through December 2022.

Below are just a few quotes from Council Meetings taken from the minutes of meetings Nov 30-Dec 7th, 2021:

Council Member Hinton: I just wanted to remind the public it's a one-year program.

Council Member Rich: We wanted to make sure everyone understands this is in fact a temporary one year urgent use.

Funding for the site, a mix of left over COVID funds and County bridge funding, only extended through that time period.

Does Council have to keep their word when it is given in public on multiple occasions? Does the Council have an obligation to uphold their promise when it is made at a Council meeting?
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The Ad Hoc Committee on the Unhoused has been extremely vague and opaque in their reports. For instance, they simply had "site relocation for the RV Village" drop off their agenda at the last meeting.

Rich U-Turns - Now 2 More Years?
Now, we find out that Council Member Rich wants a one to two year extension for the RV Site. Agenda Item 6b.
https://www.ci.sebastopol.ca.us/getattachment/Meeting-Event/City-Council/2022/CityCouncil-Meeting-October-4,-2022/Agenda-Item-Number-6-b-St-Vincent-de-Paul-SVdPResolution-Of-Suppport-845-Grav-N-Site.pdf.aspx Is this the type of community transparency and honest communication we want from our City Council?
SAVS Understaffed, Under Resourced
From item 6a, we learn that the SAVS facility is understaffed and does not have appropropriate staffing for the mental health and addiction issues of occupants.

They told us that they are getting requests from other encampments and are currently stretched thin. We’ve happy to see more homeless people and homeless advocates looking for this kind of help. We only wish there were more addicts in recovery willing to do this difficult and important work."
"Two villagers moved out in this quarter. One gentleman was asked to leave due to violent behavior and the Sonoma County Superior Court imposed a restraining order to prevent him from harassing our staff. The second villager was accused of theft when a visitor’s valuable item disappeared. He was asked to leave. This incident is under investigation and a decision on whether to invite him to return is under review." Agenda Item Number 10 Agenda Item Number 10
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I am grateful to Adrienne Lauby for her honesty. I think her report underscores the fact that many homeless individuals are suffering from untreated addiction and mental health issues. It also underscores the need for the funding for mental health and addiction treatment. The County has spent over $92,000,000 in the last 2 years and has not increased mental health beds or addiction treatment to even begin addressing the needs of our current homeless population. Our mental health beds are at numbers lower than a decade ago.

Thus the funding for these sites are probably not the $680,000 allotted for the 10 month period of the SAVS village but the $3,400,000 annual budget of the Sebastopol Inn.

Questions for the Planning Commission:

1. 2.

3. Where is the funding for the site coming from so that it could operate for 2 more years?;

4. 5.

6. 7. If SAVS does not have the current staffing resources to address the mental health and addiction needs of the site's occupants,

8. does that impact the community and neighborhoods immediately around the site? Are there more drug dealers, petty crime and unstable individuals within close range of a public trail and a K-8 school that might negatively impact our students, families, visitors,

9. walkers and bicyclists? Does this impact our community businesses?;

10. 11.

12. 13. Each occupant of the RV Village will have received 10 months free rent, free food, free utilities. Are they required to

14. become sober, get jobs or any in way move toward self sufficiency?;

15. 16.

17. 18. Will drug use still be permitted on the site if Council grants this extension? Is drug use at the site bringing more drugs

19. into our community, near a school?;

20. 21.

22. 23. Were all the terms of the Original Agreement met and do they continue to be met?;

24. 25.

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26. 27. What is the neighborhood input on this site?;

28. 29.

30. 31. What do community businesses have to say about the site?;

32. 33.

34. 35. Is this site legal?:

36. 37.

38. 39. Can anyone put RVs onto a piece of commercial land and let people live in them within the City Limits or is this only

40. something that Council can do?.

41. Best,
Kate Haug
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As an attorney, a resident, and an investor in local real estate, I am appalled by the total disregard shown for the hardworking tax-paying Sebastopol residents.

I cannot attend the meeting tonight, but I know I speak for many.

Heather Stone Esq.

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From: Kari Svanstrom
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 4:11 PM
To: Planning Technician
Subject: Fw: Horizon Shine
From: Tomas Phillips <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 3:57 PM
To: Kari Svanstrom <[email protected]>
Cc: Adrienne <[email protected]>
Subject: Horizon Shine

To: Kari Svanstrom, City of Sebastopol
Dear Mr Svanstrom,
I support the extension of use for Horizon Shine Village. I have been to the village several times, and found it clean and well organized, with a positive vibe. I am mentoring a man who lives there. I've known Adrienne Lauby for 10 years or more, and I know her commitment to improving the lives of those with homes.

SAVS is a great model of self governance, with supervision by SAVS, of the 25 residents there. There are several caseworkers who work at the village, some part time, to work with the residents to improve their lives. I'm requesting the City of Sebastopol to extend their use of the property. As a resident of Sebastopol for over 25 years, I'm proud that this village is in our community, and I appreciate the support from the City.

Sincerely,
Tomas Phillips
8476 Sonoma Ave, Sebastopol, CA 95472
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From:

Anyway - I hope this is just a rumor about the 2 more years. We know people who are moving from the area because they no longer feel comfortable here. We could be next.

Thank you for reading.

Sent via the Samsung Galaxy A12, an AT&T smartphone
Get Outlook for Android
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From:

To: Mary Gourley
Cc:

Please request continued funding for Horizon Shine, and request funding from AODS and Mental Health Services for Sebastopol Area clients proportionate to the poulation of our area.

Sincerely
Gale Brownell
Housing Advocate
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From:

Cheers,
Denny Petersen, Sebastopol
Sent from my iPhone
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From: Kari Svanstrom
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 4:12 PM
To: Planning Technician
Subject: Fw: Public Comment : Please extend time for use of 845 Gravenstein Hwy as Horizon Shine
From: Suzanne lande <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 3:23 PM
To: Kari Svanstrom <[email protected]>
Subject: Public Comment : Please extend time for use of 845 Gravenstein Hwy as Horizon Shine

Thank you, Kari Svanstrom, Sebastopol City Council, City Manager and Assistant City Manager, City Staff, and Others for considering extension of time, and for allowing Public Comment.

My name is Suanne Lande. Many of you know me. I am a long time Sebastopol City resident and frequent volunteer at Horizon Shine. Although I am a retired RN, I maintain my RN license in order to assist Homeless Residents in our shared community.

I first met some of the Horizon Shine Residents when they lived in the Morris Street area... Some didn't have a vehicle at the time, and camped in the Laguna area, or elsewhere... I've known many of the residents for at least 18 months...First as they were preparing to move, and then as residents of Horizon Shine..

I have seen so many positive changes... On Morris St , life was very hard...Some wanted nothing to do with others, or would only criticize or fight with others.. .Although not perfect, life at Horizon Shine continues to improve! Residents help one another, especially when something heavy needs moving...Or one resident has a car, and 3 need rides...People help each other !
Very small loans for necessities are granted, one resident to another..and paid back...Maybe it's three or five dollars for food or gas..Maybe one person made a meal in their trailer, and another resident is obviously hungry...The food is shared...

As a volunteer, I want good jobs for the residents, and try to guide people to JobLink or Department of Rehab....But maybe the resident really wants...and pursues...and lands... a more modest job...I am so glad when I hear that someone got the job they chose!
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We are VERY fortunate to have a medical clinic...an outreach clinic, originating from the homeless clinic in Guerneville...I collaborate with their staff...

Their are so many additional positive reasons to extend the lease for Horizon Shine..One by one, our residents are progressing!
Thank you,
Suzanne Lande
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1 Kari Svanstrom
Subject: FW: Public comment RV park duration
From: Emily Beaven <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, October 11, 2022 7:27 PM
To: Mary Gourley <[email protected]>
Subject: Public comment RV park duration
I would like to remind everyone of their comments verbatim regarding the RV encampment duration. We were also promised of all the work that would be done to transition these individuals into permanent housing. You cannot keep illegally running this encampment
next to a school. You have ulterior motives to turn Sebastopol into some sort of homeless “non-profit” sanctuary. There are too many new families and tax payers paying multi-millions of dollars for homes that will not stand for this.

Here are the quotes:

CITY COUNCIL (Quotes taken from the minutes of meetings Nov 30-Dec 7th, 2021):

City Planner Kari: In terms of generally not more than six months, I think that, to me that is intended not to be a permanent homeless shelter operating 24/7 for you know a permanent structure for many, many years. In this case it is temporary for 12 months.

Council Member Hinton: I just wanted to remind the public it's a one-year program.

Council Member Hinton: It feels really hard but it's a one year project.

Council Member Rich: We wanted to make sure everyone understands this is in fact a temporary one year urgent use.

Council Member Hinton: This will be a one year January to December.

Regards,
Emily Beaven
Emily Beaven
Realtor®
CalBRE#: 01972840
www.emilybeaven.com
891 Beach St.

San Francisco, CA 94109
m: 415.730.9759
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Sebastopol City CouncilNovember 15, 2022

Sebastopol City Council
November 15, 2022