Letters to the Editor 8-13-15

Airport could be an amenity
Editor: Thanks to G.B. Fisher for picking up on the salient point about our airport. He cites forest fires – and that’s enough by itself. Let’s add that fires are often followed by floods and landslides. And earthquakes are often followed by fires, floods and landslides. We’re in a little circular valley, surrounded on all sides by hills with trees. You can’t just come into a vulnerable small town and close down its airport. Besides these obvious factors, the developer is being exceedingly short-sighted on what’s best for his resort. He expects to attract folks with megabucks, right? More and more of them have private planes (and in the fairly near future, the flying car-plane). You don’t think having a small airfield handy wouldn’t be another draw? And he should know that the more variety in things to do, the more people look at your destination. Already the recreation we have at our airport is an extra perk for his resort. He should be encouraging more, not less – hot air balloons, hand-gliding, perhaps even glider planes (Remember how popular those made Calistoga?). I have two suggestions if he wants to build his resort next to the airport: 1. Move the airport and pay for it. 2. Spend a little more on those glitzy buildings and soundproof them.
Virginia Carroll
Cloverdale
Skate park at Furber
Editor: I recently attended a city meeting where the proposal of building a skate park in Furber Park was made. What a great idea, and what a wonderful way of getting our kids to know the Furber legacy. A lot of us with kids have been following the different ideas that trickle though City Council for ways of getting or kids active and the hope of ending the “There’s nothing to do” bellowing that we hear day to day from our kids. I asked my son what he thought, “Skateboarding here would give us something to do instead of crazy stuff,” he replied. And what a way for the city to utilitize an asset, rather than try to find a suitable location to purchase. Many of us where greatly saddened when we learned of Alan Furber’s passing. A lot of newcomers to our city have no idea of Alan’s vision of “making things happen for the city of Cloverdale.” I truly think this proposed skate park would fit into this vision. I just want to thank the city and Mr. Bovee for thinking outside the box and proposing this idea to the city leaders.
Michelle Reynolds
Cloverdale
Paucity of pencil particulars
Editor: With all of the controversy swirling around the equestrian resort and the airport, some of your readers may have overlooked the much larger story in your July 30 edition. Allow me to quote two entries in the Cloverdale Police Log: Friday, July 24 at 5:24 p.m. “A citizen came into the police station and requested to borrow a pencil for Friday Night Live.” Friday, July 24 at 8:22 p.m. “Citizen returned pencil borrowed earlier in the evening.” I only wish that the Reveille had dug deeper into this story, as so many questions remain. Was it a #2 pencil? Was the pencil yellow, black or green? Did it have an eraser on the end? The list could go on and on. Had the Reveille done a better job of investigative reporting, this could have been a much richer story.
Jim Nameny
Cloverdale
Provide for all
Editor: Cloverdale is a diverse community of people comprised of many ancestral heritages. Levels of income range from welfare to ultra rich. So what, as a small town community, do we provide for all people who comprise this town when we look towards growth? My hope is that balance be a key word in forming a foundation to support the community vision. A dollar store is coming in, a new restaurant/bakery, a natural foods store, the Smart Train and a potential of a mega resort. Still, there are a lot of storefronts empty – some for years. People are worried about image. Are thrift stores and a dollar store embarrassing? From my perspective, empty storefronts year after year tell a bigger embarrassing story. When I envision a town that needs rebuilding, I think first of balance by providing for the needs of the all the people who live there – the low end, middle and high end of the financial scale. Dollar stores and thrift shops as well as middle of the road and high-end businesses all have an important role. Make the town affordable for all residents, not just rich tourists who can afford to eat and shop here. When you force half the people out to shop elsewhere because your town’s businesses are unaffordable or move out because there is no workforce housing available, you create an imbalance that in the long run changes the landscape of small town living.
Maria Doglio
Cloverdale
Worthwhile trade-off
Editor: I attended an excellent presentation at the Clover Theater last week on the proposed Alexander Valley Resort and Equestrian Center. I support the concept as I think it would be a wonderful addition to our community. From an economic perspective alone, it would be a real asset. The trade-off is closing the airport. An airport and an equestrian center are not compatible for safety reasons. Those in Cloverdale who support the airport might consider the economic benefit of the resort to our community. The airport’s drain on our city’s general fund is somewhere between $35,000 to $50,000 annually, while the resort as proposed could increase the city’s annual income up to $1 million. In addition to the economic benefit, the developers are proposing the airport be repurposed and turned into a venue for needed sports facilities, such as soccer and baseball fields, and possibly bocce ball and pickle ball courts. This transformation would benefit hundreds of people in our community. The resort would include the extension of our River Park trail and there would be provision for helicopters to land there in fire season or for emergency medical flights. More tax dollars going into our city’s coffers and more business activity means a thriving downtown. I hope others will join in supporting this important opportunity for our town.
Virginia Greenwald
Cloverdale
Concerned about development
Editor: I have lived and worked in Sonoma County over 45 years and I remember being impressed with the fact that a small town like Cloverdale had and could sustain an airport. I consider the airport to be an asset that in time could be upgraded and used as an important asset in this high-end tourist area. I do not believe that an upgraded airport would require new wells, sewage treatment and an increase in city services. I cannot find where the city has enumerated the city’s costs for this possible development: two more wells, expansion and upgrading of the sewage treatment plant and an increase in city personnel initially and long term. The income from this project promises to bring an initial increase of monies to the city but after increased expenses to the city, what would remain as ongoing income? The drought is temporary but our long term meager water supply and the increasing demands of the wine business makes one very concerned about a high water use development and Russian River’s limitations.
Anita Jennings
Cloverdale
Praying for healing
Editor: I would like to write a note to the family and friends of Angelica Contreras. As a community I would like to say how very sorry we are for your loss. The sadness and hurt we feel is seemingly impossible to acknowledge … we pray for healing for her family and friends and for this community on the tragic loss of one of our own.
Ruthie Kurpinski, Cloverdale
Future or present?
Editor: In a perfect world, we would have both our airport and a resort that would drive economic development. For me, the airport is a “nice to have” but will require ongoing and increasing funding to maintain its viability as an airport, while the proposed resort would provide much-needed funding for our schools, our boys and girls club, our police force, our infrastructure and our services. This is about Cloverdale becoming a sustainable community with a future, rather than a town suffering from the demise of its former economic base of lumber. I understand that it’s not easy to let go of the airport. Yes, it could be an asset in a future disaster. Yes, it could be a firefighting staging area … and yet it isn’t. Indeed, Healdsburg airport – 12 minutes away by road, four minutes by air, could equally be a staging area … and it isn’t. Fires are being fought from the Santa Rosa and Ukiah airports, where CDF bases bombers, and from Napa, where they base helicopters. We are unlikely to see helicopters parked at Cloverdale Airport ready to take off just in case of a fire. In the current case of the huge Lake County fire, 12 minutes away by air, not a single aircraft has serviced this need from the Cloverdale Airport. For me, it’s not an issue of whether or not planes will spook horses at the proposed resort, it’s an issue of business sense – there is not a developer out there who will invest the significant money required to build a resort on the flight path of an airport. Do we want to hold on to the airport in case of some future undetermined role it may play in a disaster? Can we acknowledge that the Healdsburg airport could serve this same role? Or do we want to take the economic benefit of the resort and provide for the future of our town?
Susan Nurse, Cloverdale
Resort or airport?
Editor: My wife Sher and I own Hangar 10 at the Cloverdale Airport. I bought this hangar for my next life adventure: a post retirement job teaching flight. We looked at bigger and busier airports throughout the area but chose Cloverdale for its beauty, its size and its lack of hustle and bustle. I don’t intend to start a big operation, just a fun, comfortable, quality training program for Ultralight and Light Sport Aircraft, one student at a time. Sher and I are co-chairs of the EAA’s Young Eagles’ program. Over the last six years, Young Eagles, at the Cloverdale Airport Open House, has flown and introduced aviation to 300 Cloverdale kids ages eight to 17. At your Cloverdale airport there are four operating businesses, 30 aircraft, full occupancy and the airport produces almost $200,000 in rents and revenues for the city. Sher and I have attended the two meetings hosted by Laulima Developers and Jes Slavik. I was very surprised by the no compromise proposal: Cloverdale could only embrace their proposal if the airport was shut down. The last proposed project for this property integrated the airport into the plan so that people visiting the hotel and recreational venue could arrive via the airport as well. Mr. Slavik and wife are the same people who were at the forefront of the group of unhappy residents recently battling to shut down NorCal Skydiving over a noise issue. NorCal, no matter what they did, could not appease this group. After two years of worrisome meetings, a representative from the FAA finally informed all involved that the noise created by NorCal did not reach the level to curtail the NorCal Skydivings’ business. Now shut down the entire airport? Coincidence, I don’t think so.
Ray and Sher Shipway, Cloverdale
Skeptical about development proposal
Editor: I, like many citizens, would love to have the appropriate economic growth happen in Cloverdale. Regarding the recent presentations provided by Jonathan E. Slavik (i.e Jes Slavik). Let me address some of the concerns that I have and the facts, as follows: Jes does not live in Cloverdale city boundaries, instead he lives in Sonoma County in the hills around our lovely city. At the presentation I attended, Jes boasted of living in Cloverdale for 15 years. It would have been honest if he had stated that he lived in the hills above the city. He is married to one of the more active opponents of our airport. She has, over the years, sent many emails to the Airport Manager, City Manager and City Council regarding her opposition to the airport. For the five years that I previously worked on the Planning Commission, when the development of this property started, many of us were able to really take a look at this land. What we found was as follows: The airport runway does lie near the property, but the previous owner of this Alexander Valley land adjusted his plans to allow for the airport. The train tracks, for both the upcoming commuter and freight trains, runs right through almost the middle of the land. At the presentation Jes alluded that this type of noise is not a nuisance. I am sorry, but I lived in a house located near railroad tracks and the whole house vibrated when a train went through. Next door to the property is the Reuser Industrial Park (the previous and current developers have found fault with this business affecting their projects). I don’t care how much of a buffer zone is set between the property and the business park, who would want to visit a resort with an industrial park close by? We owe Bruce Reuser so much for bringing businesses and jobs into our city. He is an honorable and decent man who has contributed to our city for many years. One fourth of a mile north of the property is our sewage treatment plant. The resort property has a tendency to flood at the east section near the Russian River. This developer is almost blackmailing us to remove the airport (I disclose that my husband does own and keep a plane at the airport). To close the airport, this developer would need to go to the FAA for permission. The FAA’s official stance is that small aviation airports are “national treasures.” Also, it would take many, many years to possibly receive permission. If that were to go through the land would default to the ownership of the county. Though representative Gore has mentioned that he feels if the city wanted that land for the resort it probably would be allowed, it is not an assured fact. The airport is an important part of our town’s history. Many longtime residents have confirmed what a “coup” it was to be able to build the airport. It is Cloverdale’s fault that no focus or work has been put into this site to keep it shining and thriving (as an example look at how successful Petaluma’s airport is operating. I could even point out that emergency vehicles, such as firefighting, and the Reach Emergency Helicopter use the airport). Other resorts are located next to airports and have no trouble or noise with the planes. Jes’s development contains an equestrian center. There are also such businesses in several places within Sonoma County. What about the runoff of the manure into the Russian River? Any removal of the airport would be the city’s responsibility including cost … maybe around $5 million? Even if the developer gave the city some money, there is no way that we can afford a large cost. Any sports courts/fields are at the cost of Cloverdale to build plus maintain. The extension of the river walking path is on a section where the river floods (note to any walkers, during the rainy season bring your kayak or waders. The resort would contain a restaurant which would mean that people would be prone to stay put. Also, the corner piece of the property, where the Soil business stands, has no designation. This means that a small shopping center, restaurant etc. could be placed there. Regarding Occupancy Tax money, the figures used by Jes in his presentation were well overstated. Let’s keep our hopes that a logical developer comes up with a suitable plan. Kaiser is looking to establish a satellite clinic north of Healdsburg, many companies are looking to move out of Petaluma or Santa Rosa. Why not pursue these companies which will have the effect of creating good paying jobs. I find that Jes’s inability to completely state the facts and not tell the truth is somewhat scary. I certainly would not want to put the town’s future in his hands.
Susan Bennett, Cloverdale