From the field: A bad neighbor

EDITOR: It’s legal in Sonoma County to grow cannabis on a 2-acre agriculture-zoned parcel bordering Sebastopol’s city limits and surrounded by homes or parks. Imagine plants 300 feet from your house or 100 feet from your garden. Imagine indoor cultivation structures and employee activities about 20 feet from your relaxing swing.

That’s my reality living next to a commercial cannabis business. I don’t feel safe living next to nearly a full acre of plants. My neighbors don’t either.

Mixing commercial businesses that produce a high-value crop prone to home invasions with residences isn’t how I define neighborhood compatibility. The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors can improve neighborhood compatibility on Tuesday by creating an appropriate buffer between commercial cannabis businesses and homes. The supervisors should expand setbacks to a property line: 2,000 feet for outdoor plants and 500 feet for indoor cannabis operations.

Please write to the supervisors and voice your support if you agree that commercial cannabis cultivation doesn’t belong in neighborhoods.

GRACE GUTHRIE

Sebastopol