News&Comment

From the field, Cazadero

To: Lynda Hopkins, Tim Ricard Thank you for meeting with us in Cazadero a couple weeks back. It was very kind of you to take the time. However as we get near the meeting next Tuesday, I suspect not much will change. The County will persist on expecting budget windfalls from this project to offset the…
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Press Release SOSN – SAVE OUR SONOMA NEIGHBORHOODS!

Call to Action to our Bay Area Friends, Media and Community Leaders August 3, 2018, Sonoma County, CA: SOSN leadership and members will be attending the August 7th Board of Supervisors meeting, calling for changes to the ordinance to support our safety, security, and protections to our neighborhoods, environment and parks. We are prepared to take…
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File Code Enforcement Complaints Online

The penalty relief program that allowed pre-existing pot grows to continue is over. A lot of sites are now illegal. If you know of a commercial grow that is operating without a permit you can file a complaint here: https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/PRMD/Eng-and-Constr/Code-Enforcement If you see or smell a commercial grow and you aren’t sure it has a…
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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…
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Pandering to pot lobby – Press Democrat

EDITOR: Compared to the scores of letters from residents calling out the numerous problems associated with the county’s plan to weave thousands of commercial pot facilities throughout our rural neighborhoods, how many letters have you seen from the pot industry, which stands to make millions under the current ordinance, extolling the virtues and benefits of…
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Keep commercial marijuana away from our parks (Kenwood Press)

By Deborah A. Eppstein and Craig S. Harrison We are shocked by proposed changes to the Cannabis Ordinance that would reduce buffer zones around parks to allow commercial marijuana cultivation on park borders. We think the current 1,000-foot setback from parks to neighboring parcel boundaries should be increased to 2,000 feet. Instead, on Aug. 7,…
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Supervisor Gorin Must Protect Our Neighborhoods

On April 10, the board of supervisors heard from Sonoma County residents whose lives and homes are overwhelmed by the 24/7 noise, smell, chemicals, lights, and traffic of commercial marijuana grows. They are also concerned about home invasions and safety. At that meeting, Supervisor Susan Gorin said: • “Neighborhood compatibility is probably the most important issue.”…
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Solano County banning commercial cannabis in unincorporated areas. Sonoma has even more to lose

Solano County is poised to implement a ban in their unincorporated County areas:  water and road access issues included as main rationale.  See article below. Clearly Sonoma County has by far even more reason to do so as well. Solano County wisely dismissed their “Ad hoc” Cannabis Committee recommendations.  Wiser heads prevailed. The Sonoma County…
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Dear Supervisor Susan Gorin – Why the turn-around?

OPEN LETTER TO SUSAN GORIN To the Editor: Prior to the last election for First District Supervisor, I was on a committee of five from the Sonoma County Democratic Club. We interviewed all candidates running for the position. We directly asked Susan Gorin what she thought of marijuana and where she thought it should be…
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chronic state: how marijuana normalization impacts communities

Marijuana normalization is a propaganda technique used by pro marijuana advocates to minimize the damages of marijuana. They use terms like “medicine”, or “less harmful than alcohol”, or any number of other terms used to make marijuana seem like it is no big deal. It is a tactic that marijuana advocates have used for decades to…
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