Disclaimer: This document was transcribed from a copy of this letter received from MROSD. Complete accuracy cannot be assured.
RURAL COAST OPEN SPACE TRUST
2100 LOBITOS CREEK ROAD
HALF MOON BAY, CA 94019
(415) 726-8495
Michael Murphy
Director
February 25, 1999
Board of Directors
Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District
330 Distel Circle
Los Altos, CA 94022-1404
Dear Directors:
The 13 members of the Coastal Advisory Committee have been selected. Not one rural coast farmer is on the Committee. Not one canyon land owner whose property is subject to eminent domain is on the Committee. This ridiculous situation can and must be immediately rectified by the MROSD board, or the entire annexation process will be tainted by the obvious partisan unfairness of the CAC selection process. Your board has a right to be advised by a Committee that includes representation of the interests of the majority of voters in the affected area that rejected Measure F by a vote of 57% to 43%.
How did we get here and what can be done? The original plan for selecting 7 CAC members was to limit membership only to governmental organizations - Half Moon Bay City Council, Midcoast Community Council. etc. This guaranteed the rural coast would not be represented, because there are no governmental organizations on the rural coast. The full MROSD Board, recognizing the problem, extended the board to 11 members, adding one each from POST, the Farm Bureau, the Agricultural Advisory Committee and the Cabrillo Unified School District.
Proponents of Measure F blocked the appointment of Marina Stariha, a CUSD member, at a CUSD meeting. The CUSD recommended that Ms. Stariha be appointed as one of the three at-large delegates.
That left 10 members of the CAC to pick the 3 at-large members. Six of the 10 live on the Bayside, two live in Half Moon Bay, one in the urban Midcoast and one in the municipality of Pescadero. None of the ten live on rural land potentially subject to eminent domain by MROSD.
In spite of requests to appoint the 3 at-large members from the rural area actually affected by eminent domain, at its meeting February 23rd the CAC:
This was a slap in the face to the 57% of the rural coast voters who opposed Measure F, primarily due to the District;s current eminent domain policy. If there is to be any reaching out, any consensus or any responsible process, the full MROSD Board needs to immediately appoint two more members to the CAC to represent rural coast interests.
The top vote-getters on the second ballot on February 23rd were Chris Thollaug, Toni Danzig, Bill Cook, Peter Marchi, Chuck Kozak. Marina Stariha and myself. To avoid any suggestion of self-promotion, I am removing myself from consideration.
Thollaug, Danzig and Cook were appointed to the CAC. Mr. Kozak is an urban Midcoast resident. That leaves Peter Marchi, a third generation farmer, and Marina Stariha, a canyon resident with a small organic farm. Both of them gave addressed your Board requesting appointment to the CAC. I have attached their applications for consideration of appointment to the CAC.
What happened Tuesday night in Half Moon Bay was a train wreck in terms of establishing a process that will bring this community together to support the CAC's work. This Board can put a veneer of fairness on the process by expanding the CAC to 15 members with the appointment of Mr. Marchi and Ms. Stariha.
Do you really want to be advised by a Board that includes no one actually affected by the eminent domain recommendations? Do you really want to go to LAFCO with a process so tainted at its very beginning? Do you really want to continue driving a wedge between MROSD and the rural residents? Do you really want to set yourselves up for another expensive, divisive election?
Do the right thing. Find the partisanship now. Expand the CAC to include Peter Marchi and Marina Stariha.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Very truly yours,
Michael Murphy
Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District
DRAFT RESPONSE
PREPARED BY STAFF
FOR BOARD CONSIDERATION
Mr. Michael Murphy
2100 Lobitos Creek Road
Half Moon Bay, CA 94019
Dear Mr. Murphy:
Thank you for your February 25 letter regarding the composition of the Coastal Advisory Committee (CAC). The Board reviewed your letter at its regular meeting last night.
As you know, after lengthy discussion and public input the District's Board of Directors determined to expand the CAC from the original nine members to 13 in order to ensure adequate representation from coastside interests. To do this, the Board invited the participation of additional organizations, as well as the inclusion of three additional at-large members. The Board decided that the se;ection of the three at-large members would be carried out by the CAC.
It is and has been the Board's intenet that the CAC make its own decision in regards to its procedures and protocol, and in the selection of the at-large members. With the CAC now formally convened and in operation, it would be inappropriate for the District Board to inetrvene and require that additional members be included.
We believe that the makeup of the CAC provides adequate representation from the various interest groups throughout the coastside. While not every single group can actually serve on the CAC, through the efforts of the existing members the opinions, concerns, and suggestions of all intertests will be brought forth for consideration.
Thank you again for writing. We look forward to your continued participation in the process of recommending revisions to District policies on the coast.
Sincerely,
Jed Cyr
President, Board of Directors.