About 80 county residents attended a community workshop to
discuss a drafted study to stabilize the San Benito River and its
tributaries Tuesday.
The proposed ordinance has many farmers and property owners
upset that it will encroach on their property rights.
About 80 county residents attended a community workshop to discuss a drafted study to stabilize the San Benito River and its tributaries Tuesday.
The proposed ordinance has many farmers and property owners upset that it will encroach on their property rights.
The San Benito County Planning Commission has been wrestling with the study for some time, which would provide policy for the management and stabilization of land use on the San Benito River.
The workshop was held after many community members spoke in protest of it at recent Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors meetings.
Planning Commissioner Richard Bettencourt attended the workshop and found the meeting to be informative and a learning experience, he said.
“First of all, I was impressed with the amount of people,” Bettencourt said. “Some people came from 70 miles away… that’s how concerned they are.”
Planning Director Rob Mendiola fielded many of the resident’s questions and comments concerning the study, which was one of the main purposes of the workshop.
Mendiola did not return phone calls.
Most of the people in attendance were property owners, who feel the impacts from the ordinance, if passed, could have an adverse impact on their livelihood.
“Farmers were pretty upset about taking away their property rights,” Bettencourt said, “and Rob answered a lot of questions on that.”
Studies relating to the proposed ordinance have been conducted for the past 15 years and delayed for a number of reasons, and this study is just another start in attempting to stabilize the river.
Because it’s just a draft, untrue rumors and gossip can arise, Bettencourt said. Giving community members the chance to learn more about the ordinance is an important process that both residents and the people drafting the ordinance can benefit from.
“That’s why we’re having the workshops,” Bettencourt said. “So we can study it and tweak it so that everyone involved feels comfortable with it.”
Tuesday’s workshop was just the beginning in a long process the study will go through. More workshops will be held to continue discussion, Bettencourt said.
“This is going to be a long-term study of this river ordinance,” he said. “One (engineer) there had worked with the Russian River and he said it took them five years to get an ordinance going.”
In the future, smaller workshops with several individuals from various aspects concerning the study will be formed.
“We’ll get 10 or 11 people together, and that’s when we can get more done,” he said.
