Opposed to asphalt plant

<p>Editor: As a two-term former Petaluma City Councilman and current Petaluma resident, I am writing to voice my opposition to the Dutra Group’s request for a county General Plan amendment.</p><!-- Nothing to do. The paragraph has already been output --><p>The proposed construction of an asphalt plant at historic Haystack Landing on the banks of the Petaluma Rive directly across from Shollenberger Park, Petaluma’s most used park, is inconsistent with the recently updated and adopted county General Plan. </p><p>This site is a gateway to the Petaluma Valley and City. It is in a location where no amount of berms, landscaping, or screening will hide it effectively. It will be clearly visible from Highway 101 as one enters the valley, even more so when planned upgrades to the freeway are made that will elevate the vantage point. There is no way the visual, noise, or air pollution impacts can be hidden from users of Shollenberger Park. It will be clearly visible from the Sheraton Hotel, which is the anchor tenant for the city’s marina office complex. This location is just about the most inappropriate site outside of putting it right downtown. Siting it here will destroy the scenic corridor.</p><p>The Board of Supervisors has indicated that they think the benefits of this plant outweigh its unmitigatable negative impacts. They are wrong, and they are not being responsive to the preponderance of citizens of this area who hate the possibility of a favorite spot being desecrated by this noisy, stinking plant. </p><p>At a time where global warming impacts, the costs of dependence on foreign oil and ever more dire studies of climate changes fill the daily news, it is foolhardy indeed to think that “cheap asphalt” is a boon to this area. It isn’t. Considering the impacts that we are suffering this very day, all efforts should be made to design and build alternatives to cars as our primary mode of transport. Cheap asphalt only prolongs our deadly addiction to cars and oil.</p><p>The requested change from Limited Commercial to Limited Industrial land use designation is wrong for this location. The city of Petaluma has spent millions of dollars to make Shollenberger an attractive place, with great success, and the requested changes will have a severe negative impact on all members of the public who use the park, kayak or row on this stretch of the river or come to watch birds, whether in the park or the roosting area on the parcel. Businesses and nonprofit agencies have moved to this area because of the amenities provided by the city of Petaluma, including the relocation of the Point Reyes Bird Observatory headquarters next to Shollenberger. These people will be negatively impacted as well.</p><p>Given Dutra’s many violations of their existing use permit in Marin County, their problems with their neighbors there, and the notable environmental fines they have incurred, it is clear that this is a company that cannot be trusted as a steward of public resources, or even to act responsibly in regards to their permit requirements. And if the Board of Supervisors grants their request, the public can only conclude that all the effort, public input and work that has gone into the update is a farce.</p><p>As an active member in my community since my time on the City Council, I feel I have a pretty good sense of what my community is thinking. This project is roundly hated, and Supervisor Mike Kerns has incurred the wrath of almost everyone I talk to about this project. I ask that the Planning Commission reject the application and recommend that the Board of Supervisors reject it as well.</p><p>Matt Maguire, Petaluma</p>