A Place for Everything and Everything in its Place

[This was submitted by reader and Nevada County resident Don Bessee.  It is posted as received. gjr]

Don Bessee

Commercial activity in Residentially Zoned neighborhoods is fundamentally in conflict with their land use protections that everyone agreed to when they signed their title papers that included mandated disclosures.

There are allowed things like piano lessons and day care and there are limits on the traffic those produce in your neighborhood that are meant to protect your peace and personal space.

There is a concept that your home is your castle, but I would submit that your home is your place to relax and enjoy the fact we live in a pine forest and the joy that brings to us all. Avian joys as well as the critters wandering around who are not threatened by us. Ticks notwithstanding.  A tranquil island of peace in a sea of turbulence if you will.

For some reason the County is considering an assault on our homeowner’s rights by expanding COMMERCIAL activity in peaceful residentially zoned neighborhoods.

They are still looking to abuse the neighborhoods again by trying to repeal or grossly modify the OUTDOOR EVEN ORDIANCE that became necessary to protect our neighborhood from folks that didn’t care about your block’s peace or your property values. It was all about the Benjamin’s for those abusers.

Some years ago there were people who disrespected their neighborhoods to grab a quick buck and endangered their Fire Evacuation routes in spite of their zoning not allowing their commercial party plans. It was the Road Association Folks who were having their pockets picked for road maintenance to support 1 properties commercial parties that led the way from across the county to stop it with the outdoor event ordinance.

The wedding planners who did not want to pay their way were incredibly aggressive against the neighborhoods in the committee that developed the ordinance with rhetoric that did not stand up to the actual wedding license activity record. Then Chair Beason bought their own industrial journal to refute the spin and hyperbole! I believe the video is still available.

Then Chair of the Board Beason and Supervisor Anderson were on that committee with me that included department heads, County Council,  both sides of the issue as well as Fire,  Law Enforcement to speak to the reality on the ground and the very real fire threat to Neighborhoods as well as Environmental Health issues.

Code has no presence on Friday afternoon to Monday to protect you and they knew it.  That’s why we need the Sheriff to protect the neighborhoods peace on the weekends.

Recently I was being lobbied with the line that the hospitality industry was crushed by the heartless Outdoor Event Ordinance.

Yet again the facts do not support the narrative no matter who is repeating the tired narratives.

The numbers tell the story as they always do.

Weddings are a trackable metric with the license data just like they were the last time around.

The average number of wedding licenses issued in Nevada County over the last 5 years was 453.

In 2015 there 435 licenses issued.

In 2016 there were 480 wedding licenses and that was very near the highest ever.

In 2017 there were 465 licenses issued.

In 2018 there were 432 licenses issued.

In 2019 there were 457 wedding licenses issued in Nevada County.

If you live in LOP or lake WW you might think its not your issue because of your CC& R’s that won’t allow a property to do that there.

The real financial threat my friends is that they want to do for profit events that will not generate new business but just cannibalize the business of those venues that have to pay a ton to support their commercial infrastructure in the properly zoned areas such as country clubs and event centers.

The idea to double the allowable events to 8 from 4 in your neighborhood is intolerable.

1 Saturday event in your neighborhood means trucks moving in on Friday to setup then departing, the event and all the cars of the attendees in and out, then another caravan to breakdown on Sunday.

Does that sound like something you want 8 times a year in your neighborhood?

The Ag tourism project portion of this proposal looks totally viable and appropriate.

If you live in a R1 or RA neighborhood then you are threatened by this erosion of your established rights as a homeowner. If you live in WW or LOP the financial stability of your country club/restaurant is at risk.

Tell your supervisors what you think of this assault on neighborhood rights.

Comments

[scenes]

'OUTDOOR EVEN ORDIANCE'?

I have to admit that there's already a hundred other ways to make me crazy that are perfectly legal. The biker neighbor, barking dogs, the nice Mexican neighbors who have two day birthday parties, the local homeless guy who plays the drums and the cops can do nothing, barking dogs, woodworker neighbors with stereos, barking dogs.

Not so bad right now, but that's purely luck. Next time around, if I live that long, I'm buying a seriously big piece of property.

[Don Bessee]

Uh oh a typo, the nameless one will enjoy that! LOL

To be clear this does not have anything to do with your personal family activities like grandmas 90th birthday or your daughters wedding or any personal use activity.

Its when it a commercial transaction ie renting the residential property to a party/wedding planner for an event.

;-)

[fish]

Posted by: scenes | 12 April 2020 at 03:00 PM

..... barking dogs.

I'm not sure we would be the bosom buddies that we currently are if we were next door neighbors. My dogs are genetically incapable of shutting up it seems!

[George Rebane]

fish 328pm - Being among other things a dog aficionado, I recommend either a better breed, or until then having a little 'conversation' with them during which at some point they become convinced that they will die.

[fish]

Posted by: George Rebane | 12 April 2020 at 03:45 PM

I recommend either a better breed....

What can I say.....Dachshunds!

“I like to read books on dog training. Being the owner of dachshunds, to me a book on dog discipline becomes a volume of inspired humor. Every sentence is a riot.”

and

"He even disobeys me when I instruct him in something that he wants to do."

_ E.B White

[Mary Wanna]

Don: It would be nice to see a link to an agenda item or something so we can see what you are talking about.

I am not sure I am understanding the issue. Are you saying that a resident cannot hire an event planner and caterer and musician and throw a party on their own property?

Or are you referring to events held at club houses, wineries, etc.?

[Scott O]

Mary Waaaaaah! - "Are you saying that a resident cannot hire an event planner and caterer and musician and throw a party on their own property?"

Per usual - Mary doesn't understand the issue.

[Scott O]

Because Mary will complain there wasn't enough info - "Some years ago there were people who disrespected their neighborhoods to grab a quick buck and endangered their Fire Evacuation routes in spite of their zoning not allowing their commercial party plans. It was the Road Association Folks who were having their pockets picked for road maintenance to support 1 properties commercial parties that led the way from across the county to stop it with the outdoor event ordinance."
See? The operative word here is 'commercial'.
You need to comprehend English, Mary.
Not using drugs and getting an education would be a good start.
Just sayin'

[Don Bessee]

Correct ScottO - has nothing to do with your peaceful use.

https://www.mynevadacounty.com/DocumentCenter/View/32404/Outdoor-Event-OrdinancePDF?bidId=

;-)

[Bill Tozer]

Oh my. I remember when Punchy came breathlessly over here a few years back with his hair on fire ranting about “I thought you conservatives were all about local control!!” and something else along private property rights and we should all sound the call to arms like he was. “WTF is he talking about?”, I thought. It came straight out of left field....out of the blue, pun intended. A big travesty of justice. A travesty of a travesty for certain.

It was all about some citizen (neighbors) complaints about some dude that grew a big bash every year at his home and had live music and cars were blocking the lane and such. In reaction to the citizen complaints, the BOS would begin working to create a live music ordinance on private property, i.e., residential backyard parties with blasting live music. Need a permit with no cars on parked the road, Johnnie of the spots, security, etc

Anyway, Punchy’s ox was definitely gored and he was none to happy about proposed restrictions and prohibitions. I can most certainly assure you. From hamburger to homicide at the speed of light.

Punchy posted play by play of the proposed ordinance, the texts, the drafts, and how it was trampling on what we righties hold dear, and.....frankly, it was not a topic I gave a gnat’s ass over. Think Crabbman chimed in about the Grateful Dead used to play once a year near Nyack or someplace up there. That was almost as interesting as Punchy’s venting. The sky is falling! The end of our democracy.

“Gee Todd, I guess you don’t care about local musicians.”

Well, now the wedding planners and event producers, and the crank up the sound people are suddenly deemed non-essential. That must mean the end of private property rights, local control, and supporting the local drummers and bongo pounders as we know it.
Some folks don’t take kindly to their oxen being gored, especially those who are unfortunate enough to live near the party house with associated people racing up and down the lane like tearing the crap out of the road. A road like mine that’s not County maintained. I don’t give a hoot about “the show must go on”. It ain’t live or death.

Back in the day there was an expression used in the entertainment business for the PAs (production assistances, go-fers) that still applies: ‘assholes in training.’

Wonder if Don’s piece is related?

Poor o poor o Californians. They started the year killing the gig economy and now they killed the gig.

[scenes]

re: BillT: "Oh my. I remember when Punchy came breathlessly over here a few years back with his hair on fire ranting about “I thought you conservatives were all about local control!!” and something else along private property rights and we should all sound the call to arms like he was. "

It probably fired off the same handful of neurons that his neighbor with all the non-cleared gonna-cause-a-forest-fire land did. Near Deer Creek? So far as I can tell nobody does the right thing in that area and between the sheer mass of vegetation and the homeless nests spread about, burning down the town (and Paul's house) is a dead nuts certainty. Of course, if you went by his place, a person could probably find 1000 issues concerning this sort of thing. Most old guys are unhandy with a chipper or a rake I've found.

re: Barking Dogs. The bane of any neighbor and far worse than a bimonthly event. Cops won't do anything, dog owner won't do anything, it's a fact of life. Dogs are trainable, some are more compliant (Golden Retriever vs. Basenji being notable extremes), but the main problem is that people don't bother. It's a lot of work, sorry. nuff said on that.

In terms of events being a bother, I'm surprised that zoning doesn't deal with most of the issue. These are typically businesses, no? Otherwise I'd say that the basic problem is that noise ordinances are never enforced.

Really, it strikes me that the main issue with 'events', is that most people have too little to do and lead non-serious lives. World's full a' people that hardly do anything for a living (besides mild deviltry) and need big fiestas to fill their day. I always have worked too hard to give a damn about hanging out with noisy groups.