“If you want to get something done, ask a busy person.” –Benjamin Franklin
||| FROM FRANK PENWELL for COMMUNITY TREASURES |||
Wow! Thank you all for your kind words and phone calls regarding Community Treasures (CT). Stephanie O’Day has really stepped up to the plate and is trying to solve the CT crisis.
Stephanie has called me several times to get detailed information. Stephanie has met with several County Staff members since our press release. Stephanie has requested that the County Manager, members of the Planning and Health Departments, and a Trust representative meet with her asap to discuss this issue. Stephanie also stepped up and helped in 2011 when the County was changing land use wording regulations that would have shut CT down in 2012. As a Trust representative, I have agreed to attend Stephanie’s requested meeting.
I want to formally recommend and endorse Stephanie O’Day for our County Council. I ask anyone who wants to have Essential Public Facility sites be permanent, and be properly labeled “legally conforming,” to vote for Stephanie O’Day.
I endorse Stephanie O’Day because, if there is any hope for CT to remain open, it will take a strong legal mind with expertise and experience, like Stephanie O’Day’s, to motivate the County Council and SJC Planning Department to meet State RCWs and WACs.
All three islands will be better served if CT, the Exchange, and Take It Or Leave It are all properly designated as “conforming EPF” sites. Let’s make that happen, by electing Stephanie O’Day to the County Council.
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Please read this response from Kari McVeigh, (as posted on her Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557113738096)
Who Can Save Community Treasures?
A couple of days ago Frank Penwell the owner of the land on which Community Treasures sits, announced on Facebook that due to health and family reasons he would not be renewing the Community Treasures lease after it expires at the end of December. As a person who values and has used many, many times over the years Community Treasures for its reuse and recycling, I was sad to hear this. But as a landlord this is his right. My opponent immediately called for the Conservation Land Bank to buy his property which is of course a non-starter as it is well outside the mission of the Land Bank to do so in any way. If Mr. Penwell does not renew the lease, I will urge the Council to look at conforming County properties that could be leased to Community Treasures. This of course would take thoughtful discussion with the county and our citizens to determine the best location.
But the day after his press release Mr. Penwell changed his mind about the health and family reasons for non-renewing of the Lease. Now he has said he wants the property to be rezoned and my opponent is now advising him on how to do so. In that case, there would appear to be no urgency in this request. Mr. Penwell has floated this idea over the many years of the continuous operation of Community Treasures. However, Council Member Minney has stated that no permit applications from Mr. Penwell have been brought to Council in at least the last 4 years. The council can certainly not act on a request that has not been presented to them! Mr. Penwell, could go forward to renew the lease and if he so chooses work on obtaining a change in zoning. The continued operation of Community Treasures in this locale only requires he renews the lease.