Dear Editor,
The City Council has created a lot of confusion around Measure I and private property rights…and that was their goal. We believe Martinez voters will not be tricked.
We also believe the most important issue is to allay the fears of the 550 property owners the Council has targeted with their misleading City Council report.
Important facts for them to know are:
1. If the City Council has made mistakes in how they have zoned privately owned open space, state law protects a property owner who has built a single-family house on their property, according to land use advice from our lawyer.
State law says that a single-family home built on property that was incorrectly zoned for housing will remain and the rights that zoning allows for changes, expansions, etc. will remain in effect.
2. The current General Plan allows limited housing on certain privately owned open space lands. These lands include Environmentally Sensitive Land (ESL) in the Franklin Hills area and Open Space/Conservation Use Land (CUL) in Reliez Valley areas.
3. Measure I actually protects these rights. It’s written right into the Initiative: “…in order to …provide fairness to those private property owners…” the Initiative readopts sections of the current General Plan that allow limited housing on Environmentally Sensitive Land (ESL) in the Franklin Hills area and Open Space/Conservation Use Land (CUL) in Reliez Valley areas.
4. Limited housing is also allowed in the current General Plan on Open Space, 30% over slopes (OS-S) lands.
Why hasn’t the City Council told voters any of these important facts that would have allayed the fears of property owners?
Why have the Mayor and two Councilmembers broadcast the phony message that Measure I would require certain property be “…banned from any kind of development or other future plans…”, and that land would be forced to be “…zoned permanent open space…”?
The City Council is trying to confuse and mislead voters, to undermine Measure I—The Citizen Initiative. Measure I will give Martinez voters the final say in converting ANY open space and parks to more intensive development. The City Council wants to keep that power for themselves, so they can continue to convert privately owned open space for developer big housing and commercial projects without voter approval.
Measure I – the citizen initiative does just one thing: It protects all open space and parks in Martinez by giving Martinez voters final approval of any vote by the City Council to convert these lands to more intensive development, like developer big housing or commercial projects.
Measure I is by and for the citizens of Martinez.
Vote YES on MEASURE I—The Citizen Initiative
Vote NO on City Council Measure F—F is for Fraud
– Tim Platt