Quote of the week: Correction Biweekly Poll Question The publisher apologizes for “Judge a man by his questions the incorrect election results last Are you ready for the holidays? rather than by his answers.” week. The article should have said projected winners. The Yes ___ No ___ I don’t care___ ROV has 30 days to certify the Please vote online at www.TheCommunityVoice.com ― Voltaire election tally. That means that Do you feel daylight savings time is the official “winners” will not be necessary? known until December 6th. Yes 19% No 77% I don’t care 4% Newspaper of Rohnert Park-Cotati-Penngrove November 16, 2018 - 16 Pages Active duty honorees at the RP Veterans Day program Connor Ehrmantraut James A. McCoy Julia Guerrero Lakota R. Sims Jaxon Crothers Navy Army Coast Guard Navy Army The Rohnert Park Armed Forces Banner Program was created in www.starspangledbanners.org. If you know of members or relatives This brings the total number of banners installed in the city to 57. 2011 for our community to honor and recognize individuals on ac- of active duty members here in town, please contact me and I will Our banner program received some funding from the City of Rohn- tive duty in the military. These members either reside in or have im- add them to the list of potential honorees. Contact Andy Durkee, RP ert Park Foundation Small Grants Program that will be used to pur- mediate family members who reside or work in the City of Rohnert Military Banner Program Coordinator, (707) 584-5109, chase new and replacement brackets for the banners as well as Park, or have attended local schools. This Banner Program is sup- [email protected]. replacement banners that are no longer serviceable due to exposure ported with funding provided by local sponsors and the banners will Keynote Speaker for our program was one of our honorees, and weather conditions. Thank you to the city for your generous sup- be printed and installed as funds become available. Additional in- Daniel Gossage, an Aviation Survival Technician (rescue swimmer) port. formation and an application can be found on our website: stationed at Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco. CotatiBy Joshua Farestveit-Moore allowsindustry has the secondpotential to be Surprisingly, dispensary there was little cent of Americans approved of LandPaths There’s a new cannabis outlet like that.” public disagreement surrounding legalization. Since then, mari- connects people to protected land coming to the town of Cotati At present, Cotati places a 3 the Indythree development. No- juana has gone from a source of By Stephanie Derammelaere of having nature in our lives. thanks to a permit issued by the percent tax on commercial body who attended the city coun- fear to a potential money-maker Much of the open and pre- LandPaths is now very much Cotati City Council in its open cannabis sales, which is then cil meeting voiced any with 9.2 billion dollars of rev- served space in Sonoma County about helping communities in session Tuesday. added to the state’s own 15 per- opposition, in fact. That’s a far enue in 2017, according to Ar- that makes our county not only Sonoma County find these The two-year permit went to cent tax. That’s a lot of potential cry to the events of eight years cview Market Research. beautiful but also provides the places for their own use but also Indythree LLC, a local developer money that could be coming into ago when 50 members of the That’s rather surprising given peace and tranquility that time in find them for ways in which they that owns the Alder Ave prop- the town in the next couple Cavalry Life Church protested that cannabis is still technically nature can provide, is there can help take care of them. Land erty, now abandoned, in western years, especially when taken the town’s first medical cannabis illegal in the eyes of the United partly in thanks to LandPaths, a helps people and people help Cotati. They plan to tear down with the already up and running permit issued to Mercy Wellness. States federal government. non-profit organization that has land.” the current structures on the par- cannabis outlet, Mercy Wellness, But that permit went through “It’s a big, significant devel- worked for over twenty years to The organization accom- cel and put up three new build- on the other side of town. and the church has since moved opment,” Steve Monahan, In- protect our land, and more im- plishes its mission in many ways. ings: a memory care facility, an The potential tax income out of Cotati to their new prop- dythree spokesperson, said. portantly, connect it to our They routinely organize free or assisted living facility and the played a huge factor into Land- erty in Rohnert Park. With the re- “We’re a real estate developer. county’s residents. limited cost public outings to commercial cannabis outlet. man’s vote to approve the per- cent change to California’s It’s what we do. We’ve owned Founded in 1996, LandPaths open spaces, farms and parks-in- “I know for a few people that mit. cannabis law, the public’s atti- this property for a long time and was first created to manage the development throughout the this is something to which they’ll “One of the most important tude has shifted on the subject of we’ve been wanting to move for- 1,500-acre McCormick property, county that have been protected be uncomfortable and I totally things, post prop-13, for any city marijuana. ward this project for quite a which allowed the California by the Sonoma County Agricul- respect that. But in terms of this is how we fund the municipality. According to a recent study by while.” State Parks to accept the prop- tural Preservation and Open being something that is essen- There still isn’t a good answer. the Pew Research Center, 62 per- The permit approved by Co- erty as an addition to Sugarloaf Space District. Today they lead tially accepted, I see it as part of One of the best ways is diversi- cent of surveyed Americans tati is for a two-year time period State Park, despite severe finan- about 300 outings with over the future of Sonoma County,” fying your sources of income,” favor the legalization of and will be up for renewal again cial cuts. 1,200 participants annually. Cotati Mayor, Mark Landman, Landman said. “These are the cannabis. That’s a huge jump in 2020. “LandPaths started in order to Their In Our Own Backyard said. “Like fine wine, good food, types of things that can keep a over what it was back at the turn help bridge the gap between (IOOBY) program works with craft beer, I think the cannabis community healthy.” of millennium when only 31 per- lands that were being protected 17 schools, including many in Sonoma County that there was schools serving low-income stu- no funding or staff to take care dents- often those least likely to of,” says Craig Anderson, Exec- experience the outdoors. Given utive Director of LandPaths. that people will only want to pro- ByStation Joshua Farestveit-Moore Avenue getsthrough final outlets in the downtown approval area. They went so far as to deny “We were started as a cooperat- tect what they know and under- It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t quick, but Tues., Nov. 13, the Rohnert a petition by Argonaut Construction, new owners of the Raley’s ing agency to assist the Agricul- stand, students learn about the Park City Council unanimously approved the Station Avenue Proj- Shopping Center, to allow them to include a drive-through coffee tural Preservation and Open land through theme-based field ect. house in a future, potential remodel. Space District and California trips covering discovery, water- Station Avenue is the future downtown section of Rohnert Park It was not a unanimous decision. Vice Mayor, Joseph Callinan, State Parks.” shed, wildlife habitat and stew- that will take the place of the State Farm property located on the provided the sole dissenting vote to the change in ordinance. The organization evolved ardship projects. To date this corner of State Farm Drive and the Rohnert Park Expressway. “I just feel like we’ve put Argonaut Construction, a new investor, many times since its earliest op- education program reaches over “Rohnert Park is a fabulous place to raise your children. The one into a bit of a pickle,” Callinan said. “I know we want our downtown erations and today its mission is 1,000 participants per year. thing it has missed is a heart,” Councilmember Gina Belforte said. and I know we think we’re doing what’s best, but they may not even “to foster a love of the land in Other nature awareness and “What a heart does is it joins everything together. A heart is the seat renovate those buildings now. They may just sit like that. Shame on Sonoma County and create ways environmental literacy programs of emotion. Many times when people want to have a nice birthday, us for not even considering that.” for people to experience the for youth that LandPaths pro- or an anniversary, or a baby-shower they go someplace else. They Everything told, Rohnert Park stands to pull in over $730,000 a beauty, understand the value and vides include Owl Camp, don’t have to do that anymore.” year in revenue from the Station Avenue development once it’s up assist in healing the land in their RiverTrek, Back County Basics Laulima Development is in charge of the 32-acre project and their and running.