Municipal Advisory Councils (MACs) Call for Candidates

5TH DISTRICT SUPERVISOR - SONOMA COUNTY

October 27, 2020

Our County - 5th District Supervisor - NOVEMBER 2020.

Time for new MAC representatives

One of the core principles on which I ran for County Supervisor was bringing greater government transparency and citizen engagement into West County. With this goal in mind we established two Municipal Advisory Councils (MACs) in 2018, one along the Sonoma Coast (Coast MAC) and another along the Lower Russian River (River MAC). The mission of these organizations is:

to advise the Board of Supervisors and other County decision makers on proposed projects within the MAC region,
to provide a forum for citizen participation in the formation of advisory recommendations and
to provide a bridge for communication between the County and local residents and businesses, and the general public on local government decisions affecting the MAC region.

River and Coast MAC representatives have been critical over the past two years in setting funding priorities, sharing information in disasters, and providing feedback on important issues. Above all, these inaugural Councils have set forth the foundation to be a voice for this unincorporated region. My thanks go out to all the inaugural representatives who jumped in with both feet to build MAC engagement, however messy and rewarding and challenging that has been through floods, fires, and PSPS issues as well as the ongoing business of West County.

A few of the notable actions of the MACs since their founding include:

researching vacation rental policies and providing data to the Board of Supervisors on how vacation rentals affect Russian River communities,
instituting Land Use committees to review permits for events and land use that affect both Coast and River,
providing a critical information conduit during disasters,
setting community wide priorities for County funding from TOT taxes and, in the case of the River MAC, flood mitigation funds,
working with local neighborhood associations on grant funding requests, county assistance, and issues resolution,
providing letters of concern on local issues such as the change in school bus service on the Coast and enforcement issues during COVID along the River,
advocating for priorities on road repairs and maintenance,
creating a forum for citizen input on issues such as homeless services, Local Coastal Planning, fire safety and prevention, and many more,
developing relationships between our communities and government resources.

At the heart of these MACs is the belief that local governments, community

organizations and public agencies make better decisions and have greater positive impact on their communities when they have stronger input and engagement from community residents. Together we can create better solutions. I encourage you to get involved, either as a council member or as a participant in your regional MAC meeting.

The first two formative years of the Coast MAC and the River MAC are coming to a close, culminating in the current nominating process to select six Council members and nine alternates.

The River MAC is divided into 7 Districts including Rio Nido, Guerneville, Pocket Canyon, Monte Rio/Villa Grande, Cazadero, Hacienda and Forestville. Each District has one Council member and alternate except Guerneville and Forestville which, due to larger populations, have 2 Council members and one alternate.

The Coast MAC is divided into Districts including SeaRanch/Annapolis, Fort Ross, Timber Cove, Jenner, Bodega Bay, Bodega/Valley Ford. Additionally, the sovereign nation of the Kashia Band of Pomo Indians has a representative. Each District has one Council member and alternate except Sea Ranch/Annapolis and Bodega Bay which, due to larger populations, have 2 Council members and one alternate.

Candidates must reside in the District for which they are applying to represent. For more information on Council Member Districts, terms, and past agendas, please review the Coast or River MAC pages at https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/Board-of-Supervisors/District-5/Municipal-Advisory-Councils/

Selection Process Details:

CALL FOR CANDIDATES: Opens October 1st, 2020. Closes October 31st, 2020.

CANDIDATE APPLICATION FORM: Available online at the River MAC site (sonomacounty.ca.gov/River-Municipal-Advisory-Council) or the Coast MAC site. You can also request a ballot from district5@sonoma-county.org.

BALLOTS: Will be available by November 9th, 2020 and will be sent out online, through my newsletter, and Facebook groups.

CANDIDATES FORUMS: To be held on Zoom during November. Details will be provided at a later date. VOTING PROCESS: To be held November 17th to November 27th, 2020. Voters can download or fill in their ballot online and send it back. Voters can pick up ballots at public community locations and mail them in. If there is just one candidate and one open seat, no voting is needed. For multiple candidates, the candidate with the most votes will take the Council seat and the one with fewer/second place votes will take the alternate spot. The Council looks forward to vigorous community process and welcomes your participation. Contact your MAC representative or Elise VanDyne in my office if you have any questions.

Supervisor Lynda Hopkins represents Sonoma County’s geographically large and economically diverse Fifth District. Her area includes the wild and beautiful Sonoma County coastline, the redwoods in the lower Russian River, many unincorporated rural villages, the city of Sebastopol, and the Southwestern portion of the city of Santa Rosa. Lynda’s education focused on land use and public policy, and her professional life included stints in community journalism and organic food farming prior to holding elected office. Along with her husband Emmett, Lynda is raising two daughters who are the fourth generation to pick apples from their Gravenstein apple trees on the property that is now Foggy River Farm.