Letter to the Editor – Zoning referendum hurting cohesion of our town
Dear Editor,
My husband and I have owned our home in Yountville for over 20 years. I am currently serving on the Yountville Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission, Library Commission and Yountville Community Foundation. My husband spent seven years on the Arts Commission. We are both very involved and committed to the town of Yountville. We have worked with our town leaders and staff and know they have deep roots here, are hard-working and dedicated to the vibrancy of this town.
We’ve also participated in many town meetings, including ones that started almost two years ago presenting ideas about Yountville Commons, the school property acquired with the express purpose of building workforce housing. The meetings I attended were always positive, civil and encouraged community input. Everyone was welcome including residents, employers, town workers and the community at large
Now, almost two years later, it seems like a groundswell of negative reaction has resulted in a referendum to overturn the zoning ordinance for the property and potentially stop the development of the site.
This brings me to my concerns about the tone and subsequent reporting of the Yountville Town Council meeting of March 17. The council chambers appeared filled to capacity with many supporters of the referendum (When we got there, we had to watch from the Locals Lounge). Speakers for the referendum came prepared to express their thoughts during public comment. Due to council meeting rules, none of the town leaders could respond or defend themselves. It was almost painful to hear some of the disparaging remarks toward the leaders of our town who had been working for months on this project. I was incredulous hearing giggles and snickering when an affordable housing professional voiced her support for the project. I may have lived a charmed life in Yountville for many years, but I was not prepared for this level of negative public discourse.
Reading the follow-up article in the Yountville Sun, I found myself reliving the meeting and feeling very unsettled. I asked myself if the reporter could have found time to interview town leaders to add some balance to the coverage. Maybe that will happen in future issues.
I sincerely believe our mayor, Town Council members and town manager have a genuine interest in providing housing for our workforce. I believe they will protect the town coffers and our standing in the financial markets. I also believe that any of the current naysayers could have made their voices heard much earlier in the process and avoided the divisiveness that has been generated by this referendum.
A few people at the Town Council meeting mentioned forming a stakeholders committee. I would be happy to serve on that committee so we can move ahead collaboratively with this project.
Myrna David
Yountville
Sponsored
Author
