May 26, 2014 - The recent positions taken by Supervisor Novelli and candidate Lynn Morgan as to why they will not oppose a Dollar General Store in Buckhorn have left residents scratching their heads. You can watch the video coverage of the Mace Meadow debate on UpcountryInfo.com, and see Ted Novelli describing his ideology based upon fighting “Communism and Socialism,” and see Lynn Morgan back-pedaling as fast as she can trying to make us think that creating new jobs is now more important than protecting our local businesses. I made the Dollar General Stores a central issue in my campaign and reject the positions taken by Ted and Lynn for the following reasons:
1) There were over 4,000 people who signed the petition to save the Payless IGA Market who do not consider themselves to be Socialists, and who are well aware that other Dollar General Stores are already having a negative impact on local jobs and business communities nationwide.
2) Ted Novelli would lead us to believe that instead of this issue being about wanting more County tax revenue, his position is based on his need to fight for “Free Enterprise.” Having conservative values myself, I reject this effort to confuse such an important principle. In my opinion, it is incorrect to say that Free Enterprise should be unlimited or unfettered. Such reasoning would lead us to falsely believe that we could put a toxic business next to homes or schools, or a Dollar General next to a vineyard in Plymouth, or have a strip club in Red Corral.
1) There were over 4,000 people who signed the petition to save the Payless IGA Market who do not consider themselves to be Socialists, and who are well aware that other Dollar General Stores are already having a negative impact on local jobs and business communities nationwide.
2) Ted Novelli would lead us to believe that instead of this issue being about wanting more County tax revenue, his position is based on his need to fight for “Free Enterprise.” Having conservative values myself, I reject this effort to confuse such an important principle. In my opinion, it is incorrect to say that Free Enterprise should be unlimited or unfettered. Such reasoning would lead us to falsely believe that we could put a toxic business next to homes or schools, or a Dollar General next to a vineyard in Plymouth, or have a strip club in Red Corral.
Nobody ever prevented the market’s owner from selling his business, and residents are not now preventing a land owner from selling a property. We know that our General Plan zoning regulations are outdated, and the importance of zoning is not being undermined when it is determined that certain projects might not be acceptable for an area, such as in the way that the County stopped the Gold Rush project and is now saying no to more auto stores. Fighting the newly proposed Dollar General Store in Buckhorn is not about ideology or jobs, it is about fire safety and the inadequate water pressure on Meadow Vista Drive, and the encroachment problem that large delivery trucks will have on neighborhood homes and roads.
3) Residents have a legal right to determine the “look & feel” of their community, and come forward if they believe a project does not fit in the area. This is exactly what they have already done with the 2011 General Plan Action Committee, GPAC, effort to draft a ten year plan for Pioneer to be added to the County’s newly proposed General Plan update. The GPAC ten year plan clearly states that residents “do not want a big box store to anchor a shopping center in Buckhorn town center.” At that time, no one realized that Supervisor Novelli would be in favor of building these huge stores both in Pine Grove and in Buckhorn. I agree that government should not be picking winners and losers or telling businesses what to do, but also should not force residents to accept such unsuitable and unwanted projects that alter the “look & feel” of the community. If necessary, District 3 residents should be allowed to sign a request to put a referendum on the ballot to let the voters decide.
4) Lynn Morgan represents herself as the person who saved the Payless Market from the Family Dollar Store, but is now singing a new tune. Lynn is now saying that the Dollar Store is “not really big box,” knowing that the definition of big Box is 10,000 square feet and that the Dollar General has purposefully designed their stores to be 9,500 square feet. People may not know why “household wage” jobs have become more important to Lynn than saving meat and vegetables.
During the Ledger Dispatch Forum, Lynn revealed her connection with the political action group led by Steve Wilensky in Calaveras County, who was still the President of the SEIU Union up until just recently. When you add this out-of county influence to her involvement with groups like the Foothill Conservancy and the Rate-Payer Alliance, her activist reform agenda becomes clear.
This election should be about having a Stronger Voice for Upcountry, and not be confused with ideology or furthering the agendas of minority interest groups. I am not associated with any such groups, and stand by every word that I have spoken and written over the last nine months. We have a choice in this election, and I am confident that voters will understand the differences between the candidates and begin to put their own interests first.
Truly yours,
Mike Spence
3) Residents have a legal right to determine the “look & feel” of their community, and come forward if they believe a project does not fit in the area. This is exactly what they have already done with the 2011 General Plan Action Committee, GPAC, effort to draft a ten year plan for Pioneer to be added to the County’s newly proposed General Plan update. The GPAC ten year plan clearly states that residents “do not want a big box store to anchor a shopping center in Buckhorn town center.” At that time, no one realized that Supervisor Novelli would be in favor of building these huge stores both in Pine Grove and in Buckhorn. I agree that government should not be picking winners and losers or telling businesses what to do, but also should not force residents to accept such unsuitable and unwanted projects that alter the “look & feel” of the community. If necessary, District 3 residents should be allowed to sign a request to put a referendum on the ballot to let the voters decide.
4) Lynn Morgan represents herself as the person who saved the Payless Market from the Family Dollar Store, but is now singing a new tune. Lynn is now saying that the Dollar Store is “not really big box,” knowing that the definition of big Box is 10,000 square feet and that the Dollar General has purposefully designed their stores to be 9,500 square feet. People may not know why “household wage” jobs have become more important to Lynn than saving meat and vegetables.
During the Ledger Dispatch Forum, Lynn revealed her connection with the political action group led by Steve Wilensky in Calaveras County, who was still the President of the SEIU Union up until just recently. When you add this out-of county influence to her involvement with groups like the Foothill Conservancy and the Rate-Payer Alliance, her activist reform agenda becomes clear.
This election should be about having a Stronger Voice for Upcountry, and not be confused with ideology or furthering the agendas of minority interest groups. I am not associated with any such groups, and stand by every word that I have spoken and written over the last nine months. We have a choice in this election, and I am confident that voters will understand the differences between the candidates and begin to put their own interests first.
Truly yours,
Mike Spence
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