That appears to be the case with a Kelseyville couple's plans for a commercial riding stable in Kelseyville, which has drawn protests from those who live close by the proposed stable's location.
The county's Community Development Department held a public hearing on a minor use permit that John and Joanne Van Eck have requested for their property, located at 4965 Steelhead Drive.
Community Development Director Rick Coel led the hearing, Planner Kevin Ingram giving a brief rundown of the plan.
The Van Ecks, who have owned the 97-acre property next door to Clear Lake State Park since 2001, have plans for a commercial stable with nine horse stalls and a riding academy that will allow for 15 students each week. Plans also include a covered riding arena and a club house, the size of which was not specified.
John Van Eck told Lake County News in an interview Wednesday evening that he and his wife raise cattle, Morgan horses and Shires, a draft horse breed that originated in Great Britain, on the property, which is zoned for agriculture.
Van Eck is a retired engineer who worked in San Francisco, and has owned ranches in Petaluma and in Scotts Valley before purchasing the Steelhead Drive property. The Van Ecks also are developing the 16-lot Lakeview Estates Subdivision in Kelseyville.
Van Eck said he is creating the riding academy for disabled children as a way of giving back to the community.
He said he is following the county's mandates in setting up the project. His neighbors, he said, aren't interested in his opinion or what he's trying to do. “I want to keep it rural I want to keep agriculture a viable option here in Lake County.”
Under the minor use permit the Van Ecks would be able to host three special, nonprofit events annually, Ingram explained.
The Van Eck's ranch has been the site of special events during the last few years, including the California Carriage Classic, and recent fundraisers for Westside Community Park and the Lake County Republican Party.
But Van Eck's neighbors along Steelhead Drive turned out in force Wednesday to question the project and lodge their concerns with the county. About 30 people crowded into Community Development's conference room for the meeting.
Neighbor Jim Clement started off the public comment, saying that the residents in the area had had their way of life impacted negatively since the Van Ecks' arrival in 2001. Part of the impact, said Clement, was a lawsuit between Van Eck and the area's water district that caused the district to have to raise fees to pay off legal bills.
Priscilla Clement handed Coel a petition with signatures against the project on the Van Eck ranch, which she said used to be known as “the pasture.”
As soon as Van Eck bought the property, he fenced it, sent out legal documents and the bad feelings started, said Priscilla Clement. Van Eck told Lake County News that the legal documents Clement referenced were hold harmless agreements he asked neighbors to sign to protect himself against liability claims if people accessed his property.
Clement said there should be “no commercial anything, whatsoever,” on the property, because her concern was that it was an opening to having the property become an events venue for weddings and parties. She said the ranching that Van Eck currently is doing already has impacted her enjoyment of the area.
Sharon Ketchum said she was concerned that the stable would be built too close to the home of her elderly father, James Clement, whose allergies will be exacerbated by dust and animals.
Of the 13 people who spoke or asked questions about the project, only Ethel Manning, who owns property across Kelsey Creek, said she was not against the project and felt the Van Ecks had beautified the property, which had been owned by Bud Gaddy, her husband's grandfather.
Jay Sherman of the State Parks Division said waterways were his main issue, especially relating to nearby Cole Creek.
“My concern is the runoff from the concentrated manure,” which can increase nitrates in the water, which hurts fish and boosts aquatic weeds, Sherman said.
Debbie Majestic, who lives on Steelhead Drive with husband Dave, said the narrow, 21-foot roadway which is not bordered by sidewalks already poses safety concerns, and having large horse trailers and pickups moving down it will only exacerbate the issue.
She questioned why the Van Ecks chose to buy property near a residential neighborhood if they wanted to have such a facility. Majestic also said she didn't feel the project's numbers added up; the plan calls for a 100-space parking lot yet has only nine stalls and is supposed to have only 15 students per week.
Todd Mansell of Public Works said he looked at the project and believed it would have minimal impacts – only about as much as two new homes.
The Van Ecks, accompanied by their attorney Barry Parkinson, sat quietly through the hour-and-20-minute hearing. When Coel offered John Van Eck a chance to speak, he said he would hold his comments until the hearing went before the Planning Commission.
He did, however, say he's spent nine months working on the proposal to offer disabled children a place to ride horses, and voiced frustration at the “not in my backyard” attitude he said most of the comments represented.
“If I want to build a 5,000-square-foot facility to have those kids there, I'll do it,” he said.
Coel summed up the comments, saying, “What I'm hearing consistently is noise, lighting and traffic – those are the big ticket items.”
The project will go before the Planning Commission at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13, in the Board of Supervisors' chambers at the Lake County Courthouse in Lakeport.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
{mos_sb_discuss:2}
How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
