Michael van der Boon, 73, of Hidden Valley Lake, was voted in as the new commission at the Board of Supervisors meeting on Jan. 20, after being nominated for the position by new District 1 Supervisor Jim Comstock.
Van Der Boon, who was sworn in at the Jan. 22 commission meeting, succeeds Monica Rosenthal, 49, of Middletown, who served one two-year term on the commission under now-retired Supervisor Ed Robey.
Rosenthal,a 13-year county resident who owns a ranch south of Middletown, said she became interested in land use issues and applied for the position when Frieda Camotta announced her plans to retire in 2006. Rosenthal's husband, Dave, served on the Middletown Area Plan Committee. The Rosenthals manage a vineyard.
She said two of her toughest decisions while on the commission involved the Van Eck riding academy project near Kelseyville, which involved agricultural property across from a subdivision, and the Erik Thorsen-Ron Jacobs case in which Jacobs installed a pier that Thorsen said intruded on his property.
Comstock said nine people applied for the spot, including Scott Fergusson, who had run against him for the supervisors seat early last year.
“I had met with Monica prior and invited her to apply out of respect for the sitting person,” Comstock said.
Comstock eventually interviewed seven applicants, all of whom were very good, he said.
Rosenthal said she applied to stay on the commission, and was interviewed by Comstock. On Jan. 19 she found out she had not been chosen, and said she wasn't given a reason.
“I felt that where I wanted to go, that Mike van der Boon was more in line with my views than any of the others,” said Comstock.
He said that van der Boon said in his application that the county needs to have business and prosperity, but also needs it to be a place where his grandchildren can come and live. Comstock said that lines up with his view.
Van der Boon said he's looking forward to serving on the commission, noting there were several “very capable applicants.”
“I feel real honored to have been appointed planing commissioner for District 1,” he said.
Van der Boon said during his first meeting he was concentrating on learning more about the issues before the commission. “I did a lot of listening,” he said.
“He had to hit the ground running,” Comstock added.
The Jan. 22 commission meeting held the first hearing on the Valley Oaks project. Van der Boon said he plans to visit the property soon.
Comstock said he has known of van der Boon – who moved from Cloverdale to Hidden Valley Lake eight years ago – for 25 years, but actually got to know him personally over the last five years.
“He's a community-minded guy,” said Comstock, who added that van der Boon also is a sharp business man.
Van der Boon said he owned a wholesale meat company in Healdsburg for 25 years.
It was in Healdsburg that he first became involved in planning issues, beginning as a member of a committee that supported the city's planning commission, and later working with the commission as well.
Van der Boon said he became interested in serving locally based on the simple fact that this is where he now makes his home.
He said he voted for Comstock and likes some of his ideas.
Van der Boon himself said he would like to see some changes locally, particularly bringing more paved roads to parts of the county.
He said he will be open to both sides of each question, and will listen to both sides.
“I've always been interested in helping out the community and staying busy,” he said.
Van der Boon has a fascinating history. A native of Rotterdam, Holland, his youth in the Netherlands witnessed the country's occupation by the Germans during World War II.
In 1954, the Netherlands was still recovering from the war, which left many bombed and damaged cities and a battered economy. “There was very little work, there was very little housing,” he said.
He was required to sign up for a 22-month stint in the Dutch army, but one day spotted a newspaper article in which Queen Juliana of the Netherlands decreed if anyone immigrated they could have an exemption from military service.
As it turned out, his future wife, Ingrid, left her home in Nuremburg, Germany, by ship on the same day as he left by ship from Rotterdam. Their ships arrived the same day in Quebec City, Canada, and they would ride the same immigrant train to Ottawa, where both moved to the city's west end.
Eventually, they both started working for the same company, and that's how they met. He said it was “predestined.”
The van der Boons moved to California in 1963. They have two sons and a daughter, and four grandchildren, all of whom live in Sonoma County.
About five years ago he wrote a memoir titled “Sweet and Sour” to describe for his children and grandchildren his life in Holland under German occupation – “five miserable years” of getting bombed – and his adventures since then.
Van der Boon is vice president of the Lions Club, a 32nd degree Mason with the Clearlake lodge and president of Santa Rosa's German Club. He's previously been very active in youth-related activities, having helped found a youth soccer league in Healdsburg, and worked with FFA and 4-H.
He said he and Ingrid still visit Europe every other year to see relatives. They usually rent a car and drive all over Europe during their visits.
Comstock said he doesn't anticipate any big development projects for van der Boon to have to decide on for the south county any time soon.
“The economy doesn't look particularly promising in the immediate future,” he said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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