Masonite development placed on November ballot

<p>The Mendocino County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday placed an initiative on the November ballot that will allow voters to decide the fate of a controversial 74-acre retail and housing development just north of Ukiah.</p><p>If Measure A is approved by voters, the project’s developer can build up to 800,000 square feet of stores, restaurants and homes at the defunct Masonite mill without going through the county’s planning, zoning and environmental review processes.</p><p>It would rezone the land from industrial to mixed-use, as proposed by Developers Diversified Realty, Measure A’s primary financial backer.</p><p>The developer is promoting a combination of big-box stores, smaller stores, restaurants and housing. But economics ultimately will dictate what actually is built, the developer’s proposal states.</p><p>The project is the largest ever proposed in the county.</p>