Sonoma County planners approve Wilson winery project

Sonoma County planning commissioners Thursday approved a new Healdsburg-area winery they said promoted the county’s signature industry and fit in its rural setting, despite concerns from some Dry Creek Valley neighbors who say their region has been overwhelmed by impacts from new and expanded winery developments.

Vintners Ken and Diane Wilson now have permission to build their new 25,000-case winery on a 40-acre vineyard four miles north of their flagship Wilson Winery on Dry Creek Road - making it their ninth winery in prime Sonoma County grape-growing regions. The couple plans to open a wine tasting room, host up to 12 special gatherings and participate in eight industrywide events per year.

Thursday’s action came on a 3-1 vote, with one zoning board member strongly defending the new winery and taking issue with the recent outcry over wineries that double as event centers.

Willie Lamberson, the planning commissioner appointed by Supervisor James Gore, who represents the area, steered the vote permitting a total of 20 annual events, against a staff recommendation to limit events to 16 per year.

Lamberson acknowledged that popular Wine Country gatherings draw thousands of visitors to the area, and can lead to a “party atmosphere.” But he defended his stance, saying it wasn’t up to the Board of Zoning Adjustments to control unruly crowds by limiting events.

“We can’t control the behavior surrounding the wine industry,” Lamberson said. “Instead of bitching and moaning to your neighbors, you can call code enforcement.” He followed up his comment by reading aloud the phone number to the county department.

Thursday’s hourlong hearing featured no one speaking against the Wilsons’ Hale Winery, a stark contrast to crowded county hearings recently on other disputed winery developments. Two members of the public asked county planning officials how they would enforce rules limiting outdoor music and crowds at the Wilsons’ site and other wineries along Dry Creek Road.

The decision marked a new episode in the county’s attempt to grapple with a strong public backlash over winery development in rural areas. Residents have pointed specifically to the noise and traffic they say is generated by tasting rooms and large events, from weddings to wine and food gatherings.

County officials, in the face of such complaints, in several recent cases have imposed limits on events at wineries, prohibiting weddings, for example. In January, the zoning board, acting on similar concerns, unanimously rejected celebrity chef Guy Fieri’s proposed Santa Rosa-area winery.

But planning commissioners, echoing Lamberson, said Dry Creek Road, a busy two-lane thoroughfare, is wide enough to support additional traffic. They said the Wilsons’ project - and the additional events the zoning board granted Thursday - wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Commissioner Greg Carr, who represents Sonoma Valley, disagreed. He was the lone vote against the winery, arguing that until the county comes up with new regulations on winery events, decision-making bodies should err on the side of approving fewer gatherings.

“Until we get some kind of guidance, it’s worth sticking with a lower number than what is being proposed here,” Carr said.

Ken Wilson, speaking to the zoning board, said the 20 total events he sought to hold was consistent with other recently approved winery proposals.

“I’m happy we prevailed,” Wilson said after Thursday’s decision. He suggested the project would not have been as economically viable without the greater leeway on events.

“Now we’ll be able to process all those grapes locally, without trucking them away,” he said.

Fred Corson, chairman of the Dry Creek Valley Citizens Advisory Council and a resident of the nearby West Dry Creek Road, said his initial concerns were tempered because of Wilson’s willingness to scrap four of the 24 annual events he originally proposed. He dropped plans for two weddings and two charitable dinners, with 100 guests each.

“I’m OK with this decision,” Corson said.

But Corson and two other area residents who spoke at Thursday’s hearing said they were deeply concerned with what they called the county’s lax oversight on winery events.

“We think the enforcement process has to be improved to make it more responsive to neighbors’ complaints,” Corson said.

Deputy Planning Director Jennifer Barrett said the county investigates complaints, but because code enforcement officers don’t work on weekends it can be challenging.

“We enforce by complaint,” Barrett said. “So that requires that you do call and complain.”

Warren Watkins, a Healdsburg resident, spoke to the zoning board of mounting concerns over new winery development in northern Sonoma County. In addition to traffic and noise, neighborhood groups are now stressing their worries about dwindling water supplies.

“There is a cumulative effect to all this,” Watkins told planning commissioners.

Lamberson pushed back, saying broad opposition to winery development is unwarranted.

“I feel like agriculture is really getting a bad call here,” Lamberson said. “You have to remember, agriculture is the backbone of our economy.”

You can reach Staff Writer Angela Hart at 526-8503 or angela.hart@pressdemo?crat.com. On Twitter ?@ahartreports.