More than 10,000 signatures submitted for Ukiah mixed-use project

A developer-backed effort to take an 80-acre Ukiah retail and housing project directly to voters turned in signatures Thursday to place the proposal on the November ballot.

Mendocino County Tomorrow submitted 10,701 signatures to the county Thursday afternoon, said Mendocino County Clerk-Recorder Sue Ranochak. It needs 6,167 valid signatures to qualify for the November ballot, she said.

The county has 30 days to check and verify the signatures.

The first step will be removing the signatures of at least 30 people who signed the petition but now want their names removed, Ranochak said. Some people have claimed the paid signature gatherers misled them about the true purpose of the proposed ballot initiative.

The measure seeks to bypass the county?s planning and approval process for the Developers Diversified Realty development. The project, planned for property just north of the Ukiah city limits, is the largest development ever proposed in the county.

Supporters of the plan say they were forced to go to voters because a majority of county?s elected officials oppose the plan.

The ballot effort is led by the organization Mendocino County Tomorrow with major funding by Developers Diversified Realty, one of the country?s largest builders of shopping centers. The group?s fund-raising committee members are based in Utah, Ohio and San Rafael.

The ballot proposal would change the land zoning at the defunct Masonite site from industrial to mixed use. It does not specify what would be built, but developers say it likely would be a combination of big-box stores, smaller stores and housing.

The proposed ballot measure would also let developers bypass local zoning rules such as those limiting the size of signs advertising businesses.

The ballot proposal faces opposition from county and Ukiah elected officials as well as local groups.

?We?re determined to beat them in November. Mendocino County has a long, proud tradition of standing up against corporate intrusions,? said Cliff Paulin, spokesman for the newly formed group, Save our Local Economy, or SOLE.

Supporters of the proposal say the successful signature gathering effort indicates a favorable outcome.

?The fact that we were able to gather the signatures so quickly should tell opponents how much local residents want to see positive changes in Mendocino County,? said Dave Clark, executive director of Mendocino County Tomorrow.