Dear Editor [Supervisors]: I’ve been proud of our county government that has done so much to protect the beauty and uniqueness of the Sonoma Coast. We’ve just helped protect Preservation Ranch from commercial development, supported the protection of the incredible Stornetta Public Lands on the Garcia River, and worked with the Sonoma Land Trust to create the magnificent 5000-acre Jenner Uplands Preserve, to name just a few of the spectacular properties protected on the coast. We have spent tens of millions of taxpayer funds on these projects and it has been well worth it. And now the county appears to be slipping away from this ethic of protecting the landscape for the enjoyment of all, as they are about to approve an industrial development in the rural residential area of the North Coast. Since 2004 Ratna Ling has been establishing a printing plant that is industrial in scope on a remote parcel that is very close to Timber Cove and the Pacific Ocean. Meanwhile they have violated almost every condition of their 2004 use permit, which itself is in direct conflict with our General Plan. At the beginning they got a permit for a small ancillary printing press and have been expanding many-fold without approvals and are also building housing for 100 workers at the site. At their current printing level, they will require over 700 diesel truck trips per year to service their production, all of which will be traveling on narrow, twisty Highway 1 and other fragile county two-lane roads. All of this is happening under the umbrella of a religious organization that owns the land, which acts as if they are exempt from planning restrictions because of their religious practice. Being a nonprofit organization, they don’t have to pay any of the taxes to maintain the roads or meet any of the other costs usually associated with industrial zoning. . I hope the Board of Supervisors will uphold the high quality of land protection we have under our General Plan. Sincerely, David Katz Former Executive Director Sonoma Land Trust