Letter: Righetti Ranch site

The Tribune’s Aug. 5 editorial was so inaccurate on so many points it would be impossible to address them all in a short letter; however, the main issue of the suitability and affordability of the proposed Righetti Ranch site is one that will be addressed in this correspondence.

The Righetti site is zoned agriculture, so will need to be rezoned heavy industrial — a time consuming process, especially with the sure opposition from the nearby residents of Rancho Colina Mobile Home Estates (would you want a sewer with “potentially strong orders” built upwind?). This rezoning will be very time consuming and very expensive.

This proposed site will need to be connected to the current infrastructure. Easements for high-tension electrical power and sewer pipes will need to be purchased, either through negotiation or an eminent domain process. The direct route for the sewer pipes would be aligned with Highway 41 and Morro Creek and could be subject to flood erosion and breaching from Morro Creek. The costs are not insignificant.

Archaeological concerns will be expensive.

A land-use professional can think of other issues that would be involved with this site and that would add to total cost. For the staff of the Coastal Commission to dismiss these and other issues as negligible is a disservice to the citizens of Cayucos and Morro Bay.

This story was originally published August 9, 2012 at 8:15 AM with the headline "Letter: Righetti Ranch site."