City Council: SOAR petitions submitted for November ballot
March 25, 2016
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
Santa Paulans visited City Hall to submit signatures needed to place the local SOAR (Save Open-space Agricultural Resources) renewal law on the November ballot the City Council learned Monday.
At the March 21 council meeting, Jim Procter told the council, “I’m very happy to be standing before you as one of the co-chairs of the Santa Paula SOAR effort,” to report that the petitions to place the renewed measure on the November ballot was submitted.
Santa Paula volunteers gathered 1,325 signatures, about 100 more than the number of valid names needed. The Ventura County Elections Division will verify the signatures.
Santa Paula is one of eight county cities subject to a local SOAR ordinance; there is also a countywide measure affecting the unincorporated areas that require voter approval for farmland and open space to be developed.
There is also a third measure seen as a rival to the original SOAR backed by three county growers and the Coalition of Labor, Agriculture and Business (CoLAB).
The original SOAR measures are due to sunset in 2020 but proponents decided to file early as well as extend the sunset to 2050.
The alternate proposal, Sustain VC, is modeled on SOAR but has a shorter shelf life — it would sunset in 2036 — would allow water infrastructure to be built to serve agriculture and permit 225 acres to be set aside for processing of locally grown produce.
SOAR allows for up to 12 acres to process locally grown produce.
Procter told the council Monday that SOAR remains a grassroots effort: “Lots and lots of people helped collect the signatures…I also want to thank the members of the public who were so gracious and welcoming to us as we collected signatures.”
In addition, Procter thanked the council for their cooperation in the initial stages of the process by adjusting the local voter-approved CURB.
SOAR, he added, looks forward to continue working with the community and the council on the initiative.
