Monday, May 17, 2010

Your help needed: Silver Mountain Tasting Room

Update Samantha Haschert's email address was incorrect. The right address is is pln145@co.santa-cruz.ca.us

Silver Mountain winery is located in a quiet part of the Santa Cruz Mountains around 10 minutes drive from Highway 17. The winery has a tasting room that's open by appointment and for SCMWA events. After years of trying at a hearing in March the Santa Cruz County Planning Commission zoning administrator granted a permit allowing the tasting room to be open Saturday afternoons.

Unfortunately the permit is currently on hold pending an appeal from some residents, who claim that being open to the public for five hours a week rather than by appointment would generate unsafe traffic and nuisance noise. If this appeal succeeds then it sets a precedent that could have a significant impact on other wineries who are applying to be open other than by appointment; it could also result in the revocation of existing permits.

There is a Planning Commission Hearing to discuss the future of Silver Mountain's Winery Tasting Room at 9AM on Wednesday May 26th in Santa Cruz. If you can attend in person the hearing is in the Supervisors chambers in the County Building on Ocean Street. But if you can't then please take a moment to contact the Santa Cruz County project planner Samantha Haschert either by phone at (831) 454 3214 or by email at pln145@co.santa-cruz.ca.us

Messages of support can also be sent to the winery at info@silvermtn.com

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