Wing and Barrel Ranch asks the Sonoma Board of Supervisors to approve latest, smaller clubhouse plans

A hunt club near the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge hopes to convince the Board of Supervisors that their new clubhouse won’t change the nature of the historic Black Point Shooting Club.|

A hunt club in farmlands near Highway 37 is nearing a final vote before the Board of Supervisors at their meeting later today, Tuesday, April 24.

If the Supervisors give their approval, the Wing & Barrel Ranch will be able to start construction on a new two-story, 18,620-square-foot clubhouse overlooking the lowest reach of Sonoma Creek, near the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

A vote to approve would end two successive appeals to the county over the new clubhouse proposal, brought by Sonoma area residents Tom Rusert, Ted Eliot and Sue Smith, a Noble Road neighbor to the club.

The former Black Point Sportsman Club was originally on bayside property now inundated by the Sears Point reclamation project. It was restructured and relocated in 2012 to a 975-acre property on Noble Road. The owners of Black Point, the Sutsos family, sought support to finance the move, and worked with Sonoma-based Kenwood Investments to create a new entity, Kenwood BPSC.

Kenwood BPSC is owned by Kenwood Investments with offices in Sonoma, whose founder is Darius Anderson. Anderson is also managing partner in Sonoma Media Investments, which owns the Index-Tribune.

The Wing & Barrel Ranch was permitted in 2012 for operation at 6600 Noble Road, east of the Sonoma Raceway, as a hunting club and clay-shooting course on 978 acres, with an 8,500-square-foot clubhouse, 50-dog kennel, on-site caretaker's residence and other related structures.

The club allows licensed duck hunting in season and has a clay-shooting course for year-round use.

But the Wing & Barrel Ranch came back under public review when, in 2016, they sought to build a new, larger clubhouse and expand other features, apparently interested in up-scaling the new location. Its website still promises 'the ultimate private hunting club'; and their original proposal included a restaurant operated by Charlie Palmer, a well-known chef with restaurants in New York, Las Vegas, Healdsburg and the Napa Valley.

The three appellants objected to Permit Sonoma's initial approval of the use permit for the new clubhouse, saying its public noticing was inadequate especially over the Christmas 2016 holiday period. Their appeal sent the application to the county's Board of Zoning Adjustments (BZA), which in December of 2017 largely upheld the project on a narrow 3-2 vote, with some minor changes in the conditions of use.

The same group then appealed the BZA decision, which brings it to the Board of Supervisors. Before it could get to this week's agenda, however, Kenwood's Anderson and Bill Hooper, president of Kenwood Investments, met with Norman Gilroy, a local land use planner representing the appellants, to hash out their differences and arrive at a compromise that all parties could agree upon. During those negotiations, which took place earlier this year, the project was down-scaled significantly.

The changes include a reduction in scale of the proposed clubhouse by about 30 percent – reduced to 18,240 square feet. Other adjustments include reductions in height – from three stories to two – extended hours and terms for public use; limitations on the potential membership and usage of the facility to 500 members, and no more than 125 people for daily use.

Special events are also disallowed, except for one annual 'cultural event' that will need a special permit. And the kitchen would not be allowed to be rented out or operate as a restaurant.

Environmental restrictions have also been agreed upon, including 'dark-sky compliant lighting,' avoiding direct glare or illumination toward neighboring properties; restricting groundwater use to 540,000 gallons per year; and some reductions in noise limits.

'We're happy that we have found a middle ground with the appellants, and found areas we can agree on,' said Hooper, president of Kenwood Investments.

He added, 'The use permit if approved creates greater restrictions than what was approved in 2012.'

Speaking for the appellants, Gilroy called the agreement 'a significant step forward from the very limited restraints that would have been required had the project been approved without a hearing...' He added that some issues remained on the table 'for others with the resources and capacity to resolve them.' These include traffic-safety issues over access to Noble Road from Highway 37 and potential flooding due to sea-level rise.

Another potential stumbling block is that the board must resolve questions about a lot line adjustment from public lands to a private entity, almost 82 acres moving from the county's now-defunct Reclamation District to Kenwood BPSC, though its agricultural uses and environmental restrictions would not change.

Asked if he was aware of any continuing issues, Hooper said, 'There shouldn't be, we've settled with the official group of appellants.'

Added Hooper: 'That doesn't mean somebody else can't show up and raise questions.'

The Board of Supervisors will meet in regular session beginning at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, April 24, at 575 Administration Drive, Santa Rosa. The item is scheduled to come before the board at 2:10 p.m., the last official act of the Board of Supervisors before open public comment.

Contact Christian at christian.kallen@sonomanews.com.

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