Thanks to everyone who turned out at the Informational Community Meeting on Jan 28 at the Wonder Valley Community Center! We covered a lot of ground at the meeting, including the concerns we all have with the Wonder Inn proposal, where we are in the permitting process, and how each of us can respond. The meeting was videotaped and we’ll get that out as soon as we can for those who couldn’t attend. And reporter Jene Estrada captured a lot of the proceedings in today’s Hi-Desert Star.
We’re working at getting related content up on this website, resources to help you make effective comments during this Initial Study review period, so watch for that.
Edited to add: The video is up! Watch the meeting on our new YouTube channel!
But right now, let’s catch up on where we are in the process, and where we’re going.
A reminder: What is the Wonder Inn project? A proposal to build a 106-room luxury resort with restaurant, 6300 sq ft pool, spa, event space, and 210-space parking lot on Amboy Road at the old “pink building” near Gammel Rd. The proposal would require a Conditional Use Permit and a rezoning of 20-plus acres from Rural Living to Commercial. Here’s why we oppose it.
What’s happening now? The proposal is in the environmental review process with County Land Use Services (LUS). An important document has just been released (called the Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration), which declares that the project would have no significant environmental impacts. We have 36 days to review it and respond to LUS with comments. The deadline is Feb. 22 at 4:30 p.m.
What are we asking for right now? This proposal should not move forward until there is a full study of the potential impacts on our community. From our review, the current document (the Initial Study) is not adequate. County LUS needs to deny the proposal in its current form and require a full environmental study, called an Environmental Impact Report (EIR).
What happens next? Our goal is for Land Use Services to initiate a full environmental review with an EIR. But if they don’t, things could move fast: LUS would send the proposal (maybe as early as March) on to the County Planning Commission, who would approve or deny the project, followed by finalization by the Board of Supervisors. After that, only a lawsuit would have a chance of stopping the project. So it’s crucial we get an EIR now to expose the real impacts of this proposal, before it goes any further!
What can YOU do? Respond with comments to LUS requesting an EIR by the deadline of Feb 22. How do you comment? To help you, we’re developing sample letters and guides on critical topics to post on this website as quickly as we can. So make sure you’re on the mailing list and checking back on the website, so you can participate!
Can we win this? Yes, we can! Many communities have fought and won on projects like these using the CEQA process. And we already had our first victory: LUS extended the review period from 21 to 36 days in response to pressure from community members like you.
Thanks to all of you, together we can stop the Wonder Inn!