WOODLAND — After months of negotiations and public hearings, and over the objections of their neighbors, owners of an almond orchard outside Esparto received the green light on Tuesday to turn a portion of their land into an event center where weddings, fundraisers, corporate retreats and other large events will be held.

Yolo County supervisors voted 4-1 to allow FreeHeart Farm owners Larry and Lynn Rolston to hold up to 18 events a year on their 37-acre property, two miles southwest of Esparto on County Road 22.

Supervisor Jim Provenza of Davis voted against approval, siding with the Rolstons’ neighbors along Road 22 who objected to the noise and traffic that could ensue.

“We need to balance the impact on the neighborhood when something is to the benefit of one homeowner,” Provenza said. “When you put a project right smack in the middle of a number of (homes) … (and) there’s no proven benefit to the county, I think we really do need to take the needs of the neighbors seriously. All they get is impact.”

His colleagues on the board disagreed, however, with Supervisor Matt Rexroad of Woodland saying, “I just don’t think this is a huge deal.”

“I don’t think there’s a big impact on neighbors,” he said. “I think we’re spending too much time on a relatively small impact. We’re making a mountain out of a mole hill.”

The Yolo County Planning Commission unanimously approved a use permit for the event center in May after a lengthy hearing featuring testimony from many neighbors who objected to the project. Those neighbors then appealed the commission’s decision to the Board of Supervisors, who heard much of the same testimony last month before continuing the hearing to Tuesday in order to give the Rolstons, their neighbors and county staff time to negotiate further on noise levels, traffic mitigation and other concerns.

Testimony on Tuesday, however, indicated those negotiations had done little to bridge the divide, leading supervisors to ultimately vote in favor of the event center over neighbors’ objections.

In fact, supervisors amended the use permit to allow even more events per year — the Planning Commission had approved 12; supervisors 18 — and Supervisor Don Saylor of Davis said he thought the commission’s list of conditions for the use permit was too rigid.

Supervisor Mike McGowan of West Sacramento, meanwhile, said, “It’s not the board’s primary concern to protect the peace and tranquility of someone who’s living (in an agricultural area).”

Rather, he said, the board needs to promote agricultural activity and he agreed with those who said the event center, located in the middle of an almond orchard, would promote agricultural tourism much like area wineries do.

“Agriculture is an industry. We’re in the business to protect industry. If it’s not this kind of noise it is going to be tractors at 5 in the morning … it is going to be spraying,” McGowan said. “If you’re living in the country, you’ve got to adjust to what’s going on around you. Because we need to do more of it.”

But whether the event center would serve as a form of agricultural tourism was up for debate on Tuesday, with Rexroad and Provenza both saying it was not.

“I don’t believe this is agritourism,” Rexroad said. “Otherwise the casino would be agritourism.”

Also at issue was whether FreeHeart Farm is the best location for such an event center. Neighbors argued it is not.

“I have always been pro-agritourism,” said Ron Voss, former director of the UC Davis Small Farm Program who has lived on Road 22 for two decades. “I’ve been a supporter and advocate of it for 29 years.”

However, he said, “some locations are well-suited for event centers and some are not.”

Helen Voss, meanwhile, urged supervisors to put a moratorium on event centers, saying, “Let’s come up with what these centers are. It’s ridiculous that you have to go through this, we have to go through this, because there’s no rules.”

But there could well be rules on event centers in the next few months, as the issue is part of the zoning code update currently under discussion in the county. In the meantime, the Rolstons are cleared to pursue events on their property.

“I’m glad you got this thing done,” McGowan told them Tuesday. “Let’s go have some fun.”

— Reach Anne Ternus-Bellamy at [email protected] or 530-747-8051. Follow her on Twitter at @ATernusBellamy

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