Tom "Manure Man" Lynch enters 5th District Supervisor Race

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Tom Lynch, Efren Carrillo's appointee to the Sonoma County Planning Commission, has announced his candidacy for Efren's seat on the Board Of Supervisors, joining Noreen Evans, Lynda Hopkins, Marion Chase and Tim Sergent.

His announcement on his website:

Our treasured quality of life, our children’s future, is at stake in this election.

That’s why I’m running for Sonoma County’s Fifth District Supervisor. I need strong support from you and your friends & families to help change the current system. I’m a concerned citizen and parent, and for over thirty years I have demonstrated strong leadership in protecting the environment, developing jobs, supporting the arts, and advocating for improved government services. We need broader levels of engagement so that we can work together openly and honestly to solve problems with sustainable solutions.

Sonoma County must reinvent itself, become a convener, enlist and involve our community, leverage resources for public safety and road repair, and restore cuts to nonprofits, volunteer and faith based organizations. We need future contributors to direct more resources into education and less into incarceration. Our housing crisis requires supervised homeless camps, incentives to create rentals, and small second dwelling units in underutilized owner occupied homes. To expedite projects, the Permit & Resource Management Department needs more staff and to provide reduced fees.

I will personally opt out of the Sonoma County Employee Retirement Association system, and work toward fair pensions for all generations. As Fifth District Planning Commissioner and former member of the Sonoma County Economic Development Board, I have worked to protect diverse communities, improve health services & schools, and develop affordable housing and infrastructure with fiscally responsible and affordable solutions.

Thank you for your support.

Tom's a good guy. I know some of you will dismiss him out of hand for being appointed by Efren, but I don't think that's warranted. His signature issue is county employee pension reform. It's not a sexy issue, as say potholes or winery event centers, but it's important as it puts a big strain on the county budget, which affects all county spending.

The Sonoma West Times and News did a good article on him here. Interestingly, The PD hasn't published one yet.

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Posted in reply to the post by Barry:

...Tom's a good guy. I know some of you will dismiss him out of hand for being appointed by Efren, but I don't think that's warranted. His signature issue is county employee pension reform. It's not a sexy issue, as say potholes or winery event centers, but it's important as it puts a big strain on the county budget, which affects all county spending. ...

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Thank you, Barry, for the kind words :). I'm looking forward to sharing some ideas and solutions with my fellow Fifth District friends and neighbors. Loved Frank Robertson's recent column in Sonoma West in which he found it interesting, the two top candidates for the race, have never voted in the District, both having moved here within the last 6-12 months.

Frank suggests maybe it's a good thing as they don't have any baggage! I have 36 years baggage, having moved to Sebastopol (Lynch Rd) in Oct 1979---how many remember "West of the Laguna", now that was a pizza parlor, music and entertainment 7 nights a week, packed with boomers! The counterpart on the River was "Garbo's", again 7 nights a week.

Today on the Planning Commission we approved a new parking lot, handicap trail and restroom at the Jenner Headlands Wildland Conservancy (https://www.wildlandsconservancy.org...ve_jenner.html), I shared with the room the South point above Russian Gulch still has redwood railroad ties from a spur line created for logging Russian Gulch in the 1900's, and that my surfer crew and myself years ago, would climb down the bluff with ropes to fish, and there were still the iron hoops set in the rock for tieing ships lines anchored at Russian Gulch to get lumber.

I have lots of baggage and lots of ideas how to solve problems and maybe make things better for more among us. Looking forward to guilding the lily :).

respect and kind regards,
Tom Lynch www.tomlynchforsupervisor.com

I moved to Sebastopol in 1974 and well remember "West of the Laguna", a great family pizza etc place with a small stage on which locals, including ones with fame, often entertained the community. I remember what Tom has done to stand up for the people, and I applaud his entrance into the race. Go, Tom!

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Posted in reply to the post by riverosprey:

...I have 36 years baggage, having moved to Sebastopol (Lynch Rd) in Oct 1979---how many remember "West of the Laguna", now that was a pizza parlor, music and entertainment 7 nights a week, packed with boomers! The counterpart on the River was "Garbo's", again 7 nights a week.
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Does anyone know, after Tom Lynch dumped the manure in downtown Santa Rosa in the 90's, who cleaned it up?

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Posted in reply to the post by tommy:

Does anyone know, after Tom Lynch dumped the manure in downtown Santa Rosa in the 90's, who cleaned it up?

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I would expect that it was the Transportation and Public Works Department. I'm sure they have seen worse. I hope they spread it on the redwoods in Courthouse Square. Hey, politics is dirty.

Tom parked his tractor and manure spreader in my driveway on Occidental the night before. Left about 3:00 am to do the deed.

I think it was a great CD. You may remember that Santa Rosa was dumping their sewage into the Russian River at the time. Who cleaned that up?

Tofu Larry

PS: Go Noreen! Sorry Tom.

Larry,
Your reply, if accurate - that the public took on the expense of cleaning up the manure that Tom Lynch dumped on the street in Santa Rosa - disqualifies him for public office. It's all about Tom Lynch's self important ego.

Santa Rosa dumping sewage into the Russian River does not justify anyone from dumping refuse onto the streets of Santa Rosa - and then leaving it for the public to clean up.

Tomas

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Posted in reply to the post by Tofu Larry:

I would expect that it was the Transportation and Public Works Department...

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Tommy,

Seems like you don't support Tom and perhaps don't like him. But, to bring up his act of civil disobediance from so long ago and use it to say he should be disqualified from the race is at minimum a childish argument. Addressing the polution of the Russian River by Santa Rosa took a heroic effort on the part of many. I'd rather hear from Tom about his actions and what he thinks now as he looks back, rather than have you unilaterally label this an ego issue that deems him unfit to run for office.

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Posted in reply to the post by tommy:

Larry,
Your reply, if accurate - that the public took on the expense of cleaning up the manure that Tom Lynch dumped on the street in Santa Rosa - disqualifies him for public office. It's all about Tom Lynch's self important ego.

Santa Rosa dumping sewage into the Russian River does not justify anyone from dumping refuse onto the streets of Santa Rosa - and then leaving it for the public to clean up.

Tomas

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I think it's fair game to bring up actions of a politician from the past - it's normal in politics, and how the public gauges a politician's character. I'd also be interested in hearing Tom's response. I'd welcome Brenda Adleman's input about whether it was effective in cleaning up the Russian River.

I wouldn't call dumping manure on the streets of Santa Rosa civil disobedience. This was a gross, disgusting act. People who perform civil disobedience are usually careful not to damage property (tho not always, sometimes they cut a fence, or drip fake blood on military equipment). Often civil disobedience does create a cost to the public - such as the police being called in to move people out of the public right of way. However, most conscious people engaging in civil disobedience are careful not to put a financial burden on the public, because they know that this detracts from their cause, and the public is less sympathetic. Civil disobedience acts by Greenpeace, such as hanging a banner to protest the slaughter of whales, etc, have been effective in galvanizing public opinion against decimating the species. I'd be interested to hear from anyone about whether the dumping of manure on Santa Rosa streets played any role in reducing contamination of the Russian River. My intuition is that it did not. My first reaction to the stunt was the old schoolyard saying that "two wrongs do not make a right". It's counterproductive to fight pollution by creating more pollution.

I appreciate his focus on Sonoma Co retiree Pensions, although I did not hear any specific recommendations from Tom. There was a grand jury report about it a few years ago. Changing pensions is a hugely contested issue - unfortunately constrained by powers in the community who can influence the Supervisors.

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Posted in reply to the post by rekarp:

Tommy,

Seems like you don't support Tom and perhaps don't like him. But, to bring up his act of civil disobediance from so long ago and use it to say he should be disqualified from the race is at minimum a childish argument. Addressing the polution of the Russian River by Santa Rosa took a heroic effort on the part of many. I'd rather hear from Tom about his actions and what he thinks now as he looks back, rather than have you unilaterally label this an ego issue that deems him unfit to run for office.

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Hi Tommy,

The manure was actually composted that I got from Grab and Grow and put in Warren Dutton's manure spreader and tractor I rented. The City of Santa Rosa reused it on their parks :). I did get arrested about 12 months later when I dumped 10,000 pounds of coal on the steps of Santa Rosa, at Christmas time, dressed up as Santa Claus chained to the dump truck I was driving...didn't get caught but they traced the rental...was charged with illegal dumping and had to pay $120 for the cost of clean-up (most of the coal ironically went back to West County to heat homes with coal burning fireplaces.

These were but a couple incidents in a 20 year battle that I was part of, along with many fine members of the Environmental community, including Brenda Adelman, Bill Kortum, Rue Furch, and a cast of thousands. My fifteen minutes of fame 30 years ago... Sara Scott posted this story on WaccoBB when I ran for Supervisor in 2008:

https://www.waccobb.net/forums/showt...for-Supervisor

Look forward to meeting you Tommy.

Tom Lynch
www.tomlynchforsupervisor.com

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Posted in reply to the post by tommy:

I think it's fair game to bring up actions of a politician from the past - it's normal in politics, and how the public gauges a politician's character. I'd also be interested in hearing Tom's response. I'd welcome Brenda Adleman's input about whether it was effective in cleaning up the Russian River.

I wouldn't call dumping manure on the streets of Santa Rosa civil disobedience. This was a gross, disgusting act. ...

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Posted in reply to the post by rekarp:

Tommy, Seems like you don't support Tom and perhaps don't like him. But, to bring up his act of civil disobediance from so long ago and use it to say he should be disqualified from the race is at minimum a childish argument. Addressing the polution of the Russian River by Santa Rosa took a heroic effort on the part of many. I'd rather hear from Tom about his actions and what he thinks now as he looks back, rather than have you unilaterally label this an ego issue that deems him unfit to run for office.

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I remember the large impression that Tom's act made on me and the public at large. Seeing a load of manure dumped at the doorstep of Santa Rosa's city hall brought to the eye of the public the issue of that city dumping it's treated effluent into our beloved river. I tried to swim in the river at that time and although there were no little brown sausages floating there, the bottom of the river was covered in brown slime which made me avoid ever touching the bottom. The Press Democrat published the photo of be-sludged city hall above the fold of the front page and the city (to my knowledge) never billed Tom for his act. Thanks Tom for your insight and your courage. This is not to be read as political endorsement although I think this man has long term political insight into the problems facing west county.

I agree with Dorothy and Ron with regards to supporting Tom's non-violent direct action in the streets. This is certainly to his credit. I think that we need more such creative actions to draw attention to the issues that are important to us, especially at this time, as there are dangerous trends in the political and war-making worlds.

This is also not a political endorsement of Tom for 5th District Sup., since I totally support Noreen Evans and hope she wins by a big majority in the primary, thus getting the mandate that she deserves .Wacco is full of community-minded people. We may favor different candidates, but when the election is over, we need to all come together and work to support Sonoma County continuing to be the place we so love.