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�OHN EELERS FARMS 21355 Walnut Drive Linden, California 95236 April 27,1992 Steve St. Sure, Planner 19Q? San Joaquin County Planning Division 1810 East Hazelton Stockton, CA 95205 =+- •>> 1. :: , RE: Minor Subdivision MS-92-78 (E. & M. Marigliano) This Subdivision is not allowed under Williamson Act Contract. According to State Attorney General's Opinion No. 70-229, Vol. 54, Page 90, splitting off parcels under Williamson Act Contract solely for homesite purposes is to ". . . do the opposite of the purpose for which the California Land Conservation Act of 1965 was enacted." Further, " the most essential term of Williamson Act Contract is the provision, ' . . . for the exclusion of uses other than agriculture and those compatible with agriculture uses for the duration of the contract. ' Section 51243, subdivision (a) ." The Opinion summarizes, "We conclude that a determination by the board that the division of a 1200 acre farm into 20 acre homesites will result in a loss of production agricultural land, is a sufficient reason for the board to refuse to acquiesce in such division and to view any sales of such parcels as a breach of the land conservation contract." In a second Attorney General's Opinion No. 79-309, Vol.62, page 233, "Unless the single-family residences proposed for each of the subdivided lots are incidental to the use of the lot for the purpose of producing agricultural commodities for commercial purposes, the division of a 1308 acre preserve into 29 lots of varying acreage from 20 to 185 acres would constitute a violation of the Williamson Act contract binding on that land. It is the responsibility of the board of supervisors to make the determination of contract violation, and if it does so, it may sue to enjoin the sale of the lots or prevent the construction of such single-family residences; and . . . The underlying facts which constitute a violation of a Williamson Act contract may, however, also constitute grounds for disapproving the tentative subdivision map." In both Opinions cited above the splits were from 20 to 185 acres. The countys in question could easily deny the splits because it jeopardized the intent and letter of the Williamson Act. In this case a split down to 10 acres clearly creates a homesite which will never more be considered "production agriculture." The Williamson Act was created to protect "production agriculture." The present parcel size of 29 acres represents a small viable farm for production agriculture. To split it into 19 acres and 10 acres reduces it forever into merely homesites. There are many young farmers in Linden struggling to purchase