06 ATTACHMENT 5 - Laserfiche WebLink

• It is true that the Masons' parties have subsided in the past few years; so why are the Millers still bringing this before the commissioners? There are several reasons for this as discussed below. • After the 2009 hearing, the City did not take action to enforce the codes. To keep the pressure on the Masons, the Millers initiated their own efforts and believe these had a material impact on reducing the Mason outdoor events, including: o Complaining directly to the Masons during parties o Creating a website ( savepleasantonneighborhoods .com) o Creating flyers and passing them out at the 2014 political candidate forums (See, Attachments #4 & #5.) o Telling Kevin Keen, current president of the Masons, that the Millers had pulled the Masons' tax returns from Guidestar (note: the IRS posts all non - profit tax returns on Guidestar). o Contacting the IRS and the Secretary of State to request that they not reissue the Pleasanton Masonic Center's (PMC) statuses as exempt and non - profit, respectively, because the Masons "use" has completely changed from a nonprofit fraternity to a commercial party venue and catering company. Note: the PMC lost both its exempt and non- profit statuses in approximately 2010 due to its own accord, and therefore, the Millers were only asking that exempt and non - profit statuses not be re- instated. o Contacting the Pleasanton Business License Office to request that they not reissue the Pleasanton Masonic Center's (PMC) business license as an exempt non - profit since the PMC is no longer exempt or non - profit. Note: the PMC lost its Pleasanton business license in 2011 due to its own accord, and therefore the Millers were only asking that business license not be reinstated. o Presenting to the Valley Trails Homeowners Association, who subsequently wrote a letter to the City supporting the Millers o Emailing the Mayor and City Councilmembers o Meeting with Councilmember Kathy Narum o Contacting realtor associations o Bringing these issues before the Planning Commission for a new hearing in 2014 o Contacting the local newspapers (note: this is still in process) The Millers believe these efforts motivated the Masons to be cautious and reduce their outdoor parties. Without these efforts, the Millers believe that there would have been many more parties. Similarly, in 2009, it was the public outcry against the Masons' teen parties which stopped the Masons from renting the lodge for these types of parties that solicited 500 to 600 teens with drugs and alcohol. Please note that it was the public outcry, and not the City, that accomplished this since the City has still not created a code enforcement or any other penalty prohibiting the Masons from holding these types of teen parties or even sanctioning the Masons for holding three of these parties in 2008/2009 without a permit. Also, for one teen party in 2008, the City specifically told the Masons to cancel the party, and yet the Masons held the party anyway, and the Masons were not sanctioned. • If the parties have subsided, why are the Millers still fighting? 15