Commission Approves Take 3 Theater Camp Permit at County Line Ranch with Conditions to Protect Access and Water Resources

The Humboldt County Planning Commission on April 1 approved a conditional use permit for Take 3, a theater and arts nonprofit that plans a multi‑day participatory theater camp at County Line Ranch (the County Line/Dimick Ranch complex). Commissioners adopted an addendum to the site’s 2023 mitigated negative declaration and approved the permit with the recommended conditions, including additional on‑site water storage requirements and explicit language that fire/emergency access routes may not be blocked.

Planner Steve Lazar told the commission the proposed event would be a largely invite‑based camp with a notional ceiling of about 3,000 attendees and roughly 3,000 campers across multiple days; staff estimated about 1,300 vehicle trips absent mitigations but recommended mitigation measures to reduce vehicle miles traveled and greenhouse gases. Staff recommended that the operator bring 20,000–40,000 additional gallons of water storage online before operating events at the site; Lazar said the site already contains roughly 112,000 gallons of storage and that last year’s Reggae event used about 40,000 gallons.

Applicant Misha Steiner said Take 3 is a nonprofit arts event organizer with an 11‑year safety record, an invite/sponsor ticketing model that organizers say limits on‑site behavioral problems, and a commitment to leave‑no‑trace stewardship. The applicant described plans for distributed small‑scale entertainment rather than large main stages, coordinated art delivery to reduce trips, carpool incentives, shuttles and other measures intended to lower VMT and greenhouse‑gas emissions.

Several community members and event professionals spoke in support, citing the group’s safety record and site stewardship. Adjacent property tenants raised concerns that during past events emergency egress had at times been blocked and that access and business operations were disrupted. Commissioners and staff stressed that blocking the emergency egress would violate permit conditions and that event operators must patrol, post temporary signage, and ensure access is maintained; staff said Caltrans and the event operator coordinate traffic permits where state right‑of‑way is used.

A motion to adopt the addendum to the 2023 mitigated negative declaration, find the project consistent with the general plan and zoning, and approve the conditional use permit subject to recommended conditions passed by voice vote. Commissioners asked that the conditions explicitly state that fire/emergency access must never be blocked and directed staff to ensure enforcement language and monitoring procedures are clear in final permit conditions.