Julie Engell is a small business owner and a resident of North Monterey County who, like many Monterey County citizens, is concerned about the economic, social and environmental consequences of wasteful land-use practices.

Julie and her husband, Curtis Spitler, moved to Monterey County from Oklahoma in September 1989.  Shortly after arriving, she immersed herself in her new surroundings.  She studied horticulture at Monterey Peninsula College, with special interest in native plants, and after completing the Aquarium’s required course of study, became a volunteer at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, where she served as a guide for almost twelve years.

Julie’s understanding of the region evolved to include an interest in local land-use policy.  This interest converged with Monterey County’s initiation of its General Plan Update and with the permitting of the Duke Energy Plant expansion at Moss Landing.  It is an interest that has deepened ever since.

Julie was appointed by former Supervisor Judy Pennycook to the Monterey County Planning Commission to finish the term of the late Carol Lacey.  She served throughout the summer and fall of 2002, a period during which the commission tackled controversies such as property owner requests for general plan amendments and the proposed placement of a Calpine electricity plant in Pajaro. 

When her term ended, Julie continued her involvement in the General Plan Update process, increasingly focusing on the economic and environmental threats posed by the County’s intent to encourage development of Rancho San Juan north of Salinas -- the biggest project in County history. Undeterred by warnings that Rancho San Juan was a “done deal," a small, diverse group of activists, encouraged and advised by LandWatch, challenged the project’s approval. With Julie as its chair, the Rancho San Juan Opposition Coalition and an army of supporters qualified a referendum by gathering more than 16,000 signatures during the 2004 holidays. The project’s fate will be decided by voters in an election scheduled for November 2005. Julie continues to work on this and other land use issues. 

Chris Flescher came to LandWatch initially as a volunteer interested in the pedestrian and bicycle friendly policies of “Traditional Neighborhood Development." Although his duties at LandWatch are primarily administrative, he has been actively involved in substantive transportation and land use issues since 1995. He has worked as a volunteer with the Southern California Transit Advocates, the Rail Passenger Association of California and the National Association of Rail Passengers.

Dale Hillard is a retired teacher/counselor of 33 years. He taught Physical Science, Chemistry, Physics, Family Life & Family Psychology. He has a MA in Education and a MA in Counseling. He is also a Certified Trainer for the American Society of Group Psychotherapy & Psychodrama. He is a Life Member of the Sierra Club, the National Science Teachers Association, and has a passion for keeping Honey Bees. He has been on the Board of Directors of the Steinbeck Credit Union, past chairperson for the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Monterey County and presently on the Board of Stewards for the Pacific Coast Church. Dale joined the LandWatch board in 2006.

Jared Ikeda was born and grew up in Salinas California. He is a retired land use planner. He received a degree in Environmental Planning with a major in Landscape Architecture from California State Polytechnic University Pomona, CA. He has more than forty years of professional experience in preparation of land use planning studies, community planning, environmental impact studies, urban site planning, landscape development plans, and recreation planning. He has been involved in a wide range of studies and projects for both public and private sector clients and has participated in and directed all phases of land planning, investigative studies and landscape development. He has served as Vice President and on the board of directors of a major international landscape architectural firm, been responsible for management of a 20-person professional land planning office, management of specific project work, supervision, and coordination of multi-disciplinary teams, as well as serving as a specialist within multi-disciplinary teams.

He has served as a lecturer in the Department of Landscape Architecture at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. His teaching activities focus on advanced landscape design and use of computer technology including AutoCAD and ArcMap GIS software. He has prepared a number of visual impact and simulation studies using a variety of computer software including Sketchup and Google Earth.

He was involved as a team member in the preparation of the Monterey County General Plan Update from 1999 to 2004 (GPU 1 through 3) for the County Administration Office. He was responsible for studies and preparation of the Environmental Resource Management Element, the Circulation Element, and directed consultant work on the Environmental Impact Report GPU 3.

He has also served as a consultant in the preparation of the Marin County General Plan and EIR in 2005. Most recently, he has served as a team member in the preparation of a Public Access Master Plan for the 240,000 acre open space portion of the Tejon Ranch for the Tejon Ranch Conservancy.

Elizabeth Panetta has a strong background in labor and community organizing. She emerged from the rank and file of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union and went on to become a Field Representative Local 11 in Los Angeles. After working for the University of California - American Federation of Teachers, she worked at the UCLA Center for Labor Research and Education, an organization that works to serve “as a bridge between the university and the labor community in Southern California".

As a member of the small community of Spreckels, she organized “Save Spreckels" a community campaign to fight for agricultural and historic preservation of the land around Spreckels, one of the few remaining intact company towns west of the Mississippi River. Later, as a Community Action Advocate for LandWatch, she worked to increase affordable housing in Monterey County and preserve prime agricultural land in the Salinas Valley.

In 2007 she was elected to the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District Board of Education and is currently serving as Clerk-Vice President.

Glenn E. Robinson has been on the faculty at the Naval Postgraduate School since 1991. His BA and PhD were both earned at the University of California at Berkeley, where he remains affiliated with the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. A specialist in Middle East political and security matters, Robinson has authored or co-authored three books and over 40 journal articles and book chapters. He has been a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Jordan and a Senior Political Scientist at the RAND Corporation, and has studied at the American University in Cairo, Yarmouk University in Jordan, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Robinson has been active with the US Agency for International Development in implementing and assessing development projects throughout the Arab world.

Robinson has been locally active in promoting good land use in Carmel Valley and Monterey County. He has been on the Board of the Carmel Valley Association since 2000, including four years as President. He was a founder of the Carmel Valley Forum, which led the effort to put the question of incorporating a Town of Carmel Valley before the voters of Carmel Valley (and even was voted to be on the Town’s first Council had Measure G passed). As a long-time member of the Carmel Valley Land Use Advisory Committee, Robinson co-authored a new master plan for Carmel Valley, before the Board of Supervisors decided to move in a more pro-growth direction.

Robinson has coached in the Carmel Community Girls Softball league since 1999. He and his wife Elizabeth have three daughters.

Mr. Matthew Sundt has provided land planning and environmental consulting services for 24 years. He has prepared over 250 environmental documents and has managed a variety of land development projects throughout California. His professional strengths include a broad knowledge of federal and state environmental regulations (CEQA and NEPA), local regulations pertinent to land development and project entitlements, and project management. He has demonstrated his ability to successfully facilitate projects in the most restrictive and complicated regulatory environments. Mr. Sundt is adept in his ability to consult, collaborate, and communicate effectively with a wide range of individuals and organizations. Prior to his work experience in planning and environmental consulting he worked in the local construction trades as a laborer and union cement mason. He paid for college by fighting fires for six seasons as part of a USFS Hotshot crew and as a USFS Smokejumper. Mr. Sundt is confident that his background and professional experience will be beneficial to Monterey County LandWatch and Monterey County.

Mr. Sundt has been a Monterey Peninsula resident since 1975. He and his wife Elizabeth Caraker (Principal Planner - City of Monterey) reside in Monterey. Both he and Elizabeth are competitive athletes. Matthew continues his life long appreciation for books (family owned Old Capitol Books in Monterey), hiking and trail maintenance in the Los Padres, travelling, and cooking.