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Richard "Rick" Savel, Alternate Public Member

Term: 2021-2023
Rick Savel, LAFCo Commissioner

Rick Savel was born and raised in Marin County and moved to L.A. in 1979 to work with Carroll Shelby’s Racing Division.  In 1983 he moved to Penngrove in Sonoma County and had the honor and privilege to meet and work with Helen Putnam, 2nd District County Supervisor, while creating the Penngrove Specific Plan.  Supervisor Putnam inspired him to continue in public service and apply her standards of excellence ... to always do your very best!  

 

Rick went on to serve on many boards and commissions and in 2000 led the small historic rural town of Penngrove in a CEQA General Plan lawsuit against the City of Rohnert Park.  This lawsuit produced a stunning historic win for Sonoma County forever establishing higher standards of regional environmental analysis and new "thresholds of significance" to properly evaluate "cumulatively considerable" regional impacts.  The Planning and Conservation League considered the lawsuit one of the 75 most important environmental cases in 40 years of CEQA!  In 2008 Rick received special honors and commendations from the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors and was recognized as a "highly exceptional asset" for his achievements, dedication, and service to the County of Sonoma.  In 2016 he was the southern Sonoma County representative for Greenbelt Alliance during the successful "Community Separator" ballot initiative campaign which established greenbelt Community Separators throughout Sonoma County.  

 

Rick recently returned back home to Marin and his purpose for serving on Marin LAFCo is to work with the Commission to promote countywide open space and community separators between the cities and the surrounding rural unincorporated areas impacted by urban sprawl.  He will provide a strong environmentally conscious voice and represent the needs of all of the underrepresented constituents of the rural and unincorporated areas of Marin County.  After 37 years of public advocacy his term serving on Marin LAFCo will be his final public political assignment before full retirement.

 

Rick's career was working with the Federal Aviation Administration Airworthiness Division in private practice.  Semi-retired now he helps maintain a small fleet of historic World War Two aircraft at the Schellville airport in Sonoma County including a North American P-51 Mustang, Curtis P-40 Tomahawk, along with several Boeing Stearman biplanes. Rick also enjoys skydiving and is in business dealing in antiquarian and contemporary Japanese Shinto Shrine and Zen Buddhist Temple garden statuary.

Click here to download Richard Savel's AB 1234 Certificate