LandWatch's leader of 10 years, Michael DeLapa, announces he's 'passing the baton.'

Michael DeLapa, executive director of LandWatch Monterey County for the past decade, has announced that the LandWatch Board of Directors will be engaging in a nationwide search to replace him, with him transitioning to the role of senior advisor.

"I've decided its' time to pass the baton," DeLapa, the nonprofit's fourth executive director, said in an email sent to supporters on Sept. 5. 

"This isn't a step back from LandWatch's mission—it's step forward for the organization. Every strong institution needs fresh energy and new perspectives to meet the challenges ahead, whether that's evolving land use pressures, water policy fights, or the next generation of housing and climate battles in our county," he said.

DeLapa says the move was spurred by wanting to look at the future of the organization and do some succession planning. The board will be looking for someone with "advocacy and political chops" with prior experience in advocating to elected officials, he says, as well as "policy chops" in areas of land use, water use, housing and climate, among other attributes to lead the organization.

Under DeLapa's leadership, the land use watchdog nonprofit launched in 1997 by him and some close friends has evolved from a reputation among the public of slow-growth to one of managed growth.

The organization has lobbied for increased density and infill housing over sprawling developments as a way to decrease the number of vehicles commuting long distances and thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions, as well as encouraging more affordable housing for workers.

That work on infill housing is one of the accomplishments DeLapa says he's most proud of, working with local governments and developers to make it easier and less expensive to build, which gives people from lower-resourced communities inland an opportunity to move into higher-resourced communities on the Monterey Peninsula. 

"It has human benefits and environmental benefits," he says. 

He's also proud of LandWatch's efforts to defeat the controversial Monterey Downs development in Seaside, that would have brought nearly 900 homes, 400 apartments and over 650 hotel rooms, as well as 812,000 square feet of commercial space, a 6,500-seat sports arena, a grandstand and horse park. (A plan for a racetrack was nixed before it went to the Seaside City Council for a final vote in 2016.) It would have required the removal of nearly 30,000 trees from oak woodlands.

DeLapa also cites the removal of the Fort Ord Reuse Authority, "which was a wasteful government agency that didn't really listen to the public," he says, and helping to stop development of Ferrini Ranch along Highway 68. That land was acquired by the Big Sur Land Trust for conservation.

Recently LandWatch was involved as the county's 12 cities and the County of Monterey were revamping their housing elements, as required by the state. LandWatch leaders analyzed each housing plan and provided comments, urging municipalities to prioritize infill housing, as well as housing near job centers and resources.

DeLapa and others from LandWatch have been vocal in complex water issues on the Monterey Peninsula and the Salinas Valley, as well as in opposing land annexation proposals in South County.

It was that involvement in opposing annexation efforts that recently led to his unsuccessful bid to join the Local Agency Formation Commission of Monterey County as a public member. LAFCO is the agency that determines whether cities' can expand their boundaries through annexation. Monterey County Supervisor Kate Daniels, representing the County on the commission, suggested DeLapa was too biased to become a commissioner.

A recruiter hired by LandWatch estimated it will take about six months to find someone to hire. DeLapa says he will stay in the job and then transition to senior advisor to help the next executive director get their bearings "and give them plenty of runway to leave their own mark on the organization."

He has no plans to leave the area, with plans to do other work in the community.