County Pulls Plug On Concert Venue -- Granite Falls Ranch Faulted On Permits

The Georgia Satellites were rained on.

Iron Butterfly's show didn't turn a profit.

But with an upcoming two-act show featuring Dr. Hook and the Little River Band, the region's newest concert venue had hoped to really start jumping.

Instead, the Scherrer Ranch southeast of Granite Falls is dancing with Snohomish County bureaucrats. And those county folks aren't concerned about ticket prices or the nearest portable toilet; they want building permits and conditional-use permits.

So the two-act rock show, planned for July 30 at the ranch, is off.

So is this weekend's Special Olympics benefit. And a concert by the soft-rock group America, scheduled for Aug. 6, might be doomed as well.

For four years, the ranch has obtained special-event permits to host an annual motorcycle rally.

This year, the ranch decided to expand its repertoire. It sought a few more special-event permits for open-air concerts, and started building a permanent stage. All seemed to be going well until June 7, when a county worker showed up at the 168-acre ranch and stuck a "stop work" order on the stage.

The county said the stage was constructed without building permits.

Since all the stage lacked by then was a back wall and a roof, ranch workers just threw a tarp over the top and went on as planned with the first three events, starting with the motorcycle rally June 9 to 11.

"We did stop work on the stage. They never said we couldn't use it," said John Scherrer, 51, who inherited the homestead ranch from his father, Ulrich "Babe" Scherrer.

But now the county has gotten serious. The ranch isn't just putting on "special events," it's operating a concert venue. And that means it needs county building and conditional-use permits, said Frank Wyckoff, the county's manager of operations and enforcement.

Scherrer plans to talk with county planners tomorrow to find out what that means. He consulted with an attorney yesterday, he said.

He's somewhat optimistic that the county's red tape might be surmountable and that everything might work out after all. But in the meantime, he's upset about the canceled shows.

"Open spaces are property that has been set aside for the public to enjoy," he said. "What better way for them to enjoy it than at a concert?"