Supervisor Pedroza Investigated For Conflict Of Interest Accusations

By Katy St. Clair, Bay City News Foundation

NAPA COUNTY, CA — California's Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) has opened an investigation into possible conflict of interest accusations against Napa County Supervisor Alfredo Pedroza, according to the agency and a person who filed the complaints.

The letter confirming the investigation was sent on March 25 to Napa resident and filmmaker Beth Nelsen, who had filed complaints about Pedroza with the agency. According to FPPC spokesperson Jay Wierenga, his agency received a total of eight complaints regarding the supervisor.

Nelsen had presented the Board of Supervisors with the finding that Pedroza's father-in-law, Esteban Llamas, is named as the owner of land adjacent to Walt Ranch, a tract of land in the Napa Valley purchased in 2005 by a wealthy Dallas businessman and his wife, Craig and Kathryn Hall.
An appeal to the Walt Ranch request to plant grapevines on the property — thereby removing thousands of old oak trees — has been the subject of Board of Supervisors meetings.

During a board meeting in December, Pedroza voted on a tentative hearing regarding greenhouse gas mitigation at Walt Ranch without disclosing that his father-in-law owned the property next door under the name "Vinedos LLC," Spanish for vineyard. Vinedos purchased the land in May 2021 for $2 million.

The value of the adjacent property could ostensibly rise after the Halls successfully install a vineyard at Walt Ranch, so some argued that he should have recused himself from any decisions regarding the 2,300-acre property.

It wasn't just a case of Pedroza's father-in-law owning the land next door to Walt Ranch, however. Nelsen was able to uncover several things that linked the Vinedos company to Pedroza, which they have documented. Pedroza's signature is on two checks for property taxes on his father-in-law's land. The supervisor also used his home as collateral for Vinedos' financing of the property.

Then there's the $35,000 in political donations made to Pedroza's campaign from the Halls, owners of Walt Ranch. According to Pedroza's campaign disclosure forms, the couple were among his largest donor over a three-year period. He also lists "gifts" from them as "Harvest Dinners" for $120 in both 2018 and 2017.

Neither Pedroza nor his attorney returned a request for comment for this story.

During a board meeting on March 1, Pedroza expressed concern over "troubling attacks" toward himself and his family regarding the matter.

"I've lost sleep over it," he said. "It's impacted my family."

Pedroza has since recused himself from discussions and votes regarding the land, but the backlash has been visible. On March 1, protesters picketed outside the Board of Supervisors meeting with signs reminiscent of Shepard Fairey's Barack Obama artwork for his "Hope" campaign, which read "No Hope: Resign Alfredo."

After Nelsen uncovered Pedroza's association with the land and forwarded her concerns to the FPPC, they opened their investigation. According to Wierenga, the FPPC spokesperson, the average length of time for an investigation is 141 days, though he said this can vary wildly, with some taking weeks and others years.

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