Warren Church (October 19, 1929 – September 2, 2017)[1] was an American politician and educator who served on the Monterey County Board of Supervisors from 1965 to 1977.

Church opposed the incorporation of North Monterey County, calling it an "'extremely poor, short sighted and senseless reason,'" but felt that Castroville was ready.

[7] However, the runoff of the top two candidates led to the election of Church to the Monterey County Board of Supervisors November 3, 1964.

[12] In 1972 Church was invited to a Salinas Board of Realtors meeting to discuss campaign issues in a private setting.

Church declined stating: I do not represent special interest groups and therefore cannot participate in these private affairs where the press is specifically prohibited.

[13]In November 1972, the Board heard arguments for relaxing zoning ordinances for mobile homes in North Monterey County.

One Pacific Grove resident, Art Woodfin, complained about the ban stating that he "had an option on 15 acres of land in North County and planned to put mobile homes on it."

"[17] In August 1975, Church announced that he would not seek re-election to the Board of Supervisors saying, "'12 years is as long as anyone should consecutively hold any one elective or appointive position... New ideas are necessary for proper functioning of government.'"

"[19][2] Reflecting on needs of the county for his successor, Church said that "growth and property taxes... the two major problems facing Monterey County... prohibit general use of the property tax and adopt low density zoning... we don't have to become South San Jose.

"[18] Further about his tenure with the Board, Church reflected, "I see no basis to bring suit against the county, except perhaps for the amount and color of my hair."

[2]In 1975 Church pointed out that there is a relationship between growth and property taxes leading to agricultural land being sold for development.

[18] One outcome was the passage in 1976 of a Board of Supervisors resolution to establish "growth guidelines to protect the character of the county.

[25] At the end of his tenure, the Californian stated that Church was a strong supporter of the library system and initiated the first family planning program in Monterey County.

The company wanted to build a 50,000-barrel-a-day refinery with plans to expand to 150,000–200,000 barrels-a-day on a 444 acre site on the wetlands near Moss Landing at the Elkhorn Slough.

Monterey County was deeply divided on the plan with tourism proponents, some agricultural interests and a nascent environmental movement opposing the refinery.

However, public opinion surveys showed greater than 2 to 1 support for the Humble Oil refinery with Church's supervisorial district in favor with 82%.

[26] "It is not just the Humble Oil refinery we are fighting at Moss Landing," said Carmel Highlands photographer Ansel Adams prior to the decision.

[34][35] The Salinas Californian stated, "It is conceivable in the future that other areas debating the admittance of an oil refinery will look at Monterey County as an example of strict regulations.

[26] On May 18, 1966, Humble Oil announced a suspension of all activities at Moss Landing, publicly stating that a prime reason for abandoning the site was the difficulty of achieving a permit for a larger refinery.

[37] Public outcry and a legal challenge plus engineering problems also discouraged Humble Oil, and they eventually pulled out of Monterey County and decided to build a bigger refinery up north in more-welcoming Benicia.

He has grown Christmas trees in properties in Hidden Valley, at Omo Ranch, CA., Egremont, Ma., and Wadena, Mn.