KUSP 88.9 fm, Santa Cruz - Gary Patton's Land Use Report

Past Reports

The following Land Use Reports have been presented on KUSP by Gary Patton, General Counsel of The Planning and Conservation League. The opinions expressed by Mr. Patton are not necessarily those of KUSP
Radio, nor of any of its sponsors.

Note: The Land Use Report utilizes links provided by other entities and cannot guarantee that they will remain available by those hosting organizations. For broken links, please search via the website of the organization mentioned.

You can contact Gary Patton at PCL by emailing him at: gapatton@pcl.org.

Monday, February 4, 2008 – A Big Court Decision in San Luis Obispo!
A Superior Court judge has invalidated Measure J, a ballot initiative approved by San Luis Obispo County voters in November 2006. The initiative would have permitted a shopping center complex on the Dalidio Ranch. The Dalidio Ranch proposal is the exact opposite of what land use advocates often call “smart growth,” but smart or dumb, the most recent election did lead to the approval of Measure J.

The Court ruling, however, states that Measure J is legally ineffective, because it’s in conflict with the State Aeronautics Act. That law requires local airport land-use commissions to establish plans for safety around airfields. Measure J ignored this, but local voters can’t contravene basic state law.

Measure J also attempted to create a unique zone for the Dalidio project. The county's other zones address general characteristics such as urban, rural, rural-residential, or agricultural. Unlike those zones, the Dalidio zone didn't merely specify what could be built on the land and under what circumstances; it was specific about what will be built. In other words, Measure J was equivalent to a “project” decision, not a “policy” decision. While the voters have policy power, they are not able to use the local initiative to make what are sometimes called “administrative” decisions.

The court ruling illustrates that there are important restriction on the voters’ initiative powers.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information
News Story - http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/story/263713.html

I will be presenting a CEQA workshop in San Luis Obispo County this coming Saturday, February 9th. You can get more information, and register online. Here’s the link - http://www.pclfoundation.org/projects/ceqa/020908workshop.html

Tuesday, February 5, 2008 – Final and Draft EIRs
Item A-13 on today’s agenda of the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors is a request that the Board approve an Addendum to a Final Environmental Impact Report for the Nacimiento Water Project. This is a major project that will convey up to 15,570 acre-feet of water from Lake Nacimiento to local water agencies in San Luis Obispo County.

As I reviewed this item, it struck me that I should probably make an observation that is self-evident to those who are familiar with the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, but that might not be so obvious to others.

Where CEQA is concerned, the “Final” document is much less important than the “Draft.” A “Draft” EIR is a document that is open to comment and criticism by any member of the public. That’s when you can have an actual effect on what might happen. Comments on a Draft EIR play a critical role. Governmental agencies are legally required to take comments on a Draft EIR seriously, and to respond to them substantively. The “Final” EIR may be important in a court battle, but by the time it’s out, public participation has largely ended.

You can learn more about CEQA at a workshop being held in San Luis Obispo County this coming Saturday, February 9th. There’s more information on the KUSP website.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information
San Luis Obispo County Website – http://www.slocounty.ca.gov/site4.aspx
Board of Supervisors Agenda – http://slocounty.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=2&event_id=31
Staff Report on Agenda Item A-13 - http://slocounty.granicus.com/MetaViewer.php?view_id=2&event_id=31&meta_id=84128

I will be presenting a CEQA workshop in San Luis Obispo County this coming Saturday, February 9th. You can get more infrmation, and register online. Here’s the link - http://www.pclfoundation.org/projects/ceqa/020908workshop.html

Wednesday, February 6, 2008 –Lawsuits and Democracy
I’ve recently changed my job description at the Planning and Conservation League. Up until last Friday, I was the Executive Director. Now I’m the “General Counsel.” Actually, I used to be the PCL General Counsel, some years ago, and I’ve returned to that position effective February 1st. The change is good news for me, and for PCL, and one advantage is that I’ll be able to spend more time in and around the Central Coast region. Another “advantage,” if you can call it that (and actually I do call it that) is that I’m now going to be charged specifically with responsibility for the litigation activities of PCL.

Lawsuits and litigation aren’t on everybody’s “top ten” list. It’s easy to see lawsuits as representing a “failure” of the system. Let me suggest to you, however, that the debate and discussion that leads to public decision-making must follow a set of rules. Otherwise, those who have more economic and political power will take unfair advantage. Deciding whether or not the rules are being followed does require that there be a “referee,” and the courts play that role. Democratic self-government is based on the idea that we argue and debate issues – and then come to a decision. Having a system in place to make sure the debate is carried out according to the established rules, and is fair, is one of our “successes” as a free society.

Keep that (and PCL) in mind, as you work on environmental issues at the local level.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information
A number of the very best land use and environmental attorneys in the state of California are also members of the PCL Board of Directors. They include: Former Attorney General John Van de Kamp, President Emeritus; Byron Sher, former State Senator, and currently serving as a member of the Sierra Nevada Conservancy Board of Directors; Bill Yeates, author of the impressive publication, “Community Guide to CEQA;” Kevin Johnson, environmental attorney n San Diego; Jan Chatten-Brown, former Deputy Attorney General now in private practice in Los Angeles; Tony Rossmann (water law) and Fran Layton (forestry, land use, and local government law), and Peter Weiner (toxics and state regulation), all in private practice in San Francisco.

You can keep abreast of PCL by checking in to the PCL website frequently – www.pcl.org

Thursday, February 7, 2008 – Transportation Taxes in Santa Cruz County
Today, the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission will be deciding whether or not to proceed with a transportation funding sales tax measure. The meeting starts at 9:00 o’clock this morning, and will be held at the Watsonville City Council Chambers. It will also be televised live on Community TV. If you’d like to review the agenda packet that members of the Commission will be consulting, you can get the link by tracking down the transcript of today’s Land Use Report, found on the KUSP website.

The Commission does not have the power, itself, to impose a new sales tax for widening Highway One, and for other purposes. The voters have reserved that right to themselves. In fact, it takes a two-thirds vote. The Commission can, however, design and propose a sales tax measure, and did propose one a couple of years ago. That measure, basically aimed at widening Highway One in Santa Cruz County, did not even get a majority vote. This time around, the debate should be interesting. This is particularly true since long time business supporters of a sales tax election have recently backed off, on the basis that the voters would probably reject a new sales tax measure, if presented to them now.

I’ve been encouraging KUSP listeners (on both sides of the Bay) to get involved in the debate about the sales tax increases proposed in both Monterey County and Santa Cruz County. It would be hard to find an issue with more land use implications.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information
Transportation Commission Agenda Packet - http://www.sccrtc.org/packet/2008/0802/TCAgenda0802.htm
Staff Recommendation - http://www.sccrtc.org/packet/2008/0802/0802-24a.pdf
The live telecast will be available on both Charter Television and Comcast Cable

Friday, February 8, 2008 – Chanterelle Cook Off
Frequent listeners know of my reiterated suggestion that we ought to be getting personally involved in the land use and environmental decision-making processes that occur, mostly, at the local level of government. Day after day, I suggest meetings to attend, and workshops to attend to prepare you for the meetings you should attend. My “unhidden agenda” is to urge your involvement in democratic self-government in the arena of land use, the environment, and public health.

Well, have a little fun, too! If you’d like to mark your calendars ahead, you can set your compass for an event scheduled in Big Sur on February 22nd, 23rd, and 24th. This is the 2nd Annual Big Sur Chanterelle Cook-Off. It is sponsored by the Big Sur Land Trust and the Pelican Network, among others, and features a mushroom walk, a panel and workshop, Celtic and Irish music and poetry, and (most notably) a competition among Big Sur Chefs, as they celebrate the wonderful cuisine of this spectacular place.

We Central Coast residents are lucky! We start taking Big Sur for granted. Shouldn’t do it! It’s there, and the way it is, because of the dedicated work of those who passed (and then implemented) the California Coastal Act.

I’ll be back to talk about more meetings next week. This weekend, get outside in the landscape we know we must both protect and restore. And get ready for that Chanterelle celebration at the end of the month!

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information
Find out about the Chanterelle Cook-Off - http://www.pelicannetwork.net/chanterelle.htm