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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 Monday, March 16, 2009 – Water On The Peninsula If you’re looking for an opportunity to help shape the future of the Monterey Peninsula, I want to recommend a meeting being held tonight by the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District. The meeting begins at 7:00 o’clock, in the District Conference Room, located at 5 Harris Court, Building G, in Monterey. To the extent we find out what’s happening to us, we take the first step towards being able to make things happen the way we want. The realities we create by implementing public policy are not determined by fate. The human world in which we most immediately reside is created by our own actions. That means that whatever realities we confront in that human-created world are realities that we can change. To make changes, though, we first have to know what’s happening now. Then, if we want to spend the energy to do it, we can usually modify our existing, current reality, since our current “reality” is the product of past human decisions, and thus susceptible to change. The meeting this evening will focus on two different issues. Looking to the past, the Board will consider the Ryan Ranch business park, since it appears that there are not sufficient water supplies to allow this development to “build out” as originally permitted. Second, looking ahead, the Board is going to discuss the proposed Coastal Water Project. The decisions made about that project may affect not only the Peninsula but the entirety of Monterey County, for years to come. For KUSP, this is Gary Patton. More Information March 16, 2008 Agenda, Monterey Peninsula Water Management District – Tuesday, March 17, 2009 – Item S-1: Participation Makes A Difference I like to celebrate the fact that our individual and organized participation in public policy decisions can change the world. That’s true even in Monterey County, where local government practices have the hard resistance (if not the brilliance) of diamonds, and where the political process has been anything but open. I served as the Executive Director of LandWatch Monterey County from 1998 to 2005. Having come from the Santa Cruz County side of the Bay, I expected members of the Monterey County Board of Supervisors to place items on the agenda in response to concerns raised in the community. In fact, that’s how representative government is supposed to work. The public raises concerns, and the government responds to those concerns, and our elected officials are supposed to make that happen. In Monterey County, however, since 1998, not one member of the Board of Supervisors, even one time, has placed even one policy item on the Board agenda. Today, Item S-1 on the Board’s agenda does show that community participation can make a difference, and I’d propose a round of applause for activist Marjorie Kay. Ms. Kay has individually appealed a proposed subdivision application, and has advanced the matter to the Board, where the recommendation is to turn down a proposal to subdivide property in North Monterey County, since water supplies there are already overdrafted. You might want to watch what the Board does on this one! For KUSP, this is Gary Patton. More Information Monterey County Board of Supervisors Agenda, March 17, 2009 – http://monterey.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=5 Wednesday, March 18, 2009 – Modifying The Natural Environment The San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission will meet on March 26th. One of the items on the agenda is a hearing to consider a request to allow grading on slopes in excess of thirty percent. The proposed project, which is a single family residence, is located in Cayucos. According to County staff, the proposed project raises no significant environmental concerns. If you have an interest in this matter, this is a “heads up” advisory on the upcoming hearing. To me, what is most interesting is not so much this specific application, but to see whether the Planning Commission will stand up for the general rule that grading on slopes over thirty percent should not be permitted. Grading is one of the most environmentally problematic of all human activities related to development, despite what County staff may say. From a philosophical perspective, when we grade a site in connection with development we are rejecting the world that nature presents to us, and instead of accommodating our construction to the existing contours and constraints of the land, we reshape and modify the natural environment. That can result in loss of habitat vital to endangered species, and almost always has the effect of increasing erosion and therefore diminishing water quality. Restrictions on grading on steep slopes will be a big issue in the upcoming hearings on the Monterey County General Plan. We all have a stake in the outcome. For KUSP, this is Gary Patton. More Information: San Luis Obispo County Website – http://www.slocounty.ca.gov/site4.aspx Meeting Schedule and Agenda Access, San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission - Agenda, March 25, 2009 Planning Commission Meeting – Thursday, March 19, 2009 – The Housing Element The Santa Cruz County General Plan is the “Constitution” for land use in Santa Cruz County, and all land use decisions must be “consistent” with the General Plan. State law requires that seven specific elements be included in the General Plan: Land Use, Circulation, Housing, Conservation, Open Space, Public Safety, and Noise. Of these mandatory elements, only the Housing Element must be updated according to a specific, legally defined timeframe. In Santa Cruz County, both the timeframe for producing the Housing Element, and its contents, have been controversial. Most recently, Santa Cruz County achieved a conditional certification of its current Housing Element, based on a County commitment to rezone 30 acres of property for higher density housing. Last Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors established a process for updating the Housing Element for the next planning period, from 2007 to 2014. A critical component of the Housing Element is the evaluation of adequate residential sites available to meet the identified needs for housing for all income levels. If you are a resident of an unincorporated area of Santa Cruz County, decisions relating to the Housing Element may well impact you. I’d like to recommend that you obtain a copy of Item #23 from last Tuesday’s agenda, and review it. The update process will be going forward during most of this calendar year. For KUSP, this is Gary Patton. More Information Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors Agenda, March 17, 2009 – Agenda Item #23, relating to the Housing Element, can be downloaded from the above website. Friday, March 20, 2009 – What I Plan To Tell The Sierra Club Tomorrow, I will address a statewide meeting of conservation activists who are working through the Sierra Club on issues like land use, energy, air pollution, toxics, and transportation. At a time when we face a global environmental crisis, it’s great to know that there are hundreds of individuals in local communities around the state, working on these critical problems. If you’d like to hook up personally with the Sierra Club, I’ve put some links in today’s transcript. What I plan to tell the activists I’ll address tomorrow is exactly the same thing I tell Land Use Report listeners each weekday, here on KUSP Radio:
I truly believe that our action at the local and state level on land use issues can be particularly important as we face the environmental challenges that are putting our civilization in peril; therefore, my advice is to get involved, and to get involved now! For KUSP, this is Gary Patton. More Information Sierra Club, California – http://www.sierraclubcalifornia.org/ |