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KUSP LandWatch
News
Week of April 28, 2003 to May 2, 2003
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KUSP LandWatch
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KUSP provided a brief Land Use Report on KUSP Radio from January 2003 to May 2016. Archives of past transcripts are available here.
Week of April 28, 2003 to May 2, 2003
The following Land Use Reports have been presented on KUSP Radio by Gary Patton, Executive Director of LandWatch Monterey County. The opinions expressed by Mr. Patton are not necessarily those of KUSP Radio, nor of any of its sponsors.
Monday,
April 28, 2003 – The Monterey County General Plan Update
“GPU” means “General Plan Update.” We last visited
the Monterey County GPU in November of last year. Right around Thanksgiving,
the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, after months of hearings,
directed its staff to rewrite and revise the proposed General Plan
Update. The Board further instructed the staff to return the rewritten
document to the Board, prior to a second round of public comment
and environmental review.
That direction, given last November, is being accomplished tomorrow. Hundreds of Monterey County residents have participated in the General Plan Update process. If you’re one of them, and want to get reengaged, or if you’d like to start participating now, you might want to attend the Board of Supervisors’ meeting tomorrow. The Board is scheduled to receive the rewritten General Plan Update at 10:00 o’clock.
The “first draft” of the Monterey County General Plan Update was about 500 pages. Look for the second draft to be just as long! According to County staff, it will cost you $95 to get a printed copy, but a CD Rom version, and a version on the County website, will make it a little cheaper to find out what the County staff has done. Tomorrow, I’ll talk more about the Monterey County GPU. In the meantime, you can visit www.kusp.org, for some additional references.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Monterey County GPU Website
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/gpu/Monterey County Board of Supervisors Agenda
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/suagenda/
Tuesday,
April 29, 2003 – More On The Monterey County GPU
This morning at 10:00 a.m., at the County Courthouse in Salinas,
the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will receive a “second
draft” of a proposed Monterey County General Plan Update. This
General Plan Update has been in the works for about three years,
and the County has spent more than three million dollars on the
process so far.
To say that the GPU has been controversial would be an understatement. Large landowners and development interests really hated the “first draft” of the GPU. On the other hand, the public liked it. A poll, conducted late last year by The Nature Conservancy, found that eight out of ten Monterey County residents supported the Guiding Objectives that were the foundation for the “first draft” document. These objectives require that new growth be directed into existing urban areas, that more affordable housing be provided, and that farmlands and natural areas be preserved. A broad-based coalition, called the Coalition to Protect Housing, Farmlands, Air & Water, is attempting to mobilize the public in favor of these principles, and to convince the Board of Supervisors to maintain the “anti-sprawl” emphasis of the GPU.
The Board of Supervisors did water down some of the anti-sprawl provisions in the “first draft,” and it’s unclear, at this point, what the “second draft” GPU is going to look like. To find out more, keep listening, and check the KUSP website.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Monterey County GPU Website
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/gpu/Monterey County Board of Supervisors Agenda
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/suagenda/Coalition to Protect Housing, Farmlands, Air & Water
http://www.8of10monterey.com/
Wednesday,
April 30, 2003 – Purchase Of The Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line
Tomorrow, May 1st, the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation
Commission and Service Authority for Freeway Emergencies (that’s
quite a name!) will conduct an important public hearing.
The hearing is in the evening, at 7:00 p.m., in the Board of Supervisors’ Chambers at the Santa Cruz County Courthouse. The question presented is whether or not the Transportation Commission (that’s what it’s usually called) should purchase the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line, which is a railroad right of way.
The monies that would be used for the purchase are monies set aside specifically for rail transit. They can’t be used for other purposes, like parks and recreation, more Sheriff’s deputies, or In Home Supportive Services. The issue is really one of long term transportation and land use policy. Does it make sense for Santa Cruz County to preserve the long term ability of the public to use the existing railroad right of way for transportation purposes?
A preliminary study has been done, and the action tomorrow would authorize more studies, preparatory to the actual purchase of the right of way. A society built on the individual automobile is what we’ve got now. The decision confronting the Transportation Commission is whether we want to consider some possible alternatives for the future.
There’s more information on the KUSP website. Click on the Land Use Report Link at www.kusp.org.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Santa Cruz County Transportation Commission Website
http://www.sccrtc.org/body.htmlCommission Agenda
http://www.sccrtc.org/packet/2003/0305/PHAgenda0305.htmStudy on Rail Line Acquisition
http://www.sccrtc.org/pdf/railED.pdf
Thursday,
May 1, 2003 – Monterey County LAFCO’s Ag Buffer Workshop
Tomorrow, Friday May 2nd, the Monterey County Local Agency Formation
Commission (called LAFCO) is holding an Agricultural Buffer Workshop.
The workshop will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon at the office
of the Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner, 1432 Abbott Street,
in Salinas.
LAFCOs play an incredibly important role in land use planning. Specifically, LAFCOs decide whether cities will be allowed to annex lands on their borders. Throughout the Central Coast, wherever cities are located in the midst of commercially productive agricultural land, this decision is crucial. A LAFCO that always says “yes” to a proposed annexation of agricultural land can help turn an agricultural area into Orange County. There is a LAFCO in Orange County, and there used to be lots of agricultural land there. You get the picture.
Since the agricultural land of the Salinas Valley is the most economically productive agricultural land in the nation (and maybe the world), you’d think that there would be no effort to turn that “green gold mine,” as it’s sometimes called, into subdivisions and shopping centers. You’d be wrong. Salinas Valley cities are asking the Monterey County LAFCO to approve the conversion of at least 10,000 acres of that land, which would be a healthy step towards that Orange County future.
The LAFCO workshop tomorrow will be worth attending.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Monterey County LAFCO
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/lafco/Current Ag Policy
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/lafco/Policies/
AG%20LANDS%20PRESER%20POL-1.htm
Friday,
May 2, 2003 – Implementation of Measure U
The Monterey County Local Agency Formation Commission (or LAFCO)
is holding a workshop at 10:00 o’clock this morning, on Agricultural
Buffers. You’re encouraged to attend. You can get more information
by clicking on the Land Use Report link at www.kusp.org.
The Santa Cruz County LAFCO is also engaged in some interesting and important work that relates to the preservation of agricultural land. Over the years, the Santa Cruz County LAFCO has been quite successful in preventing the annexation and conversion of prime agricultural land, and has simply turned down many such annexation proposals. It probably has the best record in the State of California on this score, as a matter of fact.
Now, however, because of the passage of Measure U in the City of Watsonville, the Santa Cruz County LAFCO must decide whether to allow Watsonville to carry out a set of phased annexations of agricultural land, mostly in the so-called “Buena Vista” area. If LAFCO gives the “ok” to these specific annexations, Measure U will impose an urban growth boundary to protect other, more extensive areas. In other words, by adopting Measure U last November, by a very significant margin, incidentally, Watsonville voters have suggested a kind of “deal” to LAFCO. It’s a fascinating, and probably precedent-setting proposition. You can get a lot more information on the website.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Monterey County LAFCO
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/lafco/For details on the Ag Buffer Workshop, see the transcript for Thursday, May 1, 2003.
Santa Cruz County LAFCO
http://www.santacruzlafco.org/LAFCO Report on Measure U
http://www.santacruzlafco.org/pages/agendas/
030503materials/Wats%20March.pdfText of Watsonville Measure U
http://www.actionpajarovalley.org/initiative/initiative.htmlMeasure U Map
http://www.santacruzlafco.org/Action Pajaro Valley Growth Management Strategy
http://www.actionpajarovalley.org/docs/growtheng.html
Archives of past transcripts are available here
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