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KUSP LandWatch
News
Week of May 10, 2004 to May 14, 2004
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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 May 10, 2004 to May 14, 2004
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,
May 10, 2004 – Highway One at The City
Tomorrow night, the Santa Cruz City Council will talk about the
proposed Highway One widening project, turning Highway One into
a six-lane freeway. Widening would have major environmental impacts,
and would be extremely expensive. Transportation experts question
the long term result. More lanes mean more capacity, and while more
capacity with the same volume of traffic means less congestion,
adding new capacity actually changes the other variable. Highway
widening increases traffic volumes (which makes sense, of course)
so the benefits of the widening get eaten up by what’s called
“induced demand.” After paying hundreds of millions of
dollars to widen the highway, there’s just as much traffic
congestion as before.
Widening proponents don’t like to discuss this, but this phenomenon is probably the major reason that the City of Santa Cruz hasn’t bitten into the tempting apple of the proposed widening project, despite a continuing barrage of editorial urgings by the local newspaper.
Mayor Scott Kennedy says the City is experiencing “political isolation.” He wants the City to start “horse trading,” and to support highway widening in return for rail funding. Strictly speaking, this recommendation is based on a political calculation, rather than on what good transportation planning might suggest. You can read the staff report, and find out more, at www.kusp.org.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
City of Santa Cruz Agenda
http://www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us/Highway One Staff Report: Agenda Item #27
http://www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us/
Tuesday,
May 11, 2004 – The City of Santa Cruz General Plan Update
Tonight, the Santa Cruz City Council will take up the issue of the
proposed Highway One widening project. That’s a pretty important
issue, and you may want to attend the meeting, or watch it on cable
television, to participate in or hear what is likely to be a rather
spirited debate.
This afternoon, the City Council will consider another item of key importance for the long term future of the City of Santa Cruz. Agenda Item #21 is a recommendation by City staff that the Council begin an update of the Santa Cruz City General Plan, by appointing a General Plan Committee.
Frequent listeners know how important the General Plan is. It’s the “Constitution for land use” for the local community, and will define the parameters of the City’s future growth and development. Economic, environmental, and social equity concerns will all be affected by what the General Plan ends up saying. Democratic self-government (still the best antidote to bad community decision making) demands that we get involved ourselves. I hope that at least some KUSP listeners will get involved in the City’s General Plan process. LandWatch Monterey County, the organization I work for, has published a citizen’s guide called “Land Use and the General Plan.” You can track down a copy by clicking on the Land Use Report link at www.kusp.org. Please send me your comments and suggestions, too!
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
City
of Santa Cruz Agenda
http://www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us/
General
Plan Update Staff Report: Agenda Item #21
http://www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us/
LandWatch
Website
http://www.landwatch.org
“Land
Use and the General Plan”
http://www.landwatch.org/pages/publications03/
gpsummit/landusegeneralplan.pdf
Wednesday,
May 12, 2004 – Moro Cojo Affordable Housing
Yesterday, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors discussed a
controversial planning item from the past. The Moro Cojo affordable
housing development, located on Castroville Boulevard, was developed
to provide affordable housing opportunities for lower income families.
Because the Moro Cojo development is somewhat isolated, out in the open countryside, it’s a kind of skip out subdivision that isn’t exactly a model of good planning. Nonetheless, it did meet an incredibly important community need, the need for good quality housing that could be afforded by families with lower incomes. There were lawsuits against the project, but the Board eventually approved it, and in doing so, the Board made a binding legal commitment that the housing to be produced would be permanently affordable to lower income families. As a practical matter, this means that the new housing had to have deed restrictions, so that the families purchasing a home in Moro Cojo would know that when they sold their home, they’d have to sell it at a below-market price that would allow a lower income family to buy it.
Turns out these deed restrictions were not really imposed as they should have been, and the Board is now trying to play “catch up” ball. Unless they’re successful, the lower income housing at Moro Cojo will be sold to those who can afford to pay $400,000 to $500,000 per home, and that most emphatically does not include families of lower income.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Monterey County Board of Supervisors Agenda
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/cttb/agenda.htm
Thursday,
May 13, 2004 – Genetically Engineered Crops
In 1988, when I was a member of the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors,
proposals were forthcoming to grow genetically-engineered crops
on Santa Cruz County lands. Similar proposals were made in Monterey
County. Both counties took action. If you’d like to see what
Santa Cruz County did, you can click on the Land Use Report link
at www.kusp.org. I’ve included a reference to the relevant
portions of the Santa Cruz County Code in the transcript of today’s
Land Use Report.
When people think of land use (or maybe I should say “if” people think of land use), they probably don’t think about things like the regulation of genetically-engineered organisms. However, the land use powers of a local government are “plenary” in scope. That means they cover the full range of issues that might affect the public health, safety, and welfare. In 1998, when I was no longer on the Board, the Board took action to regulate biomedical livestock operations, where animals, not plants, were the focus. I’ve put a reference to that section of the County Code on the KUSP website, too.
Here’s the action item for today. In San Luis Obispo County, an initiative is now circulating that would impose controls over genetically-engineered crops. If you’d like to get involved, you can contact the Environmental Center of San Luis Obispo County. They need help gathering signatures. Check the website for the right reference.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Santa Cruz County Code:
Section 7.30 on Genetically Engineered Crops
http://ordlink.com/codes/santacruzco/index.htmSection 13.10.647 on Biomedical Livestock Operations
http://ordlink.com/codes/santacruzco/index.htmECOSLO Website
http://www.ecoslo.org/
Friday,
May 14, 2004 – University Villages in Marina – Plan Ahead
The City of Marina is a real “hot spot” of planning opportunity.
Major new developments are being proposed, and the City Council
is at least interested in hearing about new ways of developing them.
We might contrast the City of Soledad, located in the middle of
the Salinas Valley. Development is booming there, too (in fact even
more so) but seems largely to consist of the kind of residential
subdivisions that have typified “suburban sprawl” all
over California. To pursue the possibility of innovative planning,
check out Marina.
Specifically, you can plan to attend the City Council meeting scheduled for May 18th. At that time, the developers of the proposed “University Villages” project will be presenting their proposed Master Plan. There will be ample opportunity for public comment, and I really encourage Marina residents, and other interested persons, to attend.
The proposed “University Villages” development is located on the former Fort Ord, immediately adjacent to the CSUMB campus. The development is taking place on public land. The public really should be in the driver’s seat, and if the public wants to try something new, they have every opportunity to make that happen. Developers typically like to build things they know will “sell,” and detached, lower density single family residences definitely do that. The opportunity for something a whole lot better will depend on community participation.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
City of Marina Website
http://www.ci.marina.ca.us/Marina Community Partners (the developers) Press Release
http://www.armanasco.com/pdf/115.pdfCentex Homes Website
http://www.centexhomes.com/Shea Homes Website
http://www.sheahomes.com/home_set.html
Archives of past transcripts are available here
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