Room Enough: FINDINGS

ADDRESSING HOUSING NEEDS FOR 2020

PRIME AGRICULTURAL LAND REQUIRED
An issue of concern to LandWatch and Monterey County is the potential for loss of prime agricultural lands outside existing city limits. The chart below indicates the acreage that would be required to meet the housing needs of 2020 if care is taken.

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
Combining all the calculations, the study found that the housing required by the 2020 household population forecast could be met without substantial loss of agricultural and open space land. In fact, a maximum of 811 acres of Prime Agricultural land currently in adopted Spheres of Influence and 301 acres immediately adjacent to existing Spheres are all that would be required. All of this could be accomplished by following responsible land use policies, namely by:

• building on existing legal lots of record to the extent permitted by existing plans and regulation;
  
  
• considering existing pipeline projects in all areas
  
  
• building in existing spheres of influence.

There is no question that this requires policy decisions by each jurisdiction that are aimed at providing quality of life for its residents, preserving agricultural land and open space and directed at providing housing for existing residents rather than attracting more population from adjacent counties.