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KUSP LandWatch
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ogo.gif" width="108" height="109" border="0"> "Listen Live" |
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 November 10, 2003 to November 14, 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,
November 10, 2003 – State Legislation on Land Use Reform
On Friday, I mentioned that last year’s passage of Assembly
Bill 857 could have a dramatic impact on the future growth and development
of California. The bill was sponsored by the California Futures
Network, and was authored by Assembly Member Patricia Wiggins, from
Napa and Sonoma County.
The California Futures Network is an alliance of business, labor, social justice, and environmental groups that is trying to bring some much-needed reform to California’s system of land use regulation. AB 857 focuses on infrastructure, as one of the key components of growth, and seeks to make sure that future infrastructure investments don’t actually stimulate urban sprawl.
In simple terms, AB 857 establishes three state planning priorities. First, to promote infill development. Second, to protect environmental and agricultural resources. Third, to encourage efficient development patterns by ensuring that any infrastructure associated with development that is not infill will be built adjacent to existing developed areas.
The power of the bill is a requirement that “every officer, agency, department, or instrumentality of state government … ensure that their entity's … functional plan is consistent” with these three state planning priorities. Properly implemented, AB 857 will chart a new course for California.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
California Futures Network
http://www.calfutures.org/Text of AB 857
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/01-02/bill/asm/ab_0851-0900/ab_857_bill_20020928_chaptered.html
Tuesday,
November 11, 2003 – CSAC and Legislation
Next week, the California State Association of Counties (or CSAC)
will be meeting in Monterey. County Supervisors from all 58 California
counties are likely to be eating dinner on Cannery Row, and strolling
along Alvarado Street, when they’re not attending meetings
at the Monterey Conference Center. Speaking to CSAC this year will
be local hero Leon Panetta, and state political pundit, and newspaper
columnist Dan Walters.
CSAC is quite active on growth and planning issues in the State Capitol, and has a number of lobbyists hard at work. If you click on the Land Use Report link at www.kusp.org, you can find out about CSAC’s legislative priorities. They include the following in the areas of transportation, land use, and housing:
ß Support for dedicated transportation funding, to allow local governments to meet transportation needs.
ß Implementation of AB 857’s infrastructure policies (mentioned yesterday on the Land Use Report). And…
ß Continued work on housing element reform and efforts to improve the availability of affordable housing in California.
County Supervisors are pretty approachable. If you’re interested in land use policy, ask your own Supervisor to get active on the state level, through CSAC, in support of the planning policies you prefer.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
California State Association of Counties
http://www.csac.counties.org/CSAC Annual Meeting in Monterey
http://www.csac.counties.org/services/annual_meeting/index.htmlCSAC Planning Priorities
http://www.csac.counties.org/legislation/legislative_priorities/
state_legislative_priorities.html
Wednesday,
November 12, 2003 – The League of Cities and Land Use
There are 58 California counties. There are 478 incorporated cities.
Local government in California is predominantly city government.
Since good planning principles direct growth into existing urban
areas, it’s quite appropriate that local governmental institutions
(cities) should be there to meet the challenge. In fact, the number
of cities is growing. Fifteen new cities have been created since
1989.
Just as County Supervisors have an organization to represent them, City Council Members have the League of California Cities. Just like the California State Association of Counties, the League of Cities has an active program of legislative advocacy. The League of Cities, though, does something that the Association of Counties doesn’t. The League has developed what might be called a “think tank” on local government issues. It’s called the Institute for Local Self Government, and I’ve included a reference to its website in the transcript of today’s Land Use Report. If you visit the website, you’ll find references to all of the following publications:
Find out how to order these important books at www.kusp.org.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
City Facts
http://www.cacities.org/doc.asp?id=53League of Cities Legislative Priorities
http://www.cacities.org/doc.asp?id=6376Institute For Local Self Government
http://www.ilsg.org/
Thursday,
November 13, 2003 – The PVWMA Water Importation Plan
On October 29th, the Federal Bureau of Reclamation held a public
hearing to receive comments on a proposed water importation project.
The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency is planning to build a
pipeline, to import water from the Central Valley. Even if you missed
the hearing, you still have a chance to get involved.
Environmental review for the proposed pipeline project is being carried out under the National Environmental Policy Act (or NEPA). This is the federal equivalent to the California Environmental Quality Act (or CEQA). Both laws make clear that decision makers need to have all the environmental facts, before making a decision, and both laws require decision makers to respond to any substantive comments received. You can get more information on the process at the KUSP website, www.kusp.org.
Importing water into the Pajaro Basin is the solution that the local agency has chosen best to respond to a very real overdraft crisis. Where that water is going to come from, and where it goes, is the essence of the environmental inquiry. Will importing water from the Central Valley have an adverse impact on the already imperiled fisheries of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta? And, once the water’s here, will it really solve overdraft problems, or just spur more growth?
These are very good questions, indeed.
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency
http://www.pvwma.dst.ca.us/home.htmBureau of Reclamation, Mid-Pacific Region Website
http://www.usbr.gov/mp/Fact Sheet on PVWMA DEIS
http://www.usbr.gov/mp/nepa/ [Click on South-Central California Area]For more information contact Lynne Silva at 559-487-5807 or Charles McNiesh at 831-722-9292
Friday,
November 14, 2003 – Big Sur Multi-Agency Meeting
My calendar shows a meeting this morning of the Big Sur Multi-Agency
Advisory Council. Their meetings begin at 10:00 a.m., and often
run past noon. The meeting is open to the public, but you’ll
need to get down to the Pfeiffer Big Sur Lodge Conference Center,
in the Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park.
This is a meeting you just can’t help but like, because it’s as full of diversity as a Christmas fruitcake. Here’s who’s involved: the Big Sur Chamber of Commerce, the Monterey County Planning and Building Inspection Department, the Coast Property Owners’ Association, the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District, the California Coastal Commission, CALTRANS, the State Department of Parks and Recreation, the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, the United States Forest Service, County Supervisor Dave Potter, Congress Member Sam Farr, State Senator Bruce McPherson, and Assembly Member John Laird.
That’s just a partial list. The residents of Big Sur play a predominant role. Every issue that could be an issue is an issue at this meeting: garbage service, potholes, property rights, and affordable housing. That’s just a partial list.
Big
Sur doesn’t have its own city council, and this meeting is
real local self-government in the town hall tradition. And if you
think that all the land use issues have been decided, think again!
For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
More Information:
For the latest word on the Big Sur Multi-Agency Meeting, contact Supervisor Dave Potter at: (831) 647-7755.
Archives of past transcripts are available here
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