Today, I'm offering listeners the chance to attend an important Planning Commission meeting, and to get out for a walk in the countryside at the same time. This Wednesday, March 16th, the Monterey County Planning Commission will be taking a field trip, to view the property where the so-called "September Ranch" subdivision is proposed. The property is located on Carmel Valley Road, between Del Mesa Carmel and Brookdale Drive, near the mouth of the Carmel Valley. The official tour begins at 9:45 a.m., on the site, and is scheduled to be over by noon. You're invited!

Taking a walk in Carmel Valley is a treat in itself. But this proposed project is one of great significance to the future of Carmel Valley, and maybe even to Monterey County as a whole. The planning issues should engage your attention just as much as the property on which the development is proposed. Approved once before, and then rejected by the courts, the September Ranch project is an example of how astute developers, and their attorneys, never stop trying to evade, elude, and avoid the laws and policies that seem pretty clearly to say that this project can't legally be approved. If it's approved again, those who want to separate Carmel Valley from the County, by incorporating the Valley as an independent City, may have their strongest argument yet. There's more information on the KUSP website.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

September Ranch Information
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/pbi/major/
september/sept_main.htm

Planning Commission Agendas
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/pbi/cca/pc05.htm

The Planning Commission will gather at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 16, 2005 at the Black Bear Diner, located in the Crossroads Shopping Center. Those wishing to participate in the tour are advised to proceed directly to the September Ranch site. For more information, or to RSVP, please contact Ann Towner at 831-883-7533, or by email at .

Monterey County is governed by a Board of five County Supervisors. They're elected from five geographically defined districts, and any three of these Supervisors can act on behalf of the entire population of Monterey County, currently at about 415,000 people. For the purposes of governmental decision making, the five County Supervisors are Monterey County. Meeting today, and on most Tuesdays, the Board of Supervisors will make decisions that fundamentally affect the future of every person now living in Monterey County, and the people who will live and work there in the future. The only real exception to the rule that the County Supervisors are the County, for the purpose of governmental decision making, is when members of the public act to bring issues directly before the voters, by way of a referendum or voter initiative.

The purpose of this refresher course on local government is to emphasize how important it is to "supervise the Supervisors." And that's true in every County, not just Monterey County. Today, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will set a hearing on a new County Code Enforcement Ordinance, and on an ordinance giving special protections to developers, so that they're insulated from future government decisions. The Board will also decide the fate of 15,000 pine trees in the Del Monte Forest, which the Pebble Beach Company wants to cut down for a new golf course.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

County Website
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/

Board of Supervisors March 15, 2005 Agenda
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/cttb/agenda.htm

Pebble Beach Plan
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/pbi/major/
pbc/030105_bos/030105_bos_main.htm

Talking about the importance of "supervising the Supervisors" is a shorthand way to remind everyone that if we genuinely believe in "self-government" we're going to have to get involved ourselves. Important as they are, our periodic elections are the place where the hard work of democratic self?]government begins, not where it ends. If we care about what our governmental institutions do, and we ought to, because they're doing it in our names, and with our money, and affecting our lives, then we need to follow up on those periodic elections with continued engagement and participation.

I guess the recent need for referendum measures, in Monterey County and in the City of Santa Cruz, has stimulated me to highlight the necessity of keeping in continuing close touch with what our elected representatives are proposing to do in our names, and with our money. It's not necessary for everyone to quit their day job, and to follow local government full time, but keeping informed, and stopping in on a key public meeting once and awhile certainly won't hurt.

For those who'd like to follow what the Santa Cruz County Transportation Commission is proposing to do, please note that there is a public hearing tomorrow morning, at 9:30 a.m., at the City of Watsonville City Council Chambers, at which the Commission will take testimony on the Draft 2005 Regional Transportation Plan for Santa Cruz County.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

Transportation Commission Website
http://www.sccrtc.org/body.html

Public Hearing Announcement
http://www.sccrtc.org/press/0503PHRTP.pdf

Agenda For March 17th Public Hearing
http://www.sccrtc.org/packet/2005/0503/TPWagenda0503.htm

The City of Monterey is inviting comments and suggestions on its 2005-2010 Consolidated Plan for addressing the housing and associated social service needs of the community. The Consolidated Plan, once adopted, will guide the City of Monterey in its efforts to deal with what most of us agree is a genuine affordable housing "crisis" throughout the entire Central Coast region, and most certainly including the City of Monterey.

While the City's website says the deadline for comments on its proposed Consolidated Plan is February 21st, the deadline has actually been extended to March 20th. If you're interested in housing and social service issues, particularly in the City of Monterey, please click on the Land Use Report link at www.kusp.org, and track down the transcript to today's Land Use Report. You'll find more information there on how you can get involved.

According to the City's calculations, Monterey will need to provide 1,220 housing units affordable to very low, low, moderate, and above moderate income persons during the next five years. One of the most significant barriers to providing such housing is the lack of an adequate water supply on the Monterey Peninsula. Interestingly, there are no specific programs proposed to deal with this problem. Maybe there ought to be. There are lots of other programs outlined in the proposed Consolidated Plan, and it's worth your review.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

Contact Sandra Reeder at 831-646-3728, or by email at .

City of Monterey Website
http://www.monterey.org/

News Release on the Consolidated Plan
http://www.monterey.org/release/2005/
newsrelease050210.html

A Public Hearing on the Consolidated Plan is currently scheduled at the Planning Commission on April 17, 2005

A Public Hearing on the Consolidated Plan is currently scheduled before the City Council on May 3, 2005

On Monday, March 21st, the Fort Ord Environmental Justice Network will host an Environmental Health Educational Forum at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Seaside, from 6::00. to 9:00 p.m. Dr. Peter deFur, a technical advisor hired by the Fort Ord Environmental Justice Network under a US EPA Technical Assistance Grant, will give a presentation on groundwater contamination and the effects of toxins on human health.

The reuse of Fort Ord is significantly complicated by a legacy of toxic contamination. Unexploded ordinance, for instance, is a significant problem in a large portion of the former Army Base. The fact that toxic compounds have leaked into the groundwater is also a significant issue. Under Federal law, the Army is supposed to assure the full cleanup of the Fort Ord lands prior to their transfer to civilian use. The US government, through the Federal EPA, has actually provided money to a local group, to ensure that there is vigorous public participation in the Army's efforts to identify and clean up toxic contamination. Attending the Forum on Monday is one way you can get informed, and get involved.

Past toxic contamination, affecting the future use of land, is not an issue unique to Fort Ord. It's a common problem throughout the United States. There is more information at www.kusp.org.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

Contact LeVonne Stone – 831-899-0803, or 831-883-1254, or contact Dan O'Brien by email at: .

Visit the website of the California Center for Land Recycling for more information
http://www.cclr.org/