Today, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will hold a special meeting, at which they are expected to approve a new development proposal for Rancho San Juan. Rancho San Juan is located to the north of the City of Salinas, off Highway 101. Last December, the Board approved the largest development project in the County’s history, modifying the General Plan to permit the development, since what the developer wanted was totally inconsistent with requirements of the General Plan. Predictably, the approval of this massive development stimulated both lawsuits and a referendum. The lawsuits are still pending, and the referendum election (allowing the people to decide) is scheduled to take place tomorrow.

The Board’s special meeting today is intended to make the election tomorrow “moot,” according to County staff. In other words, while project opponents spent incredible amounts of time, energy (and money) to give the people their Constitutional right to vote, the Board is now attempting to “head off” the voters, essentially telling the voters that the Board doesn’t care what they think, the Board is going to make sure that development proceeds at Rancho San Juan no matter what.

This kind of approach by the Board of Supervisors is what discourages people from participating in the local political process, since it’s easy to conclude that what the people think makes no difference. My experience says that it does make a difference. You still have time to make that meeting today.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

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

Board of Supervisors’ Agenda
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/cttb/agenda.htm

Rancho San Juan Opposition Coalition
http://www.stopranchosanjuan.org/

Today, the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors will be considering modifications to the Santa Cruz County Zoning Code, relating to what the County has been calling Family Day Care Homes.

The issue has been precipitated by an inconsistency between County regulations, and what state law requires. This is an example where “local control” over land use meets its limits. While generally speaking local governments can make whatever land use choices they want, there are provisions in state law that preempt local decision-making. Developments in the Coastal Zone are one good example. Various state-mandated requirements relating to housing supply are another example. And, as discussed in the staff report that the Board will consider today, regulations governing Child Care Homes is another example. The state has mandated that Child Care Homes of a certain size must be permitted wherever a residential use is permitted, without the imposition of any additional permit or other requirement. The state, clearly, wants to remove obstacles to the creation of Child Care Homes, since the need for quality childcare is so great. The ordinance amendments that the Board will consider today conform the local rules to what the state requires, and this is actually only the first installment of Board action in this area.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors’ Agenda
http://sccounty01.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/bds/Govstream/ASP/Display/
SCCB_AgendaDisplayWeb.asp?MeetingDate=11/8/2005

Day Care Homes Staff Report
http://sccounty01.co.santa-cruz.ca.us/bds/Govstream/BDSvData/
non_legacy/ agendas/2005/20051108/PDF/030.pdf

Let me alert you to a couple of meetings. One of them will take place today, Wednesday, November 9th, at Mission Ranch, starting at 1:30 this afternoon. The other meeting will take place on Friday, November 18th, so I’m giving you a bit more notice of that one.

The meeting today at Mission Ranch is a meeting of the Carmel River Lagoon Technical Advisory Committee. It’s definitely a meeting to which the public is invited. Flooding issues on the lower Carmel River are of serious importance to many local residents, and if you’d like to find out what’s going to happen this year, this is a meeting not to miss. As you may recall from past editions of this Land Use Report, various groups (including the Big Sur Land Trust, the Planning and Conservation League Foundation, and the Carmel River Watershed Conservancy) are working to develop an entire watershed approach for the Carmel River. Once implemented, such a watershed approach can help alleviate, if not eliminate, flooding issues along the river.

On Friday, November 18th, a free agricultural water quality program meeting, organized by the Elkhorn Slough Watershed Working Group, will be held at the Elkhorn Slough Reserve Conference Center, 1700 Elkhorn Road. The meeting will start at 10:00 a.m., and continue until 12:30 p.m., with a lunch being part of the program! People interested in real world, on the ground ways to protect Elkhorn Slough and the quality of our marine environment, will find this interesting.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

To sign up for the Ag Water Quality Program, please contact Chris Goodson

• Telephone: 831-227-5404
•  Email:

The future growth and development of the City of Santa Cruz is not totally under the control of the City’s elected officials. The City of Santa Cruz is in a slightly different position from the position in which most local communities find themselves, with respect to land use decision-making.

The phrase “local control” does properly characterize how land use and planning decisions are normally made. Each California city and each California county have land use decision?]making powers that are broadly permissive. While state law preempts local decision-making in a few instances, the basic rule is that local elected officials can decide what they want to about the future growth and development of their community. And, of course, the voters of a community can directly exercise land use powers through the referendum and initiative process. The fact that “local control” applies in the arena of local land use is one reason that citizen participation works. Ordinary people can have a very direct impact on the future of their community, if they just get organized and start working for the kind of land use planning they want.

But in the City of Santa Cruz, a significant part of the City is exempt from local control. That is the UCSC campus. The University doesn’t have to abide by local land use rules, even though their planning decisions affect everyone. If you care about the future of the City, from a planning perspective, consider attending the public hearing on University growth scheduled for Wednesday, November 16th.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

CLUE is a community group working on the EIR and LRDP
http://santacruzclue.org/nk/html/

Find out more about CEQA at:
http://www.pcl.org/pcl/pcl_ceqa.asp 

LRDP and CEQA Documents are available at:
http://lrdp.ucsc.edu 

Public meetings on the relevant CEQA documents are scheduled as follows:

• Wednesday, November 16, 2005, 7:00-10:00 p.m., Old Holiday Inn on Ocean Street
• Wednesday, November 30, 2005, 3:00-6:00 p.m., Stevenson College Dining Hall, UCSC

In presenting these Land Use Reports, I try to mix in a little philosophy, a little “instruction” and “education” on land use policy issues, and to pursue what I call my “unhidden agenda” of increased citizen participation in the land use decision?]making process.

How we use the land has a fundamental effect on our future, and nothing is inevitable where land use is concerned. If sprawling and undisciplined growth patterns are undermining the agricultural economy, worsening our affordable housing problems, clogging the roads with traffic, overstressing our schools and libraries, and police and fire services, undermining the financial position of local governments, and creating social and environmental problems, then all those things can be changed by simply changing the way we “do land use.” It’s not easy to achieve those policy changes, but it’s certainly possible, and there are lots of examples of success, both here on the Central Coast and throughout the state.

I also try to convince you (and it really is true) that getting involved in land use decision-making is “fun.” Consistent with that theme, let me announce a Gallery Reception at the NIDO Gallery, 7951 Moss Landing Road, in Moss Landing, this evening from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. The gallery will be presenting a nature-themed art show, Coastal Estuaries, and the event will benefit the Elkhorn Slough Foundation.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

Elkhorn Slough Foundation Website
http://www.elkhornslough.org/

Artwork from past Nido shows
http://www.elkhornslough.org/art/ESII/index.htm