I keep reminding listeners about the importance of the local community’s General Plan, because the General Plan really does set the standards that will determine the future growth and development of the community. The City of Santa Cruz is in the middle of a General Plan update process right now. So is the County of Monterey, though it may be somewhat inaccurate to say that Monterey County is in the “middle” of its General Plan process. It would be more accurate to say that Monterey County is in the “muddle” of its General Plan process. Monterey County began its General Plan Update in 1999, seven years ago, and is now on its fourth draft. Rumor has it that more delays are coming, because of serious flaws in the Environmental Impact Report.

Computer users know how frustrating it can be when a process of updating software, or something similar, puts a blue “progress line” on the monitor, which then advances for awhile before simply freezing in place. The machine may say that progress is being made, but when you hit the “Control-Alt-Delete” keys, the Task Manager confirms that the program is actually “not responding.” This may be a suitable metaphor for Monterey County.

That said, the next Monterey County Update General Plan workshop begins this Wednesday, August 16th, at 1:00 p.m. at the Board of Supervisors’ chambers.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

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

Monterey County General Plan
http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/pbi/gpu/default.htm

LandWatch Monterey County Website
http://www.landwatch.org/

Land Use and the General Plan
http://www.landwatch.org/pages/publications03/
gpsummit/landusegeneralplan.pdf

LandWatch request for more data
http://www.landwatch.org/pages/issuesactions/
countyplan/042606buildout.html

Salinas Californian article on schedule
http://www.californianonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/
article?AID=/20060720/NEWS01/607200302/1002

The Bible quotes Jesus as saying, “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Often, these words are intoned just as the offering plate is being passed, since they seem to convey a kind of divine commandment to be generous. As I read them, Jesus was actually making what amounts to a profound sociological observation.

When we invest in something, we come to think that whatever we’ve invested in is very important. If this is true, then we should be careful about where we put our money, because the very fact of investing will make us want to invest more, and to do more, to advance our initial investment. “Where our treasure is, there will our hearts be also.”

We could start talking about military expenditures and the war in Iraq, to see how this sociological theorem operates in our current national life. Since this is the Land Use Report, however, I want to focus on the upcoming meeting of the Wildlife Conservation Board, to be held this Thursday, August 17th, in Sacramento.

At its upcoming meeting, the Wildlife Conservation Board will be making significant investments in scores of projects to preserve and protect the California environment. If you didn’t know, Proposition 84, on the November ballot, will allow us to continue this kind of investment program. I won’t editorialize, but you get the idea.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Wildlife Conservation Board
http://www.wcb.ca.gov

Yes on Proposition 84 Website
http://www.cleanwater2006.com/

Proposition 84 text
http://www.caag.state.ca.us/initiatives/pdf/sa2005rf0131.pdf

One way to preserve the environment is to have the public “buy it.” Yesterday, I mentioned Proposition 84, the “Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006.” If approved by the voters this November, Proposition 84 will dedicate more than five billion dollars to various investments, most of them leading to increased environmental protection. You can get more information from the transcript for today’s Land Use Report.

There is another way preserve the environment, and that is to have the community establish rules and regulations that require environmental protection, as a matter of public policy. In fact, this is an essential component in any effort to achieve environmental protection, since we can’t possibly afford to “buy” all the lands that need to be protected.

Along that line, public participation is an absolute necessity. Private interests are so strong, politically, that unless members of the public get involved themselves, it’s quite unlikely that our public officials will adopt environmentally protective rules and regulations. So, if you would like to get involved in some important efforts now underway in Santa Clara County, click on the Land Use Report link on the KUSP website. I’m highlighting a Coyote Valley planning meeting, scheduled for August 24th, and ways to become involved in the Santa Clara County open space initiative, also on the November ballot.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

There are lots of opportunities for public participation in the drafting of a Coyote Valley Specific Plan, and in helping to pass the PLAN open space initiative. The websites below will give you the information you need to become active in these important land use policy matters.

PLAN Initiative Website
http://www.openspace2006.org/

City of San Jose Coyote Valley Specific Plan
http://www.sanjoseca.gov/coyotevalley/

Yes on Proposition 84 Website
http://www.cleanwater2006.com/

Proposition 84 text
http://www.caag.state.ca.us/initiatives/pdf/sa2005rf0131.pdf

Wildlife Conservation Board
http://www.wcb.ca.gov

The Central Coast Joint Data Committee does not exactly make the front pages every day. It is one of those “behind the scenes” type of groups that carries out a host of helpful activities that make our lives better. And most of us don’t even know this group exists.

The Central Coast Joint Data Committee is a partnership sponsored by AMBAG, the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments. It includes public, private, and nonprofit agencies. The key to membership is an agreement to share spatial data among other participants, in an effort to expand the use of spatial data (which is sometimes called “GIS,” or “Geographical Information Systems” data) to foster informed community decision making, innovative business development, environmental management, and education in the Central Coast region of California.

Another group, called the GreenInfo Network, provides some of the same kind of services, dedicated specifically to the nonprofit sector, and covering areas beyond the Central Coast region.

On Thursday, August 24th, the Central Coast Joint Data Committee will be sponsoring a workshop on how to obtain and use high quality aerial photography to achieve community goals. This is probably not a workshop for everyone, but it may well be something that a number of listeners will find quite valuable. To learn more, follow the link I’ve provided as part of the transcript for today’s Land Use Report.

More Information

Central Coast Joint Data Committee Website
http://www.ccjdc.org/

GreenInfo Website
http://www.greeninfo.org/

SCRAP, Santa Cruzans for Responsible Planning, is now working to make Santa Cruz the location of the 2006 U.S. Conference on PRT, or “Personal Rapid Transit.” For those who like to mark their calendars way ahead, pencil in November 17th and 18th for a PRT conference in Santa Cruz, probably to be held at the Coast Hotel.

Personal Rapid Transit, PRT, which some people call “PAT,” Personal Automated Transport, is a system typified by automated small transit vehicles designed to carry four or fewer people on an elevated guideway. In fact, this is definitely a “leading edge” concept. There aren’t really any significant PRT systems currently in operation, except perhaps a system just being installed in London’s Heathrow Airport.

I’ve provided a number of links to information about PRT on the KUSP website, so interested persons can follow up. Santa Cruz City Council Member Ed Porter has also been studying this concept extensively, and would undoubtedly be happy to help educate listeners further.

Land use planners have a basic concept, far from leading edge, that deals with personal transport issues. It’s called “walking,” and one good way to deal with our various transportation-related crises would be to make sure that our patterns of community development encourage that basic form of “personal transport.”

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information
Personal Rapid Transit Links

Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_rapid_transit

Basic Overview
http://faculty.washington.edu/~jbs/itrans/prtquick.htm

PRT Index Page
http://faculty.washington.edu/~jbs/itrans/PRT/

References
http://faculty.washington.edu/~jbs/itrans/PRT/References.html