There is a simmering dispute in the Town of Los Gatos. Well, it’s actually beyond the “simmer” stage. A property owner proposing the construction of a large single-family residence on a 13-plus acre hillside parcel, is facing significant community opposition, organized through a group calling itself “Friends of the Hillsides.” The gravamen of the complaint against the project is that it violates the Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines that were adopted to protect the integrity of the hillsides that comprise so much of the City’s territory. In fact, the City Council, which has already approved the project once, was able to do so only by granting four different exceptions to the Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines.

There are definitely arguments on both sides, which has brought the controversy to a boil. To get a flavor for the debate, please click on the Land Use Report icon on the KUSP website, and track down the written transcript for today’s Land Use Report.

Tonight, the Los Gatos Town Council is meeting, and will confront this controversy head on. The procedural issues are complex, and the precedent-setting nature of the decision that faces the Town Council is important. Passions are high. If you’re a Los Gatos Town resident, I’m suggesting that you attend the Town Council meeting tonight, to get a great introduction into the real life importance of land use policy.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Friends of the Hillsides Website
http://friendsofthehillsides.org/

City of Los Gatos Website
http://www.town.los-gatos.ca.us/

Agenda for September 15, 2008 Los Gatos Town Council
http://losgatos.granicus.com/
AgendaViewer.php?view_id=2&event_id=49

News Article outlining the controversy
http://losgatosobserver.com/los-gatos/
Article.php?article_id=0977

Opinion article critical of Friends of the Hillsides
http://losgatosobserver.com/los-gatos/
Article.php?article_id=0982

A rancher, whose large ranch straddles the dividing line between San Luis Obispo County and Santa Barbara County, has asked the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors to transfer the San Luis Obispo County portion of his ranch to the adjacent Santa Barbara County.

This is a pretty unusual request. What may be unprecedented is that the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors has given initial approval to this idea. The transfer would directly hurt San Luis Obispo County, since the county would lose a rather significant chunk of property tax revenue. And it doesn’t seem that the proposed transfer would either reduce San Luis Obispo County’s expenses, or improve service delivery to the ranch.

So what’s going on here? There is a lot of speculation about that in the newspapers, and much of that speculation centers on the idea that the Santa Barbara County Supervisors might be more inclined to let the rancher develop his ranch. A new and more environmentally-friendly Board will take office in San Luis Obispo County next January, so that may be the issue. Two of the lame duck Supervisors in San Luis Obispo County did get political contributions from the rancher.

In the end, the Board of Supervisors actually has no direct say over this issue. County boundaries (which are almost never changed) can be modified only by the State Legislature, not by local officials.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

News articles on proposed land swap
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/
local/story/466996.html

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/
local/story/465015.html

Recently, the San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission heard an application by Paul Viborg, to construct a sand mine adjacent to the Salinas River, four miles northeast of Paso Robles. This is one of five sand mine applications affecting the Salinas River pending in North San Luis Obispo County.

Since both the State Department of Fish and Game and the Regional Water Quality Control Board have expressed concerns about the impact of sand mining operations, county staff recommended that Mr. Viborg prepare an Environmental Impact Report, or EIR. Mr. Viborg’s attorneys disputed the need for an EIR, and said that “the scope of the EIR is such that nobody’s got enough money (to do one).” That led county staff to change its recommendation on the Viborg project to a denial, based on the applicant’s statement that he would not be willing to prepare an EIR.

As a kind of alternative, the Commission will consider recommending the preparation of a watershed management plan. That could, of course, take years to complete, depending on its scope, and would touch on environmental, water, and land use-related issues. Proponents argue that such a plan would determine how proposed sand and gravel mines would affect the watershed. From the perspective of those wanting to construct sand mines, more studies could mean more delays, but that approach would not make one applicant pay all the costs of the comprehensive study required.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

News story on sand mine issue
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/
local/story/463871.html

If you live in Bonny Doon, you might want to mark your calendar for an important meeting that will be held next Monday night, September 22nd. The meeting begins at 7:00 p.m., at the First Congregational Church, located at 900 High Street in Santa Cruz. At that time and place, the Santa Cruz County Local Agency Formation Commission, or LAFCO, will consider a proposal to establish a new Fire Protection District (the Bonny Doon Fire Protection District), and to detach the areas within the new proposed District from County Service Area #48, which currently provides fire protection services not only to Bonny Doon but to other rural areas in Santa Cruz County.

By the way, if you happen to live in or have property in one of those “other rural areas,” you better mark your calendars, too. Creating a new Fire Protection District for Bonny Doon will not just affect Bonny Doon. Probably, creating such a new Fire Protection District for Bonny Doon will improve fire protection there. That’s certainly the expectation and the intention. The problem is that improving fire protection in Bonny Doon, by the means currently proposed, will almost certainly reduce fire protection for rural properties located in large portions of the North Coast, the Summit, and the mountain areas of the San Lorenzo Valley.

You can get access to more information by clicking on the links below. I’ll expand on the issues a little bit tomorrow, as well.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Santa Cruz County LAFCO
http://www.santacruzlafco.org/

LAFCO Meeting Notice
http://www.santacruzlafco.org/pages/notices.html

• Maps showing the areas affected can be accessed on the Meeting Notice webpage
• Get access to the LAFCO Staff Report
  http://www.santacruzlafco.org/pages/agendas.html

Let me repeat myself. If you live in Bonny Doon, or if you live in or own property in other rural portions of Santa Cruz County that aren’t already within an existing Fire Protection District, you should plan to attend an important meeting to be held next Monday night, September 22nd. The meeting begins at 7:00 p.m., at the First Congregational Church, located at 900 High Street in Santa Cruz. At that time and place, the Santa Cruz County Local Agency Formation Commission will consider whether or not to approve the creation of a new Bonny Doon Fire Protection District. Coupled with this proposal (and here’s the rub) LAFCO will also consider a proposal to detach areas within the new proposed Bonny Doon Fire Protection District from County Service Area #48, which currently provides fire protection services not only to Bonny Doon, but to other rural areas in Santa Cruz County.

In the transcript for today’s Report, I’ve linked to the staff report that the Executive Officer of the Santa Cruz County LAFCO has prepared, discussing the Bonny Doon proposal. His conclusion is that the proposal should be denied (and not approved) because it will hurt fire protection in large areas of rural Santa Cruz County that are subject to wildfire danger. This report is worth reading.

Again, while the Monday evening meeting is critically important for Bonny Doon residents, it’s just as important for residents in the areas where fire protection would be reduced.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Santa Cruz County LAFCO
http://www.santacruzlafco.org/

LAFCO Meeting Notice
http://www.santacruzlafco.org/pages/notices.html

• Maps showing the areas affected can be accessed on the Meeting Notice webpage
• Get access to the LAFCO Staff Report
  http://www.santacruzlafco.org/pages/agendas.html

Here are some additional links (for additional study), since anyone seriously interested in land use policy simply must understand the critical role that LAFCOs play, throughout the state:

• California Association of LAFCOs
  http://www.calafco.org/
• Monterey County LAFCO
  http://www.co.monterey.ca.us/lafco/
• San Luis Obispo County LAFCO
  http://www.slolafco.com/