Tomorrow, the Santa Cruz City Council will receive a report on the implementation of a settlement agreement between the City, the County, the University of California, and CLUE (the Coalition to Limit University Expansion). The settlement agreement resolved multiple lawsuits contesting a plan to expand the UCSC campus into a currently undeveloped, natural area, and to construct more than 3,000,000 square feet of new buildings.

Local residents and community leaders have always had a special kind of difficulty dealing with University growth plans, since the University is exempt from the land use planning requirements that apply to other developers. In settling the lawsuits last year, an accommodation was reached on a number of traffic, water, housing, and financial issues. At the Council meeting tomorrow, which begins at 3:00 o’clock in the afternoon, an initial report on how the agreement is working out in practice will be made. CLUE is going to make a presentation, and so is the Community Water Coalition, which has raised concerns about the water provisions of the agreement.

If you are a resident of the City of Santa Cruz, or live in Live Oak, or Pasatiempo, or if you are a farmer on the North Coast, or maybe even if you live in the City of Capitola, tune in on TV or come to the meeting. Your water future is definitely affected by the provisions of the settlement agreement.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

City of Santa Cruz Website
http://www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us/
Regular Council meetings are televised on Comcast Community TV, Channel 25

A full copy of the Council Agenda, including a copy of materials provided to the Council for Item #18, the staff report on the implementation of the UCSC Settlement Agreement, can be obtained by clicking on “Agendas and Minutes” in the City Council Quick Links box at the top, right hand side of the main page. Choose “Agenda Plus” for the full Council packet.

In California, water issues play a prominent role in both politics and policy, and as reported yesterday, there will be an important discussion of water policy at the Santa Cruz City Council meeting today.

The City provides water not only to City residents, but also to residents of Live Oak, Pasatiempo, and parts of the City of Capitola, as well as to North Coast farmers. At a time of water scarcity, the City is proposing to deliver what may be the City’s last remaining water “surplus” to facilitate expansion plans at UCSC. The City’s application to LAFCO proposes the delivery of up to 152 million gallons of water each year, to allow UCSC to build over 3,000,000 square feet of new construction. Approval of this application would likely mean very little water, if any, for everyone else in the City’s water service area, so you can tell that important interests are at stake.

On a statewide basis, where water scarcity issues are also of huge importance, respected experts are beginning to talk about the Constitutional requirement that water in California be put to a “reasonable and beneficial use.” This is a fascinating legal and policy issue, particularly affecting the future of agriculture, but maybe ultimately affecting the future of front lawns, too.

There is more information below.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Is some California water use unconstitutional?
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/gleick/detail?entry_id=41673

City of Santa Cruz Website
http://www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us/
Regular Council meetings are televised on Comcast Community TV, Channel 25

A full copy of the Council Agenda, including a copy of materials provided to the Council for Item #18, the staff report on the implementation of the UCSC Settlement Agreement, can be obtained by clicking on “Agendas and Minutes” in the City Council Quick Links box at the top, right hand side of the main page. Choose “Agenda Plus” for the full Council packet.

In terms of land use policy, it would be hard to overstate the importance of CEQA, the California Environmental Quality Act. If a proposed governmental action or decision might have a significant adverse impact on the environment, the governmental agency must prepare and consider an “Environmental Impact Report,” or EIR, prior to making the decision or taking the action. CEQA is intended to ensure that governmental decisions are made on an informed basis, and the process is specially designed to maximize public participation. Furthermore, if adverse environmental impacts are documented through the EIR process, CEQA requires that the government eliminate or reduce those impacts to the greatest extent feasible.

If you care about the environment, and if you want to have an impact on what happens in your local community, you need to become familiar with CEQA. The Planning and Conservation League has a couple of excellent publications about CEQA, which are referenced in the transcript of today’s Land Use Report. For Marina residents, there may be an even better way to get introduced to this important law. Tomorrow night, the Marina Planning and Public Works Commissions will receive an interactive training program on CEQA from a Special Legal Counsel. And you are invited to attend, and learn! Check below for the details.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information:

City of Marina Website
http://www.ci.marina.ca.us/

Planning/Public Works Commission Meeting on June 25, 2009
http://www.ci.marina.ca.us/Archive.aspx?ADID=1329

Planning and Conservation League Website
http://www.pcl.org/

PCL Community Guide To CEQA
http://www.pclfoundation.org/events/ceqaguide.html

PCL Everyday Heroes, Thirty Five Years of CEQA
http://www.pcl.org/projects/everydayheroes.html

San Luis Obispo County is proposing to combine five existing General Plan Elements (the Historic, Esthetic, Conservation, Open Space and Energy Elements) into one consolidated Conservation and Open Space Element. The purpose of the change is to add and update policies to address green building, greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, water conservation, and the use of renewable resources. As proposed, the consolidated and updated Conservation and Open Space Element would contain nine chapters: Air Resources, Biological Resources, Cultural Resources, Energy, Minerals, Open Space, Soils, Visual Resources and Water Resources. Policies in the San Luis Obispo County General Plan affect all unincorporated county lands, and the changes proposed need to be thought of as changes to what is, essentially, the “Constitution for Land Use” in San Luis Obispo County. If you are a San Luis Obispo County resident, I’d urge you to get involved.

Today, the San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission will consider the Air Quality, Energy, and Green Building portions of the proposed new General Plan Element. There will be subsequent hearings on July 6th, July 23rd, and July 30th. A Draft Environmental Impact Report is available.

Check below for more information.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

San Luis Obispo County Website
http://www.slocounty.ca.gov/site4.aspx

Planning Department Website
http://www.slocounty.ca.gov/planning.htm

Planning Commission Agenda, June 25, 2009
http://slocounty.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=3&event_id=61

Conservation and Open Space Element and EIR
http://www.slocounty.ca.gov/planning/General_Plan__
Ordinances_and_Elements/Plans_in_Process_and_
Draft_Plans/Conservation_Element.htm

The Big Sur Land Trust has no “regulatory” power. It is a private nonprofit organization that works to help preserve and protect the Big Sur Coast, and other parts of Monterey County, by acquiring either conservation easements or by actually buying land itself. Today, I’d like to invite you to tour the Big Sur Land Trust website, with a particular emphasis on its many events, hikes, and outings. These outdoor excursions are mostly offered to members, but some are available to the public at large. If you decide to participate, I think you’ll find that events sponsored by the Big Sur Land Trust will introduce you to some of the most spectacular environments in the entire Central Coast Region.

Sunday has been called “Artists on the Land Day” on the Glen Deven Ranch, which is owned by the Land Trust, and an outdoor event that day provides an opportunity for members of the Big Sur Land Trust to walk through the sculptural landscapes of Big Sur as working artists tell their story of the land on canvas. The Land Trust promises that participants will “witness artistic creations through the eyes of some of Big Sur’s most well known artists, and experience their unique connection to the land.”

If you’d like more information on this and other Big Sur Land Trust events, look below.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

More Information

Big Sur Land Trust Website
http://www.bigsurlandtrust.org/

Big Sur Land Trust Events
http://www.bigsurlandtrust.org/get_involved/events

A Video Presentation
http://www.openroad.tv/index.php?categoryid=16&p25_id=333