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KUSP LandWatch
News
Week of May 17, 2010 to May 21, 2010
Week of May 17, 2010 to May 21, 2010
KUSP provided a brief Land Use Report on KUSP Radio from January 2003 to May 2016. Archives of past transcripts are available here.
Week of May 17, 2010 to May 21, 2010
- Monday, May 17, 2010
The Mills Act in Monterey County (And More)
- Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Future Planning in Soquel
- Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Spheres of Influence
- Thursday, May 20, 2010
More On Spheres Of Influence
- Friday, May 21, 2010
The City of Santa Cruz Sphere (And Other Matters)
The following Land Use Reports have been presented on KUSP Radio by Gary A. Patton. The Wittwer & Parkin law firm is located in Santa Cruz, California, and practices environmental and governmental law. As part of its practice, the law firm files litigation and takes other action on behalf of its clients, which are typically private individuals, governmental agencies, environmental organizations, or community groups. Whenever the Land Use Report comments on an issue with which the Wittwer & Parkin law firm is involved on behalf of a client, Mr. Patton will make this relationship clear, as part of his commentary. Mr. Patton’s comments do not represent the views of Wittwer & Parkin, LLP, KUSP Radio, nor of any of its sponsors.
| Monday, May 17, 2010 The Mills Act in Monterey County (And More) |
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The Monterey County Board of Supervisors is meeting tomorrow, and the Board may institute a program that could help preserve, restore, and maintain historic properties located in the unincorporated parts of Monterey County. The item to look for is Agenda Item #S-4 on the Board’s Agenda. The “Mills Act” is a set of provisions in state law that permit local governments to establish a program for historic properties that is more or less equivalent to the program that the “Williamson Act” sets up for agricultural land. On a voluntary basis, property owners who enter into a contract with the County to protect, restore, and maintain their historic properties will get a property tax reduction. With the Williamson Act, at least in the past, the state has “backfilled” the County’s property tax losses; that is not true with the Mills Act. To make sure that local tax loses aren’t too great, the Board is considering using the Mills Act only on a “pilot project” basis. If you’d like to know more, look for the links in the transcript of today’s Land Use Report. In other Board of Supervisor news, you should know that the San Luis Obispo County Board, which also meets tomorrow, will be considering a couple of important land use policy items, including specifically items relating to the County’s growth management system. Check out the transcript of today’s Land Use Report for a link to those items, too. For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
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| Tuesday, May 18, 2010 Future Planning in Soquel |
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This evening, the Santa Cruz County Redevelopment Agency will be holding a public meeting, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., at the Congregational Church in Soquel. The main focus of the meeting will be on “future planning in Soquel,” and I encourage your attendance. The “Redevelopment Agency” is a separate governmental entity, different from the County of Santa Cruz, but run by the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors, just as County government is. The “secret” to the success of the Redevelopment Agency is money. State law has allowed the County to establish the Redevelopment Agency as a separate unit of government, and to get a portion of what is called the “tax increment” generated from within the boundaries of the Agency. “Tax increment” means the increase in property taxes collected, over the amount of taxes collected in the “base year,” in which the Agency was officially established. This Tax increment goes to the Agency, not to the County, and may be used only for projects that improve and help “redevelop” the area. In the Live Oak-Soquel Area, the Redevelopment Agency has made a lot of improvements over the years. Tonight, you can find out about the past, and help plan for the future. Incidentally, I found out about this meeting because I am on an email alert list maintained by First District Supervisor John Leopold. If you’d like to be on the list, contact Supervisor Leopold’s office. For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
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| Wednesday, May 19, 2010 Spheres of Influence |
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Just as a local General Plan is the “Constitution for land use” for a city or county, a “Sphere of Influence” is, much like a Constitution, the expression of what is intended to be the ultimate and limiting physical boundary for the future growth and expansion of either a city or a special district. Counties don’t have “Spheres of Influence,” because the geographical limits of counties are specified in state law, and are not susceptible to change. But that is not true of cities and special districts. Whatever their current boundaries may be, they might seek to expand, in the future, and the physical expansion of cities and special districts has to be carried out according to a long-range plan encompassed in its Sphere of Influence. Unlike local General Plans, “Spheres of Influence” are not adopted by the agencies to which they are applied. Cities and counties can establish their own General Plans, outlining how growth should occur within their boundaries. But cities and special districts are not permitted to decide, on their own, to expand their boundaries. Where they expand, and whether they will be allowed to expand, will be determined by the Local Agency Formation Commission, or LAFCO. LAFCOs are required to evaluate proposed city expansions, and any proposed new extension of municipal services, like water and sewer services, according to the city or district’s Sphere of Influence, which LAFCO also adopts. I will have more on “Spheres” tomorrow. For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
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| Thursday, May 20, 2010 More On Spheres Of Influence |
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Local Agency Formation Commissions, or LAFCOs, are set up by state law. There is a LAFCO in each California county, and state law requires LAFCOs to make determinations about whether or not a proposed city expansion should go forward, and about whether or not to allow an extension of municipal services into an area not currently served. As explained yesterday, these more or less “project specific” determinations are made by LAFCOs based on a long-range plan called the “Sphere of Influence.” Spheres are also adopted by LAFCO, not by the agencies that are regulated by their provisions. In the transcript of today’s Land Use Report, I have put links to the policies used in Monterey County, and in Santa Cruz County, to decide how properly to draw up a “Sphere of Influence.” Consistent with state law, these local LAFCO policies focus, among other things, on the service delivery capabilities of the local agencies governed by their provisions. To provide a clear example, LAFCO is not supposed to allow the expansion of an agency’s physical boundaries unless the agency can effectively provide governmental services within those expanded boundaries. LAFCO is not supposed to approve the extension of services, like water and sewer services, unless the agency providing the services will have the capacity and capability to provide them in an effective and reliable manner. For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
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| Friday, May 21, 2010 The City of Santa Cruz Sphere (And Other Matters) |
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For the last two days, I’ve been talking about “Spheres of Influence,” and LAFCOs, so you probably realize that the County Local Agency Formation Commission plays a very key role in establishing local land use policy. The decisions that LAFCO makes have a formative impact on the future of our local communities. In Santa Cruz County, LAFCO has received a couple of important and controversial applications. One of the applications asks LAFCO to approve an expansion of the Sphere of Influence of the City of Santa Cruz, to accommodate major new growth and development of the University of California. The second application asks for approval for the City of Santa Cruz to extend water and sewer services into areas at the University that are beyond the City’s current service boundaries, to facilitate the construction of over 3,000,000 square feet of new buildings on the UCSC North Campus. It’s unclear what the future holds for these applications, but since the City is currently facing a water supply crisis, and much of the North Campus is undeveloped, and a nature reserve, how LAFCO applies the following policy will be particularly important: The Commission shall determine that the city or district is able to provide the service in a manner that does not negatively affect the services provided within the agency’s boundaries and sphere of influence, and in a manner that does not negatively affect the resources in the area.* For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.
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Archives of past transcripts are available here
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