Listeners may remember that the Santa Cruz City Council acted to “reset” public discussion about a proposed desalination plant, after the Council received something like 400 comments on its Draft EIR for the proposed desal project, most of the EIR comments being quite negative. Instead of proceeding to respond to the comments received, the ordinary next step, the Council decided that it should reexamine the premises upon which it had been acting. Accordingly, the Council appointed a “Water Supply Advisory Committee,” which has been exploring various alternative approaches to a sustainable water supply. Most recently, the Water Supply Advisory Committee sponsored a “Convention,” at which alternatives were presented. In addition, a new “Working Group” has been called into existence, to review various technical issues relating to water supply planning. The first meeting of that group is this coming Wednesday. I will try to keep you posted as the Working Group effort moves forward.

At the other end of Santa Cruz County, the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency has issued a Preliminary Draft Service Charge Report, providing details on how costs for its Basin Plan projects were developed. This report will be reviewed and discussed at the PVWMA’s regular board meeting on November 19th. You can get more detailed information at kusp.org/landuse.

More Information

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• City of Santa Cruz WSAC Website
• PVWMA Website

Tomorrow, Wednesday November 12th, the Monterey County Planning Commission will be meeting in Salinas, starting at 9:00 o’clock in the morning. I have put a link to the agenda in the transcript of today’s Land Use Report, available, as always, at kusp.org/landuse. The “big item” on tomorrow’s Planning Commission agenda is the proposed Ferrini Ranch development. That proposed project, which would be constructed near Toro Park, and which would have big impacts on Highway 68, was given a tentative green light at the last meeting of the Commission. The action proposed for tomorrow is to take the “official” actions necessary to advance the project to the Board of Supervisors. As with all major development proposals, it is the elected members of the Board of Supervisors who will make the final decision.

The former editor of the Monterey Herald newspaper, who now publishes a public affairs blog called The Monterey Bay Partisan (to which you can subscribe for free, by the way), has suggested that big campaign contributions, from the developers to members of the Board of Supervisors, may well have already predetermined the result to be expected when the Board considers the Ferrini Ranch project. Big money is a big part of the political decision making process at every level. Let me remind you that big public participation is the only known antidote.

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• Agenda, Monterey County Planning Commission
• Ferrini Ranch Project – County Online Resources
• Partisan Posting on Ferrini Ranch Campaign Money
• Monterey Bay Partisan Website

Water, transportation, and housing are all profoundly impacted by the land use decisions made by local government agencies. Today, for instance, the Monterey County Planning Commission will consider the proposed Ferrini Ranch development. If this proposed development is approved, and constructed, transportation and traffic impacts on the already congested Highway 68 corridor are bound to be noticeable. Water issues are very central in this case, too; it’s not really clear that there is actually any water available for the proposed new homes. Affordable housing issues have also been central in the consideration of this major residential project. I recently talked with one of the members of the Planning Commission who has expressed skepticism about the project, and he cited affordable housing issues as one of his big concerns. If you want to weigh in, this morning is when you need to show up at the Commission.

Let me give you another suggestion that doesn’t require you to attend a meeting this morning. One week from today, on Wednesday, November 19th, the Monterey County Housing Advisory Committee will meet from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Monterey Room, on the Second Floor of the County Government Center in Salinas. On the agenda is a presentation on “inclusionary housing,” a proven strategy to provide long-term affordable housing as part of each new development project.

There is more information at kusp.org/landuse.

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• Agenda, Monterey County Planning Commission
• Ferrini Ranch Project – County Online Resources
• Partisan Posting on Ferrini Ranch Campaign Money
• Monterey Bay Partisan Website

All public agencies are not equal, and today I would like to give a couple of compliments to the City of Monterey, and specifically to its Planning Department. The City of Monterey Planning Commission will be meeting this evening, and the agenda includes a “Planning Office Update,” alerting the Commission and the public to upcoming decisions. You don’t get that kind of proactive, “heads up” advisory from every City Planning Department. In addition, the Planning Department scheduled a tour on Monday, so everyone could get an on-the-ground look at the projects to be considered at tonight’s meeting. That’s another very good idea!

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• Planning Commission Agenda, November 13, 2014
• City of Monterey Planning Office Update

Last week, I mentioned the excellent work done by Resource Conservation Districts, or RCDs. These public agencies often work out of the limelight, helping to achieve positive land use solutions that benefit the natural environment. A couple of days after that report aired, someone forwarded me an email from one of the staff members of the Santa Cruz County RCD, which more or less made my point.

The RCD is helping to organize a Community Water Dialogue, focused on how to achieve a sustainable groundwater supply in the Pajaro Valley. If you frequently listen to this Land Use Report, you know that the Pajaro Valley is in chronic overdraft, and that it is vital to the future of the Pajaro Valley that a solution for groundwater overdraft be found, and most importantly, implemented.

On Monday, November 24th, a Community Water Dialogue meeting will be held from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m. at the Cassin Ranch Conference Room, located at 151 Silliman Road in Watsonville. The idea is to have an “interactive conversation” on the new state-level Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, and its implications for solving the aquifer overdraft now happening in the Pajaro Valley. This is a serious effort, and there are “ground rules” for participation. If you are interested, you can get more information in today’s transcript at kusp.org/landuse.

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• November 3, 2014 Land Use Report on RCDs
• City of Watsonville Information on Water Dialogue
• For more information on the Community Water Dialogue:
  • Email: pvwatercommitment@yahoo.com
  • Telephone: 831-464-2950, Ext. 27