The City of Santa Cruz Planning Commission meets on Thursday, and the City’s Housing Element will be on the agenda. There is more information at kusp.org/landuse.

Residential property around the Monterey Bay is seen as a wonderful investment by people with money, many of whom do not live in the Monterey Bay Region, but live somewhere else in the world. Given our free market economy, it becomes impossible to preserve any affordable housing opportunities here.

As a matter of pure logic, and basic economics, if our communities want affordable housing, they must either use public funds to build it, and/or find a mechanism to impose price controls. Just to say it again, if maintaining a “free market” in real estate is our society’s highest priority, then prices will be set by those with the most money. In Monterey County, huge numbers of homes formerly available for residential use by local residents are now second homes, the owners living elsewhere and only using the homes infrequently. They have the money to do that, and that’s what they do. In Santa Cruz County, higher-paid people who work in the Silicon Valley buy up homes that are then not available for local workers.

I have a link in today’s transcript to an excellent article in Land Lines, the journal of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, if you’d like to read up on this distressing fact of life.

More Information:

• Monterey Herald Article On Dog Park Hearing
• County Planning Information on Canine Sports Center
• Supplemental Agenda, for August 26th Planning Commission Meeting
• Agenda Packet, August 26th Planning Commission Meeting
• Planning Commission Staff Report

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors meets today, and I thought I’d highlight Agenda Item #38 on the Board’s Consent Agenda.

Here’s how the Consent Agenda works: with one motion, taken right at the start of the meeting, the Board makes decisions on multiple items, and these items are not all insignificant or unimportant. Today, the Consent Agenda consists of thirty-nine items, some directing expenditures of several hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Agenda Item #38 schedules a public hearing on a fairly controversial development in Live Oak. The Board is probably going to set Tuesday, September 29th, at 1:30 p.m., as the time to make a decision on a 20-unit residential subdivision proposed at 1000 Rodriguez Street, at the corner of Jose Avenue. If you care about this proposed development, you should plan to attend the hearing.

Originally, the developer, City Ventures, wanted to build more units, and there is an argument, of course, that developments within designated urban areas should be “dense” developments, to help prevent future urban sprawl. To me, one of the issues of most significance is that the developer will not produce ANY affordable units. That’s because the Board changed its policies within the last year to allow developers the right to pay fees instead. Significant neighborhood impacts; no affordable units. You decide!

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• September 1, 2015 Agenda of the Board of Supervisors
• Agenda Item #38 – Scheduling The Item
• August 12, 2015 County Planning Commission Agenda
• Planning Commission Packet of Materials on Proposed Development

The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency, or PVWMA, is charged with stopping groundwater overdraft in the Pajaro Valley, and the future of our local agricultural economy really depends on its success. In today’s Land Use Report blog, I’ve put in a link to the PVWMA website, and to the agenda of a “Special Meeting” that the PVWMA Board of Directors is holding today, at 12:00 noon.

As I hope you know, the Boards of Directors of all local agencies are subject to the Ralph M. Brown Act, and must provide an advance agenda notice to the public whenever they hold a meeting. Time, place, and the topics to be discussed all must be disclosed. The idea is that the public has a right to keep an eye on what its elected officials are doing. A “Special Meeting” is a meeting that is not part of the agency’s regular meeting schedule, and as I indicated, the PVWMA Board will be holding such a special meeting today.

So, what’s so “special” today that Board members are meeting at noontime in their own offices, located at 36 Brennan Street in Watsonville? The business at hand is for Board Members to receive iPad training. You can go to the meeting and maybe get some free training yourself, if you’d like!

The next “regular” meeting of the Board is scheduled for September 23rd. Bring your iPad to that meeting and take some notes!

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• PVWMA Website
• Agenda For September 2, 2015 Special Meeting

The proposed Monterey Downs development is a truly large-scale project that some, I think, might call grandiose. I do have links to information about the project at kusp.org/landuse, so you can review that information and then come to your own conclusion about the project.

If you are interested in learning more, here is a real deal for you. LandWatch Monterey County has announced some guided hikes, to show the public the proposed Monterey Downs development site. Participants will be able to see the size of the one mile race track, the 6,500-seat arena, the grandstands proposed, and all the area that will be developed into homes and commercial areas if the Monterey Downs project is approved. Those who take the hike will also get to see the coastal oak trees covering the land, many of which would be cut down to carry out the project.

Hikes are being offered from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, September 5th and 6th. That’s this weekend. The hikes are two hours long on gently rolling hills with a tree-studded landscape. You will get to see beautiful views, and will be able to review maps of the land now and with the proposed Monterey Downs project. Hikers should bring water and a hat and wear comfortable walking shoes. Check the Land Use Report blog for instructions on how you can make a reservation for this very informative excursion.

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• LandWatch Monterey County Website
• Monterey Downs Development Proposal
• Monterey Downs EIR And Other Information
• Make A reservation for the hike by contacting Kay and Bill Weigle:
  • Telephone: 831-899-7934
  • Email: kecline@sbcglobal.net

A week ago last Wednesday, the Monterey County Planning Commission considered a Canine Sports Center project, to be located in Carmel Valley. I advertised the hearing here on the Land Use Report, and was naturally quite interested in what action the Planning Commission took on this very controversial project.

The Carmel Valley Association put out a bulletin with their comments. Since the CVA was opposed to the Canine Sports Center, and since the project was unanimously approved, the CVA wasn’t very happy. It characterized the 5 ½-hour hearing as consisting of  “very little substantive discussion,” and specifically said that “commissioners dismissed well researched and clearly presented arguments regarding the significant negative impacts the project would have on traffic, noise, and water.” Reading between the lines, it looks likely that the CVA will appeal the project approval to the Board of Supervisors. I will of course keep you posted.

The Carmel Pine Cone also published a report. I have provided links to both the Pine Cone and the CVA reports at kusp.org/landuse, along with links to other information.

The Pine Cone gave a kind of blow by blow report of the hearing, making clear that the Quail Lodge owners were just as opposed as the CVA. Those groups aren’t always on the same side, and the Pine Cone article expressed “surprise” at how things went.

More Information:

• Land Use Links
• Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog
• Carmel Pine Cone Article
• CVA Commentary
• Monterey Herald Article On Dog Park Hearing
• County Planning Information on Canine Sports Center
• Supplemental Agenda, for August 26th Planning Commission Meeting
• Agenda Packet, August 26th Planning Commission Meeting
• Planning Commission Staff Report