The KUSP Land Use Report #8: "The Salinas General Plan"

"Listen Live"

This is Gary Patton, Executive Director of LandWatch Monterey County, with a Land Use Report for KUSP.

The City of Salinas will be making a big decision very soon. The City Council will determine its "preferred alternative" for future growth.

Salinas currently has about 150,000 residents. AMBAG, the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments, says that Salinas will grow to about 184,000 residents by the year 2020. That’s 34,000 new residents, or a 28% increase. AMBAG says that most of that growth will be "natural," with only 11,000 individuals moving to Salinas from other places.

The city staff has a different idea. They recommend that Salinas accommodate 235,000 people by the year 2020. That means the city would grow 63%, instead of 28%. Instead of accommodating 34,000 new residents, Salinas would accommodate 85,000 new residents. Instead of 11,000 people moving to Salinas, Salinas would accommodate 62,000 people moving from somewhere else. This "big growth" scenario is recommended as the "preferred alternative" for the General Plan Update. This alternative would require the conversion of more than 4,000 acres of prime agricultural land. It would definitely make Salinas a bedroom community for the Silicon Valley. That’s where the 62,000 new residents would be coming from.

If you’re interested in this issue, mark your calendar for Tuesday, September 18th. That’s the when the next meeting is scheduled.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

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