The KUSP Land Use Report #46: LAFCOs And Farmland Conversion

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The following Land Use Report is presented by Gary Patton, Executive Director of LandWatch Monterey County. The opinions expressed by Mr. Patton are not necessarily those of KUSP Radio, nor of any of our sponsors.

Greenfield, located in the heart of the Salinas Valley, may want to expand. It’s likely that every city in the Valley will have the same ambition. We know, for instance, that the Preliminary Draft General Plan for the City of Salinas proposes to convert over 3,000 acres of farmland to urban uses. Greenfield may want to convert about 3,000 acres, too. Soledad may want even more; King City will want some; and so will Gonzales.

The productive farmland that Greenfield, and Salinas, and the other cities have their eye on is located in the unincorporated area of Monterey County. Planning responsibility is currently with the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, and the County’s draft General Plan says that no more than 3,000 acres in total should be added to all the cities in the Salinas Valley during the next 20 years. There’s a conflict between the County plan and what the cities want. So, who decides?

In the end, it’s all about LAFCO. A Local Agency Formation Commission exists in each county, set up by state law, and they referee disputes between cities and counties. LAFCO decides, ultimately, who should have jurisdiction over what land.

We’ll talk more about LAFCOs next week. If you’d like to make a comment about this or any other program, you can do so at the KUSP website.

For KUSP, this is Gary Patton.

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