Posted by: Kim_Hamilton on 03/11/2008 01:44 PM
Updated by: Kim_Hamilton on 03/11/2008 02:05 PM
Expires: 01/01/2013 12:00 AM
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Calaveras Planning Coalition Submits Public Comment on the Draft Baseline Report for the General Plan Update~By Mickey Williamson
Calaveras County, CA....As the Public Comment Period comes to an end for the Draft Baseline Report of the General Plan update, the Calaveras Planning Coalition has submitted a volume of comments on behalf of its member groups. The Coalition, founded to support citizen participation in local planning issues and the General Plan process, sees every phase of the update as an opportunity to promote wise and thoughtful planning......
Calaveras Planning Coalition
PO Box 2633
Murphys, CA 95247
Members have addressed nearly every chapter of the Baseline Report. Topics addressed include land use and zoning, public services, circulation, natural resources, safety and noise, housing, recreation, and tourism. According to Mickey Williamson, Coordinator for the Community Action Project (the sponsoring organization for the Planning Coalition), “We appreciate the work of county staff and consultants in producing the report, and we’re grateful for the invitation to comment. This is an opportunity to provide information that is missing from the report and to correct errors in data. We want the very best ‘snapshot’ of the current state of Calaveras County in order to get the best General Plan possible.”
“The General Plan Baseline Report is not only the starting point for planning for the future,” according to Tom Infusino, Facilitator of the Planning Coalition. “It is also the information necessary for use in the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the General Plan.” In that EIR, the impacts of the proposed General Plan on such things as traffic and water supply must be quantitatively compared to the existing baseline data. “If the baseline data is inaccurate, the EIR may understate the need for new roads and new water supplies, resulting in future traffic congestion and water supply shortages. That is why complete, current, accurate data is so important.”
The Baseline Report deals with numbers, maps, and regulations. All of this translates directly into how our land will look and to how our residents will be served. Future decisions based on this report will impact each of us.
An accurate picture of the County’s current land use is necessary for future policy decisions. The Existing Property Use Tables and Maps (Section 3.2 of the Baseline Report) are found to be inaccurate in numerous regions of the county. Many lots are listed as “undeveloped” or “unclassified” when they have actually been developed for years. Member comments point out that given these inaccuracies, at least one Major Finding of the Land Use chapter must be called into question: “Existing residential land uses constituted only 2.3% of the land base in the Planning Area (15,307 acres) in 2007.” Since development should not outpace the ability of the local government to provide adequate services to residents, complete measures of current resource usage are necessary.
Because the Coalition believes that a range of housing types should be available for people of all income levels, input also addressed the Housing Element which is not included in the Baseline Report. While the Housing Element was not slated to be updated during the General Plan process, the due date for this now coincides with the projected adoption of the General Plan. “According to the State Department of Housing and Community Development website, the next Housing Element update for Calaveras County is due on August 31, 2009….It is inconsistent to exclude updated information for a legally binding element of the General Plan, and one that is linked to all the other elements, from the Baseline Report,” states the Coalition public comment.
“Our comments are offered in the spirit of cooperation and assistance,” the cover letter to the Coalition’s comments affirms. “We hope the Board of Supervisors and staff will make full use of our remarks and commit the time and resources needed to make the Report a complete and reliable background for the new General Plan.”
Table of Contents
Preliminary Information
1.List of those providing comments
2.Background information on the Calaveras Planning Coalition
General Comments and Demographics
1. Comments to the Calaveras County Baseline Report – General Overview
2. Accurate Baseline Data for the General Plan Update
3. Population and Demographics
Land use
1.Comments on the Introduction, Land Use and Economic Development sections
2.Baseline Report – Land Use Section – Blue Mountain Residential Center
3.Chapter 3 Land Use
Scenic and Community Character and Housing
1.Rural landscape and supporting documents
2.Draft comments on the Housing Element
Circulation
1.San Andreas Community Plan – Circulation and Education
2.Comments on Chapter 6 – Circulation, with supporting documents
Public Services
1.Chapter 7 – Public Services and Water Utilities
2.Chapter 7 Public Facilities, Services, and Utilities, with supporting documents on water and sewer, challenges to infrastructure and services, and Possible Solutions from Other Counties
Recreation and Historical Resources
1.Tourism, Travel Statistics with supporting documents
Natural Resources
1.Comments on Chapter 9, Natural Resources (Water, Biological, Timber)
2.Natural Resources – Habitats, Plant and Animal Species
3.Natural Resources – Timber resources and THP’s
4.Oaks, and supporting documents
5.State regulations and supporting documents – Climate Change
6.Local regulations – County rules
7.Timber lands and residential land use
Safety and Noise
1.“Peak Oil” not yet in General Plan update
2.Soil erosion and supporting documents
3.Fire danger and supporting documents
4.Comments on Chapter 11 – Noise and supporting documents
The Calaveras Planning Coalition
The Calaveras Planning Coalition is composed of community groups, organizations, and individuals interested in growth and planning issues in Calaveras County. The Coalition was formed January 4, 2006, and has met semi regularly every two weeks since that date.
The Calaveras Planning Coalition is united in its belief in the need for a comprehensive update to the Calaveras County General Plan. Further, the Coalition believes that citizen participation is the key to a successful update of the General Plan, and necessary to the update of area specific plans throughout the County.
Coalition members are listed below.
At the Coalition meeting held May 16, 2006, the Coalition adopted eleven “Land Use & Development Principles” to guide the Coalition's efforts and define the criteria by which new groups will be joining. (These are listed on the reverse side.)
These guidelines, which previously have also been adopted by the Amador County Board of Realtors and other groups, provide broad principles related to development and land use.
For more information about the Calaveras Planning Coalition:
www.calaverascap.com
cap@goldrush.com
Planning Coalition Members
Calaveras Child Care Council
Central Sierra Environmental Resource Center
Citizens for San Andreas
Community Action Project (Coalition Sponsor)
Ebbetts Pass Forest Watch
Foothill Collaborative for Sustainability
Keep It Rural, Calaveras
Mountain Ranch Community Club
Murphys Homeowners Protection Alliance
MyValleySprings.com
Paloma Community Group
Wallace Citizens Serving Residents
Associate Members:
Mary Boblet
Frank Meyer
Land Use & Development Principles
1. Land uses should be consistent with stated community visions or goals.
2. Development should not outpace the ability of local governments to provide adequate services and infrastructure or reduce the level of services provided to existing community residents.
3. Project design should work with the contour of the land, preserve physical features such as rock outcroppings, trees, watercourses, and wetlands, and protect important wildlife habitat.
4. County and city plans should protect key wildlife habitat, visual quality, agricultural lands, and open space resources.
5. Projects should be approved only if there is adequate water to supply them.
6. New residential and commercial development should be concentrated in existing towns and communities where shopping, services, schools, jobs, and infrastructure are available.
7. Infrastructure such as water lines, sewer lines, and roads should not be extended outside existing developed areas unless those areas are contiguous to existing communities and scheduled for development in the near future as part of a general or community plan.
8. Communities should have clear boundaries with separation between them provided by working landscapes, greenbelts, or parks.
9. A range of housing types should be available for people of all income levels.
10. Land uses should not put land-use conversion pressure on agricultural lands or threaten the continued operation of existing industrial and commercial businesses.
11. Environmental mitigation measures should adequately address local and
community-wide impacts in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act.
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