County General Plans Incorporate Smart Growth
Counties across California are revising their general plans, and a number of boards of supervisors are integrating “smart growth” principles in these plans.
The Mariposa County Board of Supervisors voted to protect 425,000 acres of oak woodlands, ranch and farm lands when it adopted adopted a new general plan in December 2007. Development in the county, which sits on Yosemite’s western boundry, will be focused around existing communities in order to preserve the county’s working landscapes and rural character. Mariposans for the Environment and Responsible Government, a member of the Sierra Nevada Alliance, led the lobbying efforts.
The Calaveras County supervisors imposed a 45 day moratorium on all new development projects that would require a general plan amendment or zoning changes at their December 2006 meeting. The moratorium doesn’t affect projects that have submitted complete applications or those already approved. The supervisors can renew the moratorium for a total of 12 months. The supervisors approved the moratoriuum pending approval of a revised general plan.
The supervisors acted after it commissioned an independent review of existing general plan, conducted by Mintier and Associates Planning Consultants, which concluded, “The Calaveras County General Plan does not meet statutory requirements and is of limited usefulness as a guide for day-to-day decision making.”
Projects oesn’t affect projects where completed apps already submitted. Expires in 45 days if not renewed.
The Tulare County resource management agency is revising its seeking public comments on draft general plan, based on public comments it received in 2006. The agency expects to present the draft plan to the board of supervisors in early 2007. Tulare County Citizens for Responsible Growth and the Community Water Center have proposed a number of measures to ensure smart growth, agricultural preservation, and watershed protection.
Tuolumne County added a requirement for “inclusive housing,” that is affordable units, in the housing element to its general plan.
Developers in El Dorado County must offer traffic mitigations in their proposed plans.
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For more about efforts to promote smart growth, contact the Sierra Nevada Alliance. They have launched the “Planning for our Future” campaign designed:
“To ensure county land use plans in Sierra counties adequately protect the areas’ last wildlands, natural resources, and rural communities in the face of population growth and climate change. [The] campaign works to strengthen individual conservation efforts to effectively encourage planning commissions and boards of supervisors to adopt smart growth policies as they update their county plans.”
The Alliance provides an “Activist Toolkit,” fact sheets and other resources, and links to like-minded organizations, among other resources.