Heard: GP Changes Prelude To Development

THE BUZZ has been asked to post this message which has been making the rounds on Natomas-area e-mail groups:

Dear Natomas community leaders:

Just a heads up about the County General Plan update hearings going on at the Planning Commission. I would advise you to consider showing up and speaking at the next hearing, July 27 at 5:30 (700 H Street), about the importance of not expanding the County urban services boundary to include new areas to develop in North Natomas (outside the NNCP) in this plan update. Letters and emails are relevant as well.

The County General Plan Update has reached the level of Planning Commission hearings, which have been going on for several weeks. I attended on Monday July 13. I found that a number of rural landowners in North Natomas were pushing the Commission to redesignate their areas as inside the urban services boundary (USB).

Those who have followed the Joint Vision discussions will understand what this is about. The Boot landowners, Ose and Guidero want to get their properties designated within the Urban Services Boundary as a prelude to development. At the hearing on July 13, they were out in force and the Planning Commission decided to hold open public comment to have another hearing on July 27 (5:30 pm, 700 H Street). FOSH will of course present testimony on why the USB should not be changed to accomodate more development in the Boot and elsewhere in North Natomas. A key issue is the validity of the EIR if they change the baseline assumption about the USB. There are huge environmental impacts of changing that line.

It is important to educate the County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors about why we want to maintain current limits on development in North Natomas. It will likely be a long hearing (it went til 10:30 on Monday) and turning it comment card early is key to getting out early. Emails and phone calls may also help.

Contact info for the County Planning Commission: I find no contact info for the Commissioners who are: JOE DEBBS, GREG PETERSON, HOWARD YEE, KATHILYNN CARPENTER

Email comments to staff member, David Defanti, County Planning at [email protected] and County DERA (environmental review) re DEIR at [email protected]

Board Action: Joe Debbs/ Kathilynn Carpenter – Extended the public comment period for the Draft Environmental Impact Report to July 27, 2009, and continued the project to July 27, 2009.

The video of the hearing may well be available at the county site at: http://saccounty.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=7

For more information on the Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR), visit: http://www.dera.saccounty.net/SearchforDocuments/GeneralPlanUpdateEIR/tabid/117/Default.aspx

For more information on the Draft 2030 General Plan, visit: http://www.planning.saccounty.net/gpupdate/gpu-index.html

Full contact info for Dave Defanti:
Dave Defanti
Senior Planner, Long Range Planning
Sacramento County Planning and Community Development Department
827 7th Street, Room 230 Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 874-6155
Fax: (916) 874-6400
Reception: (916) 874-6141
[email protected]
www.planning.saccounty.net

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