Summary: Friday, February 28, 2014 There are two different, though related, ways you can get involved in land use issues. First, you can focus on specific “project” items. For instance, should Safeway be allowed to reconfigure the Rancho Del Mar Shopping Center in Aptos, and vastly to increase the size of the existing store? As another example, should that proposed housing development on Val Verde Drive in Carmel Valley be given the go-ahead? These are important decisions, and they are decisions about what “projects” should be approved, or denied, or about what sort of conditions should be imposed on a project approval. Prior to any “project” applications, however, come “policy” level decisions. Under the state’s Planning and Zoning Law, all “project” approvals must be consistent with relevant “policy” documents, the most important being a City or County General Plan. Depending on adopted “policies,” certain kinds of “projects” won’t even be considered. Good planning really depends, ultimately, on good “policies,” maintained and applied. Right now, the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments is overseeing the development of a key “policy” document, the “Monterey Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategy.” I encourage you to get involved in this critical “policy” discussion. Comments are due on April 8th. Get more information at kusp.org/landuse. More Information: Land Use Links Gary Patton’s Two Worlds Blog Metropolitan Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategy
