Notice of Preparation Colusa County 2030 General Plan Draft Program Environmental Impact Report

Transcription

1 NoticeofPreparation ColusaCounty2030GeneralPlan DraftProgramEnvironmentalImpact Report Date: June20,2011 To: StateClearinghouse StateResponsibleAgencies StateTrusteeAgencies OtherPublicAgencies OrganizationsandInterestedPersons LeadAgency: ColusaCountyDepartmentofPlanningandBuilding SteveHackney,DirectorofPlanningandBuilding th Street Colusa,CA95932 Phone: Summary Colusa County (the County) will serve as Lead Agency in the preparation of a programmatic Environmental Impact Report (Program EIR) addressing the comprehensive update to the County s General Plan. This programmatic EIR will address the environmental impacts associated with the adoption and implementationofthecolusacounty2030generalplan.informationregardingthe project description, project location, public outreach process and topics to be addressedinthedrafteirisprovidedbelow.additionalinformationonthecolusa County2030GeneralPlanisavailableat: SubmittingComments Publicagenciesandinterestedpartiesareinvitedtosubmitcommentsinwritingas to the scope and content of the EIR. Public agencies submitting comments are encouragedtoidentifyacontactpersonandanykeyagencyconcernsregardingthe proposedproject.thecountyneedstoknowtheviewsofyouragencyastothe scope and content of the environmental information that is germane to your agency sstatutoryresponsibilitiesinconnectiontotheproposedproject.publicand agencycommentswillbereceivedovera30 dayperiod,endingonjuly20,2011.all ColusaCounty2030GeneralPlan 1 June2011 EIRNoticeofPreparation

2 commentsmustbereceivedpriorto5:00p.m.onjuly20,2011.intheeventthatno response or request for additional time is received by any Responsible or Trustee Agency by the end of the review period, the Lead Agency may presume that the Responsible Agency has no response to make [CEQA Guidelines Section 15082(b)(2)]. PleasesendyourresponsestoSteveHackney,DirectorofPlanningandBuilding,at theaddressshownabove. ScopingMeeting TheCountywillconductascopingmeetingtoreceivepublicinputonthescopeof thecolusacounty2030generalplaneir.atthismeeting,individuals,agencies,and organizationsareencouragedtoprovidethecountywiththeirinputonthetopics andanalysisfortheeir. The scoping meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 28, 2011 at 9:00 a.m. at the ColusaCountyBoardChambers,locatedat547MarketStreet,Colusa,CA ProjectCharacteristicsandBackground ProjectLocationandSetting Colusa County encompasses approximately 1,156 square miles in north central California(seeFigure1).TheeasternpartoftheCountyislocatedintheSacramento Valley,andthewesternportionisintheKlamath/NorthCoastRange.ColusaCounty isborderedbyglenncountytothenorth,lakecountytothewest,olocountyto thesouth,andsutterandbuttecountiestotheeast. ExistinglandusesinColusaCountyareprimarilyagricultural.Thelandusepattern is typical of rural counties of the Sacramento Valley. A checkerboard of large acreage farms dominates the eastern half of the County, with land ownership and roadalignmentsgenerallyfollowingsquaremilesectionlines.thelandisgenerally flatandiscoveredbyfieldsofrice,orchards,androwcrops.viewsareexpansive, framedonlybytherollingfoothillsofthecoastrangeonthewestandjaggedpeaks ofthesutterbuttesontheeast. AsonemoveswestthroughtheCounty,largefarmsgivewaytomuchlargercattle andsheepranches,cultivatedfieldsgivewaytoaridrangeland,andtheflatterrain transitionsintorollinghillsanduplandvalleys.furtherwest,thelandbecomesyet more rugged and wild, until finally reaching the summit of Snow Mountain in the wildernessareaat7,000feetabovethevalleyfloor. There are two incorporated cities in Colusa County: Colusa and Williams. Unincorporated communities include Arbuckle, Maxwell, Princeton, Grimes, Stonyford,CenturyRanch,andCollegeCity. ColusaCounty2030GeneralPlan 2 June2011 EIRNoticeofPreparation

3 Interstate 5 is a major transportation corridor running north south through the County.StateRoute20isamajorroadwayrunningeast westthroughthecounty. State Route 45 is a major roadway running north south through the County The Sacramento River runs in a general north south direction along and near the County seasternboundary. ProjectDescription ColusaCountyispreparingacomprehensiveupdatetotheirexistingGeneralPlan, whichwasadoptedin1989.theupdateisexpectedtobecompleteinlate2011or early2012. The Colusa County 2030 General Plan will include a comprehensive set of goals, policies and implementation measures, as well as a revised Land Use Map(Figure 2). The State requires that the General Plan contain seven mandatory elements: Land Use, Circulation, Housing, Open Space, Noise, Safety and Conservation. The HousingElementwascompletedaheadoftherestoftheGeneralPlanElements,and wasadoptedbytheboardofsupervisorsonfebruary8,2011.thecolusacounty 2030 General Plan will include all of the State mandated elements, as well as optionalelements,including:economicdevelopment,publicservicesandfacilities, andcommunitycharacter. The overall purpose of the Colusa County 2030 General Plan is to create a policy framework that articulates a vision for the County s long term physical form and development, while preserving and enhancing the quality of life for Colusa County residents.thekeycomponentsofthegeneralplanwillincludebroadgoalsforthe futureofcolusacounty,objectivesformeetingthosegoals,andspecificpoliciesand actionitemsthatwillhelpmeetthegoalsandobjectives. GeneralPlanOutreachandPublicInput VisioningWorkshops TheCountyinitiatedtheGeneralPlanUpdateprocessin2009.BetweenSeptember and November 2009, the General Plan Update team held five public visioning workshops to help kick off the General Plan Update process. A diverse group of County residents and stakeholders attended workshops in Stonyford, Maxwell, Arbuckle, Colusa and Williams. The workshops provided an opportunity for the public to offer their thoughts on what they like and don't like about their communities and the County and what important issues should be addressed in preparingthegeneralplanupdate. Each workshop included a presentation by the consultant team that explained the role of the General Plan, an overview of the General Plan Update process, and an opportunityfortheworkshopparticipantstoaskquestionsandseekclarificationon the process and the role of the community. Workshop participants were asked to ColusaCounty2030GeneralPlan 3 June2011 EIRNoticeofPreparation

4 completethreeexercisesinordertoprovideinformationtothegeneralplanupdate team. StakeholderInterviews BetweenSeptember2009andMarch2010,theGeneralPlanConsultantsconducted interviewsandoutreacheffortswithseveralkeystakeholdersinthecounty.these interviews and outreach efforts helped the General Plan consultants gain perspectives and insights into the issues to be addressed by the General Plan Update.Keystakeholderscontactedduringtheseeffortsinclude,butarenotlimited to: MaxwellPublicUtilitiesDistrict ArbucklePublicUtilitiesDistrict CityofWilliams CityofColusa ColusaCountySheriff sdepartment ColusaCountyAssessor soffice ColusaCountyDepartmentofPublicWorks ColusaLocalAgencyFormationCommission(LAF) ColusaCountyLibrary ColusaRotaryClub ColusaCountyAgriculturalCommissioner ColusaCountyDepartmentofBehavioralHealth ColusaCountyDepartmentofHealthandHumanServices ColusaCountyDepartmentofPlanningandBuilding ColusaCountyOfficeofEducation HousingAuthority(contractedthroughGlennCo.HRA) ArbuckleFamilyActionCenter WilliamsMigrantCamp SeniorInformationCenter ColusaFirst5 ColusaCountyOne StopCenter Colusa Glenn TrinityCommunityActionPartnership ColusaCountyChamberofCommerce PrincetonJointUnifiedSchoolDistrict ColusaCountyFarmBureau ArbuckleFamilyHealthCenter MaxwellUnifiedSchoolDistrict PierceJointUnifiedSchoolDistrict ColusaUnifiedSchoolDistrict StonyCreekJointUnifiedSchoolDistrict ColusaCounty2030GeneralPlan 4 June2011 EIRNoticeofPreparation

5 LandUseMapChangeRequestForms BetweenNovember2009andMarch2010,propertyownersinColusaCountywere giventheopportunitytosubmitgeneralplanlandusedesignationchangerequests for their parcels to the Planning Department. Changes in existing General Plan designations were requested for approximately 27 sites throughout the County. These requested changes were all considered by the General Plan Steering Committee, Planning Commission, and the Board of Supervisors during the developmentofthedraft2030generalplanlandusemap. GeneralPlanSteeringCommittee The Board of Supervisors appointed approximately 20 County residents and local agency representatives to the General Plan Steering Committee. The Steering Committee worked with staff and the consultant team to develop the goals, objectives, policies and action items to be included in the 2030 General Plan, and also worked to develop and refine the Draft General Plan Land Use Map. The Steering Committee met a total of eight times between September 2010 and February2011. ProgramEIRAnalysis The County, as the Lead Agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) will prepare a Program Environmental Report for the 2030 General Plan. The County s 2030 General Plan will be comprehensive in scope. The EIR will be preparedinaccordancewithceqa,implementingtheceqaguidelines(guidelines), relevantcaselaw,andcountyprocedures.thecolusacounty2030generalplanis considereda project underceqa,andisthereforesubjecttoceqareview.asa policydocument,thegeneralplanprovidesguidanceandsetsstandardsforseveral areas of mandatory environmental review for later projects that would be undertakenbylocalgovernmentandtheprivatesector. The EIR will analyze potentially significant impacts associated with adoption and implementationofthe2030generalplan.inparticular,theeirwillfocusonareas ofplannedlandusechangesintheunincorporatedcounty.figure2showsthedraft LandUseMapforthe2030GeneralPlan. ColusaCounty2030GeneralPlan 5 June2011 EIRNoticeofPreparation

6 Pursuant to Section 15063(a) of the CEQA Guidelines, no Initial Study will be prepared for the proposed project. The EIR will evaluate the full range of environmental issues contemplated under CEQA and the CEQA Guidelines. At this time, the County anticipates that EIR sections will be organized in the following manner: Aesthetics AgricultureandForestry AirQuality BiologicalResources CulturalResources GeologyandSoils GreenhouseGassesandClimateChange HazardsandHazardousMaterials HydrologyandWaterQuality LandUse/Planning MineralResources Noise PopulationandHousing PublicServicesandRecreation Transportation/Traffic Utilities MandatoryFindingsofSignificance ColusaCounty2030GeneralPlan 6 June2011 EIRNoticeofPreparation

7 DEL NORTE SISKI MODOC HUMBOLDT TRINIT SHASTA LASSEN TEHAMA PLUMAS GLENN BUTTE SIERRA MENDOCINO LAKE LUSA UBA NEVADA PLACER SONOMA MARIN SAN FRANCIS SAN MATEO NAPA OLO SOLANO NTRA STA ALAMEDA SUTTER EL DORADO SACRA- MENTO AMADOR SAN JOAQUIN CALAVERAS STANISLAUS ALPINE TUOLUMNE MARIPOSA MONO SANTA CRUZ SANTA CLARA MERCED MADERA SAN BENITO FRESNO INO MONTERE KINGS TULARE SAN LUIS OBISPO KERN SAN BERNARDINO SANTA BARBARA VENTURA LOS ANGELES ORANGE RIVERSIDE SAN DIEGO IMPERIAL Map date: June 3, 2010 Figure 1. Regional Location Map Colusa County 2030 General Plan 1:5,500,000 D e N o v o P l a n n i n g G r o u p A Land Use Planning, Design, and Environmental Firm

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9 G G LL E EN NN N C N TT Princeton East Park Reservoir Century Ranch Lodoga Delevan cr B BU U TT TT E E C N TT a Sa M M ee nn dd oo cc ii nn oo N N aa tt ii oo nn aa ll FF oo rr ee ss tt m en to R i v er Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Stonyford Delevan National Wildlife Refuge Sites Maxwell Leesville Sites Planning Area 5 C N TT Figure 2: Draft Land Use Map, Colusa County 2030 General Plan URA - Urban Reserve Area Williams AG - Agricultural General AU - Agricultural Upland Colusa National Wildlife Refuge Sa am cr LL A AK KE E AT - Agricultural Transition or e nt C N TT ive r PR - Parks & Recreation RSC - Rural Service Center Grimes PS - Public/Semi-Public Services C - Commercial DF - Designated Floodway City Boundaries RC - Resource Conservation SitesPlannningArea FL - Forest Lands Wildlife Refuges I - Industrial Spheres of Influence TL - Tribal Lands Bureau of Reclamation Lands RR - Rural Residential UR - Urban Residential MU - Mixed Use S SU U TT TT E ER R Colusa ² State, Federal, and Other Agency Lands Arbuckle College City 4 Miles O O LL O O C N TT Parcel boundaries developed by Geographical Information Center, California State University, Chico, for the DeNovo Planning Group and Colusa County. Other data sources: Colusa County GIS and United States Forest Service. Map date: June 9, 2011.