The Draft Environmental Impact Report for our General Plan continues with Project Characteristics (3-5) which informs us that in addition to the separate Housing Element, the General Plan and its EIR, there is also a Draft General Plan Implementation Plan. This is “a separate document that will guide the County’s elected officials, staff, and the public when putting the adopted General Plan goals and policies into practice…translate…from general terms to specific actions.” The planning profession may not have contributed much to making our communities better, but it has excelled at convincing law makers that its expensive services are essential and endless.
Starting on page 3-6 and continuing until page 3-13 is a discussion of the Land Use Element. Anyone reading this document by now has realized that it is series of outlines of outlines. This seems reminiscent of the time of Charles Dickens when writers were paid by the word. Only in this case it is us, the taxpayer, who pays the bill. The social policy elements persist with “quality child care” and “accessible health care”. I wonder if accessible health care bares any resemblance to our current “affordable” health care? Prior to development it must be ensured that “adequate water supply, wastewater treatment, and public services are available” (3-6). Does this mean that capital, either public or private, must be expended long before any possible benefit? This certainly succeeds in making everything more expensive since the value of money is measured in time. Imagine building this infrastructure for a development and then having it sit there during the almost inevitable lawsuit. This provision seems absurd anyway, since who would move into a home or open a business without running water, etc. However, if one wants to limit growth and feels that subterfuge is acceptable than this provision is loud and clear.
The Town Center squeeze continues with a tightly defined Pine Grove of 360 acres (3-12) planned for an additional 230 units (commercial and residential) added to the existing 250 units (3-11). These can be 10 to 18 units/acre for units meeting certain income restrictions (3-10). Since this provision obviously refers to housing, perhaps the frightful prediction of the anti Dollar General folks of a Pine Grove ghetto will materialize.
They also propose homes between Amador City and Sutter Creek to further compact the population despite stating “Enhance and maintain separate and distinct community areas within the County” (3-6).
As I previously posted these home sites, unless they are just grandfathering existing homes, are atop the mother lode as shown in the Housing Element (pg 51)and the mineral resources zone map in the Conservation Element (pg 15). While comparing the minerals resource map with the 10,622 acres (3-9) allotted to “Expected Development” with an unchanged number of units something seems askew. Or perhaps the 10,622 acres is just their self fulfilling projection of what won’t happen?
Copyright 2015, Mark L. Bennett
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