www.montereycountyweekly.com november 30-december 6, 2023 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 19 Somewhere between the shape of Monterey County today—a series of small cities that stand apart—and the shape of notorious suburban sprawl without space between, is a 365-page report by the staff of the Local Agency Formation Commission of Monterey County (LAFCO). Because the cities of the Salinas Valley are like islands, surrounded on all sides by agricultural lands that define this place as the Salad Bowl of the World, there is a limitation on growth. If a city envisions expanding its footprint—for new housing, commercial districts or industrial development—it often means creeping outward into farmland. The expansion of cities is subject to approval from LAFCO. And for the better part of a year, LAFCO commissioners have been dusting off the agency’s ag mitigation policy. The policy ultimately guides conditions of approval attached to developments. When the 252acre Uni-Kool site in Salinas was annexed in 2010, including 240 acres of farmland, 197 acres of farmland were transferred to a land trust. When 216 acres of the Meyers-Mills Ranches, including 189 acres of farmland, was annexed in 2002 by King City, 361 acres were set aside in a conservation easement. The premise, ultimately, is to strike a balance between enabling badly needed development of housing without killing the golden goose. Agriculture powers the region’s economy and provides the jobs that draw people to live here—but there aren’t enough places to live. As the sense of urgency increases when it comes to the housing crisis, city leaders and developers are asking LAFCO for more flexibility. “These policies have the potential to curtail our jurisdictions’ healthy growth at a time when the need for economic development and housing production has never been greater,” the city managers of Salinas, Gonzales, Soledad and Greenfield wrote in a Nov. 17 letter to LAFCO. Those city leaders want, among other things, the option to pay an “in-lieu” fee instead of setting aside land; a 1:1 ratio of annexed land to conserved farmland; compliance monitoring when a permit is issued, rather than at the time of project approval; and exemptions for housing development that enables a jurisdiction to meet its state-mandated Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) numbers. When LAFCO convened on Monday, Nov. 27 for a workshop on updating its ag mitigation policy, everyone seemed to agree that some kind of policy is needed—but that’s where agreement stops. “The [current] policy is not working,” said County Supervisor Chris Lopez, who represents South County and until last year was a LAFCO commissioner. He called housing “the biggest problem of our generation,” and offered up anecdotes that are all too common. He described one constituent, Lidia, who lives in Chualar with her two professional adult sons—one works as a CPA and one runs a tax service. “They love Chualar; they want housing in Chualar,” Lopez said. “Lidia repeats to me, ‘Where’s the housing? Let’s get it done.’” Glenn Pace is the manager of Pembrook Development, which envisions building 3,498 residential units in Gonzales. The Vista Lucia project has been in the making for 22 years, and is expected to seek LAFCO’s blessing for annexation in the near future. “The policy seems to be working for land preservation, and that’s a positive,” Pace said, “but it clearly is not working for RHNA mandates.” Housing is needed, everyone seems to agree on that. But the devil is in the details. And the details include the fact that, since 2000, according to LAFCO staff’s analysis, a total of 5,078 acres have been annexed into Salinas Valley cities, and 80 percent of those lands remain undeveloped. Mike Novo, a former Monterey County planner, spoke on behalf of the Ag Land Trust. “Some comments imply that this policy has kept housing from being constructed,” he said. “I just don’t see any evidence of that. There is plenty of land available.” If the policy is out of balance in favor of land conservation over housing, LAFCO needs to change that—but not at the expense of farmland conservation, because we need that too. LAFCO commissioners will again pick up the topic from 4-9pm on Monday, Dec. 4, at 168 W. Alisal St. in Salinas. Sara Rubin is the Weekly’s editor. Reach her at sara@mcweekly.com. Ready for Landing Housing and agricultural needs clash in a major land use policy decision. By Sara Rubin Top Cops…In Squid’s undersea lair, sound moves faster than it does on land. Maybe that’s why Squid has been hearing for months about the impending departure of now-former Chief Deputy Jeff Hoyne from the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, who has been out of the office since at least Aug. 26, when Squid first started asking. Since then, Jason Smith was filling in as acting chief deputy. Official reality finally caught up with on-theground reality Nov. 18, with a notification that Hoyne was no longer with the office and Smith was the new chief deputy (plus another promotion for Veronica Olguin, a former sergeant turned commander). “I spoke with both about the expectation of leadership roles,” Sheriff Tina Nieto said in a statement. “Both understood the responsibility that comes with their new positions, and their steadfast commitment to the personnel that make up this fine organization… We are all in this together.” Nieto, who beat Hoyne in the 2022 election then appointed him, declines to confirm whether Hoyne skipped out on his expectations lecture. Squid has heard from multiple sources that Hoyne repeatedly used a racial slur; Hoyne did not respond to a call for comment. “I have always pledged that my executive management team will always share my values,” Nieto says. Squid hopes the second time’s a charm. Thanks for Leaving…Not long ago, a Del Rey Oaks resident sat down with one of Squid’s colleagues to make the case that the Weekly’s coverage of the city is unduly harsh— Del Rey Oaks is a welcoming community, they insisted. So Squid set out to see just how welcoming the city is, and entered from Seaside on Highland Street, which quickly becomes Carlton Drive—the two streets did not always connect. Then Squid hung a right and oozed down Quendale Avenue, which soon turns into Portola Drive. Both run along the city’s border with Seaside, but there is only one other street that connects the cities—Tweed Street. However, it’s blocked off with barriers on the Del Rey Oaks side. The homes are quite nice—more than an inkstained cephalopod can afford—and as that fact set in, Squid made Squid’s way into Del Rey Farms, a cannabis dispensary on Portola Drive at its intersection with Fremont Boulevard in Seaside. As Squid was oozing out of the dispensary, Squid noticed a “no right turn” sign for those exiting the parking lot, so that they must instead turn left, toward Seaside. Wait, what? Is it a one-way street? No. Is it more dangerous to turn left? Yes. Squid’s colleague asked City Manager John Guertin about the sign’s provenance, but he didn’t know, adding that it’s likely not enforceable. Squid hopes it remains—at this point, it’s art. the local spin SQUID FRY THE MISSION OF MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY IS TO INSPIRE INDEPENDENT THINKING AND CONSCIOUS ACTION, ETC. “Where’s the housing? Let’s get it done.” Send Squid a tip: squid@mcweekly.com
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjAzNjQ1NQ==