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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 12 - Study Session: Open Space Winter Evening Hours of UseItem 12 �t�x ofi Council- d. Report ti ttjs o Department Name: Cost Center: For Agenda of: Placement: Estimated Time: FROM: Greg Hermann, Deputy City Manager Prepared By: Robert Hill, Sustainability & Natural Resources Official Administration 1005 March 16, 2021 Study Session 60 minutes SUBJECT: STUDY SESSION: OPEN SPACE WINTER EVENING HOURS OF USE RECOMMENDATION With the recent conclusion of the Open Space Winter Evening Hours of Use Pilot Program ("Pilot Program") the following near -term actions are recommended: 1. Receive and file the final summary report for the Pilot Program (Attachment A); and 2. Provide direction regarding any future open space winter evening hours of use that the City Council may wish to consider. REPORT -IN -BRIEF In response to public testimony and City Council direction, staff implemented a temporary Pilot Program at the Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve to allow for expanded hours of use during the winter months when daylight savings time is not in effect. To enable the Pilot Program, the City Council approved Resolution No. 10858 (2018 Series) and adopted Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act. Four mitigation measures were identified and implemented, including a reservation -based permit system to allow only 65 visitors per evening consistent with prior levels of baseline use. A total of 3,160 permits were issued during the 2018-19 season, 2,747 permits were issued during the 2019-20 season, and 2,702 permits were issued during the 2020-21 season. In total, 7,783 permits were issued, of which 826 were bikers and 6,957 were hikers. At this time, staff is seeking direction regarding any future open space winter evening hours of use that the City Council may wish to consider. Primary options to help facilitate Council discussion are recommended to continue to center around hours of use at Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve only, due to site constraints and site selection criteria, and include: 1. Allow for ongoing open space winter hours of use, 2. Allow for limited ongoing open space winter hours of use, and 3. Discontinue open space winter hours of use. Should Council provide direction to proceed with some form of a permanent program, it is recommended that that the City's Open Space Regulations (Municipal Code chapter 12.22) and the Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve Conservation Plan (2005) be updated to reflect this intent and to provide consistency. This option will require near -term resources to prepare this documentation and associated environmental impact analysis, as well as long-term resources to provide expanded staffing for ongoing operations. Packet Page 83 Item 12 DISCUSSION Background The City of San Luis Obispo owns and manages over 4,000 acres of open space lands that feature a trail network totaling over 55 miles for passive recreation purposes. The City's current Open Space Regulations allow for passive recreational use of these properties from one hour before sunrise until one hour after sunset, unless otherwise approved by the Parks and Recreation Director (SLO Muni Code 12.22; 1998). On August 16, 2016, in response to public testimony regarding a request for reconsideration of the City's published hours of use for open space, a majority of the City Council directed staff to bring back on a future agenda a project plan for revising the ordinance limiting public access of the open space from dusk to dawn. On February 21, 2017, a majority of the City Council voted (4-1) to receive and file the Project Plan for evaluation of the Open Space hours of use regulations as a Consent Agenda item. Numerous individuals and interested groups provided written public comments, as well as testimony at the hearing. The City Council provided parameters including eliminating from consideration any extended hours of use at the Bishop Peak Natural Reserve and to consider winter hours up to a level commensurate with summer hours of use. On March 21, 2017, the City Council received and filed the staff -prepared report, An Evaluation of Hours of Use for City of San Luis Obispo Open Space and conducted a study session to receive public input and testimony regarding Open Space hours of use and regulations. At that meeting, a majority of Council members (4-1) directed staff to bring back an approach for Council consideration that would allow for limited, site specific expanded hours of use, including the possibility of a pilot program that would allow for additional data to be collected and the ability to scale back down, if needed. On January 16, 2018, the City Council approved Resolution No. 10858 (2018 Series) authorizing the two-year Pilot Program and adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (3-2: Council Agenda Report and Council Minutes, January 16, 2018). On November 17, 2020, in the absence of prior opportunities to seek City Council direction on next steps for the Pilot Program due to the City's COVID-19 pandemic emergency response, the City Council approved a temporary, one-year extension of the Pilot Program and adopted an Addendum to the Mitigated Negative Declaration pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (4-0). Packet Page 84 Item 12 Pilot Program at Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve — Final Summary The Council Agenda Report from January 16, 2018 stated, "at the conclusion of the pilot program, staff will prepare a summary report of the pilot program for Council's consideration, and at that time would seek further guidance based on the levels of use during the pilot program and evaluation of the data collected." This report is provided as Attachment A. In accordance with Council direction and approval, staff implemented a pilot program at the 118- acre Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve (the "Reserve") that included a detailed and specific project description allowing extended evening hours of use for passive recreational purposes along approximately 4.9 miles of trails during the winter months when daylight savings time is not in effect. The Pilot Program took place during the winter season with the change of daylight savings time for 2018-19 (Sunday, November 4 to Sunday, March 10), 2019-20 (Sunday November 3 to Sunday March 8), and 2020-21 (Sunday, November 1 to Sunday March 14). During these time periods, public use was extended, between one hour before sunrise until 8:30 PM. This use was managed, monitored, and patrolled by Parks and Recreation Ranger Services staff nightly. Further, it was limited to 65 users a night which required a free permit through an on-line reservation process to secure a receipt of a paper or e-permit through Parks and Recreation Ranger Services. At the conclusion of each year of the Pilot Program, the hours of use for the public returned back to the established one hour before sunrise through one hour after sunset (MC 12.22.050B). No change to the City's existing Open Space Regulations [Municipal Code 12.22, adopted by Ordinance 1332 § 1 (1998)] was required to implement this limited -duration pilot program over the course of two winter seasons: 12.22.050(B.): Presence in Open Space Lands Restricted to Certain Hours —No Overnight Usage. Open space lands where public access is permitted shall be open to the public from dawn to dusk. It shall be unlawful to enter or remain within such lands between one hour after sunset and one hour before sunrise of the following day without approval from the director (emphasis added). The Pilot Program, therefore, was implemented under the Parks and Recreation Director's existing authority to approve additional hours of use pursuant to 12.22.050(B). All other provisions of the City of San Luis Obispo's Open Space Regulations remained in effect. During the course of the Pilot Program, Ranger Service personnel provided oversight and additional patrol of the Reserve during the published timeframes. Ranger Service and Natural Resources Program staff also deployed an EcoCounterTM device to track frequency of human use and hours of use at the Reserve, as well as a new reservation permitting system in order to ensure that use during expanded hours remained commensurate with existing average daily baseline use of 65 individuals. Four wildlife game cameras were installed, and field surveys were conducted by Terra Verde Environmental to monitor and track nocturnal wildlife species composition and any observable and notable wildlife activity and behavior. Packet Page 85 Item 12 A website-based application, or "App" was developed specifically for the Pilot Program by the firm iiiDesign and implemented for interested parties to secure the necessary permit for evening hours of use. A total of 3,160 permits were issued during the 2018-19 season, 2,747 permits were issued during the 2019-20 season, and 2,702 permits were issued during the 2020-21 season. In total, 7,783 permits were issued, of which 826 were bikers and 6,957 were hikers based on self -designation at the time of permit reservation. During all three seasons, in general, less than the full amount of permits available were reserved during the months of November and January through March. During the holiday season in December, however, permits were typically fully subscribed, and Ranger Service had to turn away numerous parties interested in accessing the Reserve at the trailhead and instances of non-compliance were tracked. Policy Context The City's policy framework for open space management expresses a clear preference for natural resource protection as a primary management goal while allowing passive recreation and other uses as secondary or tertiary priorities when compatible. The following programs, policies, and goals from the Conservation and Open Space Element of the City's General Plan (2006) are pertinent to the evaluation of the Open Space hours of use issue: 7.0 - Background; 7.2 - Sustainable natural populations; 7.3.3 - Wildlife habitat and corridors, 8.4.2 - Open Space access and restoration; 8.5.1 - Public access; 8.5.5 - Passive Recreation; 8.5.6 - Determination of appropriate uses for City -owned open space; and, Appendix C - Management of Open Space Lands. Further discussion of this policy framework can be found in the staff -prepared policy analysis, An Evaluation of Hours of Use for City of San Luis Obispo Open Space that was included with the March 21, 2017 City Council Agenda Packet on this item, as well as in the Biological Resources section of the Mitigated Negative Declaration that was adopted by the City Council on January 18, 2018. Public Engagement Staff conducted public engagement activities in accordance with the project plan and the City's Public Engagement and Noticing Manual during the initial process of preparing and designing the Pilot Program. To better understand stakeholder concerns and preferences, informal interviews and communications were conducted in February 2017 with the Environmental Center of San Luis Obispo (ECOSLO), the Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club, the Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County, Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers, SLO Trail Runners, as well as various individuals. This topic generated considerable public interest during the course of 2017 as demonstrated by significant levels of written and verbal comments at the City Council meetings, in print and social media outlets, and with an online petition that was submitted to the City Council. Staff have also been in contract with neighboring property owners. Packet Page 86 Item 12 Potential Options for Next Steps for City Council Consideration There are a variety of possible options that Council might wish to consider. As background, it is important to recall that a variety of criteria were identified for site selection of where expanded winter hours of use would be most appropriately located, concluding that Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve bests meets these criteria. Through the course of public input and Council discussion, primary considerations have been related to concerns about potential impacts to nocturnal wildlife and neighborhood compatibility along with direction to select a site that would be meaningful to members of the public that are seeking expanded hours of use during the winter months. Site selection, in summary, was based on: 1) avoiding open space properties connected to core habitat areas where wildlife use is thought to be most prolific; 2) avoiding neighborhood trailheads; and, 3) open space properties that present reduced challenges for emergency response access. Primary options to help facilitate current Council discussion are therefore recommended to continue to center around hours of use at Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve only, as no other City open space properties meet with these criteria, and are further detailed below: Allow for ongoing open space winter hours of use Should Council wish to continue with open space winter evening hours of use and access at Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve on an ongoing basis, it is recommended that the City's Open Space Regulations (Municipal Code chapter 12.22) be updated in order to reflect this intent. It is further recommended that the Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve Conservation Plan (2005) be updated to reflect an expanded evening use of the property, while also providing an opportunity to update the natural resources inventory and mapping of the current trail system. This option will require near -term resources to prepare this documentation and associated environmental impact analysis, as well as long-term resources to provide expanded staffing for ongoing operations. Allow for limited ongoing open space winter hours of use It is noteworthy that during the course of the Pilot Program, daily use was significantly higher during the month of December in the period when the holiday lights are up at the top of the mountain. While it was not the initial intent of the Pilot Program to facilitate access for this purpose, our experience has been that this local tradition has become the dominant use pattern. This option contemplates a shorter duration revision to allowed hours of use during the month of December only. Discontinue open space winter hours of use Discussions beginning in 2016 about allowing some form of open space access during winter months when daylight savings time is not in effect have been perhaps the most controversial topic the City has ever confronted with its open space program. At its essence, those that oppose expanded winter use take note that it is not consistent with the spirit and intent of the City's open space policy framework. As a practical matter, the program has been very burdensome for Natural Resources and Ranger Service staff and it is anticipated that moving forward with some form of a permanent program will come at the expense of other Council priorities. Further, other options exist within the region where evening hours of use are accommodated, such as at Montana de Oro and within the Los Padres National Forest. Packet Page 87 Item 12 CONCURRENCE The Parks and Recreation Department, whose Ranger Service staff have administered the Pilot Program over the past three seasons, concur with the content contained herein. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW There is no environmental review necessary or required to conduct a study session. Should the City Council elect to direct staff to pursue some form of continuation of the expanded hours of use when daylight savings is not in effect during winter months, staff would take immediate action to retain the services of a professional environmental consulting firm to determine the need for any technical studies and to conduct the environmental review process. Existing Environmental Review An Initial Study and Environmental Review was prepared for the Pilot Program that concluded that significant impacts on the environment could occur, but those impacts would be reduced to less than significant with mitigation measures. Potentially significant impacts were identified in the area of Biological Resources and four mitigation measures were incorporated. Following the conclusion of the planned two-year Pilot Program, the City was not in a position to temporarily continue the Pilot Program as desired without subsequent environmental review steps because the project description in the City Council's adopted Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) was specific that this would be a two-year pilot program with exact dates of implementation indicated. Accordingly, an Addendum to the existing MND that extended the Pilot Program temporarily, for one year only, with no other changes, was considered and adopted by the City Council. FISCAL IMPACT Budgeted: No Funding Identified: No Fiscal Analysis: Budget Year: 2020-21; 2021-22 Funding Sources Current FY Cost Annualized On -going Cost Total Project Cost General Fund $150,000 $25,000 $175,000 State Federal Fees Other: Total $150,000 $25,000 $175,000 Packet Page 88 Item 12 Project Budget Estimate for 2021-23: Annualized Total Project Funding Uses Current FY Cost On -going Cost Cost Environmental Review $100,000 $100,000 and Technical studies Ranger Service staff $30,000 $20,000 $50,000 time Natural Resources & $20,000 $5,000 $25,000 City Attorney staff time Total $150,000 $25,000 $175,000 Direct fiscal impacts associated with the Pilot Program consisted of expenditures and purchasing of new field equipment, printing costs for the new educational materials and signs, biological surveys, and creation and implementation of the reservation -based permit system. Both direct costs and staffing costs have been supported by the operating budgets for Ranger Service and Natural Resources Program. It should be noted that no additional resources were allocated to plan for and conduct the Pilot Program. As noted in the Environmental Review section, above, should the City Council elect to direct staff to pursue some form of continuation of the expanded hours of use when daylight savings is not in effect during winter months, staff would take immediate action to retain the services of a professional environmental consulting firm to determine the need for any technical studies and to conduct the environmental review process. Based on prior experience, staff estimates that this could cost in the range of $50,000 to $100,000 depending on Council's direction and the scope of services that may be required (note: for budget estimating purposes, the high side of this range is reflected in the tables above). Additional staff time to prepare an ordinance revision and update of the Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve Conservation Plan are estimated at $20,000. Appropriate levels of Ranger Service staff resources are also necessary and are estimated at $25,000 for ongoing oversight, patrol, and monitoring efforts; their staff hours and availability are already constrained at this time, prior to any consideration of a permanent program, due to their role with homelessness response and creek clean-up efforts, as well as the expansion of the City open space system over the past five years. Staff would therefore need to bring forward additional funding requests as part of the 2021-23 Financial Plan process that would be necessary to implement and administer some form of a permanent program, if directed by the City Council. Packet Page 89 Item 12 ALTERNATIVES Alternatives that the City Council may wish to consider include, but are not limited to: 1. Request that staff provide additional information and analysis prior to taking further action. 2. Direct staff to pursue one of the courses of action described above to continue Open Space Winter Hours of Use programming and return to Council for adoption. Council may also consider combinations or variations thereof. 3. Direct staff to take no further action on Open Space Winter Hours of Use programming and discontinue future work efforts. Attachments: a - COUNCIL READING FILE - Open Space Winter Evening Hours Pilot Program - Final Summary Council Memo Packet Page 90 xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Recommendation With the recent conclusion of the Open Space Winter Evening Hours of Use Pilot Program ("Pilot Program") the following near - term actions are recommended: 1. Receive and file the final summary report for the Pilot Program; and 2. Provide direction regarding any future open space winter evening hours of use that the City Council may wish to consider. xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Project Review Background & Prior Council Direction: 1. Members of the public first approached City Council in 2016 requesting reconsideration of Open Space hours of use when daylight savings time is not in effect during the winter. 2. Following a City Council directed process, public hearings on this item were held on February 21, 2017, March 21, 2017, and October 241 2017. This included a project plan, a staff -prepared public policy analysis, and site suitability analysis / selection. 3. On January 16, 2018, the City Council passed Resolution No. 10858 (2018 Series) that approved a two-year Pilot Program and adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act. 4. On November 17, 2020, the City Council approved a one-year, temporary extension of the Pilot Program and adopted an Addendum to the prior Mitigated Negative Declaration. xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program - 2018 through 2021: 1. In accordance with Council direction and approval, staff implemented a pilot program at the 118-acre Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve (the "Reserve") that included a detailed and specific project description allowing extended evening hours of use for passive recreational purposes along approximately 4.9 miles of trails during the winter months when daylight savings time is not in effect. 2. The Pilot Program took place during the winter season for 2018-19 (Sunday, November 4 to Sunday, March 10) 2019-20 (Sunday November 3 to Sunday March 8), and 2020-21 (Sunday November 1 to Sunday March 14). During these time periods, public use was allowed between one hour before sunrise until 8:30 PM. At the conclusion of each year of the Pilot Program, the hours of use for the public resumed back to one hour before sunrise through one hour after sunset, per the City's Open Space Regulations. xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: Four mitigation measures were identified as part of the Mitigated Negative Declaration under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) that was adopted at the time that the Pilot Program was approved by the City Council. These were: 1. B1O-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring 2. B1O-2 Wildlife Water Sources. o Ranger Service staff installed two wildlife friendly "guzzlers" 3. B1O-3 Public Information and Education Materials. o An educational kiosk and information signs were installed at the trailhead 3. B1O-4 Evening Use Permitting System. 0 A reservation permitting system was developed and implemented ti° CITY OF SHill DELIS OBISPO xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BIO-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BIO-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BIO-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BIO-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring lf _ + �l ; I } f ����• -w• � J r�f ,s xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BIO-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BIO-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BI0-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 1. BI0-1 Wildlife Monitoring and Adaptive Management. o Ranger Service and Terra Verde Environmental conducted wildlife monitoring xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program, 2018-19 and 2019-20: 2. BI0-2 Wildlife Water Sources. o Ranger Service staff installed two wildlife friendly "guzzlers" C ZAi- UkV� Winter Evening Access lit �• O~ FPO �Yi, iri96 in Aiiir�9rb�btc�� c�e� owe l ��•,. Fa•q'pmtlAa�a4nodisg inAi mcv �we�gv. ' '� Go �Ae sigi�i �rhr .vas wakes wr �eue GAT Y OJh CITY OF ►SHII DELIS OBISPO L�rs o� �f PERMIT REQUIRED VISIT SEQNIGHTHIKEHEHMIT.INFO FOR MORE INFORMATION Winter Evening Access GAT Y O.h CITY OF ►SHII DELIS OBISPO L�rs o� -�.-�..rarr wnrrrwi. 4 A permit is required to hike after sunset in San. Luis Obispo's undeveloped open space. xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Implementation of the Pilot Program: 4. 610-4 Evening Use Permitting System. o A reservation permitting system was developed and implemented Biking 307 342 Hiking 2853 2405 177 826 2405 6957 Total 3160 2747 2702 7783 While not tracked for this Pilot Program, in prior survey work Open Space utilization included: 1. 6% once per month, 28% 2-5 times per month, 63% multiple times per week, 3% everyday. 2. 63% from City of SLO, 31 % from elsewhere in the County, 6% from outside the County. xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Potential Options for City Council's Consideration: 1. Allow for ongoing open space winter hours of use 2. Allow for limited ongoing open space winter hours of use 3. Discontinue open space winter hours of use xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Fiscal and Staffing Impacts: 1. Direct fiscal impacts associated with the Pilot Program have been relatively minor consisting of expenditures and purchasing of new field equipment, printing costs for the new educational materials and signs, biological surveys, and implementation of the reservation -based permit system. To continue, no further equipment purchases are necessary. 2. Additional Ranger Service staff resources would be needed for oversight, education, patrol, and monitoring efforts necessary to conduct a permanent program. Otherwise, available Ranger Service staff hours and availability for other purposes will continue to be limited. 3. Although there is an assumed level of risk with use of Open Space, emergency response personnel from the Fire Department would continue to have the possibility of difficult and challenging rescue situations. One call for assistance was made at Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve during the Pilot Program. xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Fiscal and Staffing Impacts (cont.): 4. Staff time will be necessary from Natural Resources Program staff and the City Attorney's Office to prepare an ordinance revision and an update of the Cerro San Luis Natural Reserve Conservation Plan. 5. Consultant resources will be necessary to conduct the environmental review process and any associated technical studies. Funding Uses Current FY Cost Annualized On -going Cost Total Project Cost Environmental Review and Technical studies $100,000 $100,000 Ranger Service staff time $30,000 $20,000 $50,000 Natural Resources & City Attorney staff time $20,000 $5,000 $25,000 Total $150,000 $25,000 1 $175,000 xpanded Winter Open Space Hours of Use City Council Hearing - March 16, 2021 Recommendation With the recent conclusion of the Open Space Winter Evening Hours of Use Pilot Program ("Pilot Program") the following near -term actions are recommended: 1. Receive and file the final summary report for the Pilot Program; and 2. Provide direction regarding any future open space winter evening hours of use that the City Council may wish to consider.