HomeMy WebLinkAboutD - CEQA Pathway Memorandum
Rincon Consultants, Inc.
1530 Monterey Street, Suite D
San Luis Obispo, California 93401
805-547-0900
www.rinconcons ultan ts.com
November 26, 2024
Rincon Project No. 23-14091
Erica Long
City of San Luis Obispo
990 Palm Street
San Luis Obispo, California 93401
Via email: elong@slocity.org
Subject: Memorandum to Support California Environmental Quality Act Pathway Determination
for Neighborhood Park Improvements within the Orcutt Specific Plan Area, City of San
Luis Obispo
Dear Ms. Long:
Rincon Consultants, Inc. (Rincon) is pleased to provide this memorandum to the City of San Luis Obispo
(City) to support the proposed neighborhood park improvements within the Orcutt Area Specific Plan
(OASP) Area. This memorandum provides a background of previous environmental analyses
concerning the neighborhood park, potential mitigation requirements, and Rincon’s recommendation
for the most appropriate California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) compliance pathway.
Background
The proposed neighborhood park was evaluated programmatically in the OASP Final Environmental
Impact Report (Final EIR), certified by the City in March 2010. Subsequently, the proposed
neighborhood park was considered within the context of the residential development evaluated in the
2015 Final Initial Study-Mitigated Negative Declaration (Final IS-MND) for the Righetti Ranch and
Jones Ranch residential development plans (GPA-SPA-ER-TR#3063/TR#3066). The following
subsections provide further information on neighborhood park impacts and potential mitigation
measures described within both the OASP Final EIR and the Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND.
OASP Final EIR
The OASP Final EIR evaluated a neighborhood park that would provide a variety of sports and
recreation facilities and incorporate the fringe of the adjacent Hansen/Barranca Creek corridor
riparian area. Planned facilities included a playground, ball fields for soccer and baseball, tennis
courts, basketball courts, sand volleyball, picnic tables, and restrooms. The neighborhood park
evaluated in the OASP Final EIR would primarily serve residents of single- and multi-family
developments within the OASP Area.
While potential environmental impacts of the neighborhood park were evaluated programmatically,
the OASP Final EIR also described the following specific park-level impacts and included design
requirements/mitigation measures to address such impacts:
Aesthetics. The size and location of the neighborhood park would allow a view corridor from the
center of the OASP Area to Righetti Hill.
Biological Resources. Mitigation included implementation of OASP Program 2.2.3a, which states:
“Approximately 1.94 acres of wetland creation and 2.76 acres of riparian enhancement along the
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creek corridors, in the neighborhood park and in the linear park shall be implemented to improve
the existing riparian habitat with no net loss to wetland and creek resources in the Orcutt Area”.
Transportation. Mitigation included implementation of OASP Program 5.2.3, which states:
“Neighborhood park frontage shall include Class II bike lanes and separated sidewalks on both
sides of the street, except at the commercial area”.
Thus, while most environmental impacts disclosed in the OASP Final EIR pertain to program-level
impacts within the OASP Area, the OASP Final EIR includes specific design requirements and mitigation
measures that apply to development of the proposed neighborhood park.
In addition to these project-level requirements, mitigation measures from the OASP Final EIR that have
a nexus to the proposed neighborhood park include:
B-2. This series of mitigation measures was designed to reduce the significant program-level
impact on special-status plant species and plant communities of special concern to a less-than-
significant level. The following OASP Final EIR mitigation measures apply to the neighborhood park
due to the potential presence of special-status plant species within the proposed neighborhood
park location:
o B-2(a) Seasonally Timed Botanical Surveys. This mitigation measure requires the submittal of
seasonally timed floral surveys to determine the presence or absence of special-status plant
species.
o B-2(b) Special-Status Plant Buffer. This mitigation measure requires site development plans to
incorporate a minimum 50-foot avoidance buffer where special-status plant species are found.
o B-2(c) Incidental Take Permit. This mitigation measure requires submittal of an incidental take
permit for removal of state-listed species prior to grading activities.
o B-2(d) Special-Status Species CDFG-Approved Mitigation Plan. This mitigation measure
requires development of a mitigation program, in consultation with CDFG, if total avoidance of
the species is infeasible.
o B-2(e) Special-Status Plant Monitoring Frequency. This mitigation measure requires annual
monitoring for at least five years to ensure successful establishment of all reintroduced or
salvage plants, and no net loss of special-status plant species or their habitats.
o B-2(f) Special-Status Species Habitat Replacement. This mitigation measure requires creation
of two acres of special-status plant species habitat for every one acre of habitat impacted by
development. If resource agencies require a higher replacement ratio than 2:1, their
requirements would prevail.
B-4. This series of mitigation measures was designed to reduce the significant program-level
impact on riparian woodland and wetland habitat to a less-than-significant level. of the following
OASP Final EIR mitigation measures apply to the neighborhood park due to the potential for
constructure or use to affect nearby surface waters to the north-northeast of the proposed
neighborhood park location:
o B-4(a) Trail Setbacks. This mitigation measure requires setbacks of trails out of riparian habitat
and the buffer area, for a minimum distance of 20 feet from top of bank or the edge of riparian
canopy, which is farther. For wetland habitat, trails shall be setback at a minimum distance of
30 feet and shall not be within the buffer. Native plant species shall be planted in the area
between the trail and the wetland/riparian habitat.
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o B-4(b) Development Setbacks. This mitigation measure requires development setbacks of at
least 20 feet, as well as fence/landscape buffers, for development that abuts riparian and
wetland mitigation areas.
o B-4(c) Riparian/Wetland Mitigation. This mitigation measure requires submittal of applicable
permits and a Mitigation Plan for areas of disturbance to wetland/riparian habitat, if such
habitat is proposed for removal.
Therefore, the OASP Final EIR includes both project-level and program-level design requirements and
mitigation measures that would apply to development of the neighborhood park.
Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND
The Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND did not evaluate a specific project-level proposal for the
neighborhood park. However, the Final IS-MND envisioned a neighborhood park that would occupy
approximately 11.6 acres and would meet anticipated demand for park and recreational facilities,
consistent with the assumptions about the park in the OASP Final EIR program-level analysis.
In the environmental analysis, the Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND identified the potential
for a significant project-level impact to San Luis Obispo owl’s clover (Castilleja densiflora ssp.
obispoensis) and associated project-level mitigation requirement for development of the residential
development plans. However, because the Final IS-MND did not evaluate a project-level proposal for
the neighborhood park, the Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND did not include specific
mitigation for potential impacts to this sensitive floral species in the proposed neighborhood park
location. Instead, the Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND stated that neighborhood park
improvements would be overseen by the City, and “to that extent, future City plans for improvements
to this site will require additional analysis and design-level mitigation measures to match the final park
plans with appropriate special-status plant conditions.”
As a result, the Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND offers example project-level mitigation that
may be applied to future development of the neighborhood park, but does not formally include binding
mitigation that is required for development of the neighborhood park to proceed.
Recommendation
The OASP Final EIR and the Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND identify potential impacts to
special-status plant species and riparian habitat development of the proposed neighborhood park. The
proposed neighborhood park does not include substantial changes to the planned improvements
envisioned in these previous environmental documents. The proposed design of the neighborhood
park is outside resource agency jurisdictional boundaries, and is consistent with City policy regarding
riparian habitat and buffer area setbacks. Due to the project-level detail now available for the proposed
neighborhood park, and the need for project-specific mitigation that effectively implements the design
requirements and mitigation measures in the Final OASP EIR, Rincon recommends preparation of an
Addendum to the OASP Final EIR. An Addendum to the Final OASP EIR would describe differences
between the proposed neighborhood park and the programmatic-level review of the park completed
in the OASP Final EIR, and document that none of the conditions requiring preparation of a Subsequent
EIR or Negative Declaration described in CEQA Guidelines Section 15162 are met.
The recommended Addendum to the OASP Final EIR would clearly and transparently document the
manner in which applicable mitigation requirements have been and will continue to be implemented
during design and construction of the proposed neighborhood park, using a similar approach to the
Righetti Ranch/Jones Ranch Final IS-MND, which required the implementation of OASP Final EIR
mitigation measures at the project-level. Specifically, implementation of Mitigation Measure B-2(a)
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from the OASP Final EIR would require seasonally timed floral surveys at the neighborhood park
location to determine the presence or absence of special-status plant species, which in turn would
inform whether additional mitigation for special-status plant species would be needed.
Conclusion
Rincon recommends preparation of an Addendum to the OASP Final EIR as the most defensible CEQA
pathway for the proposed neighborhood park. The Addendum will describe the design changes to the
park since certification of the OASP Final EIR in March 2010, identify project-level mitigation
requirements to address anticipated impacts to special-status plant species and riparian habitat, and
confirm that none of the conditions requiring preparation of a Subsequent EIR or Negative Declaration
described in CEQA Guidelines Section 15162 are met.
Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns, and we look forward to continuing to support
the City on this project.
Sincerely,
Rincon Consultants, Inc.
Chris Bersbach Colby J. Boggs
Senior Supervising Environmental Planner Principal/Senior Ecologist