HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/02/1993, 2 - AMENDING THE GENERAL PLAN WATER & WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT ELEMENT TO INCLUDE THE CONCEPT OF A 2.000 ACRE-FOOT RELIABILITY RESERVE FOR WATER PLANNING. Il,lp^II�IIIIIII11I IJ MEETING DATE:
IIII IV�I �� city of san pais oBispo 5 - 2. -9:3
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT ITEM NUMBER:
FROM: Arnold B. Jonas, Community Development Director
BY: Glen Matteson Associate Planner
SUBJECT: Amending the general plan Water & Wastewater Management
Element to include the concept of a 2 , 000 acre-foot
reliability reserve for water planning.
CAO RECOMMENDATION:
Adopt a resolution determining that the amendment is not a project
for purposes of environmental review and amending the Water &
Wastewater Management Element, as shown on the attached text and
graphic exhibit.
DISCUSSION
Water and the general plan
The City added a water management element to its general plan. in
1987. This element helps inform decision makers and the public
about the City's water situation, and sets policy concerning water
use and conservation. Once the pending Land Use Element revision
is adopted, staff will present a comprehensive update and revision
of the water management element (anticipated for summer 1993) . In
the meantime, City Council has initiated this amendment for
immediate consideration.
Whythis amendment?
While considering the Annual Water Operations Plan in spring 1992 ,
Council concurred with a staff recommendation that the City should
try to obtain 2 , 000 acre-feet more safe annual yield than indicated
by projections of future water requirements. Safe annual yield is
the maximum amount which the City can rely on obtaining from its
sources year after year, considering experience with rainfall and
runoff during droughts. The following ideas are the basis for
aiming higher than projected needs in pursuing new sources.
Our projections of future needs assume that historical usage
patterns will continue. While this assumption is useful and
reasonable, it carries no guaranties.
A prospective source which appears to be feasible may not be.
An existing source, or a source obtained in the future, may
not provide the full amount anticipated due to extreme
drought, natural disaster, or changes in water rights. Of
particular concern is reduction of yield following assignment
of more water to protect wildlife habitat and other water uses
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MiN COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
within the source watersheds. Such changes are affecting
availability of water to other cities, as steps are taken to
protect eastern Sierra and San Joaquin delta regions. Such
reductions are a potential problem for San Luis Obispo, since
the City does not own the two reservoirs which are its
principal source of supply, and they are located in watersheds
separate from the City's. Also, while the dams supplying the
City meet current seismic safety standards, the prospect of
temporarily draining Lopez Lake (a source for the South
County) to make seismic reinforcements shows how sources can
be affected, even without a disaster occurring.
The County has asked each prospective Nacimiento water user to
state its desired quantity. The County is expected to base its
allocations on whether the requested amount is consistent with the
user's general plan. The proposed amendment would make the City's
general plan consistent with Council's direction in the 1992 update
of the Annual water Operations Plan, and the January 19 , 1993 ,
decision on a tentative request from the Nacimiento project.
Environmental review
Staff has determined that the proposed amendment, as worded, is not
a project for purposes of environmental review. Under State
environmental rules, a "project" has the potential to physically
change the environment. The amendment would simply say that the
City will include a safety factor in planning for water supply.
Any project proposed to increase water supply will be subject to
environmental review. Any proposed general plan amendment that
would increase future water demands likewise will be subject to
environmental review.
Ouantities in perspective
The adopted general plan says the City will need about 12 , 000 acre-
feet annually to provide adequate water service for full
development consistent with the plan, based on historical usage
rates. The Land Use Element revision proposed for adoption this
spring would make some changes to development capacity. There
would be more capacity for multifamily dwellings and nonresidential
uses than the adopted plan, and probably less capacity for single-
family houses. These changes will affect future water
requirements. The recently published draft environmental impact
report (EIR) on the Land Use Element revision assesses future water
requirements considering these changes. The EIR assesses water
requirements at historical usage rates, and with conservation
measures which would make usage rates lower than historical rates.
The EIR shows that the range of future water requirements would be
9 , 900 to 11, 000 acre-feet annually. A 2 , 000 acre-foot "reliability
reserve" would comprise about 18 to 20 percent of these quantities.
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010 COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
ALTERNA7fIVES
The Council may:
Approve a resolution adopting language different from that
recommend by staff and the Planning Commission. -y- (A
significant change would appropriately be continued for
possible environmental review, consideration by the Planning
Commission, and further public notice. )
By motion, reject the proposed amendment. This would leave
the adopted element in effect until its anticipated
comprehensive revision this summer.
Continue action, with direction to staff.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
On February 10, 1993 , the Planning Commission voted seven to none
to recommend approval of the proposed amendment. Commissioners
discussed only one issue: how to assure that the "reliability
reserve" does not become a basis for additional development.
Commissioners agreed that the proposed language clearly states that
the reserve is not to be a basis for additional development, but
that future councils cannot be bound never to change the language
once it is adopted. There was no public testimony concerning the
substance of the amendment. A member of the audience informed the
commission that another citizen wanted to present information, but
was not present because the item had been taken out of the listed
agenda order. Staff has informed that person of scheduled Council
consideration and invited written material for attachment to this
report.
FISCAL IMPACTS
There would be no general fund impact, since water projects are
funded through the water enterprise. Aiming for supply beyond
projected needs could further increase water rates, as projects are
sized to provide yield that would not be used by the customer base.
On the other hand, the need to develop future replacement sources,
which could be even more expensive (such as desal) , may be avoided
by having a reserve supply from more conventional sources.
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt a resolution determining that the amendment is not a project
for purposes of environmental review and amending the Water &
Wastewater Management Element to include a 2 , 000-acre-foot
reliability reserve, as shown on the attached exhibit.
ATTACHMENT
Draft resolution GMAWTREL.CAR
a-3
RESOLUTION NO. (1993 SERIES)
r•
A RESOLUTION OF THE SAN LUIS OBISPO CITY COUNCIL
AMENDING THE WATER & WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT ELEMENT
BY ADDING A RELIABILITY RESERVE
The City .Council resolves as follows:
SECTION 1. Findings
A. The Planning Commission and the City Council have held public hearings on the
proposed amendment in accordance with the California Government Code; and
B. The amendment maintains general plan internal consistency and promotes the
public health, safety, and welfare.
SECTION 2. Environmental determination. The Council determines that the
proposed amendment is not a project for purposes of environmental review, since it has
no potential for physical environmental changes.
SECTION 3. Adoption. The general plan Water & Wastewater Management
Element is amended as fully contained in the attached Exhibit A (text) and Exhibit B
(illustration). The Community Development Director shall cause the change to be
reflected in the documents published by the city.
On motion of seconded by . and on the following roll
call vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
the foregoing resolution was passed and adopted this day of 1993.
Mayor
ATTEST:
City Clerk
Resolution No. (1993 Series)
Page 2
APPROVED:
City Ad inistrative Officer
ttor ey
a
Community e 1 pment Director
ities Director
GMAWTREL.RES
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EXHIBIT A
AMENDMENT TO THE WATER & WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT ELEMENT
(GP 9-93)
teact te be eliminated
...........
teitJQ,:b'e..added
....................................... ....
Projected Water Requirements
Water demand is expressed as the number of acre-feet per year which the city should be
historical.
prepared to deliver for all desired uses. Based on feeent .. water-use
measurements, the-city assumes that water use will be 0.2 acre-foot per person per year.
In other words, one acre-foot will meet the needs of five city residents plus all
nonresidential uses (sucias; businesses, parks, and schools) if the relationship between
.....:.:.....:......
resident population and other uses remains about the same as in recent years. Using
these assumptions, and population projections derived from the Land Use Element,
Figure 6 shows city water needs to the year 2015. This figure includes an allowance of
up to 150 acre-feet per year for Cuesta College. It also reflects the additional water
needed to compensate for gradually reduced yield of existing reservoirs due to siltation.
If San Luis Obispo grows as outlined in the Land Use Element, the city will need about
9,700 aere feet per- year- (an inefease ef 2,900 aeFe feet) 6), the ffiid 4999's. By the yeEff-
'^" it %veuld _eed &beat 12,000 acre-feet per year wh.en.the;deve.l:opment capacity;i
frilly used, abbut the year 2015:; ( e about 4,300 acre-feet more ahan tli'e 199 '
safe yield) In pursuing.supplenenta water supplies; the city will seek an addinonal
2,000 acr.:e faet,'..or 'a total increment:of about;6,300 acre feed Thts. "relial ihty reserve" 15
iii#ended to help meet any shortfall dde to an;e.%'s i or proposed source not ber g able;:
to delrveT the anticipated amount of water The reserve also woul cover unforeseen:
inereases':in the,usage rates, ori which protections of future need are based: The
re]iabrllty reserve w1a not be a<basis for planrimg ac3ditional'development capacity::
As Figure 6 shows, during the late-z ; early 1990`x; the city's safe yield of supplies is
below normal usage levels s At other times, the city
may have more than enough-water. The actual dates when supplemental water will be
available and the total quantities to be available cannot be predicted with certainty. If
supplemental water is not available or if droughts occur, the city will have to manage
water demand so requirements do not reach the level projected in the graph.
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Item 6. Water and Wastewater Element Amendment GP 9-93 . A
request to amend the Water and Wastewater Element to add
a 2 , 000 acre-foot reliability reserve ; City of San Luis
Obispo, applicant .
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Arnold Jonas presented the staff report and explained that the City
Council included a 2 ,000 acre-foot reserve from Lake Nacimiento for
the City in its water policy, and the General Plan Water and
Wastewater Element needed to be amended for consistency.
Commr. Cross expressed concern that it would be difficult to
guarantee that the water would not be used for development in the
future.
Arnold Jonas explained that there is no way to guarantee a future
City Council would not allow additional development even without
the reserve.
Comma. Cross suggested a 2/3 vote be required to allow the reserve
water to be allocated for future development .
Commr. Senn expressed concern that the Nacimiento project might
not be environmentally sound and the City would be forced to hold
2, 000 acre feet of its current allocation as a reserve.
Gary Henderson explained that the reserve would not affect the safe
annual yield.
Chairman Karleskint opened the public hearing.
Tim Fareel , 2069 McCollum, said Richard Schmidt had asked him to
request a delay until he arrived.
Chairman Karleskint announced a five minute recess .
Chairman Karleskint reopened the public hearing.
Chairman Karleskint closed the public hearing.
Commr. Senn moved to support the staff recommendation.
Commr. Peterson seconded the motion.
Comma. Cross felt the City Council should assure that the reserve
would not be used for future development .
VOTING: AYES - Commrs. Senn, Peterson, Whittlesey, Hoffman,
Williams , Cross , and Karleskint .
NOES - None.
ABSENT - None.
The motion passed.
a -9
The Commission decided to hear item '4 next .
Commr. Senn stepped down due to a conflict of interest .
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Item 4 . Zoninc Ordinance Amendment R 1-93 . A request to amend
the Zoning Ordinance to allow credit unions in the
Neighborhood-Commercial (C-N) zoning district ; Golden One
Credit Union, applicant .
-----------------------------—----------------------—-----------
Ron Whisenand presented the staff report and recommended the
Commission approve the amendment because staff had determined there
are no real differences between branch offices of banks and credit
unions .
Chairman Karleskint opened the public hearing.
Mike Multari , 641 Higuera Street , applicant ' s representative, said
that today branch offices of credit unions perform the same
services as banks, and asked the Commission recommend approval to
the City Council .
Commr. Williams said she thought the reason credit unions were
excluded was because they were usually affiliated with an
organization and only members could belong. She asked if this
credit union would be open to the public.
Mr. Multari said the credit union would serve a broad spectrum of
the public including public employees and Cal Poly students.
Chairman Karleskint closed the public hearing.
Commr. Peterson moved to make a recommendation to the City Council
to approve the amendment and adopt staff ' s suggested findings .
Commr. Williams seconded the motion.
Commrs . Cross and Karleskint said they believed credit unions
performed identical functions as banks .
Commr. Whittlesey asked why finance companies were still being
excluded.
Ron Whisenand explained very few finance complanies have branch
offices, and that finance companies are more of an office use
because they deal primarily with loans .
Commr. Whittlesey felt the nature of finance companies had changed
and were branching out .
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