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Home My WebLink About12-02-2014 PH1 Vujovich-La BarreRECEIVED DEC 012014 Christian, Kevin c;f_l C1-FY CLERK From: Mejia, Anthony COUNCIL MEETING: `Z•—Z'��`I Sent: Tuesday, December 02, 2014 8:44 AM ITEM NO.:,_ 9�A l To: Goodwin, Heather; Christian, Kevin Subject: FW: Thank you for your time and PH1- 12/2/14 concerns Item ph1 Anthony J. Mejia, MMC San Luis Obispo City Clerk Anthony Mejia City Clerk a City Administration City Clerk's Office 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 -3249 E amejia @slocity.org T 805.781.7102 slocity.org From: Mila Vuiovich -La Barre Sent: 12/2/2014 8:06 AM To: Rivoire, Dan; Meiia, Anthony; Marx, Jan; Carpenter, Dan; Ashbaugh, John; Christianson, Carlyn Cc: bill wilson; bob shanbrom; rosemary; Andrew Christie; 'Calvin and Rosemary Wilvert'; Richard A. Schmidt Schmidt; Alan Thomas; carolyn smith; iameslopes @charter.net; Brett Cross; Taylor Kent; Christine Mulholland; dave congalton; rodger longden; Pete Evans; Mom Davis Subject: Thank you for your time and PH1- 12/2/14 concerns Dear Mayor Marx and City Council Members - It is time to take pause and take notes from the newest member of the San Luis Obispo City Council member, Dan Rivoire. We are at the end of a calendar year and at the crossroads for a better San Luis Obispo (SLO). Thanks to the actions of Kathy Smith and Dan Carpenter on October 21, 2014, the ALUC override vote was not approved. Their courageous actions bought us all precious time to come up with a better LUCE -2035 plan. Let's be prudent about the use of that time. Hopefully the action at tonight's City Council meeting will reflect the desires of a majority of the constituents of our fine city. The override vote should be postponed until January 2015 so that Dan Rivoire can hear from all the constiuents and not just the ones that voted for him. On behalf of Bob Shanbrom and Bill Wilson, I wanted to thank Dan Rivoire for the time he took out of his busy schedule to spend an hour with us last Tuesday. We appreciated the fact that he was able to take a SLO "field trip" in my car to some of the sites several constituents are concerned about. It is my belief that we made it clear why we are against the ALUC override vote and that we have serious concerns about the Land Use Circulation Element (LUCE) -2035 document as it currently stands. To recap, we were able to visit the Damon - Garcia Sports Fields with a 100- foot tape measure. We were able to show Dan Rivoire the proximity of the Northern Alignment of Prado Road, slated to be a four -lane truck highway in the LUCE document, to the sports fields with the tape measure. We were able to point out both the registered 5,000 year old Native American archaelogical site that the road construction would demolish and the problems that would result from the additional stop light on Broad Street at Prado Road.We also indicated to him where the "pedestrian tunnel" underneath the Northern Alignment is slated to be. Dan also now understands the conflict between the "purchase resolution" in which our City spent $2 million for 23.5 acres of sports fields and open space and the City's "purchase agreement" with the Damon and Garcia families that a set aside 7 acres of land in that purchase for a possible future road. It is my belief that this specific extension of Prado Road can be directed south to a widened Tank Farm Road at Santa Fe or to the the already signalized light at Industrial Way. We were then able to point out the "flower mounds" on the Chevron property and show him how the Chevron remediation will take the flower mounds down to a 3% grade. He understood that important point of the remediation. The Northern Alignment is in the LUCE document as a four -lane truck highway. It would best serve the public as a Class 1 bike path. We then visited the area of Prado Road near the new Mangano homes off South Higuera at Prado Road. I believe that Dan Rivoire understood our frustration that the current developer was allowed to build just one lane in either direction with a round -a -bout. If Prado Road is to be a four -lane truck highway on the master plan then why is it not being built that way? It is the developer's responsibility to provide for the circulation infrastructure, not the residents of San Luis Obispo. I think that Dan Rivoire also understood how intense the noise and pollution will be if a four -lane truck highway is right outside the window of the new construction that is slated to be built. Of course both Bill Wilson and I made it a point to voice our frustrations about the fact that a comprehensive Environmental Impact Report (EIR) of Prado Road from Broad Street to Madonna Road did not result from the extensive LUCE process, even though we repeatedly asked for one. Dan Rivoire also stayed calm and attentive as we went to the other side of Highway 101 and got on at the southbound entrance to Highway 101 at Madonna Road. As I accelerated and merged onto Highway 101, 1 asked him to look to his right and he noted the Embassy Suites on his right. He understood that would be where people would be slowing down to exit if Prado Road is ever constructed as an interchange. The desire for an interchange is on the LUCE wish -list. It does not safely fit there. We also noted that on the opposite side, the north bound Prado Road entrance near the Sunset Drive -in, there would be problems given the proximity of the northbound Madonna Road exit. These interchanges would be too close together. Dan Rivoire then visited the Dalidio property - AKA San Luis Ranch property - with us. We stopped adjacent to the property to note the richness of the soil, even with the current epic drought. This 131- acre parcel is one of 100 parcels in the county with this quality of soil. I explained to Dan Rivoire that the plan of San Luis Obispo resident Jamie Lopes for the San Luis Ranch is superb in the eyes of many. I explained to him that as time has 2 gone on, I personally have a more extremist view to not put concrete on any of this fertile soil. I remain convinced that this land can be turned in to a "win -win" situation for San Luis Obispo with a joint venture with a developer and Cal Poly or a benevolent, forward - thinking environmentalist. Although many people are willing to pave over 50% of this fertile land, I remain convinced that this land will be the "gold standard " for the next generation, especially if this epic drought continues. Our tour ended at Laguna Lake at the edge of what used to be a refreshing, full lake in the City for recreation and visual pleasure. It is dry in a majority of places. Although most of the dead fish have been cleaned up, the shock of the impact of the drought and the neglect remains. Dan Rivoire realized our hope that this new Council will take pause and take care of the people in many neighborhoods who feel that they have been neglected. Dan Rivoire completed this field trip in one hour. The field trip offer with conversation is open to any City Council member or anyone associated withthe LUCE - 2035 plan. The current LUCE -2035 is a development driven plan that does not best serve the residents of San Luis Obispo, The LUCE minority report, that was not included in the final LUCE document, highlights this matter. As a teacher, there are multiple analogies that I can provide for you about the housing and commercial development that are inked in to the LUCE -2035 document. Have you ever gone into a home of someone who loves antiques, but has so many of them that you cannot walk around their home? Have you ever peered into the closets of someone who loves clothes so much that they have clothes crammed into every spare part of their home? Have you ever tried to put "10 pounds of flour" into a "5 pound sack "? Have you ever known someone who loves the thrill of shopping so much, they are in serious credit card debt? All of these people above "contributed to the economy," but they hampered their quality of life. That is what I see in the LUCE - 2035 document as it stands now and we must correct it before it is adopted as gospel. Since we kept the recent field trip with Dan Rivoire to one hour, we did not have time to drive past the proposed Avila Ranch development to point out our concerns with the ALUC override and putting 500 homes and up to 1,000 cars in the Buckley Road neighborhood. We did not have time to indicate why the proposed 800,000 square feet of commercial development on the Chervon property is extensive and our concerns about how the Chevron "sports fields" are now "private" in the LUCE document. We did not have time to examine the need for new emergency services in the Margarita area if the buildout as planned is allowed. We did not have time to sit and calculate how the ingress and egress of cars from the San Luis Ranch development will hamper the equality of life in the Laguna Lake neighborhood. In closing, tonight please work together and buy some time to rework the LUCE -2035 document. In the name of "smart growth," safety, noise pollution and fiscal liability please do not vote for the ALUC override or adopt the LUCE -2035 document as it stands. Thank you for your consideration. Mila Vujovich -La Barre E -mail: milavu @hotmail.com Cell: 805.441.5818