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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/20/2007, SS 3 - UPDATE ON ACTIVITIES OF THE NATURAL RESOURCES PROTECTION PROGRAM IN 2006 • • Council Agenda Report—Update on the Natural Resources Protection Program in 2006 Page 2 mitigation program of tree planting to mitigate for the tree removals necessitated by the project completed. The site continues as a popular hiking destination. 2. Kelly Gearhart donation. A 13 acre property along Calie Joaquin was donated to the City as part of a development approval for several new auto dealerships at that location long envisioned in the City's general Plan. This donation was completed in November, and City staff are now working with Cal Poly and others to maintain the property in agricultural uses and possibly establish a turf research facility there. 3. Brughelli Ranch conservation easement purchase. In what is considered one of the City's most strategic acquisitions in the entire greenbelt, the City purchased (at a reduced, or"bargain" price) a conservation easement on the 390 acre Brughelli Ranch on Buckley Road. The project included a major and successful fundraising effort in conjunction with the Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County. The easement restricts the property to agricultural zoning in perpetuity. While this zoning (and the easement) does allow for some development, any such development must still meet acceptable standards for the agricultural zone and provide evidence that resources such as water are available to support it. Any such development is likely to be many years into the future. The sale price for the easement was $750,000 or approximately $1,900 per acre. Other Activities. One major project getting a push forward in 2006 was the Bob Jones City-to- the-Sea Bikeway. This long-awaited connection from San Luis Obispo to the Pacific Ocean at Avila Beach will have a one mile section constructed in 2007. The planning work was completed in 2006 and the project is just about ready to go out for construction bids. The project has an environmental enhancement component funded by a grant from the Department of Fish and Game, which involves tree and shrub plantings along the trail right of way, wood-rail fencing to discourage entry into the creek area, and informational signage about features of the trail area, including San Luis Obispo Creek and the City sewer plant. Staff also oversaw a number of mitigation projects connected to City roadway or utility line improvements. The latter involve creek crossings which can impact southern steelhead habitat or other riparian habitat that require such mitigation. Also, monitoring of the Coon Creek mitigation project completed its second year. This monitoring is not exhaustive, as the goal is to demonstrate that the pools installed in the creek are in fact usable by southern steelhead. The presence of over 350 juvenile steelhead in the created pools seems to show this quite well. Ongoing monitoring of several older mitigation sites, including corrective measures needed at one (Damon-Garcia Sports Complex), were done and cooperative efforts with the Army Corps of Engineers continue to move these mitigations forward. Finally, in December 2006 the City Council approved the Conservation Plan for the South Hills Natural Reserve. That plan is the fourth such plan adopted for the City-owned open space lands. The South Hills plan calls for certain improvements to the existing trail system, cleanup of a roadway erosion problem, and protection for rare plants in the new easement area of the Reserve. There will also be some entry signage installed that will reflect upon the natural and cultural history of the site, especially the old racetrack that used to be nearby (called Exposition Park) and G/Havlik/rouncilagenda/NR Program update Ss3 -2. • Council Agenda Report—Update on the Natural Resources Protection Program in 2006 Page 3 the local "Cheapskate Hill", where people who didn't want to.pay to watch the races would go to watch. Looking Forward to 2007. 2007 is looking to be another year where many projects whose groundwork was laid in the past finally bear fruit. Among these are: 1. King Ventures easement donation. An offer of donation of a conservation easement on 71 acres of the South Hills was made by King Ventures, Inc., and accepted by the City Council in 2006. This easement is expected to be finalized within the next two to three months. It will more than double the size of the South Hills Natural'Reserve (to 131 acres) and will ensure public access and natural resource conservation on the site in perpetuity. At some point in the future the owner plans to donate the fee title to the property to the City, and the easement will be transferred to a third party to ensure that the easement restrictions remain in place under City as well as private ownership. 2. Union Pacific Railroad Property donation. The Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County and the City of San Luis Obispo collaborated on this acquisition by the Land Conservancy late in 2006, and the Land Conservancy has offered, and the City Council has accepted, the offer of such donation. This is also expected to be finalized in early 2007. The Land Conservancy's action has preserved 315 acres of mountain lands on the West Cuesta ridge, in an area noted for its rare plants, Sargent cypress groves, springs and other water sources, and several popular mountain bike trails. This is the conclusion of a long-standing City interest in the railroad properties there, which led to acquisition of the 49 acre Stenner Springs property in 2000, and our continuing involvement. 3. Other Acquisitions. Natural Resources staff are pursuing initial discussions with several landowners around the City for possible land conservation transactions. 4. Other Projects with Conservation/Development Tradeoff Potential. Staff is working on several other projects in and near the City that have potential for dedication of fee or easement interest in land. These include proposed annexations at Los Osos Valley Road, Calle Joaquin (south), and above Johnson Avenue, as well as a proposal for an agricultural cluster in the County next to the Brughelli Ranch. 5. Bob Jones Trail. Hopefully by mid to late 2007 citizens will be walking and riding this section of trail. 6. Johnson Ranch Conservation Plan. The next Conservation Plan to be prepared is for the 242 acre Johnson Ranch Open Space. This particular plan will be especially challenging because the site has no history of public use (unlike some of our other open space lands) and there is a legal easement to an adjacent, private property which will be undergoing some changes as the neighboring property has new owners. 7. Remediation of the Tank Farm. The Natural Resources Manager has served for several years on a study group evaluating the former Unocal Tank Farm and making preliminary recommendations on the remediation of that property. This is now moving into a new phase that will result in a formal remediation plan that will be reviewed and approved by the appropriate regulatory agencies. It will spell out the remediation strategies for the site, which will in turn dictate whether or not the property or portions therefore will be dedicated to permanent open space uses or to urban development. This is expected to occur over the course of 2007. The Natural Resources Manager will continue to represent the City in this effort. G/Havlik/councilagenda/NR Program update .5S 3 3 0 0 Council Agenda Report—Update on the Natural Resources Protection Program in 2006 Pa_ge 4 8. Continued Mitigation Efforts. Continued efforts at the Damon-Garcia, Calle Joaquin, and several other older sites around the City, as well as continued minor monitoring at Coon Creek, will be carried out over the course of 2007. Natural Resources staff look forward to another very good year in 2007. G/Havlik/councilagenda/NR Program update O O IIIIIIIIIII �����III I RED FILE RECEIVED IIIIIIIII MEETING AGENDA liaison �Epont MAK 1 b 2007 aty of san lwis oBr po� DATE— 1� o�I-TEM-#��� -- , ��� —SL"0-CITYCLERK March 14, 2007 Erco 'NCiL CDD DIR �AC 0 �/VCAO "FIN DIF 1 G FIRE CHIEF VV, 17ORNEY g��,��P'W.DIR To: Council Colleagues CLERK/ORIG —7 POLICE CHF K T HEADS C�REC 61R G7(�TIL DIR From: Dave Romero, Mayor o�` HR DIR Subject: San Luis Obispo Council of Governments (SLOCOG) Meeting March 7,2006 At the SLOCOG meeting of March 7`s, the Director reported that SLO County had received an appropriation of$67.7 million under the Statewide Congestion Management Impact Account (Prop 1B)to widen Rte. 46 between Paso Robles and Whitley Gardens. Although this County submitted four projects and had high hopes for the Santa Maria Bridge widening, the great influence from communities in the L.A. basin caused a reapportionment of the California Transportation Commission's staff recommendation so as to provide more improvements to the L.A. area. Although we are disappointed, our County did relatively well on a per capita basis and the funds appropriated will provide sufficient funds for a timely construction project. We expect continued assistance from Senator Maldonado for funds to augment the Santa Maria Bridge widening project, if other statewide projects are unable to proceed in a timely fashion. Staff presented a detailed report regarding transportation system performance indicators. Very briefly, the report shows that between 2000 and 2006, the following transportation parameters occurred for San Luis Obispo County: • An increased number of workers live more than 15 minutes from their place of employment. • Average vehicle occupancy has declined slightly. • Vehicle miles of travel on highways and roads has increased faster than the state average • Funding for local street and road maintenance has become inadequate. • Funding for high priority state highway improvements has become inadequate. • 74% of workers in our region drive alone to their place of employment. • Carpooling has decreased slightly, but is still greater than statewide average. • Transit ridership has increased by approximately 1% a year during the six year period with the SLO city system having almost half of the total ridership. • Passenger ridership and rail service has increased primarily due to the success of the Pacific Surfliner. • Commercial air service has increased slightly. I have placed a copy of the report in the Council Reading File for your information. G:\Council Support&Corresp\City Council Correspondence\Romero\Liaison Reports\Liasion Report SLOCOG- SLORTA.doc The COG Board voted to transfer organization of the Rideshare program from the Regional Transportation Agency to the Council of Governments in order to achieve more efficiency in operation and in conformance with practices of most Council of Governments in the state. Staff reported that a regional energy planning workshop will be presented in August 2007 on the Cal Poly campus. Further information will be forthcoming.