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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-14-2016 PC Correspondence - Item 1 (Los Verdes Parks, Flickinger)Meeting: N, I L . i H . 10 Item: 1 RECEIVED CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO DEC 14 2016 From: Sarah Flickinger[ COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Sent: Wednesday, December 14, 2016 12:37 PM To: Advisory Bodies <adyisorYbodies@slocity.or > Subject: Public Comment Regarding Agenda Item for Tonight's Planning Commission Hearing on Avila Ranch DEIR Good afternoon, please include the attached joint correspondence from the Los Verdes Park 1 HOA, Inc. and Los Verdes Park 2 HOA, Inc. in the public hearing and distributed materials for tonight's discussion of the Avila Ranch DEIR. The Los Verdes neighborhoods have so far jointly prepared two written comments with regard to the DEIR for Avila Ranch. A separate comment will be provided at the hearing. This is the first of two that will be sent electronically today. Individual owners may also be contributing comments on this document and are to be handled separately from the HOAs' comments. If you have any questions or if there are any issues with the attachment, please let me know and I will resend. Otherwise a confirmation email acknowledging all is well would be greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Sarah Flickinger on behalf of the Los Verdes Parks 1 & 2 Homeowners' Associations Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. Los Verdes Park 2 Homeowners' Association, Inc. c/o Sarah Flickinger, Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. 92 Los Verdes Drive San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 December 14, 2016 re: Planning Commission Hearing, Avila Ranch DEIR To the City of San Luis Obispo, City Planning Commission and the developers of Avila Ranch: The Boards of Directors of the Los Verdes Park 1 and Los Verdes Park 2 homeowners' associations are concerned with the CEQA compliance of the Avila Ranch DEIR documents as prepared and submitted for today's public hearing. The following include some of the inconsistencies with CEQA and General Plan requirements. Due to these issues, we respectfully request that the document be adjusted, properly noticed and recirculated for public review as required under CEQA. Impacted existing residences and other interests were not properly noticed of the DEIR's release as required under CEQA, agreed to following the Scoping Hearing for the project in the August 26, 2015 Planning Commission meeting and confirmed thereafter. Several people requested and were promised notice which was not provided. The DEIR proposes changes and mitigation measures that are not consistent with the goals and programs in the City of San Luis Obispo's General Plan and suggests that changes to accommodate the inconsistencies be addressed with a General Plan Update within in the DEIR without proper notice and separate public review of the proposed General Plan updates. The DEIR proposes changes and mitigation measures relating to traffic circulation that are not consistent with the City's stated objectives or plans for multi -modal transportation as outlined in the Land Use and Circulation Element of the City's General Plan. CEQA requires consistencies with existing plans. The DEIR is not consistent with CEQA requirements as it includes mitigation measures which cannot be legally imposed due to conflicting legal commitments between our neighborhoods, the City and the State of California Transportation Department. The DEIR does not fully evaluate all significant impacts of the project, including, but not limited to, any evaluation of the intersection of Los Verdes Drive and Los Osos Valley Road and noise impacts, air quality impacts and light pollution impacts at known and additional sensitive receptors in proximity to the project and its traffic impacts. Overall the DEIR is flawed with respect to significant deficiencies in assessment of impacts to areas that are clearly directly impacted and are clearly within the boundaries of assessed areas. The DEIR does not accurately represent and fails to appropriately respond to public comments previously provided as required under CEQA. In example: comments made at the project's Scoping Hearing in August 2015. One such example includes the treatment of verbal comments made by Donna DiGangi at said hearing. Please see the August 26, 2015 Planning Commission meeting video, Part 2, starting at 25:42. Some examples of her comments included the need to include sensitive receptors directly affected including, but not limited to, the LVP communities, that the LVP communities were not noticed of scoping despite being directly affected, the necessity to use appropriate traffic counts following completion of the LOVR Interchange Project for accuracy in assessment of existing conditions, the need to assess and project future noise impacts, the need to ensure mitigation measures from other projects that have not been completed are not assumed (i.e. mitigation measures for Chevron development, incomplete mitigations remaining following LOVR Interchange Project, etc.), a full detailed analysis of the project in all terms with and without the various options for Prado Road interim and complete connectivity AND with and without the LOVR Bypass as it relates to changes at Prado Road, and significant study of the LOVR Bypass effects in mitigating existing and long term traffic impacts in the region, among others. The DEIR does not directly or indirectly address a significant portion of these issues that were raised more than a year ago. Furthermore, the use of traffic counts taken during March 2015 in the vicinity of Los Osos Valley Road, South Higuera, US 101, Tank Farm Road and Buckley Road is misleading and inaccurate in assessing the current traffic conditions. At the time of these traffic counts, normal traffic patterns were significantly altered a result of it being a late midpoint of construction on the LOVR Interchange Project which included lane and other closures which discouraged use of this area and encouraged uses at other areas such as Madonna Road, 227/Broad Street, etc. Current traffic counts now that the LOUR Interchange Project is completed should be taken in order to accurately describe the current traffic and more accurately assess/project the future traffic volumes in the DEIR. The traffic study began development following or at the near point of completion of the Interchange Project; new traffic counts should have been taken at that time to have any accuracy to the DEIR. The currently included traffic counts are not representative, should be revised and the mitigation measures reassessed based on the current more accurate counts. Such significant changes would trigger rerelease of the DEIR under CEQA. Our neighborhoods failed to be noticed at every step of the project as required, including, but not limited to, the scoping hearing, this DEIR hearing, the DEIR release and so forth. We have followed this project, among others, and have continued to be vocal in this failure of notice. However, it remains an ongoing problem, both under CEQA as well as the terms of our settlement agreement. In conclusion, this DEIR needs to be revisited in so many ways to be compliant with CEQA requirements. Continued failure to address these issues up to and including, but not limited to, fundamental changes to the DEIR and full notification and recirculation of the document, may have the effect of putting the future of this project in jeopardy. CEQA and General Plan requirements were enacted to protect citizens, developers, lead agencies and others through the development process, and must be adhered to not only because it is law, but also because it is in the best interest of balancing the sometimes -competing interests of all the parties involved. We remain committed to working with the City, Developer and other interested citizens to ensure the best possible decisions are made. Sincerely, Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. Special Board Member Representing the Joint Partnership of the Los Verdes Parks 1 & 2 HOAs Sarah Flickinger Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. Los Verdes Park 2 Homeowners' Association, Inc. c/o Sarah Flickinger, Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. 92 Los Verdes Drive San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 December 14, 2016 re: Planning Commission Hearing, Avila Ranch DEIR To the City of San Luis Obispo, City Planning Commission and the developers of Avila Ranch: The Boards of Directors of the Los Verdes Park 1 and Los Verdes Park 2 homeowners' associations are concerned with the CEQA compliance of the Avila Ranch DEIR documents as prepared and submitted for today's public hearing. The following include some of the inconsistencies with CEQA and General Plan requirements. Due to these issues, we respectfully request that the document be adjusted, properly noticed and recirculated for public review as required under CEQA. Impacted existing residences and other interests were not properly noticed of the DEIR's release as required under CEQA, agreed to following the Scoping Hearing for the project in the August 26, 2015 Planning Commission meeting and confirmed thereafter. Several people requested and were promised notice which was not provided. The DEIR proposes changes and mitigation measures that are not consistent with the goals and programs in the City of San Luis Obispo's General Plan and suggests that changes to accommodate the inconsistencies be addressed with a General Plan Update within in the DEIR without proper notice and separate public review of the proposed General Plan updates. The DEIR proposes changes and mitigation measures relating to traffic circulation that are not consistent with the City's stated objectives or plans for multi -modal transportation as outlined in the Land Use and Circulation Element of the City's General Plan. CEQA requires consistencies with existing plans. The DEIR is not consistent with CEQA requirements as it includes mitigation measures which cannot be legally imposed due to conflicting legal commitments between our neighborhoods, the City and the State of California Transportation Department. The DEIR does not fully evaluate all significant impacts of the project, including, but not limited to, any evaluation of the intersection of Los Verdes Drive and Los Osos Valley Road and noise impacts, air quality impacts and light pollution impacts at known and additional sensitive receptors in proximity to the project and its traffic impacts. Overall the DEIR is flawed with respect to significant deficiencies in assessment of impacts to areas that are clearly directly impacted and are clearly within the boundaries of assessed areas. The DEIR does not accurately represent and fails to appropriately respond to public comments previously provided as required under CEQA. In example: comments made at the project's Scoping Hearing in August 2015. One such example includes the treatment of verbal comments made by Donna DiGangi at said hearing. Please see the August 26, 2015 Planning Commission meeting video, Part 2, starting at 25:42. Some examples of her comments included the need to include sensitive receptors directly affected including, but not limited to, the LVP communities, that the LVP communities were not noticed of scoping despite being directly affected, the necessity to use appropriate traffic counts following completion of the LOVR Interchange Project for accuracy in assessment of existing conditions, the need to assess and project future noise impacts, the need to ensure mitigation measures from other projects that have not been completed are not assumed (i.e. mitigation measures for Chevron development, incomplete mitigations remaining following LOVR Interchange Project, etc.), a full detailed analysis of the project in all terms with and without the various options for Prado Road interim and complete connectivity AND with and without the LOVR Bypass as it relates to changes at Prado Road, and significant study of the LOVR Bypass effects in mitigating existing and long term traffic impacts in the region, among others. The DEIR does not directly or indirectly address a significant portion of these issues that were raised more than a year ago. Furthermore, the use of traffic counts taken during March 2015 in the vicinity of Los Osos Valley Road, South Higuera, US 101, Tank Farm Road and Buckley Road is misleading and inaccurate in assessing the current traffic conditions. At the time of these traffic counts, normal traffic patterns were significantly altered a result of it being a late midpoint of construction on the LOVR Interchange Project which included lane and other closures which discouraged use of this area and encouraged uses at other areas such as Madonna Road, 227/Broad Street, etc. Current traffic counts now that the LOVR Interchange Project is completed should be taken in order to accurately describe the current traffic and more accurately assess/project the future traffic volumes in the DEIR. The traffic study began development following or at the near point of completion of the Interchange Project; new traffic counts should have been taken at that time to have any accuracy to the DEIR. The currently included traffic counts are not representative, should be revised and the mitigation measures reassessed based on the current more accurate counts. Such significant changes would trigger rerelease of the DEIR under CEQA. Our neighborhoods failed to be noticed at every step of the project as required, including, but not limited to, the scoping hearing, this DEIR hearing, the DEIR release and so forth. We have followed this project, among others, and have continued to be vocal in this failure of notice. However, it remains an ongoing problem, both under CEQA as well as the terms of our settlement agreement. In conclusion, this DEIR needs to be revisited in so many ways to be compliant with CEQA requirements. Continued failure to address these issues up to and including, but not limited to, fundamental changes to the DEIR and full notification and recirculation of the document, may have the effect of putting the future of this project in jeopardy. CEQA and General Plan requirements were enacted to protect citizens, developers, lead agencies and others through the development process, and must be adhered to not only because it is law, but also because it is in the best interest of balancing the sometimes -competing interests of all the parties involved. We remain committed to working with the City, Developer and other interested citizens to ensure the best possible decisions are made. Sincerely, Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. Special Board Member Representing the Joint Partnership of the Los Verdes Parks 1 & 2 HOAs Sarah Flickinger Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. Los Verdes Park 2 Homeowners' Association, Inc. c/o Sarah Flickinger, Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. 92 Los Verdes Drive San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 December 14, 2016 re: Planning Commission Hearing, Avila Ranch DEIR To the City of San Luis Obispo, City Planning Commission and the developers of Avila Ranch: The Boards of Directors of the Los Verdes Park 1 and Los Verdes Park 2 homeowners' associations are concerned with the CEQA compliance of the Avila Ranch DEIR documents as prepared and submitted for today's public hearing. The following include some of the inconsistencies with CEQA and General Plan requirements. Due to these issues, we respectfully request that the document be adjusted, properly noticed and recirculated for public review as required under CEQA. Impacted existing residences and other interests were not properly noticed of the DEIR's release as required under CEQA, agreed to following the Scoping Hearing for the project in the August 26, 2015 Planning Commission meeting and confirmed thereafter. Several people requested and were promised notice which was not provided. The DEIR proposes changes and mitigation measures that are not consistent with the goals and programs in the City of San Luis Obispo's General Plan and suggests that changes to accommodate the inconsistencies be addressed with a General Plan Update within in the DEIR without proper notice and separate public review of the proposed General Plan updates. The DEIR proposes changes and mitigation measures relating to traffic circulation that are not consistent with the City's stated objectives or plans for multi -modal transportation as outlined in the Land Use and Circulation Element of the City's General Plan. CEQA requires consistencies with existing plans. The DEIR is not consistent with CEQA requirements as it includes mitigation measures which cannot be legally imposed due to conflicting legal commitments between our neighborhoods, the City and the State of California Transportation Department. The DEIR does not fully evaluate all significant impacts of the project, including, but not limited to, any evaluation of the intersection of Los Verdes Drive and Los Osos Valley Road and noise impacts, air quality impacts and light pollution impacts at known and additional sensitive receptors in proximity to the project and its traffic impacts. Overall the DEIR is flawed with respect to significant deficiencies in assessment of impacts to areas that are clearly directly impacted and are clearly within the boundaries of assessed areas. The DEIR does not accurately represent and fails to appropriately respond to public comments previously provided as required under CEQA. In example: comments made at the project's Scoping Hearing in August 2015. One such example includes the treatment of verbal comments made by Donna DiGangi at said hearing. Please see the August 26, 2015 Planning Commission meeting video, Part 2, starting at 25:42. Some examples of her comments included the need to include sensitive receptors directly affected including, but not limited to, the LVP communities, that the LVP communities were not noticed of scoping despite being directly affected, the necessity to use appropriate traffic counts following completion of the LOVR Interchange Project for accuracy in assessment of existing conditions, the need to assess and project future noise impacts, the need to ensure mitigation measures from other projects that have not been completed are not assumed (i.e. mitigation measures for Chevron development, incomplete mitigations remaining following LOVR Interchange Project, etc.), a full detailed analysis of the project in all terms with and without the various options for Prado Road interim and complete connectivity AND with and without the LOVR Bypass as it relates to changes at Prado Road, and significant study of the LOVR Bypass effects in mitigating existing and long term traffic impacts in the region, among others. The DEIR does not directly or indirectly address a significant portion of these issues that were raised more than a year ago. Furthermore, the use of traffic counts taken during March 2015 in the vicinity of Los Osos Valley Road, South Higuera, US 101, Tank Farm Road and Buckley Road is misleading and inaccurate in assessing the current traffic conditions. At the time of these traffic counts, normal traffic patterns were significantly altered a result of it being a late midpoint of construction on the LOVR Interchange Project which included lane and other closures which discouraged use of this area and encouraged uses at other areas such as Madonna Road, 227/Broad Street, etc. Current traffic counts now that the LOUR Interchange Project is completed should be taken in order to accurately describe the current traffic and more accurately assess/project the future traffic volumes in the DEIR. The traffic study began development following or at the near point of completion of the Interchange Project; new traffic counts should have been taken at that time to have any accuracy to the DEIR. The currently included traffic counts are not representative, should be revised and the mitigation measures reassessed based on the current more accurate counts. Such significant changes would trigger rerelease of the DEIR under CEQA. Our neighborhoods failed to be noticed at every step of the project as required, including, but not limited to, the scoping hearing, this DEIR hearing, the DEIR release and so forth. We have followed this project, among others, and have continued to be vocal in this failure of notice. However, it remains an ongoing problem, both under CEQA as well as the terms of our settlement agreement. In conclusion, this DEIR needs to be revisited in so many ways to be compliant with CEQA requirements. Continued failure to address these issues up to and including, but not limited to, fundamental changes to the DEIR and full notification and recirculation of the document, may have the effect of putting the future of this project in jeopardy. CEQA and General Plan requirements were enacted to protect citizens, developers, lead agencies and others through the development process, and must be adhered to not only because it is law, but also because it is in the best interest of balancing the sometimes -competing interests of all the parties involved. We remain committed to working with the City, Developer and other interested citizens to ensure the best possible decisions are made. Sincerely, Los Verdes Park 1 Homeowners' Association, Inc. Special Board Member Representing the Joint Partnership of the Los Verdes Parks 1 & 2 HOAs Sarah Flickinger