HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-07-2017 PC Correspondence - San Luis Ranch (Cooper)To: City of SLO Planning Commission
From: Allan Cooper, San Luis Obispo
Re: Review of San Luis Ranch Specific Plan
Date: June 7, 2017
You will be evaluating on June 7, 2017 the San Luis Ranch Specific Plan. I
concur with the findings in the EIR which state that air quality , cultural 1
resources (historic resources and cumulative historic resources), land use/
policy consistency (General Plan policy consistency), noise (construction
noise), and transportation (existing and near-term intersection operations,
existing and near-term lane capacities, existing and near-term segment
operations, cumulative intersection operations, cumulative lane capacities,
and cumulative segment operations) created by this project will be
significant and unavoidable. This project at the time of buildout will also
place unavoidable adverse impacts on the City’s current sewer, water,
school, law enforcement and fire protection capacities.
But more specifically, the proposed tree replacements, particularly along
the riparian corridor, will result in not only significant but unavoidable
adverse impacts - not mitigable impacts as the EIR states. The mitigations
involving replacement in-kind minimum ratios, particularly with regards to
the proposed removal of the mature eucalyptus trees, will hardly mitigate
the permanent loss of the monarch overwintering grove and active great
blue heron nest habitat. Monarchs need tall trees (of at least 60 feet)
because they roost in the intermediate level of the canopy where wind
protection is greatest. Tall Eucalyptus trees are hugely important as habitat
trees as they provide cover and nest sites for Great Blue Herons as well as
for Double-Crested Cormorants, hawks and Great Horned Owls. The report
notes that one mitigation - creating new offsite nesting habitat for great blue
Often during the Spring, an area of high pressure will build at the surface over the western 1
United States and produce Santa Lucia (northeasterly) winds, also referred to as “offshore
winds” because they flow from the land out to sea especially during the night and morning
hours. Severe temperature differences in the vertical plane occur resulting in an inversion. A
temperature inversion occurs when a warmer, less dense air mass covers cooler, denser air at
the surface. The temperature changes are because of cool moisture-laden northwesterly
(onshore) winds from the Pacific Ocean blowing through Los Osos Valley while hot and dry
Santa Lucia northeasterly (offshore) winds move from the Santa Lucia Mountains through Avila
Valley.
herons - is experimental and that the relocation techniques described in
Crouch et al. (2002) were used to relocate black-crowned night heron
(Nycticorax nycticorax), not great blue herons.
As you know the relocation of the historic house and viewing stand should
not be done arbitrarily. Two questions should be asked: 1) Why is it
necessary to relocate these properties? and 2) Is the City “approving” the
RRM-designed “Illustrative Agriculture Heritage Center” site plan? The
layout of these relocated buildings - in a circle - is non-historic. There
should have been an attempt to lay these structures out relative to one
another in a more traditional manner assuming that they have to be
relocated in the first place.
Finally, the California Government Code - Gov Title 7. Planning And Land
Use [65000 - 66499.58] ) “…recognizes that premature and unnecessary
development of agricultural lands for urban uses continues to have adverse
effects on the availability of those lands for food and fiber production and
on the economy of the state. Furthermore, it is the policy of the state that
development should be guided away from prime agricultural lands…” This
project involves conversion of 68 acres of prime soils to urban
development.
In the final analysis, your review of this Specific Plan should note that this
project is “inconsistent with State Planning Law”.
Thank you for your time and consideration.