General Plan Update Meeting on Monday, March 28
Encinitas Senior Center from 6:00-9:00
For more information on this and other General Plan events visit www.encinitas2035.info or contact the Encinitas Planning Department at (760) 943-2101
Encinitas Senior Center from 6:00-9:00
For more information on this and other General Plan events visit www.encinitas2035.info or contact the Encinitas Planning Department at (760) 943-2101
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
I am writing to remind you that tomorrow night (Monday, March 28) the Encinitas Planning Department will be conducting a meeting to solicit citizen input for the updated General Plan. Although the General Plan has been in place for 30 years and is not required to be rewritten, Planning is in the process of updating the present plan and has shifted its description of the plan from the "Constitution of the City" to a "blueprint for growth" This shift away from an original plan that protects citizens' rights with regard to new development, concerns many who were involved in the original incorporation of Encinitas in 1980.
This meeting is an important opportunity for Olivenhain residents to voice their concern over a proposal which could change Encinitas from the livable city that we all love, to a city that is more crowded, with more traffic, more noise, and more pollution.
The Planning Department has expressed a desire to create a “sustainable” growth environment that allows for a growth in tax revenue, businesses, development and population. Although there is nothing wrong in investigating these ideas and planning for the future, Encinitas residents from all 5 communities have expressed that they wish to preserve “community character.” How can this be achieved if there are double the number of houses and residents than what we have currently?
This particular question has been brought into focus by Olivenhain neighbors concerned about the proposed development of the Dana Rullo Stables horse ranch property, which would disregard current zoning laws and would result in an increase in traffic, noise, and a number of other problems for local residents. For more information visit www.savedesertrose.com.
If you do attend the meeting tomorrow and if you complete a survey, please be aware that in the past, the answer, “deserves consideration” was added to the “yes” answers to determine that “citizens” were in favor of a 3-story parking structure be built in the location of the current Henry’s supermarket. This conclusion was reached based upon the responses of fewer than 30 Encinitas residents—some of whom answered “deserves consideration.” Some have suggested that participants should respond to surveys with yes/no answers since answers of “deserves consideration” and “I don’t know” are sometimes added to other answers when city planners evaluate survey responses.
Sincerely,
Julie
Let me start by saying that I generally agree with the end point of this letter: more people need to go to GPAC meetings. That being said, this letter is overblown Demagoguery.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, there is a requirement that the plan be updated. Even if there wasn't, do you really want to have an almost thirty year old plan that doesn't represent community character and wants instituted for another 30 years? Secondly, SANDAG has mandated that the city of Encinitas allow in the new plan for growth by threat of a lawsuit. They have mandated a lot of growth too, and the GPAC's response to that has been to plan for that in the most sensible way possible and do the bare minimum of the requirement for growth because everyone understands the community isn't big on growth. And, the ideas presented in what has been done thus far are modest and not 'broad sweeping changes' as I've heard so many suggest. It's clear to anyone who's been to a GPAC meeting that the general consensus of the committee has been 'Consult with the public, reflect what they want in the planning process, and when in doubt think as little change as possible and maintain community character.' The committee has tried there best to consult the public frequently and get input (as evident by the countless workshops and community input sessions that have taken place in the last year and a half).
I also don't know where this person is getting the number that 'double' the houses will be here.
Remember folks, just because something is in the general plan doesn't mean the city's going to go out and bulldoze whatever is there and build it, it just means that that property has the potential to change when it switches hands. MARKET DEMANDS DICTATE LAND USAGES.
And finally, nothing at all, including a three story parking garage has been approved yet. Not a single part of the new plan has been adopted by council, and the committee still has a lot of consulting with the public to do before it's proposed plan to go to council is finalized.
And if conclusions are being made by less than 30 people, it's because there is not enough community involvement at the numerous opportunities that are/have been given to the public to voice their opinions --- So yes, go to GPAC meetings, that way you can be more informed and not make assumptions like the one made here.
Go to the GPAC meeting if you want to see what taxpayers want for their general plan for the city or want to weigh in on the changes in the General Plan for all of Encinitas.
ReplyDeleteYour comments are wanted. You are invited. You can make a difference.
If you want a voice, the city is listening.
Be there if you want to be heard.
Thank you.
"MARKET DEMANDS DICTATE LAND USAGES."
ReplyDeleteThey can demand all they want, but the General Plan should require sky-scraping developers from making Encinitas as tall as Honolulu. Changing "constitution" to "blueprint for growth" flies in the face one of the main reasons Encinitas incorporated - to avoid what the county was doing with their blueprint for growth here - like the congestion we now have on Vulcan Ave. (Which only stands to get worse with density bonus issues and looser building requirements). Promoting excessive growth to try and keep up with increasing city debts is not a good blueprint. Words mean things and we need to think more of what "full grown" means and plan to be not just sustainable but properous with that. Insatiable obesity at the cost of our great town's character isn't smart. 15 years ago (before the ranch was developed), the city was saying Encinitas was 85% (or more) "built out". With all the development since then, has that figure gone down to 50% today? Guess no one ever explained how many structures constitute "built out" in our 26 square miles. Maybe that should be included in our blueprint for growth.
No, the GENERAL PLAN SHOULD DICTATE LAND USAGES in Encinitas, NOT THE MARKET. And that constitution should be honored by the Planning Commission and the City Council. Not tampered with until it's a pro-growth blueprint.
This evening's meeting will be important for your input. Winston, great input, if your vision of our City doesn't agree with what's being put forward...voice your opinion.
ReplyDeleteThe sexy issues in this GPA are centered around potential land use changes. But, there are many facets of the GP beyond that. One issue that will be addressed will be coastal issues, and our attitude toward it's future.
Pay attention to what Solana Beach and the almighty Coastal Commission are trying to do. The CC wants all further improvements to the coastline to have a permit limitation of only 20 years, not in perpetuity. We are set to begin those discussions.