1. Panel Presentation

2. Panel Presentations
 Bill Shoe, County of Santa Clara
Principal Planner
 Neelima Palacherla, Santa Clara County
Local Agency Formation Commission
Executive Officer
 Leslie Little, City of Morgan Hill Assistant
City Manager

3. The County Perspective

4. Role of Principal Planner for
Santa Clara County

5. Role of Principal Planner -
Overview of My Responsibilities
 Manage comprehensive planning, General Plan
 Zoning Administrator/Zoning Ordinance
 Geographic Information System (GIS) staff
 Advise Board of Supervisors, Planning
Commission & County Staff
 Represent County

6. Framework for Planning Decision-
Making in Santa Clara County
 Federal & State regulations (mandates,
pre-emptions, NEPA/CEQA)
 County’s General Plan
 Zoning Ordinance, County Ordinance Code
(subdivision, single sites, grading, etc.)
 Building Code, Fire Code, road standards, etc.

7. General Plan Basics
 Last comprehensively updated 1994
 Mandatory elements e.g.: Housing, Land Use
 Optional elements e.g.: Parks & Recreation
 Upcoming Element
 Health Element

8. General Plan Structure
 Vision - Four Themes/Goals
 Chapters, Strategies and Policies
 3 Plans in 1: Countywide, Rural, & Urban
Islands
 Stanford Community Plan
 South County Joint Area Plan

9. Land Use Plan

10. Strategies Example - Natural Hazards
#1: Inventory (map) hazards, monitor
conditions
#2: Minimize resident population in high
hazard areas
#3: Design, locate, regulate development to
avoid/withstand hazards
#4: Reduce magnitude of hazard if possible
#5: Public information and awareness

11. General Plan’s Connection to You
 Why it is important to the average Santa
County Clara citizen (constitution, blueprint
for development/conservation)
 Connecting the General Plan to local projects
- consistency requirements
 Community values - expresses key
values, desired outcomes that are community
driven

12. General Plan’s Connection to You -
Vision and Desired Outcomes
 Managed urban growth and development
 Responsible resource conservation (e.g.:
hillside preservation)
 Environmental stewardship, restoration
 Livable communities, smart growth
 Social and economic well-being
 Efficient, effective service delivery (urban
services, health system, courts, social services)

13. Planning and Land Use Decisions
 Board of Supervisors (e.g.: GP
amendments, zone
changes, subdivisions, appeals, etc.)
 Planning Commission (e.g.: Use Permits)
 Architecture & Site Approval Committee
 Zoning Administrator (e.g.:Design
Review, Variance, etc.)
 Staff (e.g.: single building site approval, grading
approvals, lot line adjustments, etc.)

14. Interaction With Other Agencies
 Other key County agencies (e.g.: Roads &
Airports, Environmental Health, Agriculture, Fire
Marshall, etc.)
 County engagement with Morgan Hill, San Jose and
Gilroy (e.g.: HSR, Coyote Valley, HCP)
 County engagement with LAFCO (e.g.: USA
mods, island annexation, ag preservation)
 State/regional agencies (e.g.: Sustainable
Communities
Strategy, RHNA, BAAQMD, SFRWQCB, CCRWQCB)

15. Public Engagement and Information
 Importance of citizen engagement - an “informed
citizenry” and balancing of perspectives
 Some elements to be considered:
 Vibrant economies, tax base, service provision
 Urban Growth Boundaries - tools for managing growth
 Urban needs and open space protection
 Rural services, impacts of rural development

16. Closing Thoughts
Watchword of the future…
‘Sustainability’
Energy
Economy
Environment
Equity
Resilience / Adaptation

17. Thank you!
Bill Shoe, County of Santa Clara
Principal Planner

18. The LAFCO Perspective
18

19. What is LAFCO?
An independent, state-
mandated local agency
with a mission to:
 Promote Logical Boundaries of Local Agencies
 Discourage Urban Sprawl
 Preserve Agricultural and Open Space Land
 Ensure Efficient Provision of Public Services
19

20. What does LAFCO do?
Regulatory Function
 Boundary changes for special districts and cities:
 Annexations
 Detachments
 Incorporation / Disincorporation
 Dissolution / Formation of districts
 Consolidations & mergers of cities / districts
 Sphere of Influence and Urban Service Area
Amendments
 Extension of services outside agency boundaries
 Activation of new services for districts
20

21. What does LAFCO do?
Planning Function
 Conduct Service Reviews for service providers
within the County
 Establish and prepare 5-year updates of Spheres
of Influence for cities and special districts
 Establish Urban Service Areas for cities
 Work collaboratively on growth, preservation and
service issues
21

22. Santa Clara LAFCO Composition
Local Agency Formation Commission
The Commission consists of:
 Two County Supervisors
 One Council Member from San Jose
 One Council Member from any other city
 One Public Member
22

23. Santa Clara LAFCO Funding &
Staffing
 Funded jointly by cities and the County
50% (County)
25% (San Jose)
25% (Cities)
 Contracts with County for staffing and facilities
 Contracts out for legal counsel services
23

24. Role of LAFCO Executive
Officer and manage the LAFCO program
 Direct
 Receive policy direction directly from Commission
 Represent Commission and serve as liaison
 Process proposals and prepare recommendations
 Develop policy for Commission consideration
 Conduct special studies / service reviews
 Implement Commission decisions
 Track state legislation and local agency policies
24

25. Framework in Which Decisions
are Made at LAFCO
 State Law
 The Cortese Knox Hertzberg Act
 CEQA, Revenue & Tax Code
 Local LAFCO Policies and Procedures
 Adopted by LAFCO based on local conditions
and context
25

26. Which Hat to Wear?
Local Agency Formation Commission
LAFCO Commissioners must exercise
independent judgment and represent:
 NOT solely the interest of their appointing
authority
 the interest of the public as a whole in
furthering the purposes of LAFCO
26

27. Interaction with Other Agencies
 Cities
 Special districts
 County departments:
Planning, Assessor’s, Surveyor’s, Controller’s, Re
corder’s...
 Regional/ statewide organizations:
ABAG, CALAFCO, CSDA
 State Departments: State Board of
Equalization, Dept. of Public Health, Dept. of
Conservation…
27

28. LAFCO’s Legal Standing /
Authority independent
 LAFCOs are
 LAFCO’s decisions are final.
 Decisions cannot be appealed to other
administrative bodies
 Limited legal challenge as long as decision is not
arbitrary and capricious
 Do NOT have land use authority
28

29. Joint Urban Development Policies
Long-standing urban development policies
between LAFCO, the 15 cities and the
County:
 Urban development should occur within cities
 County will not allow urban development in
the unincorporated areas
 Cities to adopt urban service areas to indicate
lands that they are willing and able to provide
urban services and facilities to within the next
five years
29

30. Urban Service Area (USA)
 Jointly adopted by cities and LAFCO in 1972
& 1973
 Amended over time through the LAFCO
process
 USAs are unique to Santa Clara County
 When LAFCO approves a USA expansion it is
in anticipation of annexation and
development
 Special legislation in CKH Act that allows
Santa Clara County cities to annex land
within their USA without LAFCO approval
30

31. Urban Service Area
USA amendment requests can only come from
Cities and LAFCO has special policies to help
guide its consideration of these requests:
 Need for expansion, given the amount of
vacant land already within the city & USA and
rate of absorption
 Availability of services e.g. police, fire, sewer…
 Availability of adequate water supply
 Impact on agricultural & open space lands
 Fiscal impact on other local agencies
 Ability of school districts to provide school
facilities
31

32. Sphere of Influence (SOI)
CITY
LIMITS
CITY
URBAN SERVICE AREA
SPHERE OF INFLUENCE
In Santa Clara County:
 State definition is relevant for special
districts, but not for cities
 For cities, the USA is the more critical
boundary for determining the location of
urban development
32

33. Preserving Ag land
33

34. Preserving Ag land
Less than 39,000 acres of agricultural
lands with high quality soils remain in
Santa Clara County (that is less than
5% of total land within the county)
34

35. What’s Sprawl Got To Do With
It?
Urban
development, urban
service area expansions
and service extensions
can disrupt the
conditions necessary for
agriculture leading to:
 Land use conflicts and
increasing calls for
regulation
 Land speculation which
drives up the price of
farmland
 Impermanence which
causes disinvestment in
agriculture 35

36. What Can LAFCO Do?
 Help educate local agencies, organizations, and the
community on the importance of agriculture
 When approving proposals adjacent to agricultural
lands, encourage local agencies to adopt measures to
protect adjoining agricultural lands, to prevent their
premature conversion and to minimize potential urban
edge conflicts
 When reviewing /commenting or preparing
environmental documents, ensure thorough analysis of
impacts to agriculture
 Conversion of prime agricultural land should be a last
resort and in some cases may not be appropriate
 Adopt policies and encourage other agencies to adopt
policies aimed at mitigating the loss of agricultural lands
36

37. What Can You Do?
 Participate in various levels of decision making
process, even prior to LAFCO process
• At city council / planning commission stage
• GP Amendment / Pre-zoning
• CEQA analysis
 Provide comments
 Attend meetings / public hearings
 Contact LAFCO staff / commissioners, local
elected officials
 Request a community workshop / presentation
on issue
37

38. For more information on
LAFCO:
www.santaclara.lafco.ca.gov
 Neelima Palacherla (408) 299-5127
Neelima.palacherla@ceo.sccgov.org
 Dunia Noel (408) 299-5148
Dunia.noel@ceo.sccgov.org
38

39. The City Perspective

40. Role of Assistant City Manager for
Community Development in Morgan Hill
 Direct activities of
Planning, Building, Housing, Redevelopmen
t, Code Enforcement, Engineering and
Utilities
 In Planning – Long Range Planning, Current
Planning, Zoning and RDCS Administration
 Advise CM; Make recs. to Planning Commission
and City council
 Represent City in regional Planning efforts, i.e.
HCP, High Speed Rail, RHNA, Sustainable
Communities Strategy (one bay Area Plan)

41. Framework in Which Planning Decisions
are Made in Morgan Hill
 Federal, County & State regulations and
Mandates
 Morgan Hill’s General Plan and the
Community Values expressed in the Plan
 City Council, Planning Commission & City
Staff and community input
 Zoning and Building Codes

42. Planning Policy Basics
 Last Comprehensive GP Update 2001
 Housing Element 2010 Circulation Element 2009
 DT Specific Plan 2009 Hist. Res. Code 2006
 Cal Green Standards 2009 Upcoming Ag Policy
 General Plan Key Goals
 Economic Development : Strong, stable , diverse economic base;
adequate jobs for locals; viable tourist industry
 Housing: Adequate supply of new housing and range of densities;
available to all income levels; Growth that matches service capacity and
provides for affordable housing, RDCS
 Thoughtful Capital Improvement Planning and infrastructure
development
 Open Space/Conservation :Preservation or open space, ag.
uses, Hillsides, riparian, wildlife habitat; seek Greenbelt around City, help
retail rural atmospheres as City grows; preserve cultural heritage

43. How the General Plan Shapes Morgan
Hill
 Provides framework for City’s future and
guides decision-making for consistency
with General Plan
 Visioning process for comprehensive
revision: Spring 2012

44. General Plan’s Connection to You
 The General Plan drives policy and decision making for
most short term and long term actions
 General Plan policies have result in open space
acquisition (El Toro), active and passive park
development and location, facility
development, infrastructure investment, policies
regarding affordable housing, Downtown preservation
and development, economic development
activities, habitat conservation planning, water
conservation, sustainability actions and planned
housing growth
 Land use decisions must make findings of
consistency with the General Plan

45. Land Use Decisions in Morgan
Hill
 From the General Plan, decisions are made or
influenced by:
 City Council
 Planning Commission
 Planning and Community Development staff including
Utilities, Engineering, Public Works, Building
 Rec and Parks, Roads, Police and County Fire Services
 Other City Commissions and committees

46. Interaction with Other Agencies
In addition to local decision making, the city consults
with and participates in regional decision-making.
Interact and comply with U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, CALTRANS, VTA, Caltrain, MTC, Santa
Clara County, LAFCO, SC County Water
District, Association of Bay Area
Governments, DTSC, State Finance Dept., State
Controller, U.S. Housing and Urban
Development, U.S. Census; San Jose , Gilroy, non-
profit organizations and networks

47. Public Engagement
 Morgan Hill is a progressive community, embracing its
citizens and business community members in most major
decisions in a way that goes beyond most:
RDCS, Redevelopment amendment ballot
 It is extraordinary in its commitment to community well-
being – community facilities, infrastructure and affordable
housing
 MH values citizen engagement – Council priorities to
broaden with commitment to diversity

48. Upcoming Activities
 General Plan update
 Climate Action Plan
 Downtown development (PDA)
 Economic Development Activities
 Urban Growth Boundaries (Urban Limit Line)
 High Speed Rail
 Caltrain long range planning (service and
station development)
 Open Space/Conservation (Ag Policies )

50. Lunch Panel Presentation