ARTICLE
When the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was established many years ago to ensure the protection of our environment, it became a universal planning tool. Over the years, CEQA has been a stop sign at the end of the road or last gateway for housing developments, transportation projects and other land use plans to be approved. In many cases, environmental groups, labor and other community stakeholders utilized CEQA rules if they believed the environment was at risk. There is also a long line of questionable practices where CEQA was used unrelated to protecting the environment. For this article let’s focus on the new outcomes. California’s most recent two governors, Brown and Schwarzenegger, have used Climate Change as our state’s mantra to be become the World Leader in adopting policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (signally looked at as the number one enemy for protecting our world). California regulators on Monday released a long-awaited overhaul of the state’s environmental law. Regulators say the proposed changes, which modify rules under the California Environmental Quality Act or CEQA, will help the state meet its ambitious goals to combat climate change. That law requires developers to disclose and minimize a project’s impact on the environment. One key section of the proposal modifies how developers analyze traffic. The outcome may produce opportunities to create more Bike lanes, mixed-use residential and commercial construction near transit and other development projects might get easier to build in our state and particularly in Santa Cruz. Under the current interpretation of the law, developers have to measure their project’s effects on car congestion — something that often stymies the installation of bike lanes because the removal of car lanes could tie up vehicles. The new effort would force projects to estimate the number of miles cars will travel on nearby roads. Since bike lanes won’t increase vehicle trips, and could reduce them, regulators hope the new rules could ease their development. The new proposal would also apply to residential construction in an effort to make it easier for developers to build pedestrian or bicycle friendly projects if they can show their projects will limit car travel. California law requires the state to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. Regulators have said the state will not meet that goal without a substantial decline in the number of cars on the road, requiring a boom in dense housing near existing jobs and transit. “These rules make clear that reducing vehicle miles resulting from projects is a state goal and an environmental benefit,” said Ken Alex, director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, in a statement. Modifications to CEQA are politically fraught because numerous powerful interest groups, including builders, environmentalists and unions, have significant stakes in how the existing process works. These rules changes have been no exception. State lawmakers passed a law in 2013 telling regulators to write the new proposal in the same legislation that aimed to speed construction of a Sacramento Kings basketball arena. The Kings are now playing their second season in the new building, and the regulations still aren’t complete. Regulators are opening public comment on the CEQA overhaul in the coming weeks and will hold at least one public hearing before the proposal becomes final, according to a spokeswoman for the California Natural Resources Agency. Regulators are hoping the new rules will go into effect sometime in 2018. What does this really mean for Santa Cruz County and our four cities? This sets the standard and the ability to make better use of limited land for housing and commercial and/or mixed use projects and infrastructure improvements that complement the changes in state law. This is a subtle reminder to our land use decision makers to not strangle the economy with unnecessary or more burdensome regulations that limit our cities and the county from creating more biker and pedestrian friendly developments. As the cities and county address our housing needs and the future slow growth of our region — infill development along our major transit corridors is the best option to meet the state climate change regulations, our long held support of urban boundaries, green belts and open space. Let’s hope that our county and city leaders understand the balance between good planning policies that lead to new development to meet our future growth.
When the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was established many years ago to ensure the protection of our environment, it became a universal planning tool. Over the years, CEQA has been a stop sign at the end of the road or last gateway for housing developments, transportation projects and other land use plans to be approved. In many cases, environmental groups, labor and other community stakeholders utilized CEQA rules if they believed the environment was at risk. There is also a long line of questionable practices where CEQA was used unrelated to protecting the environment. For this article let’s focus on the new outcomes.
California’s most recent two governors, Brown and Schwarzenegger, have used Climate Change as our state’s mantra to be become the World Leader in adopting policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (signally looked at as the number one enemy for protecting our world).
California regulators on Monday released a long-awaited overhaul of the state’s environmental law. Regulators say the proposed changes, which modify rules under the California Environmental Quality Act or CEQA, will help the state meet its ambitious goals to combat climate change. That law requires developers to disclose and minimize a project’s impact on the environment. One key section of the proposal modifies how developers analyze traffic.
The outcome may produce opportunities to create more Bike lanes, mixed-use residential and commercial construction near transit and other development projects might get easier to build in our state and particularly in Santa Cruz. Under the current interpretation of the law, developers have to measure their project’s effects on car congestion — something that often stymies the installation of bike lanes because the removal of car lanes could tie up vehicles.
The new effort would force projects to estimate the number of miles cars will travel on nearby roads. Since bike lanes won’t increase vehicle trips, and could reduce them, regulators hope the new rules could ease their development. The new proposal would also apply to residential construction in an effort to make it easier for developers to build pedestrian or bicycle friendly projects if they can show their projects will limit car travel.
California law requires the state to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. Regulators have said the state will not meet that goal without a substantial decline in the number of cars on the road, requiring a boom in dense housing near existing jobs and transit.
“These rules make clear that reducing vehicle miles resulting from projects is a state goal and an environmental benefit,” said Ken Alex, director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, in a statement.
Modifications to CEQA are politically fraught because numerous powerful interest groups, including builders, environmentalists and unions, have significant stakes in how the existing process works. These rules changes have been no exception. State lawmakers passed a law in 2013 telling regulators to write the new proposal in the same legislation that aimed to speed construction of a Sacramento Kings basketball arena. The Kings are now playing their second season in the new building, and the regulations still aren’t complete.
Regulators are opening public comment on the CEQA overhaul in the coming weeks and will hold at least one public hearing before the proposal becomes final, according to a spokeswoman for the California Natural Resources Agency. Regulators are hoping the new rules will go into effect sometime in 2018.
What does this really mean for Santa Cruz County and our four cities? This sets the standard and the ability to make better use of limited land for housing and commercial and/or mixed use projects and infrastructure improvements that complement the changes in state law. This is a subtle reminder to our land use decision makers to not strangle the economy with unnecessary or more burdensome regulations that limit our cities and the county from creating more biker and pedestrian friendly developments. As the cities and county address our housing needs and the future slow growth of our region — infill development along our major transit corridors is the best option to meet the state climate change regulations, our long held support of urban boundaries, green belts and open space. Let’s hope that our county and city leaders understand the balance between good planning policies that lead to new development to meet our future growth.