Gov. Jerry Brown made appointments to fill three vacant positions on the California Coastal Commission. Ryan Sundberg, a member of the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors since 2010, replaces Martha McClure, who was forced to leave when she was not reelected to the Del Norte County Board of Supervisors. Donne Brownsey, from Fort Bragg, replaces Wendy Mitchell, who resigned last year. Earlier this month, San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin was appointed to fill the seat of former Marin County Supervisor Steve Kinsey, who stepped down when he was not reelected as supervisor. Brown selected Coastal Commissioner Effie Turnbull Sanders to be the panel’s environmental justice representative, a position that was created by the State legislation last year. The bill requires a commissioner to live in and work with communities that are disproportionately burdened by pollution and other environmental problems.
Phase 1 of Salton Sea Management Plan Released
The California Natural Resources Agency has released the first phrase of a long-awaited management plan to halt the degradation of the Salton Sea. Under the Salton Sea Management Program Phase 1 10-Year Plan, the first projects are to restore areas where migrating birds once proliferated and to control toxic dust storms that arise from the permitter of the lake. Costing $383 million, the phase includes building a series of ponds and water-transfer systems across about 29,000 acres that would cover up stretches of dusty lakebed. The sea has been shrinking for years and is considered to be nearly “dead" ecologically. Last year, the legislature approved $80.5 million for Salton Sea projects. Critics of the plan worry about how the it will be funded, as much of the funding has to be approved by the legislature, and whether the state can be held accountable if it fails on its commitments to protect public health and habitat. Various options are being studied, such as building a “perimeter lake” that would stretch 60 miles along the lake’s west shore, importing water from the Sea of Cortez or brackish groundwater from elsewhere. The Salton Sea is one of the most important wetlands along the Pacific Flyway and supports nearly 90 percent of the migratory route’s American white pelicans and eared grebes. While this first phase is recognized as providing temporary solutions, it is a first step in the right direction.
US DOT Maps Statewide Noise Hotpots
The U.S. Department of Transportation released maps describing transportation-related noise that found that the nosiest parts of California are around airports and freeways. While this comes as no surprise, the landing and takeoff zones around LAX are particularly bad. Similar noise spikes are found near San Francisco, Oakland, San Diego, San Jose and Long Beach. The USDOT said relatively few Americans are exposed to high levels of noise from transportation. The study found more than 97 percent of the U.S. population has the potential to be exposed to noise from airports and freeways at levels below 50 decibels or “roughly comparable to the noise level of a humming refrigerator” according to the USDOT statement. Less than 0.01 percent of the population could potentially experience noise levels of 80 decibels or more, equivalent to the noise level of a garbage disposal.
San Francisco Pushes Back against Mandate to Conserve River Water
San Francisco officials have released a counter-proposal to address a state mandate to increase amount of water flowing in rivers. The proposal calls for forfeiting city water supplies on the Tuolumne River only when deemed necessary to protect salmon and steelhead. It also calls for rehabilitating parts of the 149-mile river for the benefit of wildlife. The goal of the State’s Bay Delta Plan is to give a boost to the freshwater-deprived Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and San Francisco Bay by bringing rivers closer to their natural state. The state’s plan calls for 30 to 50 percent of the water that naturally flows to remain in the rivers; the rivers currently run at around 20 percent or less. San Francisco officials worry that further cuts to their water supply would lead to rations and 120,000 lost jobs a year. The city’s proposal calls for the city and other water agencies to invest millions more to improve salmon and steelhead habitat through projects such as enhancing gravel beds where fish spawn, removing predators like striped bass, and restoring native vegetation along the river.
Report Card Issued on L.A. Sustainability Plan
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti released the second annual progress report on his Sustainable City “pLAn," which shows early achievement of more than two-thirds of 2017 goals under the first comprehensive environmental plan in City history. Garcetti introduced the plan in 2015 to guide Los Angeles toward an environmentally healthy, economically prosperous, and equitable future for a city expected to grow by 500,000 residents over the next 20 years. Of the pLAn’s 2017 goals, over 90 percent are on track to be completed this year.Major accomplishments since the release of the pLAn include creating more than 20,000 green jobs; achieving a record 20 percent reduction in water use per capita; installing enough solar in the last year to power over 12,000 homes, and leading American cities with 225MW of total installed solar power.
Bill Would Put Tighter Controls on SANDAG
Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez released details that would attempt to reform the San Diego Association of Governments in part by granting more power to San Diego’s mayor. AB 805 would create an audit committee and hire an independent auditor to prevent another budgeting scandal, change voting structure to make votes proportional to their population, and make San Diego’s mayor the permanent chair of the Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) and mayor of Chula Vista vice-chair. Gonzalez said: “It’s a staff-driven organization that thinks it purpose is to build roads. I think a regional agency should do more than that.” Her bill would also make it possible for MTS and the North County Transit District to levy their own transit-only taxes, as these areas are more willing to vote for new taxes than the county as a whole.
Report Prescribes Ways to Reduce Bay Area Commuting
The Federal Transit Administration Sandbox Program released a white paper on “Fair Value Commuting” that looks at reducing Bay Area commuting by 25 percent. The research states that the challenge of traffic congestion and climate changes depend on the reducing of demand for single-occupant vehicle travel. Shifting commute mode choices will lower per capita vehicle miles traveled (VMTs), which reduce congestion and GHG emissions. Fair Valuable Commuting (FVC) includes Enterprise Commute Trip Reduction, Mobility Aggregation, Revenue neutral workplace parking feebate, new commute options, and systemic obstacles. These are a combination of employers assisting employee commuting, smartphone apps, charging fees for SOV commutes, GIS analysis, and better public transportation options. Within the next two years FVC will become a viable, scalable solution.
Los Angeles Ordinance to Rein in Oversize Homes
After an aching citywide debate, Los Angeles City Council approved, 12-0, an ordinance that further limits the size of so-called “McMansions.” The council approved an update to the city’s Baseline Mansionization Ordinance that applies to single-family homes on lots less than 7,500 square feet. Such properties are currently allowed to have floor areas that are 50 percent of the lot size, but under the amendment are reduced to 45 percent. The amendment creates incentives for building detached garages or placing them in the rear of the home. The council also passed new limits on homes built on hillsides with the Baseline Hillside Ordinance that will put an end to giant boxy homes that tower over neighbors.
Long Beach Considers Ways to Save Queen Mary
The Queen Mary ocean liner, purchased by the City of Long Beach a half-century ago, is “approaching the point of no return.” According to experts, the vessel is in danger of irreparable flooding and corrosion. Repairs to the ship could cost between $235 and $289 million and would take five years to complete. Urban Commons, the real estate firm that operates the Queen Mary, submitted plans for a $250 million entertainment complex to Long Beach officials. The plans include more dining, shopping, concerts and zip-lining near the historic cruise ship. Urban Commons says renovating the 65 acres of waterfront land flanking the ship could help pay for the repairs required over the next five years.
Quick Hits & Updates
The San Francisco Planning Commission unanimously endorsed the Mission Action Plan 2020 that lays out plans to preserve the culture of the Mission District, where housing costs have risen rapidly and many long-time residents have been displaced. The plan is intended to slow or reverse the spread of gentrification over the next three years. It calls for 2,400 permanent, new affordable housing units by 2020. As of January, only 900 such homes were in the various stages of development. The plan will move to the Board of Supervisors next.
XpressWest, the company planning to build a high-speed train linking Las Vegas and Palmdale, found the rail would attract 11 million round-trip riders by 2035. The report found the line would generate about $1 billion in annual revenue by 2035, based on $115 round-trip tickets, based on an estimated 3 million passengers who would take round-trip rides when the first segment is completed in 2021. (See prior CP&DR coverage.)
El Monte City Council voted unanimously to adopt “Vision Zero”, a new initiative that aims to eliminate all traffic deaths by 2027. The plan directs city staff to look at changes to infrastructure to improve safety, discuss safety improvement possibilities with the local school districts, and the creation of a “Vision Zero” advisory committee made up of representatives from the schools and city transportation, planning and police departments. In 2014, a total of 696 people were killed or injured due to motor vehicle collisions in the city. (See related CP&DR coverage.)
The Coastal Commission approved a cease and desist order and administrative penalty for the property owners of La Costanara restaurant in Half Moon Bay in San Mateo County. The owners, A&G LLC, must remove much of their unpermitted construction, improve public access to Montara State Beach, and pay a half-million-dollar penalty.
The Lake Elsinore Planning Commission recommended, 5-0, that the City Council approve the Alberhill Villages Specific Plan. However, the City Council called for a special election to allow voters to decide the future of the area. The plan includes more than 8,000 houses and apartments as well as parks, schools, offices and retail complexes that would be built over 35 years on about 1,400 acres on the northwest side of town.
The Irvine City Council unanimously approved the building of a temporary 12,000-seat amphitheater adjacent to the Orange County Great Park. The amphitheater will open in late summer and remain for the next three years. The amphitheater will be built on private property owned by FivePoint. Live Nation will design and build the development and parking. Live Nation would hold around 35 concerts per year, primarily between June and October.
A new report from the Center for Economic Forecasting and Development at UC Riverside’s School of Business found that rents in Inland Empire are rising fast or faster than in Los Angeles and Orange Counties and have much lower vacancy rates. Only 2.4 percent of rental units in the Inland Empire were vacant compared to 3.3 percent in LA County and 3.2 percent in OC. The low vacancy rates are a result of not enough apartments and single-family homes being built.
A bill sponsored by by Assemblymen David Chiu (D-San Francisco) and Rob Bonta (D-Oakland), AB 1506, would repeal the Costa-Hawkins Act, the 1978 law that governs certain types of rent control.
Gov. Jerry Brown wants lawmakers to extend the cap-and-trade program, although the price of permits sold for less than $14. However, the Legislative Analyst’s Office says if the state pushes forward with its tougher climate goals the price of allowances could rise to over $50 per permit. This could increase the price per gallon of gasoline by 45 cents.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has proposed a $6.2 billion cut that would, according to analysis in the San Diego Union-Tribune, cut rental assistance to roughly 25,000 San Diego County families with more than $242 million in Section 8 funds. The proposed budget keeps rental assistance at the same levels but cuts funding to build more subsidized housing units and eliminates down payment assistance projects for first-time buyers.
Storied home of 1960s protests, People’s Park near UC Berkeley is being considered for development of student housing. The university is 6,900 beds short of the 15,600 it needs to meet goals to house half of its undergraduates and a quarter of its graduate students. The 2.8-acre park could potentially house 200-350 in a residence hall. The park currently is home to dozens of homeless people; the university hopes to work with the city to help them.
Sacramento County supervisors approved a series of proposals to create programs and services for the homeless. These include a full-service shelter, a new rehousing program, redesigning the family emergency shelter network, and supporting long-standing job training and transitional housing programs. The set of proposals would cost $5.58 million in new spending for the next fiscal year and $8.3 million in new spending annually.
New research from UC Riverside shows that the Newport-Inglewood fault may be more dangerous as new evidence shows past major earthquakes on the fault cause sections of Seal Beach to fall 1.5 to 3 feet in seconds. The fault runs under some of the region’s most densely populated areas from Westside of LA to Orange County coast.
The City of Pasadena has identified 34 locations for bike-share kiosks around the city for a pilot program that is expected to launch this summer. the locations were chosen according to criteria such as population density and a crowdsourcing effort to identify attractive locations. The city council approved the locations, 5-3.
ATTOM Data Solutions released its third annual Environmental Hazards Housing Risk Index, which shows that 17.3 million single-family homes and condos nationwide, with a combined value of $4.9 trillion, are in area with high or very high risk for at least one environmental hazard. The hazards analyzed are Superfund sites, brownfields, polluters, or poor air quality. The 17.3 million homes represent 25 percent of the 8,642 zip codes analyzed. Of the 10 highest Total Environmental Hazard Index values, four were located in California: San Bernardino, Santa Fe Springs, Fresno, and Mira Loma.
Engineering firm Fluor has submitted an unsolicited proposal to Metro that would accelerate conversion of Los Angeles's Orange Line busway to light rail. Metro’s Office of Extraordinary innovation is beginning Phase 1 review of the potential public-private partnership on its financial and technical merit. The light rail conversion is not scheduled to break ground until 2051, but Fluor’s proposal may accelerate the timeline.
According to a UC Irvine study, Orange County could save $42 million a year in health care, law enforcement and other expenses by placing chronically homeless people into housing. While the full study will be released in May, key findings include it would be cheaper to invest in “housing first” approach to get homeless people off the street than to continue to pay for a revolving door of emergency and interim services.
