CP&DR

Riverside County's Integrated Planning Effort Spurs Incorporation Movement

Oct 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 10 Oct 2003

Negative reaction to Riverside County's integrated planning effort is spurring an incorporation movement in Menifee Valley, on Interstate 215 about 30 miles south of Riverside.

Audits Question Local Agency Practices

Sep 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 09 Sep 2003

Two audits of redevelopment agencies that the Department of Housing and Community Development completed in August strike hard at local agency practices. The state found a number of accounting and planning deficiencies at the Baldwin Park Redevelopment Agency and told the City of Concord to stop using housing set-aside funds for general code enforcement activity.

Report Questions State's Brownfields Program

Aug 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 08 Aug 2003

A new report by the state auditor suggests that California's brownfields program could be stronger. The state lacks an inventory of brownfields and even a definition of the term, which generally refers to abandoned industrial sites, gasoline stations and mines.

Riverside County Integrated Planning Effort Moves Forward

Jul 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 07 Jul 2003

Riverside County supervisors have approved two-thirds of the closely watched Riverside County Integrated Program (RCIP). In June, supervisors approved a new general plan and a multi-species conservation plan for the western third of the county.

L.A. County Approves Revised Newhall Ranch Project

Jun 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 06 Jun 2003

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has approved a revised environmental impact report for the proposed Newhall Ranch development in the hills just west of Santa Clarita. The revised EIR was required because a Kern County judge in 2000 found the original study lacking.

Report Urges Cities To Overhaul Approach To Zoning

May 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 05 May 2003

A report prepared by a group of New Urbanist planners for the Governor's Office of Planning and Research (OPR) recommends that cities and counties adopt form-based codes to govern development. The report knocks typical zoning codes, which are based on land uses. The authors contend this type of zoning has led to 50 years of suburban-style development, which has caused people to rebel against growth.

State Water Project "Entitlements" Lawsuit Settled

Apr 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 04 Apr 2003

The State Department of Water Resources has settled a lawsuit filed by the Planning and Conservation League over the 1995 "Monterey Agreement," which, among other things, spelled out how State Water Project (SWP) water would be allocated during droughts. The settlement calls for the agency to more fully disclose its ability to deliver water.

News From Around California

Mar 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 03 Mar 2003

The regional housing allocation process should be suspended until it can be reformed, the Legislative Analysts' Office (LAO) has recommended. "The regional housing planning process is not very effective at ensuring the construction of affordable housing or obtaining compliance with state law," the LAO reported.

News From Around California

Feb 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 02 Feb 2003

The status of the California Coastal Commission was everything but clear in January, following a December 30 appellate court ruling that the Commission's composition was unconstitutional. The court ruled that the authority of the Assembly speaker and Senate Rules Committee to appoint eight of twelve commissioners and remove them at will violated the separation of powers doctrine.

News In Brief From Around California

Jan 1, 2003

CP&DR Staff, In Brief, Vol. 18 No. 01 Jan 2003

A potential Southern California water crisis reached new heights in December when the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) Board of Directors rejected a plan to sell roughly 6% of its Colorado River water allotment to the San Diego County Water Agency.

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