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Tassajara Valley Urban Limit Line Threat
Voters approved the Contra Costa County Urban Limit Line in November 2006, putting Tassajara Valley off-limits to development. However, developers recently proposed a 193-unit housing development,called New Farm, outside the boundary on 770 acres of land east of San Ramon and Danville.
County Supervisors agreed to review the proposal, setting a bad precedent, as they were essentially agreeing to consider allowing suburban development outside the Urban Limit Line.
In addition to the County, Tassajara Valley landowners and interested developers have appealed to the growth-friendly City of San Ramon. San Ramon may be persuaded to expand its sphere of influence, which is the precursor to expanding the city’s urban growth boundary--the city’s equivalent of an Urban Limit Line—which could lead to the subsequent annexation of the desired lands and ultimately, development of New Farm.
Either way—if San Ramon extends their Urban Growth Boundary or if the County outright approves the New Farm project—it could open the floodgates for similar expansion strategies and development proposals throughout Contra Costa County, undermining the authority of urban boundaries and putting thousands of acres of land at risk.
What's at Stake
The New Farm proposal attempts to skirt the law by
not requiring the County to physically alter the Urban Limit Line. Instead, the developer
is attempting to convince County Supervisors that the proposed housing
development project is “rural” in nature.
But New Farm is not rural, and it’s no farm.
The proposal blatantly breaks the Urban Limit Line by extending water and sewage lines
across the line. Rural development has traditionally been defined as
parcels using septic tanks and wells, whereas urban development requires
the construction of public utilities—such as water and sewage lines.
The New Farm 193-unit proposal will allow massive development on prime
agricultural land. On the land, only one home per 80 acres is
currently allowed, to support true farms. But the New Farm proposal would
subdivide the land into 5-acre parcels. The developer is even requesting “density
bonuses” for consolidating development on 40 acres, to allow more
units.
The proposal is sprawl development, pure and simple.
Even if it were a better proposal, New Farm is in the wrong place. Contra
Costa County voters agreed on a growth boundary with the understanding
that no urban or suburban development would be allowed beyond that point
until at least 2020, at which time the General Plan will be reevaluated.
Calling this project “rural” is a transparent attempt to
get around the law, and is in clear opposition to the will of the people
of Contra Costa. Greenbelt Alliance opposes this threat to farmland,
and to the policies protecting farmland and natural areas.
New Farm and San Ramon
In February, the City of San Ramon gave notice that they were considering a Sphere of Influence Amendment for the Tassajara Valley Planning Subarea. While San Ramon City leaders may argue that the amendment will not necessarily lead to annexation or development, typical California land-use practices suggest otherwise. According the California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, “The sphere of influence is an important benchmark because it defines the primary area within which urban development is to be encouraged (Sections 56377(b) and 56841).”
After expanding its sphere of influence, the City must also expand its voter-approved Urban Growth Boundary and formally annex the lands though another Local Agency Formation Commission proposal. Conveniently, San Ramon is slated to reevaluate and publicly vote on their urban growth boundary in 2010.
Sphere of influence amendments lead to annexations. Annexations lead to development. Period.
By no means a coincidence, the 770 acres proposed for the New Farm development fall entirely within the 4,900 acres included in the amendment. What’s more, the neighboring cities of Dublin and Danville—who share a significant border with Tassajara Valley—were not consulted about the amendment and were left to hear about the proposals in the newspaper!
The New Farm project and the San Ramon sphere of influence amendment are inextricably linked; both are fueled by one of the county’s most influential political operatives and both threaten the validity of voter-approved growth boundaries. Greenbelt Alliance will continue to adamantly oppose the amendment and any other proposals that could potentially threaten Tassajara Valley open space.
What You Can Do
• Sign up to receive email updates about the campaign – email
Christina Wong.
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Attend local meetings! Join us at the upcoming Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors meeting about the New Farm development or the San Ramon City Council meeting about the sphere of influence amendment (time and date TBA).
• Write a letter in defense of Tassajara Valley:
Write to San Ramon Mayor H. Abram Wilson and Members of the Council, opposing the proposed amendment and the future annexation and development of the Tassajara Valley.
citycouncil@sanramon.ca.gov
2222 Camino Ramon, San Ramon, CA 94583
Phone: (925) 973-2530
Fax: (925) 866-0547
Write to your County Supervisor, or to the Board of Supervisors, to say that you oppose studying the New Farm proposal.
District I (El Cerrito, Richmond, & San Pablo):
Honorable John Gioia
Supervisor, District I
11780 San Pablo Ave. Suite D
El Cerrito, CA 94530
(510) 374-3231
dist1@bos.co.contra-costa.ca.us
District II (Hercules, Lafayette, Moraga, Martinez, Orinda, Pinole, Walnut
Creek):
Honorable Gayle B. Uilkema
Supervisor, District II
651 Pine Street, Room 108A
Martinez, CA 94553
(925) 335-1046
gayle@bos.cccounty.us
District III (Alamo, Brentwood, Walnut Creek, Danville, San Ramon, Byron,
Discovery Bay, Blackhawk, Knightson):
Honorable Marry N. Piepho
Supervisor, District III
309 Diablo Road
Danville, CA 94526
(925) 820-8683
dist3@bos.cccounty.us
District IV (Clayton, Clyde, Concord, Pacheco, Pleasant Hill. Walnut
Creek):
Honorable Susan Bonilla
Supervisor, District IV
2151 Salvio Street, Suite R
Concord, CA 94521
(925) 521-7100
dist4@bos.cccounty.us
District V (Pitsburg, Antioch. Oakley, Bay Point, Bethel Island):
Honorable Federal D. Glover
Supervisor, District V
315 E. Leland Rd.
Pittsburg, CA 94565
(925) 634-5915
dist5@bos.cccounty.us
Campaign Update
No activity has occurred in recent months concerning San Ramon’s grab for the Tassajara Valley, confirming suspicions that attempts to break the urban limit line will occur sometime after the November election. Greenbelt Alliance is meeting with key partners in Alameda County who stopped a developer from breaking Livermore’s urban growth boundary to help strategize a Contra Costa plan.
May 2008
No news from Contra Costa County or San Ramon staff as to when the “new farm” proposal and San Ramon’s sphere of influence will be returning to council for vote. Greenbelt Alliance suspects that this controversial project will arise after the June or November 2008 election. Greenbelt Alliance will continue to closely monitor this project.
March 2008
On March 11, the San Ramon City Council—despite the absence of Mayor Wilson and Vice Mayor Livingstone—heard the proposal to amend the sphere of influence to include the Tassajara Valley Planning Subarea. The council voted 3-0 in favor of continuing the discussion of the proposed amendment to a later date. The vote for a continuance was brought on not only by the absence of the Mayor and Vice-Mayor, but also by a deafening outcry of opposition from throughout the regional community. Protest to the amendment came from neighboring cities, including the City of Danville, local environmental organizations, public figures (such as Assemblyman Guy Houston), local residents and even the Contra Costa Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO).
Initially, San Ramon intended to move forward with the amendment with only an Initial Study/Negative Declaration, as opposed to a full Environmental Impact Report. Similar to comments submitted by Greenbelt Alliance last month,
LAFCO deemed San Ramon’s environmental analysis of the sphere of influence amendment—specifically, the negative declaration—to be “insufficient.” LAFCO politely encouraged the City to delay its sphere of influence amendment application until more thorough environmental review can be completed.
Greenbelt Alliance will monitor the meeting dates for the San Ramon City Council as well as the LAFCO and the Board of Supervisors. We will alert the public and attend these meetings as they are scheduled.
8/6/07 Voter
Approved Urban Limit Line Faces Challenges Contra Costa Times
August 2007
Greenbelt Alliance was joined by other environmental organizations at
the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors meeting in speaking out
against the proposed New Farm housing development: 193 units on 770 acres
of agricultural land outside the county’s urban growth boundary.
Unfortunately, the Supervisors agreed to consider this project as well
as an additional proposal to extend the ULL by 30 acres for a El Sobrante
subdivision. The Supervisors will schedule a follow-up meeting to discuss
their findings on the New Farm project some time next year.
7/29/07 Does "New
Farm" Equal New Suburb? Contra Costa Times
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