Urban development within the Subregion is
concentrated in its nine incorporated cities and a number of urbanized areas in
the unincorporated portion of the Subregion. All of the cities except
Sebastopol and Sonoma are located on Highway 101, the major north-south route
through the Subregion. One of the Subregion's distinguishing characteristics is
the uniqueness of its communities, which are in many cases centered around a
vital downtown area.
The general plans of the Jurisdictions acknowledge substantial pressure f or
additional growth in the Subregion.
The Jurisdictions share, to a large
degree, a common vision of the land use patterns that should characterize the
Subregion. Achieving this vision is reflected in the following Subregional
Issues, which are:
How to:
- Ensure compact patterns of urban
development centered on existing areas of such development (i.e.,
"community-centered development").
- Identify and maintain "community
separators" between urbanized areas.
- Address other land use issues that
further subregional interests, while recognizing the general patterns of
development established by community-centered development and community
separators.
- Community-centered development
- Each Jurisdiction should establish
its own Urban Limit Line (ULL), to be applicable through the term of its
general plan (a typical general plan "horizon" is 20 years). The
County should establish a ULL for each are of urban development in the
unincorporated portion of the Subregion.
- Revisions proposed during the term of
the applicable general plan should be permitted only if necessary to address a
documented health hazard, or when all of the following conditions are met:
- the revision would be consistent with
the planning principles upon which the original determination of the ULL was
based; and
- the revision is otherwise consistent
with the goals and policies of the applicable general plan; and
- the revision would not promote sprawl
or leapfrog development or induce additional adjustments to the ULL.
Revisions to a ULL may be most
appropriate when made in conjunction with a major general plan update.
- The Jurisdictions should limit
development outside of the ULL to uses that would not: require the extension of
sewer or water service, jeopardize the continued viability of agriculture, or
threaten the integrity of existing scenic, open space, and other natural
resources.
- Each Jurisdiction should limit its
extension of sewer and water service to those areas within its ULL.
- Each Jurisdiction should work with
Sonoma County LAFCO to prevent land from being annexed to a city unless
- it is within that city's ULL; and
- there is existing adequate water,
sewer, police, fire and schools capacity, or such capacity will be made
available prior to new development being completed.
- Each Jurisdiction should work with
Sonoma County LAFCO to ensure that the Sphere of Influence for each city within
the Subregion does not extend beyond that city's ULL, thereby avoiding any
confusion regarding those areas to which sewer and water service should be
extended.
- Community separators
- The Jurisdictions should establish a
procedure for:
- evaluating whether the eight
Community Separators identified in the Sonoma County General Plan should be
reconfigured;
- evaluating whether additional
Community Separators should be identified; and
- determining permitted uses within
Community Separators.
- The Jurisdictions should work
cooperatively to develop recommendations to the Sonoma County Agricultural
Preservation and Open Space District and/or other public agencies and
non-profit organizations regarding the acquisition of fee and less-than-fee
interests (e.g., the purchase of development rights) to land within the
Community Separators.
- The Jurisdictions should not extend
sewer and water services into the Community Separators.
- Other land use policies that further
subregional interests
- In order to facilitate cooperation
between Jurisdictions regarding land use decisions of mutual concern, the
Jurisdictions should be given an opportunity to review and comment upon land
use proposals.
- Within its ULL, each Jurisdiction
should designate sufficient land, and at appropriate densities, to accommodate
the need for housing for all income groups.
- In order to facilitate the efficient
provision of infrastructure and public services, each Jurisdiction should
determine the sequence in which it wishes development to occur within its ULL
and establish mechanisms to implement such determinations.
- Each Jurisdiction should encourage
transit-oriented land use patterns in appropriate locations to enhance the
viability of subregional transit operations, within the targets of the general
plan. The Jurisdictions should undertake a cooperative effort to determine what
such amounts and concentrations would be.
- The Jurisdictions should cooperate in
achieving and maintaining a subregional network of public open space areas,
including functional linkages between such areas, and including hiking and
equestrian trails and bicycle paths.
- Each Jurisdiction should develop and
implement policies regarding the protection of ridges, hillsides and other
significant landforms visible to those living in other areas of, or passing
through, the Subregion.
- Each Jurisdiction should encourage
walking and bicycling as nodes of transportation by locating residential
development, including higher density development, close to employment, retail
and other commercial uses and community services and facilities.
- Prior to approving new development,
each Jurisdiction should ensure that adequate water, sewer, police, fire,
school and other service capacities are in place, or that such capacity will be
made available prior to new development being completed.
- The Jurisdictions should cooperate in
addressing the siting of cellular phone transmission towers and similar
facilities.
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