2016 General Plan and Draft EIR available for review and comment

Notice is hereby given that on May 23, 2016 the City of Sebastopol initiated circulation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report (Draft EIR) for the 2016 Sebastopol General Plan Update.

The overall purpose of the Sebastopol General Plan is to create a policy framework that articulates a vision for the city’s long-term physical form and development, while preserving and enhancing the quality of life for Sebastopol residents, and increasing opportunities for high-quality local job growth balanced with robust environmental sustainability principles. The key components of the General Plan will include broad goals for the future of Sebastopol, and specific policies and actions that will help implement the stated goals. The Sebastopol General Plan will include a comprehensive set of goals, policies, and actions (implementation measures), as well as a revised Land Use Map. The State requires that the General Plan contain seven mandatory elements: Land Use, Circulation, Housing, Open Space, Noise, Safety, and Conservation. The Sebastopol General Plan will include all of the State- Sebastopol General Plan EIR Notice of Availability 2 mandated elements, as well as several optional elements, including: Community Services and Facilities,Economic Vitality, Community Character, and Community Health and Wellness. The General Plan addresses the entire City of Sebastopol, as well as its Sphere of Influence.

The Draft EIR provides an analysis of the potential environmental impacts associated with implementation of the 2016 Sebastopol General Plan. The Draft EIR identifies significant environmental impacts related to the following environmental topics: Aesthetics/Visual Resources, Flooding, Noise, Traffic and Circulation, Wastewater Treatment, Cumulative Visual Character, Cumulative Noise, Cumulative Transportation and Circulation, Cumulative Utilities, and Irreversible Effects.

Members of the public and other interested agencies and individuals are invited to provide comments on the 2016 General Plan and Draft EIR. Written comments on the 2016 General Plan and the Draft EIR may be submitted in writing to: Kenyon Webster, Planning Director, 7120 Bodega Avenue Sebastopol, CA 95472. Or by email to: [email protected]
Written comments must be received by July 8, 2016 at 5:00 p.m.

Copies of the General Plan and Draft EIR are available at the Sebastopol Planning Department, at the address provided above, at the Sebastopol branch Library at 7140 Bodega Avenue,Sebastopol, and online at: https://sebastopol.generalplan.org/

Hearings on the Draft EIR and Draft General Plan will be conducted by the Planning Commission and City Council on dates to be determined. If you challenge this project in court, you may be limited to raising only those issues you or someone else raised at the public hearing described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City of Sebastopol at or prior to the public hearing.

The Sebastopol Draft General Plan is here and the Draft EIR is here.

Weighing in at 800 pages, these are not for the faint of heart. And apologies to the trees! Guiding documents That said, there are important policies, action steps and evaluations presented in these documents. And since the General Plan will be the guide for realizing our town vision over the next 20 years (through 2035!), it's wise to understand it. A few tips for reading Draft General Plan There are 10 Elements covered in the General Plan Land Use (zoning) Circulation (traffic) Community Services and Facilities (Police, Fire, Public Works...) Conservation and Open Space Noise Community Character Safety Economic Vitality Community Health and Wellness Housing Summary of Recommended Actions Chapter 12 (pages 144 - 216) presents the recommended actions within each element in table format with priority based on time noted in the third column A = Action to be implemented in the relatively near future B = Somewhat longer implementation schedule (e.g., 10 years) C = Even longer implementation schedule (e.g., 15 year). Recall that the General Plan is written for the next 20 years, so encompasses changes through 2035). Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIRThis document looks at the proposed General Plan and comments on the following topics: Aesthetics and Visual Resources Agricultural Resources Air Quality Biological Resources Cultural Resources Geology, Soils, and Mineral Resources Greenhouse Gases and Climate Change Hazards and Hazardous Materials Hydrology and Water Quality Land Use, and Population Noise Public Services and Recreation Transportation and Circulation Utilities Cumulative Impacts The Executive Summary of the EIR (pages 16 - 27). The Executive Summary presents the identified impacts and proposed mitigations (remedies) and rates them according to their level of significance to Sebastopol's environmental quality. Significant and Unavoidable Potentially Significant Less than Significant Alternative Environmental Scenarios (pages 13 - 15 of the EIR). This portion of the Executive Summary presents three possible revisions to the proposed General Plan (what they call "The Project"). Included in each scenario are the anticipated environmental benefits, or detriments. These scenarios include keeping the old Plan (i.e., not adopting this new one) to suggested revisions to our approach to Open Space and suggested revisions to development of the Downtown Core. Please email your thoughts to Planning Director Kenyon Webster ([email protected]) by Friday July 8.