Agenda - 02-08-2005-3 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Since the late 1990's, BOCC goals and staff workplans have reflected the creation of some of the pending additional elements of the Comprehensive Plan. With the formation of the ERCD in early 1999, the Plan elements of Natural Areas and Water Resources (in conjunction with Planning) were assigned to ERCD for coordination, and the planned update to the Parks Element was also to be coordinated by ERCD (in conjunction with Recreation and Parks and Planning). However, activity on other fronts — such as Lands Legacy and park design, among other projects — kept staff from proceeding with these additional Comprehensive Plan elements. In January 2004, staff prepared a memorandum to the Board outlining an idea for moving ahead with and accomplishing these and a few other elements. In general, the January 2004 memorandum suggests that the interest of time and a more concise, user- friendly document would be served by combining some of the proposed elements into one "super-element" of the Comprehensive Plan. The individual elements such as Parks and Water Resources would become component "chapters" of this document, along with other linkage sections that referenced the many inter - relationships with the rest of the Comprehensive Plan that exist, Ironically, a check of Marin County, California found that Marin had also come to a similar conclusion — grouping together previous documents into a few comprehensive combined elements, such as a Built Environment (land use, transportation and other related tropics) Element and a Natural Systems elements (biological resources, water resources, climate, open space and trails, agriculture). If the Board decides that this approach is desirable, the attached proposal would break the Natural and Cultural Systems Element into two phases — one in 2005 -06 and a second phase to follow in a subsequent year. Phase 1 would include completion of the Natural Areas component (as this has been underway for a few years by the Commission for the Environment), the Parks component and a proposed Agricultural component (as requested by the Agricultural Preservation Board in a memo to the Board last year). Phase 2 would include the remaining linkages sections, along with Water Resources, Air Quality and Cultural Resources (including an update of the 1992 Historic Preservation Element). The proposed process suggests the creation of a Natural and Cultural Element Oversight Committee, or EOC. As a whole, this group would meet 3 -4 times per year to review progress on the individual components and provide a sounding board for ideas and discussion. Subcommittees from this EOC would then be comprised to work with staff on the individual components. Since the Natural Areas component is already advanced to a draft stage, this is proposed to be completed first, followed by the creation of a Parks Chapter Subcommittee to develop the Parks component, and subsequently an Agricultural Subcommittee for that chapter. Opportunities for public input have been built into the early, middle and latter stages of the component preparation, Because of the amount of work to be accomplished and the other ongoing projects, staff believes that two phases will be needed to accomplish this major undertaking. The proposed timetable could result in a public hearing on the draft Natural Areas component Chapter in November 2005, the Parks Chapter in August 2006, and the Agricultural Chapter in November 2006. ERCD staff would take the lead in coordinating the creation of these chapters, with assistance from Recreation and Parks (Parks Chapter) and Soil and Water,