HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution 6124 N.C.S. 08/28/1972 C ' EERtbtr. 8/25772 :
tesolution No - - N:C.
RESOLUTION MODIFYING THE 1 `iy¢k
GENERAL PLAN BY ADDING `"*;?`a
THERETO AN INTERIM OPEN-: ` ,a��,
SPACE PLAN' °
INTRODUCED BY COUNCILMAN At An Adjourned Meeting of
the City Council of the City of Petaluma:on the 28th day of August 1972
• vA7/ D,LflpMIAN:
WHEREAS,: .the .City Planning Commission has 'reviewed the ..Gen.eral• Plan
• .and has held a hearing thereon and after said hearing finds that the' 'General
Plan should be modified by adding thereto an dnterim Open-Space Plan; and
WHEREAS , the City. Planning Commission filed with the city. Council.
on the. 14th day of August,'. 1972 , its• report 'as set forth in :its' Resolution
No.: 1172 .reco"mmeriding the :adoption of certain' modifications to: the General
Plan; and
WHEREAS, :the City. Council has reviewed the General Plan and has
. held a hearing thereon the '28th day of August,: 19,72 , and after said hearing
• finds that the General Plan :should be modified by adding thereto an Interim-
Open-Space Plan ;
NOW,. THEREFORE.,: BE '.IT RESOLVED: that the General Plan be modified
by adding thereto an Interim Open-Space Plan,in •the' :form as prepared by
the Staff and the Planning Consultants.,• a copy of which. is attached hereto.,
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under t`he-p u
ower and althonty conferred/upon/this this Council by the Charter of said City.
i 'L' %� COUNCILMEN VOTE
Seconded bye-- � -~i o�_—x- ,,.C `__..
) - - Ayes, Noes Absent
I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution was duly and Councilman Robert A. Brunner
regularly introduced and adopted by the Council of the City of " John W. Cavanagh, Jr: i!/,.
Petaluma, on the 28 day of August 1972 , by
the following vote: Richard W. Clecak
�a��(� ` Robert E. Daly
Mayor,of the City of Petaluma '` Fred V. Mattel ,/ •
t
��_ / ✓ / William A. Perry, Jr.
Attest "� .-< r. ,L-/
>N. City Clerk Mayor/ Helen Putnam
.(L, -e -77 : , l�. t/R
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City of Petalum
INTERIM OPEN SPACE E 'EMENiI :, 9 .; ;. >f•,}
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INTRODUCTION �y CLtrx
PURPOSE
The open space and conservation element of the Petaluma
General Plan will provide the City with guidelines for the
protection and development of lands necessary for :
1 . Public Recreation
2 . Scenic Beauty
3 . Natural Resources
4 . Agricultural Use
5 . Public Health , Safety and Welfare
In addition the element will provide the City with information
to properly identify the needs for such lands and a program by
which these needs can be met.
The interim open space plan is intended to be a document
outlining officially adopted goals and policies meant to guide
the preparation and implementation of the permanent open space
element, and a program for the completion and adoption of the
element.
CONTENT
The City of Petaluma Environmental Design Plans have already
been submitted to the Secretary of the Resources Agency as a
partial fulfilment of the Interim Open :]pace requirement and
have been accepted as such . This report is intended to complete
the requirement for an Interim Open Space Element .
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
The City of Petaluma has a tradition of concern with the
preservation of open space lands, The Petaluma Area General Plan,
adopted in 1962 , stated as one of its .eight major policies a
policy with regard to park development for the Petaluma area.
This policy is expanded with a description of existing and proposed
recreation_ areas . In the ensuing ten years many of these rec-
reational areas and parks have become a reality .
A Park Development Fund was established by Ordinance No.
932 N .C .S . May 9 , 1969 . This ordinance provided that subdividers
pay fees in connection with dwelling units into a park fund and/or
provide and maintain a major outdoor recreation facility . This
fund has assisted In the purchase and improvement of a number of
neighborhood parks .
Additionally, in 1970 , the City of Petaluma, in coordina-
tion with the Chanter of Commerce and the Sonoma County Economic
Development Board, prepared the Petaluma River Project Report.
This report studied the importance of the Petaluma River with a
special emphasis on the open-space and ecological value of the
marshes associated with the river .
Complementing the Petaluma River Project Report is the
Flood Plain Report for the Petaluma River . This report estab-
lished the Flood Plain Areas for the River Basin and as a result
a Flood Plain Ordinance is a part of the City of Petaluma ' s pro-
posed Zoning Ordinance .
In the early 1970 ' s , it became increasingly evident to
residents of the City of Petaluma, the City Council , the Planning
Commission and the Planning Department that development could
not continue in its ongoing rapid fashion without serious environ-
mental and aesthetic consequences . The Council and Planning
Commission met in joint session to review impact material prepared
by the Planning Staff . The result was a moratorium on residential
rezonings and annexations , the hiring of Planning Consultants
for further study, a growth policy and the Environmental Design
Plans .
Citizen Environmental Area Study Committees were established
to provide input into Petaluma ' s Environmental Design Plans .
Many of the recommendations of these committees have also been
incorporated into the following goals and policies of the Interim
Open Space Element.
Finally, the Environmental Design Plans , adopted by the City
of Petaluma and presented as a partial requirement for the
Interim Open Space Element contain a number of policies relating
to the preservation Of open space lands and agricultural lands
in the Petaluma General Plan Area .
(_.) —)
INTERIM OPEN SPACE ELEMENT
GOALS AND POLICIES
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It shall be the major environmental goal% the City of
Petaluma to designate , preserve and eeeee4etS4y improve as
much open land as necessary to best serve the social , recrea-
tional, ecological and aesthetic needs of the public.
Further , the following additional goals will guide the
City in the preparation of an Element for the permanent preser-
vation of open lands .
A. To hold lands open for the preservation of natural resources
and plant and animal life , it shall be the goal of the City
of Petaluma :
1 . To preserve tidelands , marshlands and water areas as a
refuge for fish and wildlife and as a vital link in the
area ' s ecological chain .
2 . To preserve all plant and animal life and to encourage
the future growth of vegetation and wildlife habitats .
3 . To assist in conserving land for the production of food,
fiber , and other natural or cultivated resources .
4 . To protect and conserve the natural sources of the public
water supply .
B. To hold lands open for the preservation of human-related
resources , it shall be the goal of the City of Petaluma :
1 . To preserve and beautify historic sites and other sites
of public interest for the enjoyment and enrichment of
all citizens .
2 . To preserve and enhance those areas of special scenic
beauty--particularly river and hillside areas--for the
enjoyment of all citizens , and to safeguard those areas
le-.t . .>ac_
from pollution,,; areng.rng, leveling or other forms of
destruction , P b1 nc
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C. To hold lands open for the health , safety and welfare of the
public , it shall be the goal of the City of Petaluma:
1 . To protect the flood plain area from development that
would increase the probability of severity of flooding
or in any other way interfere with the public safety .
2 . To work towards the development_ of more effective means
of preventing and solving public sanitation and pollu-
tion problems , and to find the most economical and
equitable method of financing those solutions .
1
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3 . To sharply curtail development in extremely sloping or
unstable soil areas , to prevent erosion and slides , and
to otherwise protect the hills ' and soils ' vital roles
in the area' s ecological process .
4 . To work towards a high environmental quality generally,
so that no resident need feel that he must escape to
other areas for relief from unpleasant surroundings .
D. To hold lands open for the satisfaction of the recreational
needs of the public , it shall be the goal of the City of
Petaluma :
1. To preserve and maintain existing park and recreation
facilities and to plan new development so that every
home and every resident will be within easy reach of
a place to relax or play .
2. To particularly protect and enhance the recreational
possibilities afforded by the special natural amenities
--notably the river , its islands and the hills--with
which the City has been endowed.
E. To define and quantify the urban form, it shall be the goal
of the City of Petaluma :
1 . To designate and preserie a Greenbelt around the city ,
containing development , separating urban uses from
rural , and guaranteeing that permanent open space will
always be immediately adjacent.
2 . To beautify all accesses to the City by protecting
scenery and by further landscaping gateway areas.
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INTERIM OPEN SPACE ELEMENT
PROGRAM FOR COMPLETION
Concerned about the problems of rapid development that is
creeping ever northward from the immediate San Francisco Area,
the City of Petaluma adopted in March, 1972 , an Environmental
Design Plan, which dealt primarily with the necessity of saving
the land from intense developmental pressures . This Plan, so
concerned with conservation, has been accepted by the State as
the interim open space plan, the major document guiding prepara-
tion of the permanent open space plan.
As inoc1,C% J b,j Pic
In accordance , with the provisions of the E .D.P . , the Planning
Department eemp+ettd—sen=c7sune.,-1-9-7-2 , the setting of plan lines
for a Greenbelt to be established around the developable area
of the City .
Furthermore, the City of Petaluma has already adopted or is
currently formulating the following additional programs and
policies to guide the staff in the preparation of the final
conservation and open space element or to assist in its imple-
mentation.
1 . Programs calling for future use of zoning to preserve
open space.
a. The City is in the process of revising its entire
Zoning Ordinance and has included in the proposed
new version regulations establishing agricultural ,
floodway, flood plain and historical districts and
stringently regulating the uses within those dis-
tricts .
b . The proposed Ordinance also establishes definite
requirements for tree planting, landscaping, sign
control and other beautification procedures designed
to enhance the urban environment.
c. Furthermore , the proposed Ordinance includes provisions
for establishing study districts , which place certain
As nro4i 7, o. _ urban areas in a, 'Jet:wary holding state until. the City ca
E,, , studfrall d e
(elatenvtromentaf characteristics . This
procedure insures that there will take place in those
areas no development. that has been determined as
hazardous to the environment.
d. Pub and PC districts have been incorporated into the
proposed Ordinance to insure that development of
large tracts of land will be in all ways harmonious
with the environment and that maximum open space
will be systematically set aside as development
proceeds .
2 . Programs calling for public acquisition of land to pre-
serve open space :
-D-
a. In May, 1969 , a Park Development Fund was established
by Ordinance 932, N.C.S . , requiring all subdividers
to pay fees into a municipal park fund and/or to
dedicate land for and maintain a major outdoor rec-
reation facili4y cm- °Elie, bee,o
A5 mod; it:f,c; c Sfele t.'d Fec/era/ 1 nets -c--zra 0..ppra/Jrct.1 e
bi 3 . Programs involving cooperation with other governmental o
units , both to obtain further .data for the element and
to assist in implementation of open space and conserva- s�
tion policies :
a. The City of Petaluma has taken its Environmental Design 3
Plan to Sonoma County for approval , and it will seek
County cooperation in other open space matters as
well. Such matters include the establishment of open
space preserves and agricultural zones around the
City. Most encouraging is the intergovernmental
cooperation achieved in developing a joint City-
County recreational facility on the Petaluma River
currently in the planning stages.
b. The City is also working closely with the various
regional and state agencies concerned with preventing
or relieving air and water pollution problems . Most
notable is the cooperation achieved between the City
and the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality
Control Board , the San Francisco Bay Regional Air
Pollution Control District and the State Water
Resources Control Board.
c . The City of Petaluma has entered into a Joint Use
Agreement with the two public school districts
operating within the City limits . The agreement
is a first step in City-School Board cooperation that
ensures improvement and use of playgrounds to their
fullest capacity .
d. The planning Department is working with Heritage Homes ,
the local historical preservation group, to begin
designating sites of special historical interest
around October 1972 . In addition, the group will
make suggestions concerning preservation and improve-
ment of special historical or scenic areas and their
surrounding open lands .
4 . Completed and ongoing studies that will provide further
data to guide the staff in preparing the open space and
conservation element :
a. In 1970 , in conjunction with the Sonoma County
Economic Development Board and the Petaluma Chamber
of Commerce, the City of Petaluma conducted the Petaluma
River Project Study , which looked closely at ecological
and recreational aspects of the River and made
specific recommendations for preservation. The
recommendations now serve as policy guidelines for
current action and will be of definite importance in
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