On April 10, 2024, the City of Arcata sent out the “Notice of Public Hearing of the City of Arcata Planning Commission – Arcata General Plan Comprehensive Update and Gateway Code.” The full text of this e-mail is copied, below.
This meeting will be for the formal recommendation by the Planning Commission to the Arcata City Council, to adopt the General Plan including the Gateway Area Plan and the Gateway Area Code.
Prior to the May 14, 2024, public hearing, likely at the Planning Commission’s April 23, 2024, meeting, the Planning Commission will discuss and make a recommendation for the Gateway Area Code — the form-based code for the Gateway area. The form-based code — which dictates the “look and feel” of construction in the Gateway area, as well as building heights, building massing, solar shading, and so forth — was last discussed in detail by the Planning Commission one year previously, on April 22, 2023.
Since that time, the City Council determined that the “L Street” corridor would cease to be a partial street and would become a full-width linear park. The Council decision was on August 22, 2023 — eight months ago. This current “final” draft Gateway Code document is dated January 31, 2024. That is five full months. There has been no change to the draft Gateway code during this time that provides for or even mentions the existence of the L Street corridor full-width linear park.
Public Hearing on the General Plan and the Gateway Area Plan – Tuesday, May 14, 2024
This meeting will take place the City Council Chambers, at the Arcata City Hall, on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, starting at 5:30 PM.
Among what we do not know is if the Community Development Director and the Planning Commission have the intention of:
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- Receiving a staff report
- Asking questions of staff
- Taking public comment
- Discussing the public comment and the Planning Commissioner’s ideas
- Voting on their recommendation to adopt the General Plan, the Gateway Area Plan (an Element, or chapter of the General Plan) and the Gateway Code (the form-based code for the Gateway Plan
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… all in a single three-hour session.
In other words, the Planning Commission would be hearing from the public and either discussing individual public input or selecting to ignore it, on documents that they have been discussing for close to two-and-a-half years. The documents themselves are:
- The draft Arcata General Plan 2045. 295 pages.
- The draft Gateway Area Plan. 95 pages.
- The draft Gateway Area Code. 64 pages.
Can this be properly accomplished in in three hours? I don’t think so.
The Documents
These documents, and more, can be viewed on the “The Gateway Area Plan, the General Plan, the Environmental Impact Report, Local Coastal Plan… and articles about these documents” webpage on Arcata1.com at: arcata1.com/gateway-general-plan-other-documents. Links to some (not all) of the original documents can be found via the links at Gateway, General Plan, EIR documents and more — on the City of Arcata’s website.
Two specific items to note
Of specific legal interest is this paragraph:
NOTICE IS FURTHER GIVEN that, pursuant to §1094.5 of the California Code of Civil Procedure, “If you challenge City action on a proposed 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 hearing body at, or prior to, the public hearing(s).”
This means, as it says, that if in the future a person wanted to present a legal challenge to some portion of the General Plan, they are limited to only those topics that were brought up in the meeting or in written correspondence.
- There is currently no requirement for a bathroom at the City parks or the “privately owned publicly accessible” open spaces within the Gateway area.
- Discourage or eliminate lawns.
- Require all new plantings to be native plants.
- Reduce height and scale of buildings that are directly adjacent to the new L Street corridor linear park (currently can be 5, 6, and 7-stories).
- Require — not “encourage” — daylighting of creeks.
- Land Use Policy LU-1f:
Development of a diversity of housing types. The land use plan map shall provide enough land in the various residential use categories to allow for development of a variety of types of new housing units and residential environments. The purpose shall be to achieve an appropriate balance between single‐family housing on individual lots and multi‐unit housing types. -
Land Use Implementation Measure LU-9:
Residential-Low Density Rezone. City shall consider a rezone to consider allowing mixed uses and more housing in current R-L neighborhoods within walking distance of the Plaza and Cal Poly Humboldt, including: The Bayview, Northtown, Arcata Heights, and Sunset neighborhoods.The intention is to have Residential High-Density and Neighborhood Commercial mixed-use zoning in the Bayview, Northtown, Arcata Heights (Upper I & J Streets), and Sunset neighborhoods. This will allow four-story buildings (up to five or six, if the State density bonus law is used — and it can be used for subsidized student housing) and “neighborhood commercial” stores, such as convenience stores, hair salons, coffee shops, small sandwich shops and restaurants, and so forth.
If you wish to add topics to this list, please send me a note ASAP. Your topics should be expressed succinctly, ideally in a single sentence. You do not have to support or justify or explain your position — only to mention it. You are also welcome to bring your topics up either in writing or at the meeting on May 14 — but the purpose of what I am asking for here is to just create a list. Your name will not be included — it will be anonymous.
Any questions, comments, or concerns, please write and ask.
Text of the e-mail sent out by the City,
announcing this hearing
From: City of Arcata – Community Development Dept. <[email protected]>
Date: Apr 10, 2024, 2:39 PM
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Planning Commission of the City of Arcata will conduct a Public Hearing on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. in the Arcata City Council Chambers, at 736 F Street, Arcata to consider a formal recommendation to the City Council to adopt a comprehensive update to the General Plan and a new Gateway Zoning Code. The Planning Commission is holding hybrid meetings that allow attendance in person or via Zoom (see information below for zoom attendance).
Project Description: The City is preparing an update of its General Plan, including a new Element, the “Gateway Area Plan,” and a Gateway Code, a zoning ordinance to implement the Gateway Area Plan. The Gateway Area Plan will provide additional specificity within the Gateway Area, which is an approximately 138-acre area entirely within City limits that is generally north of Samoa Blvd, west of K Street, and south of Alliance Rd. A portion of the Gateway Area and City’s Planning Area are located in the coastal zone. The project includes changes to land use designations throughout the City, changes in standards that emphasize infill, and enhancement of environmental protection measures. The General Plan update, Gateway Area Plan and zoning updates are collectively the “Project.”
The Project will update and amend the City’s existing General Plan, including a new General Plan Element (the Gateway Area Plan) to encourage infill development in the Arcata Gateway Area, in accordance with State Bill (SB) 375 and California Government Code (CGC) Section 65302. Together these documents will be called the “Arcata General Plan 2045.” The Arcata General Plan 2045 seeks to build upon but not substantially change the vision established in the Arcata 2020 General Plan (adopted in the year 2000). The Arcata General Plan 2045 will also update the goals, policies, and implementation programs that articulate the vision for the City’s long-term physical and economic development, while preserving open space areas and enhancing the quality of life for Arcata residents. The Arcata General Plan 2045 is anticipated to be adopted in early 2024.
As a part of this Project, all existing General Plan Elements (other than the Housing Element) will receive focused updates to:
- Satisfy modern State mandates for General Plans that have been issued since the General Plan was last updated;
- Re-emphasize infill development to preserve greenbelts around the City;
- Adjust to climate-change and promote sustainability;
- Promote social justice and racial equity;
- Amend inconsistencies; and
- Ensure consistency and compliance with other City plans that have been adopted or revised in recent years, such as the 2019 Housing Element.
California Government Code, Section 65302, subdivision. (h)(1) requires an Environmental Justice element in the General Plans of certain communities. Arcata does not meet the thresholds for such an Element to be required because the City does not contain any Disadvantaged Communities as identified by the California Environmental Protection Agency Pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code. Instead, the City is electing to reflect social justice and racial equity values in all Elements of the General Plan. Since the Housing Element was updated and adopted in late 2019, the Housing Element will not be modified as a part of this Project.
In addition to the minor updates outlined above, the following General Plan Elements will receive additional, more comprehensive updates to accommodate more targeted infill policies and ensure consistency with the Gateway Area Plan:
- Land Use (modifications to land use map and development standards)
- Transportation and Circulation (modifications to proposed circulation systems)
- Public Facilities and Infrastructure (modifications to support utility upgrades in priority development areas)
- Parks and Recreation (replace existing adopted Element with the 2010 Parks and Recreation Master Plan, which will serve as the new Parks and Recreation Element)
Accordingly, the following summarizes the anticipated degree of changes for each Element:
New Element – Gateway Area Plan;
Minor updates and consistency updates – Introduction, Vision, Growth Management, Open Space Element, Resource Conservation and Management, Air Quality, Design, Historical Preservation, Public Safety, Noise;
Comprehensive updates – Land Use, Transportation and Circulation, Public Facilities and Infrastructure , Parks and Recreation;
No change – Housing Element
Action Type: General Plan and Zoning Amendment
Location: Citywide
Coastal Status: Portions of the project are located in the Coastal Zone. The City will take subsequent action to amend the Local Coastal Program in the affected areas.
Environmental: The project is subject to environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). A Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) has been prepared and circulated in accordance to the CEQA Guidelines. The Draft EIR circulation period, during which time public comment was received, ended on March 18, 2024. Comments received within the circulation period are included in the Final EIR, along with responses to those comments.
Anticipated Significant Environmental Impacts: The DEIR identifies significant impacts to the following California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) environmental issue areas: air quality, biological resources, cultural resources, geology and soils, greenhouse gas emissions, noise.
As described in the DEIR, many of these impacts can be fully mitigated, but some cannot. The Project would result in significant unavoidable impacts to air quality and cultural resources. All other impacts can be fully mitigated to a less-than-significant impact.
NOTICE IS FURTHER GIVEN that the information regarding the proposed project and environmental determination may be reviewed on the City’s website: https://www.cityofarcata.org/
NOTICE IS FURTHER GIVEN that the Planning Commission will consider public comment, and the entire public record on the project, prior to making its recommendation to the Council.
NOTICE IS FURTHER GIVEN that, pursuant to §1094.5 of the California Code of Civil Procedure, “If you challenge City action on a proposed 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 hearing body at, or prior to, the public hearing(s).”
HOW TO OBSERVE AND/OR PARTICIPATE IN THE MEETING
Members of the public may attend the meeting in-person or participate on-line. See the agenda for the Zoom link and dial-in number which will be released at least 72 hours before the meeting is held. Go to www.cityofarcata.org and click on “See Live Meetings, Agendas & Archives.” Select “Planning Commission” from the Meeting Group list and click on the link to the meeting agenda you would like to view. Requests for accessible meeting accommodation should be made in advance by contacting the City Clerk at 707-822-5953.
HOW TO SUBMIT WRITTEN PUBLIC COMMENT
Members of the public may attend the meeting in-person to give their comment, or before the meeting by sending an email to [email protected]. Emailed comments WILL NOT be read during the meeting, they will be forwarded to the Planning Commissioners and included in the written record of the meeting.