Update: Pursuant to the State Clearinghouse's receipt of the Notice of Completion on September 6, 2011, the Department of Planning and Building will be accepting comments on the Agricultural Cluster Subdivision Program Draft EIR until 4:30 p.m. on Friday, October 21, 2011. The original deadline for submitting comments on the DEIR was Monday, October 17, 2011.
The County of San Luis Obispo has existing ordinances and policies governing agricultural cluster land divisions. These ordinances and policies allow owners of eligible properties to apply for an agricultural cluster subdivision as an alternative to a conventional land division. The proposed ordinance and general plan changes will modify existing criteria and standards associated with agricultural cluster subdivisions in order to reduce environmental impacts and to protect lands for continued and enhanced agricultural production. These changes will also add a new section to the Coastal Zone Land Use Ordinance to allow agricultural cluster subdivisions in the Coastal Zone, where the program does not presently exist.
The proposed program consists of revisions to the Land Use Ordinance (Title 22 of the County Code), Coastal Zone Land Use Ordinance (Title 23 of the County Code), and the Agriculture Element of the County General Plan.
Key components of the proposed program include:
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Allowing agricultural cluster subdivisions in the Coastal Zone, where this program does not presently exist;
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Eliminating the distinction between major and minor agricultural cluster subdivisions;
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Eliminating the residential density bonus for agricultural cluster subdivisions;
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Precluding the qualifying density for agricultural cluster subdivisions from occurring on lands protected under the Williamson Act;
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Restricting agricultural cluster subdivisions to properties located within five road miles of identified urban reserve areas;
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Increasing the minimum residential parcel size for cluster subdivisions from 10,000 square feet to 2.5 acres;
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Requiring residential cluster parcels to be designed and developed to provide for individual on-site water and wastewater systems;
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Requiring agricultural cluster subdivision design to be more compact and environmentally sensitive;
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Clarifying agricultural buffer policies;
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Expanding the application content requirements for agricultural cluster subdivisions; and
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Maintaining existing residential density standards allowing two primary residences on agricultural parcels located beyond the five road mile URL boundary.
Draft Ordinance and General Plan Revisions
The proposed text revisions to the Land Use Ordinance (LUO), Coastal Zone Land Use Ordinance (CZLUO), and Agriculture Element (AE) of the County General Plan are provided below:
Draft Environmental Impact Report
The Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for the Agricultural Cluster Subdivision Program is complete and available for public review and comment. Anyone interested in commenting on the draft EIR should submit a written statement by 4:30 p.m. on Monday, October 17, 2011. The DEIR is available online at the following link:
Agricultural Cluster Subdivision Program DEIR
Economic Analysis and Supplemental Memorandum
The economic analysis and supplemental memorandum for the Agricultural Cluster Subdivision Program is complete and available for public review. This study was authored by Lisa Wise Consulting, Inc. (LWC) during the preparation of the the Agricultural Cluster Subdivision Program DEIR. The intent of this study is to analyze and report on the potential economic effects of the proposed Agricultural Cluster Subdivision Program.
Economic Analysis and Supplemental Memorandum for the Agricultural Cluster Subdivision Program