Coalition Newsletter

July 26, 2006

What’s new in the Point San Pedro Road Corridor…

Project Selection Process: A First Step on the way to Official Approval

On Tuesday July 25, 2006, the Planning Commission voted to recommend that the mayor and council give PSP approval for the Village at Loch Lomond Project as well as for 11 housing units near the San Pedro School.  PSP stands for Project Selection Process and is a procedure used to assure that traffic impacts from new development do not exceed the level of service (LOS) standards set in the General Plan.  The process is also designed to favor proposals that provide significant public benefit in areas of limited traffic capacity. PSP approval does not guarantee an entitlement to develop, but it does reserve traffic capacity for 2 years while the project pursues all other needed approvals.  No extension beyond the 2-year period is possible, but a project may reapply for PSP approval if it is not able to meet the 2-year deadline.

The LLMC and LLHOA both gave oral presentations and submitted letters asking that PSP approval be withheld until after the City completed the circulation improvements required by General Plan 2020 and a thorough analysis had been done to determine if these improvements actually produced the positive impacts that are anticipated. 

Concern was expressed that the standard traffic analysis that the City uses, measuring traffic in the worst hour of morning rush hour and again the worst hour of the evening rush, may not capture the full picture of congestion at an atypical intersection such as Third and Union where Montecito is not open during the morning rush and the full impact of car and foot traffic from the high school is not included nor is the severe congestion midday on Saturdays included.

The two groups also pointed out that there are weaknesses in the claims of public benefits made for the Village at Loch Lomond in its PSP application: Many of the claimed benefits such as trails and boardwalk already exist, others are simply requirements for all new developments, while other benefits such as neighborhood serving commercial uses are actually being reduced and the remaining ones will be burdened with the extra expense of maintaining public recreation. Other benefits such as expanded conservation/wetlands areas is not of proven value and the claim of the provision of workforce-by-design housing is not substantiated and is dubious given the high cost of development on fill and the expense of the system set up to pay for maintenance. Inconsistencies concerning the size of the grocery store were pointed out: Sometimes it was presented that 3,000 to 5,000 square feet would be available for a potential grocery store, but in another place it was stated that a grocery store of at least 10,000 square feet would be provided in the new commercial building.

Louis Napoli of the LLMC pointed out that it would have been desirable to allow public input earlier than the night the decision was to be made.

The LLMC and LLHOA were complimented on their well prepared and thought provoking written materials. Chairman Atkinson said that many of the points will be useful later in the merits of the project discussions. Commissioner Kirchman requested that planning staff straighten out the inconsistencies concerning the size of the grocery store and also agreed with Napoli’s idea that earlier involvement of the public could be beneficial.

The Mayor and City Council will meet Monday, Aug. 21 at 7 PM and "will determine whether projects will be granted Project Selection Process determinations and be reserved available traffic capacity."

Written comments can be sent to the Community Development Dept., Planning Division, City of San Rafael, P.O. Box 151560, San Rafael, CA 94915-1560.

New Neighborhood Preservation Association Formed

In response to the proposed expansion of the Bayside Marin residential treatment facilities, neighbors have formed a Neighborhood Preservation Association.  Their concern is in regard to the formation of a large, multi-residence campus in the midst of our neighborhoods that has a negative impact on traffic, tranquility and neighborhood ambience. They also believe that such large campuses run counter to the spirit and intent of the legislation that supports small rehabilitation facilities within residentially-zoned neighborhoods. For further information, go to their website at http://npa.baysideacres.org.

Got Mail?

The mailboxes at the Loch Lomond Market and at the corner of San Pedro Road and Loch Lomond have been removed. A notice on them said the Postal Service doesn't think they get enough use!

The result is that there are no mail drops between the High School and Glenwood. Aside from the inconvenience, this will add yet more traffic to San Pedro Road, and will increase the traffic impact of the Marina development.

Please write the Postmaster, San Rafael and ask for at least one of the boxes to be replaced!

Great Response to the Save Loch Lomond Market Petition

In less than a month the Coalition and the Loch Lomond Marina Committee collected over 1550 signatures on the Save Loch Lomond Market Petition.  The petition was presented to the Planning Commission at the June 21st Market Workshop.  The Loch Lomond Marina Committee submitted a Market Discussion to the Commission and a number of residents spoke giving voice to the community’s clear desire to retain a full-size, full service market at the Loch Lomond Marina.

Big Crowd at June 3 Coalition Community Meeting!

More than a hundred residents interested in a variety of issues turned out on a beautiful Saturday morning for the Coalition’s Community Meeting on June 3rd at St. Luke’s Church.  People gathered around displays and tables to collect information, sign-up to volunteer for Coalition committees and projects, and to add their names to the Save Loch Lomond Market Petition.

Presentations at the Community Meeting included:

Loch Lomond Marina Committee Watchdogs Marina Project and EIR

Members of the Coalition’s Loch Lomond Marina Committee (LLMC), reported on the activities of the committee.  Biil Gates and surprise speaker Pat Jordan, spoke about how important it is for residents to Shop at Loch Lomond Market—an increase in sales will defeat the argument that a full-service grocery is not viable at that location.

Sara Jensen reported that LLMC members have attended many city meetings, talked with developers of the proposed Village at Loch Lomond Marina, and submitted many written comments expressing concerns about the development and the project’s Environmental Impact Report (EIR). The EIR is so seriously flawed that we asked that the City re-circulate a new EIR rather than just provide responses to the comments submitted, but this has not yet occurred.

Despite complaints from residents, San Rafael is continuing to conduct meetings on the marina project merits without waiting for the EIR to be completed.

Some of the LLMC’s major concerns with the EIR and the project are as follows:

• Loss of neighborhood-serving commercial businesses such as the full service grocery store, which would deprive the community of needed services and add traffic to Point San Pedro
• Inadequate on-site parking, which would result in spillover parking on Pt. San Pedro and nearby neighborhood streets
• Unsafe circulation and parking design on the site
• Incompatibility of the design compared to existing housing in the area, with the mass and bulk of the proposed development overwhelming the site and cutting off visual connection to the bay, the marina, and the Marin Islands
• A large number of conflicts with the city’s General Plan 2020
• Damage to wetlands and the bay from filling of wetlands, run-off that would result in on-going significant damage to water quality, and housing placed on filled wetlands
• Financially undermining the businesses at the site by burdening them with extra costs to maintain public recreation

What you can do:

• Attend meetings.  Speak if possible but just your presence, creating a large number of concerned people in attendance, is also effective.
• Write letters to the city and letters to the editors of local newspapers.
• Encourage friends from other parts of the city and county to speak up about this issue.
• Try to find and encourage people from the Pt. San Pedro community to run for city council and to volunteer for boards and commissions.
• Shop at Loch Lomond Market!  This will help insure that we  maintain a full-service market at the site.

San Rafael Rock Quarry

John Edgcomb, the Coalition’s lawyer, summarized the history and current status of the Coalition’s lawsuit against SRRQ.  He emphasized the importance of residents notifying the County whenever there are complaints regarding the quarry’s operations.  Members of the public must continue to inform the county about quarry activities, such as blasting, vibration, truck traffic and debris, that disrupt their lives. This is important so that the county can compile an administrative record as part of the environmental review process. Write or email complaints or comments to Eric Steger. Email ESteger@co.marin.ca.us, or mail to: Eric Steger, Marin County Dept of Public Works, Marin Civic Center, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael CA 94903. Letters can also be faxed to Eric at 499-3799.

Joe Caramucci updated us on Quarry operations and on the availability of rock from Canada.

Disaster Preparedness

The Coalition’s Disaster Preparedness Committee Chair, Yves Masson, stressed again the need for disaster preparedness and disaster training.  He offers a two-hour disaster preparedness class that helps minimize the effects of a disaster on homes and their occupants, thereby minimizing the number of potential victims.  He also emphasized that emergency response teams can only be made up of people who have received proper training.  Untrained rescuers will most likely cause harm to victims and become victims themselves.  Also, they are not protected by the State of California in case of injury or in case of inflicting injury to others.  The training program offered by the San Rafael Fire Department DART (Disaster Area Response Team) also called CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) is the only program endorsed by FEMA and the State of California which trains people to become first responders and protects them.  He urged people to at least attend the disaster preparedness class, and for those who are wiling, to attend the DART/CERT program.

Supervisor Susan Adams gave an update on a number of county issues

San Rafael Rock Quarry. The quarry’s two applications, for an amended reclamation plan and a new operations permit, are currently undergoing environmental review in separate but overlapping tracks. A complete Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is being done for the new Reclamation Plan. An Initial Study, which is a required preliminary environmental review, is now being conducted for the operations plan to determine if an EIR is needed. The first rollout of the various studies should take place about the end of summer and the public will be invited to examine and comment on the contents and conclusions. If issues are not fully addressed, they will be sent back for more work.

Marin County has hired an extra technician within the Department of Public Works to monitor the quarry, and the quarry appears to be complying with the interim conditions imposed on it regarding such operational items as truck traffic.

Members of the public must continue to inform the county about quarry activities, such as blasting, vibration, truck traffic, and debris that disrupt their lives. This is important so that the county can compile an administrative record as part of the environmental review process. Write or email complaints or comments to Eric Steger. Email ESteger@co.marin.ca.us, or mail to: Eric Steger, Marin County Dept of Public Works, Marin Civic Center, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael CA 94903. Letters can also be faxed to Eric at 499-3799.

Residential Treatment Center. Supervisor Adams has been contacted by a number of residents regarding the prospective expansion of a residential treatment facility, Bayside Marin, on Bayview Drive in Bayside Acres and Tweed Terrace in Loch Lomond. An application was made to the state to establish a home-style treatment program for drug and alcohol abusers and state regulations stipulate that home-type centers for up to six persons may be established in residential areas. However, it appears that more houses have been purchased for this use in the area in order to create a treatment campus. The county has no control over the state permitting process, but County Counsel is looking at ways to remove the loophole that would allow for multiple single-family homes in one area being used as a single integrated facility for treatment centers, as this appears to constitute an expansion of what should be considered "residential."

Pt. San Pedro Road Work. The county’s Department of Public Works will do a smoothing and slurry process on Pt. San Pedro Road on the westbound lane between Balboa and Montecito. This is an interim repair to last into 2007.

Transit Plans. The Marin County Transit District, funded by the one-half cent sales tax approved by voters in November 2004, has finalized plans for expanded service and the revised service plan will get underway this summer. The MCTD is contracting with Golden Gate Bridge and Highway District to use the district’s buses for the first five years for local bus service.

District 1 Email Newsletter. Supervisor Adams’ office sends out regular email updates regarding District 1 issues. If you would like to be on the email list to get these regular reports, go to the county Website, at www.co.marin.ca.us, click on the "Board of Supervisors," then on Supervisor Adams and you can subscribe to the regular updates.