City Council Meeting: July 6,
2010
Agenda Item: 8-A
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Eileen Fogarty, Director, Planning
& Community Development
Subject: Adoption of the Final Land Use and Circulation
Element (LUCE) of the City’s General Plan, Certification of the LUCE Final
Environmental Impact Report (FEIR), Approval of a Statement of Overriding
Considerations, and Approval of a Water Supply Assessment.
Recommended Action
Staff
recommends that the City Council (Council):
1) Adopt a resolution (Attachment
A) approving the Water Supply Assessment for the Land Use and Circulation
Element; and
2) Adopt a resolution (Attachment
B) certifying the Final Environmental Impact Report; and
3) Adopt a resolution (Attachment
C) adopting a Statement of Overriding Considerations and Mitigation Monitoring
Plan and making necessary CEQA findings; and
4) Adopt a resolution (Attachment
D) adopting the Final Land Use and Circulation Element of the General Plan for
the City of Santa Monica.
Discussion
After years of hard work and public workshops, the City Council
held a series of public hearings on June 10, June 15, June 24, and July 1 to
review, discuss, and refine the Draft LUCE and the associated FEIR. In the
preceding months, the Planning Commission held a series of 7 public hearings
which culminated in a unanimous vote recommending approval of the Draft LUCE to
the City Council as amended in an adopted Planning Commission resolution.
Each of the Council’s hearings focused on specific topics
including Neighborhoods, Historic Preservation Circulation, Boulevards and
Districts, Mix of Uses, Sustainability, Community Character, Monitoring/Implementation
and the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and concluded with endorsements of
each concept as modified by the Council.
The resolutions necessary for the Council to adopt the Final LUCE
and certify the Final Environmental Impact Report are being provided to enable
the Council’s final action. In addition, a Water Supply Assessment was prepared
as part of the Final EIR and a separate resolution is provided for its
adoption. As identified in the Final EIR, the LUCE would have very few significant impacts due to the self-mitigating
nature of the plan, integration of land use and transportation to reduce
vehicle trips, and emphasis on sustainability. However,
in the limited cases where potentially significant impacts have been identified
a Mitigation Monitoring Plan and Statement of Overriding Considerations have
been developed and necessary CEQA findings are summarized in a separate
resolution. In addition, a memorandum is provided (ATTACHMENT E) that evaluates
recommended changes to the Draft LUCE since completion of the FEIR and
concludes that no additional environmental analysis is needed to ensure that
all potential impacts of the proposed LUCE are addressed in compliance with
CEQA.
The LUCE encompasses the community’s vision for Santa Monica’s future
based on a far-reaching and inclusive process that engaged thousands of
residents. This six-year effort included public workshops, discussions,
presentations, surveys, and public hearings. The Final LUCE will incorporate
all of the modifications formally adopted by the City Council as part of the
final LUCE adoption resolution. Following the hearings, a final LUCE document
will be prepared to incorporate the modifications, which will serve as an
enduring long-term framework for the City.
Prepared by: Francie Stefan, Community
& Strategic Planning Manager
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Approved: |
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Forwarded to Council: |
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Eileen Fogarty Director, Planning and Community Development Department |
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Rod Gould City Manager |