Community Workshop #3: Reviewing Draft Plan and Open Space Implementation
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On January 23, 2002 over 30 people attended the third community workshop for preparing a concept plan for the West Highway 198 area. Objectives for the workshop included discussing direction regarding a preferred concept provided by the Planning Commission and City Council, reviewing land use variations on the preferred planning concept, and identifying open space priorities and strategies for preserving Visalia's western scenic entry corridor.
Open Space Planning Teams Participants worked as members of planning teams. Each team prepared an implementation strategy for the open space framework. The teams completed two assignments.
Exercise #1: Open space framework Using the large-scaled map and colored paper, each team indicates the location, amount and priority of open space. They summarized an open space program by phase, amount of land, and type.
Exercise #2: Potential new funding sources Each team identified preferable funding approaches for purchasing and improving additional open space.
Each team then presented their recommendations. |
| Summary Participants presented back their open space concepts. Some teams emphasized maintaining the 2020 plan and others full urbanization of the land. However, all the teams included permanent preservation of the open space along the highway. Funding suggestions included: Transportation grants Prop. 40 funds Sales tax referendum Federal and State grants for Ag. easements Transfer of development rights Open space pools Gradual increases in utility fees Small increase in development fees Joint-use parks with schools Joint use parks with detention basins Team 1
Funding Notes: Additional grants: Regional TEA$1 million/year CMAQQ$2 million/year Bicycle Transportation Account$5 million/year
Team 2
Funding Notes: Integrating waterways and parks Transfer development rights
Team 5 (no Teams 3 or 4) Funding Notes: Agricultural easements funded by Federal and State programs (i.e., California Farmland Conservancy program) to purchase the development rights of willing landowners. Combine detention basins with parks Joint school parks Raising fees over period of time on utilities Farmland mitigation fees from developers Pool of open space area. Developers must pay for rights to do so. Maintaining Ag will provide a buffer for the airport. Maintain vision set forth in 2020 Plan.
Team 6
Funding Notes: Direct open space conservation east of Shirk only Have west of Shirk in existing 2020 plan CalTrans Prop. 40 Other Notes: 1. It has been said several times that participants at the first planning workshop determined that some variation of the 2020 Plan must be considered. However, keeping the 2020 Plan as an option was never offered by Bruce as an option, so nobody discussed it. 2. Any consideration of developing the 198 corridor should address open space issues, but only when development criteria for build-out as outlined in the 2020 Plan are meet. i.e., if it must be developed, a scenic corridor should be maintained, but why consider developing it right now? Honor 2020
Team 7
Funding Notes: Keep 2020 land use plan (Fred, Karl) Full development with trails along creeks (Job) New arterials connecting development City land should remain ag Purchase 1/4 corridor along 198 with grant monies
Team 8 Funding Notes: All farmers compensated Funding: Increase development fees Sales tax with referendum Other Notes: No auto mall Property owners should be compensated 600' not adequate Sales tax increase Farming too difficult Spraying Restricted access Urbanization increases dust Law suit risk Pollination
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