4.3 Staff Report

Analysis

Background

 Several owners of property north of the Town of Windsor (Town) have requested a reorganization consisting of annexation of 16 parcels, totaling +/-116 acres to the Town and the Windsor Water District.

 The affected territory is generally located on the north side of Arata Lane, east of U.S. Highway 101, west of Hillview Road, and south of Sotoyome Creek. Upon annexation, the territory would be detached from County Service Area No. 41 (Multi-Services).

 The area would remain within the Windsor Fire Protection District, whose territory includes and virtually surrounds the Town.

 The properties are located with the LAFCO-determined Sphere of Influence for the Town and within both the voter-approved Urban Growth Boundary and the Sonoma County General Plan “urban service area” boundary.

 The affected territory consists of flat areas and gently rolling hills and open spaces. Of the 16 parcels, 12 are developed, generally with residences and/or farmed lands; a church is located on one parcel fronting Arata Lane.

 Territory to the north and east is comprised of agricultural vineyards, with additional grazing areas to the east along with large residential parcels. South of Arata Lane, single family dwellings are located within the Town boundary. Beyond U.S. Highway 101, to the west, are large parcels used for commercial purposes.

 Reason for Proposal

Some of the territory within the annexation boundary is owned by individuals or companies that wish to develop their properties with greater density than what is currently in place. No development is proposed as part of the current action before the Commission, but the Town envisions the area to encompass a traditional neighborhood which would include a variety of residential densities, a neighborhood commercial center and, potentially, a school, park and fire station; streets would be interconnected.

Beyond this, the Town has determined that annexation of the area would facilitate the Town’s interest in funding and construction of a northbound on-ramp to U.S. Highway 101. If the territory were to become part of the Town, the Town would have clear jurisdictional and regulatory authority over the site and, in the Town’s view, would be in a better position to commit to the project and complete an extension and re-configuration of Los Amigos Road, which currently runs parallel to the east side of the Highway.

Representatives of the Town further believe that annexation would benefit the Windsor Unified School District and the Windsor Fire Protection District with regard to future plans for both agencies.

 Town Action: Pre-Zoning; General Plan Focus

 In November 2017, the Town of Windsor Town Council conducted a public meeting to provide direction to its staff regarding pre-zoning of the affected territory. After hearing public comment and staff recommendations, the Council directed the staff to initiate the pre-zoning of 16 parcels north of Arata Lane.

 During this time, the Town was considering its General Plan policies. In April 2018 the Council approved a comprehensive 2040 General Plan update. Included within that document is a section on “community places,” which, according to the Plan, “have unique characteristics that require specific policies to address.”

 The North of Arata Lane area was one of seven community places addressed. For this area, the Town directed that plans for development should be submitted prior to Town action related to the sites and should include the following focus areas:

•  Land uses near a new Arata Lane/U.S. Highway 101 interchange
• Proximity to and views of the foothills and low-lying ridges to the north
• Treatment of Windsor and Starr Creeks, which drain north to south
• The interface with existing vineyards to the east
• Treatment of the community “edge” to the north

Plans must also address the phasing of development and extension and financing of infrastructure and circulation improvements, the potential for a school site and neighborhood and community parks. Residential focus would be on smaller single-family homes and attached townhouses to support a walkable community, create more efficient and cost effective infrastructure, and minimize the loss of open space. A mixed-use center to support neighborhood needs was also projected. 

The General Plan visioning was refined during staff and Planning Commission consideration, and the pre-zoning was approved, in Ordinance 2018-327, on July 18, 2018. That document is attached, along with other Town documents, for Commissioners’ review (Attachment 3).

The ordinance includes a listing of the General Plan land-use designations and compatible pre-zoning. Land-use designations range from Very Low/Low/Medium Density Residential to Mixed Use, Neighborhood Commercial, and General Business to Public/Quasi-Public (potential school and park sites).

Territory is pre-zoned to housing that would allow between three to sixteen units per acre, commercial units, a neighborhood center, and public/institutional development. In accordance with the directives of the General Plan, development is projected to be less dense as it would move north from Arata Lane.

Although some property owners have shared conceptual plans for development with Town staff, no specific development is proposed as part of the subject request. Should the affected territory be annexed, the Town would consider proposals for development as they are submitted and would conduct a comprehensive study to ensure that what is proposed would be consistent with the Town’s plan for the area and would support logical and orderly development.

Projected Service Needs: Water

The Town receives the majority of its water from its wells in the Russian River Well Field, through a Sonoma County Water Agency (SCWA) Russian River water right and a connection to the SCWA Aqueduct from which the Town purchases wholesale water. The Town owns five off-river wells, several of which could also provide potable water.

The Town’s 2015 Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP) determined that the Town has sufficient water supply to meet current and future demands for water through 2040, the period of time covered in the Town’s 2040 General Plan. Development in the North of Arata Lane Area was included in the analysis.

Another water analysis completed as part of the consideration of the General Plan determined that the 2015 UWMP conclusions about adequacy of water supply were still valid. Additional use of wells and expansion of the Town’s recycled water system would help secure the adequacy of supplies, even with updated population projections.

Further, a water supply assessment was conducted for the subject reorganization, using information and data from the Environmental Impact Report for the 2040 General Plan, the 2015 UWMP, and a Water Master Plan conducted in 2011.

State law requires this assessment to determine whether adequate water supplies are or will be available to meet demand associated with a proposed development and when residential development of more than 500 dwelling units is proposed. The Windsor Water District conducted the assessment for the subject proposal and found that sufficient water supplies would be available to meet buildout needs for the annexation area. An existing 12-inch main in Arata Lane would be extended to serve future development.

Projected Service Needs: Sanitary Sewer

The Town’s wastewater treatment facility has a dry-weather design capacity of 2.25 million gallons per day (mgd). Current average flow is 1.4 mgd. Buildout of the North of Arata Lane area is projected to increase dry-weather flows by 0.24 mgd, bringing the projected need below the design capacity. In that the 2040 General Plan projects substantial population increase however, the Town has determined that additional wastewater capacity will be necessary. The Town’s capital improvement plan includes such upgrades and additions, which would be constructed as conditions of new development.

An existing 12-inch sewer main and an existing 18-inch main are located in Arata Lane and Los Amigos Road, respectively. These would be extended as necessary to serve projected development and would be financed, as appropriate, by developers.

Projected Service Needs: Police and Fire; Parks and Recreation

With greater development in the area, public safety needs are projected to increase. The territory is already within the boundary of the Windsor Fire Protection District. Property owners are charged a parcel tax, already in place, based on units of risk, i.e., more development brings a higher risk and, thus, a higher tax. Under a development scenario, the accruing revenues are anticipated to increase which should cover some additional costs of providing fire and emergency services. 

Police services, which are provided under contract by the Sonoma County Sheriff, will need to be enhanced as development occurs. While no determinations have been made at this time, the Town could give consideration to formation of special tax districts, lump sum payments, and/or the addition of private police services.

In its General Plan, the Town has identified a projected park site within the North of Arata Lane annexation boundary. The Town will evaluate proposed developments and may determine to require a neighborhood park, inclusion of Sotoyome Creek in the northern area of the boundary as part of an open space or trail network, and/or joint use with a school facility.

Potential School Site

Given that a new community of homes and with school-aged children residing within could be developed within the Town, should the affected territory be annexed, representatives of the Town and the developers have worked with the Windsor Unified School District to evaluate the North of Arata Lane area regarding its suitability as a school site.

In November 2017, as the Town Council considered directing pre-zoning, the school district superintendent reported that the district was gathering information and considering 10-12 acres for a future school site; he also indicated that the district was interested in pursuing a joint use agreement with a park. In January 2018, the School Board agreed to participate in a District-Town committee to “coordinate and collaborate in the planning for the potential development in the area….”

Northbound On-Ramp to U.S. Highway 101

For a number of years, the Town has been interested in construction of a northbound on-ramp to Highway 101 at/around Arata Lane. The Town has stated that pre-zoning and annexation would facilitate its interest in pursuing funding and construction of a future northbound on-ramp, given that the Town would have clear jurisdiction and regulatory authority over the area and would be in a better position to make commitments.

In that Los Amigos Road currently parallels the freeway beginning at Arata Lane and going north, the Town plans to reconfigure the road to both support the construction of a more easily accessible on-ramp and to serve various future developments within the North of Arata Lane area.

Between 1998 and 2001, the Town purchased property along the projected Los Amigos Road to have the right-of-way. More recently, the Town applied for federal grant funding for construction design of a re-aligned Los Amigos Road. Should that be approved, funding for construction would be pursued. If federal funding is not forthcoming, private development would be responsible for paying to re-construct the road.

Conversion of Agricultural Lands

The Town’s 2040 General Plan altered land-use patterns in portions of the Town and along some edges, resulting in what could be some incompatibilities between urban and agricultural uses.

General Plan policies require land buffers between new development and agricultural land, disclosure of nearby agricultural uses when new development is proposed, and low density development so as to reduce potential agricultural/urban conflicts.

The County’s land-use designation for the properties within the annexation boundary is Rural Residential, with a zoning designation of Agriculture and Residential, which provides lands for raising crops and farm animals in areas designated primarily for rural residential use.

As noted previously, the Town Council pre-zoned the territory to residential, mixed use, commercial, business, and public/quasi-public uses consistent with General Plan land-use designations that allow substantially greater development.

Although this would be a substantial change in use of the land, it is not unexpected. The area has been within the Town’s Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) since the Town voters approved the UGB in the 1990s. Further, the territory is within the LAFCO-determined sphere of influence and within the County General Plan’s “urban service area” boundary, so it has been planned for urban uses for a long time.

The Town acknowledged, in its General Plan, the importance of agriculture as it adds to the quality of life in Windsor and contributes to the small-town character and local economy. Although the General Plan determined that certain mitigations could be put in place to mitigate some loss of agricultural impacts, it found that buildout by 2040 would result in the conversion of active agricultural land without feasible mitigation measures.

As a result the Town Council, in certifying the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for its 2040 General Plan, adopted a statement of overriding considerations, indicating that the impacts of the conversion of territory to non-agricultural uses was acceptable because of economic, social and other considerations.

Environmental Determination: Environmental Impact Report for 2040 General Plan

The Town Council certified the 2040 General Plan EIR on April 4, 2018, the same date it adopted its 2040 General Plan. The Council identified the following benefits from its approval of the General Plan:

• Increased revenue and jobs
• New high-quality housing
• Improved aesthetic character
• Improved multi-modal transportation
• Logical, compact urban development
• Comprehensive updated policies for the protection of the environment
• Overall preservation of agricultural resources 

The Council determined that the significant effects on the environment found with approval of the General Plan could be mitigated to minimize or reduce those impacts and adopted a mitigation monitoring and reporting program. Lastly, the Council determined that, even with mitigation, significant effects of the implementation of the General Plan would remain in two areas:

• Agricultural Resources due to conversion of active agricultural land to non-agricultural uses and
• Transportation and Traffic hazards due to queuing impacts  

As a result, pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the Council weighed the economic, legal, social, technological, and other benefits of the project and the significant unavoidable impacts, determined that the benefits outweighed the risks and adverse environmental impacts, determined that the significant unavoidable impacts were acceptable, and and adopted a Statement of Overriding Considerations for the project.

 When an agency wants to use a previously-certified programmatic EIR to determine the environmental impact of activities that occur subsequent to the program for which the programmatic EIR was prepared – which is the case for the subject request, the State CEQA Guidelines require the agency to prepare a checklist comparing, in this case, the pre-zoning for the subject reorganization to the consistency of the potential environmental impacts identified in the 2040 General Plan EIR.

The Town planning staff prepared a checklist for the Town Council’s consideration and recommended that the Council determine the pre-zoning to be within the scope of the programmatic EIR and find that no new effects or substantial changes would occur that had not been identified previously.

As part of its pre-zoning ordinance for the affected territory, the Windsor Town Council accepted its staff’s recommendation and determined that Town of Windsor General Plan 2040 Program Environmental Impact Report (EIR) adequately addressed the potential environmental impacts of the proposed pre-zoning for the purposes of the CEQA.

Sonoma LAFCO is a responsible agency for the proposal, following the determination of the lead agency, the Town of Windsor. In its review of the Town’s 2040 General Plan EIR and the checklist prepared pursuant to the State CEQA Guidelines, staff considered the analysis and determined that the proposal does not present significant environmental effects that were not previously considered; that there were no environmental effects peculiar to the project or the site, and no substantial new information had been determined.

The Commission must certify the information in the Town of Windsor 2040 General Plan EIR, find that significant and unavoidable impacts cannot be mitigated and adopt a statement of overriding considerations for the project.

Due to the voluminous nature of the 2040 General Plan EIR and the checklist, staff is providing, in Attachment 3 to this report, Resolution No. 3447-18, certifying the EIR, and Resolution No. 3448-18, adopting the 2040 General Plan. Documents supporting these actions are not included due to their voluminous nature, but they can be accessed as follows:

Final EIR for 2040 Windsor General Plan:

Full Resolution No. 3447-18 Certifying the Windsor 2040 General Plan EIR:

Full Resolution No. 3448-18 Adopting the Windsor 2040 General Plan:

Environmental checklist for the subject reorganization:

Hard copies are on file with Commission staff.

Consent of Owners

Not all owners of properties within the annexation boundary have given their written consent to the proposed reorganization. As a result, pursuant to state law, the Commission must conduct a noticed public hearing for consideration of the proposal.

Notice of the hearing was sent to owners and registered voters both within the annexation boundary and within 300 feet of the outside boundary, posted on the Commission’s website, at the Commission meeting place, and published in the Press-Democrat.

The notice stated that, unless the Commission receives written opposition by the conclusion of the hearing on the merits of the proposal, should the proposal be approved, the Commission may waive protest proceedings. To date, staff has received no written opposition.

Individual Factors for Consideration

California Government Code §56668 describes 16 factors to be considered in the Commission’s review of a proposal. The review must include, but is not limited to, consideration of these factors that are outlined and addressed in Attachment 1.

Recommendation 

1. Approve the reorganization, pursuant to the following findings and determinations:

a.    The affected territory is within the sphere of influence of the Town of Windsor and the Windsor Water District, and within the Town’s voter-approved Urban Growth Boundary and the “urban service area” boundary of the Sonoma County General Plan.           

b.    The reasons for the reorganization are to support development for needed housing at various density levels and potential location of a school and park and recreation facilities in accordance with land-use designations of the Town’s General Plan and adopted zoning and to facilitate the Town’s interest in and commitment to funding and construction of a new northbound on-ramp to U.S. Highway 101, providing greater jurisdiction and authority for the Town. While some conceptual plans have been discussed, no development is proposed at this time.         

c.    The Town has determined, through the adoption of the 2040 General Plan Environmental Impact Report, that it can provide services to the affected territory upon annexation.

2. Regarding the Commission’s responsibilities pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act,

a.    Certify review and consideration of information contained in the 2040 General Plan Environmental Impact Report prepared by the Town of Windsor.

b.    Make findings required of a responsible agency in accordance with the provisions of CEQA and the State CEQA Guidelines.

c.    Direct staff to file a notice of determination in accordance with CEQA and the State CEQA Guidelines.                                                                                        

Staff has prepared a draft resolution for the Commission’s review and consideration (Attachment 2).

Alternatives to Recommendation 

1. The Commission could deny the proposal, determining that more definitive development plans must be presented prior to consideration of reorganization of the affected territory.

 Staff does not recommend this alternative. In its General Plan, the Town has established the North of Arata Lane area as one of seven “community places,” which have unique characteristics that require specific policies to address.

 The General Plan identifies specific focal areas for any development in the North of Arata Lane area, and Town staff have stated that anyone interested in developing territory must submit a development plan that would show how that development would impact other parcels in the area.

 Lotting patterns, street circulation, and other elements of interest or concern must be addressed. Significant impacts on the logical and orderly development of other parcels would require cooperation with neighboring landowners and the Town in developing solutions. 

2. The Commission could deny the proposal, determining that additional territory should be included in an annexation boundary.

Staff does not recommend this alternative. The Town’s Urban Growth Boundary continues to the east of the annexation boundary. Owners of parcels not within the annexation boundary but within the Town’s UGB may be interested in joining this proposal.

 

While the Commission has the authority under state law to amend a boundary, in this case the Town has not pre-zoned other parcels in the area. Adding other properties to the subject reorganization would mean stopping the process, waiting for the Town to conduct various hearings, likely before the Planning Commission and Town Council, to pre-zone other territory – if the Town is willing to do so.

 This does not seem fair to those who have applied for reorganization of their properties at this time. If others whose properties are within the UGB wish to annex to the Town, they can initiate that effort with neighbors and subsequently with the Town.

Attachments 

1. Factors for Consideration
2. Draft Resolution.
3. Town of Windsor Ordinance and Resolutions: Windsor Water District. Windsor Unified School District Resolutions
4. Preliminary Map and Boundary Description