Calaveras County planners to look at 10 community plans

General Plan hearing Thursday on local elements

By Terry Grillo terry@calaverasenterprise.com / July 11, 2016

After wavering several times between including and excluding community plans as part of an updated Calaveras County General Plan, elected county leaders now say they want to include at least some of the community plans.

And a hearing Thursday before the Calaveras County Planning Commission will give community members their chance to weigh in on how to do that before the commission makes its recommendation to the board of supervisors.

Many of the community plans have strong popular support. That’s because thousands of people help craft them during community meetings, culminating in a 2008 decision by the board of supervisors to adopt general plan principles that included preserving the landscape, expanding hiking trails and improving government services.

The members of that 2008 board, however, are gone, replaced by other elected leaders. And at the end of 2015, the current board adopted a new general plan vision statement that puts greater emphasis on the rights of property owners and less on public goals such as preserving historic communities and quality of life.

At one point, a previous board had directed staff not to include the community plans because doing so would require time-consuming work that would further delay completion of the general plan. But bowing to popular pressure, the board earlier this year relented and agreed to include at least those plans that require minimal work.

Many of those plans seek to preserve the historic character of communities. Now, Planning Director Peter Maurer is recommending that the plans that can be incorporated are those for various communities in District 2, including West Point and Mokelumne Hill, as well as San Andreas and Rancho Calaveras.

Put back on the shelf, for now, are more controversial plans for communities including Valley Springs and Copperopolis.

Planning Department staff members have met with representatives of each community and developed draft plans for commission review, according to Maurer’s report.

In addition to San Andreas and Rancho Calaveras, the community plan elements scheduled for review are those for Glencoe, Mokelumne Hill, Mountain Ranch, Paloma, Railroad Flat, Sheep Ranch, West Point and Wilseyville.

Planning Department staff members did not include community plans for Valley Springs, Copperopolis, Arnold, Murphys, Douglas Flat, Avery or Hathaway Pines.

“The primary objective of the community plans is to refine the planning goals and policies for each community while integrating each into the overall vision and goals of the General Plan as a whole,” according to the report.

Following is a list of community plan elements particular to each location:

Glencoe – Suggestions include new commercial construction in the Gold Rush style, support of commercial recreation, development of community service sites such as a fire station and a community hall, construction of walking paths throughout the town center, creation of a local park and trail planning and development.

Mokelumne Hill – This community plan calls for orderly growth that retains the town’s character and respects historical and cultural assets. Also included is protection of the historic district and support of the Mokelumne Hill design review guidelines. The plan also calls for policies to allow construction of housing for all the income groups that is compatible with the town’s existing historic atmosphere. There is also a suggestion to permit residential agriculture where it is compatible with other land uses.

Mountain Ranch – Town center development would be consistent with the historic nature and existing buildings and retain the look and feel of the Old West. Residential density would be encouraged near the town center and public buildings would be located there. There should be an architectural review committee established. Development of a municipal water and sewer system is encouraged before or during and growth in the town center. The Mountain Ranch plan also recommends restrictions on activities on developed and undeveloped land that would disturb the peace and quiet of immediate neighbors. Outdoor lighting would be kept to a minimum.