Downtown Specific Plan - Part 1 - City of Brawley

Brawley Downtown Specific Plan
1.1 Introduction
1.1.1 Specific Plan overview and Purpose
This Specific Plan will guide development and facilitate the redevelopment
of approximately 110 acres of land within Downtown Brawley into a more
cohesive central business district generally around Plaza Park and along Main
Street. The overall purpose of this Specific Plan is to:
1-
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Manage the transition of Main Street ownership from Caltrans back
to the City of Brawley upon completion of the Brawley Bypass.
Encourage facade rehabilitation, property redevelopment, and new
development within vacant and underutilized properties.
Increase connectivity for pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit
users within Downtown and the larger region.
Increase City revenues and diversify the City’s economic base.
Increase the demand for goods and services within Downtown by
increasing its resident and visitor population.
Create opportunities for expansion of existing businesses, integration
of new businesses, and job growth through destination amenities.
Preserve designated historic buildings.
Provide high quality civic spaces for cultural events, public gatherings,
and recreational uses.
Diversify the City’s housing options by providing urban housing
opportunities for a range of socio-economic levels.
Downtown Brawley is located in the heart of the City. The Specific Plan area
is illustrated in Figure 1-1 (Specific Plan Area). The General Plan has divided
this Specific Plan Area into three distinct districts: Civic Center District, West
Village District, and East Village District.
1.1.2 Specific Plan Authority
The California Government Code (Title 7, Division 1, Chapter 3, Article 8,
Sections 65450 through 65457) provides the authority for a city to adopt
a specific plan by ordinance (as a regulatory plan) or resolution (as a policy
driven plan). This Specific Plan is both a regulatory and policy document, and
therefore must be adopted by ordinance.
This Specific Plan includes development standards and guidelines (Chapters
4 and 5), a description of future land uses and infrastructure improvements
(Chapter 6), implementation and financing measures (Chapter 7), and a
statement of the Specific Plan’s relationship to the General Plan (Chapters
1 and 7). This Specific Plan document meets the legal requirements for a
Specific Plan, as established by the California Government Code and the City
of Brawley Municipal Code.
1.1.3 Specific Plan Statutory requirements
Under California Law (Government Code Section 65450 et seq.) cities
and counties may prepare specific plans to develop policies, programs, and
regulations to implement the jurisdictions adopted general plan. A specific
plan frequently serves as a bridge between the general plan and individual
development master plans and planned unit developments, or other large
development projects.
Required Contents
This Specific Plan has been prepared in accordance with the requirements
of California Government Code Section 65451. As prescribed by law, this
Specific Plan includes text and diagrams that generally describe the following:
•
•
The distribution, location and extent of all land uses, including open
space.
The proposed distribution, location, extent and intensity of major
components of public infrastructure, such as transportation and
drainage systems.