Initial Study MND - Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and ...

Taylor MountainINITIAL STUDY/MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATIONworship, parks, libraries, governmental administration centers, fire stations, cemeteries,airports, hospitals, sewage treatment plants, waste disposal sites, etc. Policies for publicfacilities are established in the County General Plan Public Facilities and Services Element.According to the General Plan Land Use Element, amendments to place the Public/Quasi Publicland use designation on property must meet all of the following criteria:(1) Ownership or long term lease by a government agency, other non-profit entity orpublic utility,(2) Adequate road access,(3) Lands are not suitable for and will not adversely affect resource productionactivities, and(4) Any applicable Land Use Policies for the Planning Area.The proposed project would meet all of the above criteria. Regarding Item (4), the General Plancontains policies for the unincorporated areas around Santa Rosa. None of these policiesspecifically apply to the Taylor Mountain property and the proposed project would beconsistent with general policies regarding this area. In addition, Sonoma County General PlanObjective OSRC-17.1 provides for adequate parklands and trails primarily in locations that areconvenient to urban areas, while not negatively impacting agricultural uses.As part of the proposed project, the existing zoning would be changed to Public Facility (PF) forall parcels within the property. The purpose of the PF district is to provide sites which serve thecommunity or public need and to protect these sites from encroachment of incompatible uses.The proposed Master Plan uses would be consistent with this zone district, as the PF zonepermits any uses owned and operated by a City or County. The proposed uses in the MasterPlan are consistent with zone district provisions regarding building height and setbacks.The existing overlay land use designations and zone districts, as listed in Section B.1.4, wouldremain in place. Consistency with the scenic overlay provisions is addressed in Section B.3.1(Aesthetics). A portion of the property is designated with the Valley Oak Habitat (VOH) overlayzone district, which is intended to protect Valley Oaks and Valley Oak woodland habitat. Thisoverlay district sets mitigation requirements for oak tree removal. Removal of Valley Oaks isnot proposed as part of the Master Plan implementation. Furthermore, design guidelines andstandards emphasize avoidance of tree removal. See Section B.3.4 (Biological Resources) foradditional discussion of oak woodlands and summary of relevant Master Plan standards.The Master Plan is also consistent with the City of Santa Rosa General Plan, which identifiesTaylor Mountain as part of the complex of recreation and open space lands surrounding theCity of Santa Rosa. In addition, Santa Rosa General Plan 2020 Policy UD-E-2 provides for anopen space network that is linked by pedestrian and bicycle paths, and that preserves andenhances Santa Rosa’s visual and natural resources.The proposed accesses and staging areas identified in the Master Plan have incorporated theCity of Santa Rosa’s future plan to develop the Farmers Lane Extension. The existing interimstaging area, which is within the alignment of the approved Farmers Lane Extension project,would be removed and alternative access to the park would be developed off of the FarmersFinal B-88 September 2012