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::: COMMUNITY NEWS As development plans go to county, opponents say last-minute letter will play a key role • Pop-up window: Click for a six-year archive of development coverage -- news, maps, photos and more Updated
Tuesday, January 9, 2007 As the first Murieta North development projects come before the county Board of Supervisors for approval Wednesday, development opponents are claiming crucial 11th-hour support for their position from a state agency. On Friday, Rancho Murieta Development Concerned Citizens Committee member Candy Chand said a letter from the state attorney general's office to the director of the county Department of Environmental Assessment and Review supports the group's position that the environmental documents for the Retreat and Residences of Murieta Hills East and West projects are inadequate. "I expect the county supervisors to unanimously send all projects back to the drawing board for years of review," Chand wrote in an e-mail posted on RanchoMurieta.com along with the letter signed by Deputy Attorney General Deborah R. Slon.
After declining to comment on the letter Monday, Slon called RanchoMurieta.com and volunteered to talk Tuesday, after the initial version of this story appeared. “Our sole intention here is essentially good government. … We review (California Environmental Quality Act) documents fairly frequently -- this is routine -- at the attorney general’s office,” she said. “Our goal was to make sure the county analyzed adequately the cumulative impacts of the project, and (the letter) doesn’t really go beyond that. “We don’t have a position on Rancho Murieta build-out. We don’t have a position on anything other than making sure CEQA is complied with.” Is it being complied with? “Our letter indicates that we would like to see a more robust cumulative impact analysis,” she said. She added, “I don’t think we’re accusing the county of anything. We just want to make sure the county complies with the law. There’s a very clear mandate in CEQA that EIRs take into account cumulative impacts and we’d like to see (that). We’re not ordering the county. We’re just simply saying that we think that this could have been significantly stronger in the document.” She pointed out that the letter was written by the Bill Lockyer administration, and it’s unclear how the new attorney general, Jerry Brown, might view the matter. The letter is dated Jan. 4, the day before Lockyer left office. Slon repeated an earlier statement that the letter is based on a review of documents that are public information -- the master plans for Rancho Murieta and the environmental impact reports for the Retreat and Residences projects. Antonia Barry, principal environmental analyst for DERA, indicated on Monday this will play out at the Board of Supervisors meeting Wednesday. "Basically, like any other comment letter we get on any document, it just goes to the board as part of the body of information to make a decision," she said. "This office doesn't approve or deny or make recommendations of any kind. ... It's the Board of Supervisors that has to make a decision about what they want to do with those comments." Barry described the environmental impact reports prepared by DERA as "one component" in the supervisors' decision-making process. "(The supervisors) make a decision on whether the document is adequate for their use and whether they're going to use it to approve or deny." Pat Braziel, chief of staff for Supervisor Don Nottoli, wrote in an e-mail Monday that Nottoli would respond to a request for comment "when the significance of the letter is determined." The supervisor received a copy of the letter late Friday and it was "immediately forwarded it to county counsel for review," wrote Braziel. "The letter is being taken very seriously and it will take time for counsel to determine the significance." The Rancho Murieta agenda items will be heard on Wednesday at 6 p.m. as planned. The meeting can be viewed live on the Internet here. The RMDCCC's dissatisfaction with the county planning and environmental review process has surfaced at county planning commission hearings and community meetings in recent months. In September, a memo prepared by DERA staff for the Policy Planning Commission addressed 11 issues raised by development opponents and, in many cases, disputed them with references to the environmental documents. The Retreat and Residences projects have been recommended for approval by the Policy Planning Commission and the county Subdivision Review Committee. At the December Rancho Murieta Association board meeting, RMDCCC member Ted Hart commented, "DERA doesn't like Rancho Murieta. ... They like to spin things. ... They say impacts related to water storage are less than significant."
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