By Jim Blickenstaff
The controversial 125-unit “Tassajara Parks” project planned for the protected side of the County’s Urban Limit Line, next to Danville, has been on hold for months. Now that the elections have settled some political questions bearing on ultimate approval of the project, we can expect movement, again, on the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR), and hearings scheduled to move it toward a decision.
The Urban Limit Line is a powerful tool that Contra Costa voters passed as Measure C in 1990 to ensure that new development occurs within certain boundaries, thus protecting the county’s remaining agricultural lands and open space from sprawl. Most proposals to build outside the Urban Limit Line would need voter approval. But there is a loophole whereby developments of 30 acres or less can get the go-ahead as long as the County Board of Supervisors can make a “finding” from a list of specified circumstances. Tassajara Parks is being sold to the County as a trimmed-down 30 acres to slip through this loophole (even though the actual building/grading envelope is 50 acres). The “finding” that the developer aims to qualify under is a “Preservation Agreement.” The great irony is that the area in question doesn’t need further preservation as it is already preserved by the county’s General Plan, zoning ordinances, and the Urban Limit Line — layers of protections that would be seriously eroded by approval of Tassajara Parks.
The key document required to qualify the developer for the loophole is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that needs to be signed by Danville, San Ramon, and Contra Costa County. San Ramon has given indications of supporting the project; so has the County. Danville is strongly opposed, since most of the traffic and service demands will fall on them. And that should be the end of it.
But not so fast; a questionable interpretation of the governing County statutes implies that only one city need approve the MOU. This interpretation basically gives San Ramon the right to tell Danville what to do with land directly adjacent to its border. Just one of many questionable legal issues that may have to be decided in court.
The election had put in doubt San Ramon’s support. But now, though two people opposed to the project have been elected to the Council — incumbent Dave Hudson and Sierra Club-endorsed Sabina Zafar — the key third vote will likely fall to the re-elected mayor, Bill Clarkson. That’s unfortunate, since Mayor Clarkson has a history of approving development projects when they come before him. A few years ago, Clarkson was in favor of Measure W, which would have opened up 1,600 acres of open space outside the urban limit line in Tassajara Valley to City development. It lost, 72% to 28%.
So the stage seems set for the County to move this plan forward, with the expectation that they will form a “majority” with San Ramon and force the development on Danville. Nasty stuff — and there’s more. In addition to the development area being 20 acres more than the maximum allowed, there is an environmental document that won’t tackle the terrible precedent of opening up the protected side of the county Urban Limit Line to development; a wholly inadequate MOU pretending to be a Preservation Agreement; and the undermining of East Bay Municipal Utility District’s ability to control its service boundary.
Dozens of development and corporate interests have purchased property or development rights on the protected side of the line. A rational person would wonder: Why? Simple: In the past, the urban limit line has done its job and stopped virtually any movement into the protected areas. It’s been the best tool against sprawl the County has. But with Tassajara Parks’ pending approval, the floodgates will be opened for a series of other similar sprawl plans that “save” land already well protected by the County’s urban limit line.
Calls for the County and developer to take steps necessary to protect the County’s growth boundary and eliminate the precedent for more Tassajara Parks-style developments in protected open space have fallen on deaf ears. Again, a rational person would ask: Why? And the answer is the same: A lot of well monied development interests are waiting in the wings for their turn to break through the Urban Limit Line. Turns out, incentivizing sprawl is an inherently bad idea.
What You Can Do:
Sierra Club members in Contra Costa County (particularly members in Federal Glover’s district): Contact your Supervisor (find their info here) and ask that they do everything they can to protect Tassajara Valley and the integrity of the County’s urban limit line.
Questions? Contact Sierra Club Mount Diablo Group chair Jim Blickenstaff at jpblick@comcast.net.
Photo of the Tassajara Parks site provided by Gretchen Logue