COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES AGENCY

DATE:

February 9, 2004

SET TIME:

9:15 a.m.

BOARD MEETING DATE:

February 24, 2004

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

FROM:

Marcia Raines, Director of Environmental Services

SUBJECT:

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Consideration of an appeal of the Planning Commission's decision to deny certification of the Negative Declaration and request that an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) be prepared for a parcel legalization and new single-family residence in the Community Open Space Conservation (COSC) Zoning District in El Granada.

RECOMMENDATION

That the Board of Supervisor's deny the appeal and uphold the decision of the Planning Commission to not certify the Negative Declaration and require preparation of an EIR.

PROPOSAL

The applicants seek to: (1) legalize a 0.83-acre parcel, (2) drill a maximum of three test wells for one domestic well on the project parcel site, and (3) construct a new 3,324 sq. ft. single-family residence. A Negative Declaration was prepared by the Planning Division, however, the Planning Commission did not certify the document and requested that an EIR be prepared.

PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION

The Planning Commission voted 4-0 (Commissioner Kennedy was absent) to uphold the appeal, deny certification of the Negative Declaration and request that an EIR be prepared. Key factors in the Commission's decision were an inability to make the required findings necessary to certify the negative declaration. The dissent was based primarily on concerns about the environmental impacts of the proposed single-family development.

BACKGROUND

The Zoning Hearing Officer conditionally approved this project in February 1999. That decision was appealed to the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission heard the project on April 28, 1999, and voted unanimously (5-0) to grant the appeal and deny the project. The applicants appealed the Commission's decision to the Board of Supervisors. Following submittal of the appeal, the applicants submitted two additional applications related to the development of the parcel. The need to legalize the parcel arose following the Commission hearing. In response, the applicants submitted a Certificate of Compliance application to legalize the parcel. Additionally, following the Commission hearing, the applicants submitted a Coastal Development Permit application for three test wells. The new applications for parcel legalization and for the test wells needed to be brought before the Planning Commission prior to Board action. In February 2002, the Planning Commission considered the revised application, including the Certificate of Compliance for parcel legalization, the Coastal Development Permit for the three test wells and the development of the single-family residence. The Planning Commission did not certify the Negative Declaration for the project and requested the preparation of an EIR. Following this action, the applicants filed an appeal to the Board of Supervisors.

The reasons for the delay between the Planning Commission's decision to uphold the appeal and require preparation of an Environmental Impact Report and review by the Board of Supervisors are: (1) the complexity of the project as there are many elements which must be examined carefully; (2) the modification of the project description throughout the review which added to the complexity; (3) loss of Planning staff and reassignment of the project; and (4) heightened community interest.

SUMMARY

The key issues of the appeal relate to the adequacy of the Negative Declaration prepared for the project stating that the environmental document prepared adequately addressed all environmental impacts. Staff recommends that the Board of Supervisors uphold the decision of the Planning Commission and request preparation of an EIR.

ALTERNATIVE

Should your Board grant the appeal and certify the Negative Declaration, then you should go on to consider and act on the related applications for a Coastal Development Permit and Certificate of Compliance to legalize the parcel and a Use Permit, Coastal Development Permit and Design Review Permit to construct a new single family residence thereon. If you chose to approve those permits, staff recommends you do so by adopting the findings and conditions of approval in Attachments A, B and C (pages 19 through 28) of the attached staff report to the Planning Commission.