MEETING DATE: 2/19/2019
DEPARTMENT: ASSESSOR
DEPT HEAD/DIRECTOR: T. Slavich
AGENDA ITEM PREPARER: Shirley L. Murphy, Deputy County Counsel
SBC DEPT FILE NUMBER: 7
SUBJECT:
ASSESSOR'S OFFICE - T. SLAVICH
Consider adoption of an Ordinance amending Section 19.01.023 of Title 19, Chapter 19.01 of the San Benito County Code Pertaining to Compatible Uses on Agricultural Preserves.
1) Find that the proposed Ordinance does not meet the definition of a "project" under section 21065 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as an "...activity which may cause either a direct physical change in the environment or a reasonably foreseeable indirect change in the environment...", and CEQA review would be premature and purely speculative at this time, because no specific projects involving any of the proposed compatible uses are currently being proposed, and appropriate CEQA review will be conducted at such time as specific applications are processed for projects involving the compatible uses described in the Ordinance, consistent with the County's General Plan and applicable ordinances, including but not limited to the Zoning Ordinance;
2) Adopt Ordinance, Amending Section 19.01.023 of Title 19, Chapter 19.01 of the San Benito County Code Pertaining to Compatible Uses on Agricultural Preserves"; and
3) Authorize and direct the Clerk of the Board to publish the Ordinance in a newspaper of general circulation in its entirety within ten (10) days of its adoption, pursuant to Government Code section 6061.
SBC FILE NUMBER: 7
ORDINANCE NO:979
AGENDA SECTION:
REGULAR AGENDA
BACKGROUND/SUMMARY:
At its regular meeting on February 5, 2019, the Board of Supervisors read the title, accepted the introduction and waived reading of an Ordinance amending Section 19.01.023 of Title 19, Chapter 19.01 of the San Benito County Code pertaining to compatible uses on agricultural preserves, and continued the matter to its February 19, 2019 for adoption of the Ordinance. Based on the recommendation of the Agricultural Preserve Advisory Committee, the proposed Ordinance would expand the list of uses that are deemed to be compatible uses within agricultural preserves, by adding the following six compatible uses to the list set forth in section 19.01.023(B): event centers; wineries; small solar projects for the operation of a farm or ranch; vegetable processing plants; meat processing plants; and airplane runway strip for landowner's Non-Commercial Use. The Board of Supervisors has previously approved these types of uses on a case-by-case basis, after determining that the proposed use was a "similar compatible use ... upon a finding that ... [it was] incidental and not detrimental to agricultural use" pursuant to section 19.01.023(B)(9).
The process for considering and approving individual compatible use determinations is set forth in section 19.01.023 of the County Code. All compatible uses must meet the principles of compatibility set forth in section 19.01.023(F) and, if the agricultural preserve is located on non-prime land, the criteria for non-prime land set forth in section 19.01.023(H). Structures related to a compatible use must section 19.01.023(C). A complete copy of section 19.01.023 is attached.
After the Board makes a compatible use determination, the property owner must obtain approval of the appropriate land use entitlements under the County's General Plan and other provisions of the County Code, such as the Zoning Ordinance, at which time, the appropriate project-specific environmental review is conducted under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). CEQA review would be premature and purely speculative at this time, because no specific projects are currently proposed which may cause a direct physical change in the environment or a reasonably foreseeable indirect change in the environment.
The proposed Ordinance is submitted for the Board's consideration.
BUDGETED:
SBC BUDGET LINE ITEM NUMBER:
CURRENT FY COST:
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Consider adoption of an Ordinance amending Section 19.01.023 of Title 19, Chapter 19.01 of the San Benito County Code Pertaining to Compatible Uses on Agricultural Preserves.
1) Find that the proposed Ordinance does not meet the definition of a "project" under section 21065 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as an "...activity which may cause either a direct physical change in the environment or a reasonably foreseeable indirect change in the environment...", and CEQA review would be premature and purely speculative at this time, because no specific projects involving any of the proposed compatible uses are currently being proposed, and appropriate CEQA review will be conducted at such time as specific applications are processed for projects involving the compatible uses described in the Ordinance, consistent with the County's General Plan and applicable ordinances, including but not limited to the Zoning Ordinance;
2) Adopt Ordinance No. ___, "An Ordinance Amending Section 19.01.023 of Title 19, Chapter 19.01 of the San Benito County Code Pertaining to Compatible Uses on Agricultural Preserves"; and
3) Authorize and direct the Clerk of the Board to publish the Ordinance in a newspaper of general circulation in its entirety within ten (10) days of its adoption, pursuant to Government Code section 6061.
ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL: