SR 06:102 - Laserfiche WebLink

(Central Commercial) areas, and any public or quasi-public use can be allowed in the Planned Unit Development (PUD) district. In practice, the majority of private schools, churches, and childcare centers are located on land with a designation other than Public and Institutional on the General Plan. Although there is little vacant land remaining designated for public and institutional uses, the existing Zoning Ordinance and General Plan policies allow a great deal of flexibility for the siting of public and institutional uses. Indeed, this may be preferable to designating additional Public and Institutional land on the General Plan map since these needs are often specific to neighborhoods and the optimum location is difficult to predict. Staff therefore recommends that where the location of any future public and institutional uses are known, such as any future public schools or the publicly-owned Bernal property, the General Plan should be amended to include this additional Public and Institutional-designated land. Otherwise, future public and institutional uses would be accommodated in other locations as allowed by the General Plan and Zoning Ordinance. Staff seeks City Council feedback regarding this recommendation. LAND FOR AGRICULTURE AND GRAZING A question was raised at the last workshop about the amount of Agriculture and Grazing land designated in the General Plan and whether or not additional land is needed. Within the Planning Area there is approximately 11,375 acres designated Agriculture and Grazing, or approximately 24 percent of the total Planning Area. Most of this land is located west of the Urban Growth Boundary on Pleasanton Ridge. There is also grazing lower on the ridge and on lands designated Public Health and Safety (15,693 acres) located in southwest Pleasanton, as well as on lands owned by the East Bay Regional Park District and operated as Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park (over 4,000 acres). The issue facing owners of agricultural land and the Pleasanton community is how such land can be protected and enhanced for the future, and kept in an economically viable use. One mechanism used in Pleasanton is a Right to Farm ordinance (Chapter 17.48 of the Zoning Ordinance) that encourages continued agricultural operations by prohibiting claims of a "nuisance" by neighbors when agricultural operations are conducted or maintained in a manner consistent with proper and accepted customs and standards. Other means that could encourage the continued existence of agricultural and grazing land is the use of conservation or open space easements, whereby a land-owner would give up any development rights and agree to preserve the land in open space, in exchange for purchase of an easement by a land trust or other entity. The issue of the preservation of open space lands is discussed further in the Draft Conservation and Open Space Element of the General Plan which will be reviewed by the Planning Commission and City Council this spring. DISCUSSION OF REMAINING DEVELOPABLE PARCELS At the last Joint Workshop, questions were raised regarding three parcels in the Foothill Road area. These are discussed in the following paragraphs. SR 06:102 Page 3 of7