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HomeMy WebLinkAbout101-Staff Report.pdf SARATOGA CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: November 16, 2011 AGENDA ITEM: DEPARTMENT: Community Development CITY MANAGER: Dave Anderson PREPARED BY: Christopher Riordan, AICP DIRECTOR: James Lindsay SUBJECT: Annexation of Unincorporated Islands and Adjustments to the Urban Service Area RECOMMENDED ACTION: Direct staff to take the following actions within the next year to reduce the number of unincorporated islands: 1. Complete an application for LAFCO approval to modify the boundaries of the USA to include the recently acquired Quarry Property and to remove Saratoga Unincorporated Island No. 4 (STG04) in the vicinity of On Orbit Drive and the Orchard Meadow Subdivision (portion of STG01). 2. Start the preparations to initiate annexation of the following areas: a. The remaining portion of STG01 b. STG02 and the adjacent Quarry Property c. STG06 and STG07 3. Gather additional information in the interest of annexing STG05 in the future. REPORT SUMMARY: The Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) of Santa Clara County formally requested each city to report back on plans to either annex unincorporated pockets and/or make adjustments to their Urban Service Areas (see Attachment #1). An Urban Service Area (USA) is an area, either incorporated or unincorporated, which is receiving urban services or is planned to receive urban services within five years. An unincorporated pocket (commonly referred to as an unincorporated island) is area consisting of one or more parcels located within the USA, but outside the City’s limits along its periphery. The City of Saratoga has six unincorporated island within the USA totaling approximately 500 acres. These six islands have been identified as STG01, STG02, and STG04 to STG07 by LAFCO (see Attachment #1). In 2005, LAFCO requested the City consider annexing several unincorporated islands. At that the time the City agreed to annex two unincorporated islands. One was a 104 acre island in the Prospect Road area and the other was a 20 acre island near Hidden Hill Road. To encourage cities to annex unincorporated islands, the State of California has created a temporary Streamlined Annexation Process that does not require protest or approval by election for annexation initiated before January 1, 2014. To further encourage these streamlined annexations, LAFCO is offering fee waivers and the County of Santa Clara is funding the costs for preparing Assessor and Surveyor reports and other filing fees. This process, as depicted on the flowchart included as Attachment #2, is applicable to islands that are 150 acres or less in size and are substantially developed or developing. It is a policy of LAFCO that cities should annex unincorporated islands before expanding the boundaries of their USA. A short description of each of the six unincorporated islands is provided below with staff’s recommended action. • STG01 – The area of this island totals 90 acres located along the south side of Mount Eden Road. The Orchard Meadow subdivision (approximately 37 acres) is located within this island and has several adverse geologic conditions that have affected the structural integrity of the roads within the subdivision (see Attachment #3). Homeowners in the area are considering potential litigation against the developer and County. Garrod Farms owns approximately 11 acres within this island easterly of the Orchard Meadow subdivision. Recommendation: Reduce the size of this unincorporated island from 90 to 53 acres by removing the Orchard Meadow subdivision from the USA and annex the remaining 53 acres. Retracting the USA will not result in any additional development potential given the County’s General Plan Hillside land use designation has a similar slope density formula as Saratoga and the parcels in this area are all less than 20 acres. • STG02 – The area of this island totals nine (9) acres south of the intersection of Big Basin Way and Tollgate Road. This area is adjacent to the Quarry Property that was recently purchased by the City. The Quarry Property is currently outside the USA which most likely need to be expanded to annex the future park site. Recommendation: Annex the nine acres and the adjacent Quarry Property through the streamlined process once the Quarry Property is included in the USA. • STG04 – 92 acres in the vicinity of On Orbit Drive. This area was reviewed in 2005 and the City did not pursue the annexation due to the steep terrain and the geologic instability of the area. The Public Works Department would recommend that the City Council not initiate annexation proceedings. Recommendation: Do not pursue annexation of this area and remove it from the USA. Retracting the USA will not result in any additional development potential given the County’s General Plan Hillside land use designation has a similar slope density formula as Saratoga and the parcels in this area are all less than 20 acres • STG05 – 207 acres in the vicinity of Redberry Drive. This area is too large to qualify for the Streamlined Annexation Process and would require potential protest proceedings and an election. The majority of these properties are developed and there are no known adverse geologic concerns that the City would inherit if the area was annexed. Recommendation: Gather additional information in the interest of a future annexation. • STG06 – 0.4 acres at the intersection of Hidden Hills Road and Ravine Road. This area has no known adverse geologic conditions and could be a candidate for the Streamlined Process. Recommendation: Annex this unincorporated island. • STG07 – 104 acres west of the intersection of Mount Eden Road and Damon Lane. City records indicate that both shallow and deep landslides are known to exist in this area. Future development of the property would require thorough geotechnical analysis and mitigation. County Assessor information indicates that this parcel is covered by a Williamson Act Contract which could be transferred to the City upon annexation. This area could qualify for the Streamlined Annexation Process. Recommendation: Annex this unincorporated island. FISCAL IMPACTS: None CONSEQUENCES OF NOT FOLLOWING RECOMMENDED ACTION: Current State legislation has set January 1, 2014 as the sunset date for cities to make use of the expedited annexation process. ALTERNATIVE ACTION: None FOLLOW UP ACTION: As directed ADVERTISING, NOTICING AND PUBLIC CONTACT: Pursuant to Government Code 54954.2, this item was properly posted as a City Council agenda item and was included in the packet made available on the City’s website in advance of the meeting. A copy of the agenda packet is also made available at the Saratoga Branch Library each Monday in advance of the Council Meeting. ATTACHMENTS: Attachment 1: Letter from LAFCO (dated May 2, 2011). Attachment 2: Flow Chart for the expedited island annexation process (created by LAFCO) Attachment 3: Preliminary Geotechnical Evaluation of Roadway Conditions Report by Cotton, Shires and Associates, Inc. (dated September 15, 2011)