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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-13-1981 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA (2)CITY OF SARATOGA AGENDA BILL NO. DATE: August 13, 1981 DEPARTMENT: Planning SUBJECT: Elimination of .County Referral Program Initial: Dept. Hd. i Issue Sumuary Due to budgetary constraints the referral of most projects in the County's jurisdiction that could impact Saratoga will be terminated. Only projects within the urban service areas immediately adjacent to a city limit will be referred. Recommendation Send letter to Board of Supervisors expressing concern over the elimination. Fiscal Impacts None anticipated Exhibits /Attachments 1. Letter dated July 2, 1981 from County Land Development Coordinator 2. Staff Report dated August 13, 1981 3. Letter to Board of Supervisors dated August 13, 1981 Council Action 8/19: Mallory/Watson moved to send draft letter to Board of Supervisors. Passed 4 -0. (Jensen abstaining due to potential conflict of interest as County Planner). County of Santa Clara California EMA/GSA Environmental Management/ General Services Agency July 2, 1981 City of Saratoga Planning Department R. S. Robinson, Director 13777 Fruitvale Avenue Saratoga, California 95070 Dear Mr. Robinson: Central Permit Office County Government Center, East Wing 70 West Hedding Street San Jose, California 95110 299 -2454 Area Code 408 Santa Clara County is presently experiencing a severe financial crisis in the establishment of a balanced budget for fiscal year 1981 - 1982. The impact to County Departments due to budget reductions has resulted in the elimination of a variety of services and functions. Those that are not cost recovery or legally mandated are the first to be eliminated. As a result, all research which was performed by the Central Permit Office has been eliminated. Referrals are being restricted to the con- ditioning agencies and will ibe..limited to the submitted information by the applicant. In view of the above, referrals to the various cities within the County will be discontinued. Those developments which are within the urban service area and adjacent to the city limits will still be required to follow the current annexation procedure. The provisions for general plan conformance for applications within the urban service area will also still be followed. Every effort will be made to minimize the adverse impact this unfortunate budgetary circumstance has created. If you have any questions or suggestions regarding this matter, please feel free to contact me at 299 -2454. Sincerely, 1 RAF �� SARK IAN MANAGER /LAND DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR RS-mar -cc: Paul Yarborough © An Equal Opportunity Employer of SA1:2�9 O •� =�t "• CITY of = � ' ATOGA REPORT TO MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: 8/13/81 COUNCIL MEETING: 8/19/81 SUBJECT' County Referral Program On June 6, 1981, the Planning Department received a letter from the County's Land Development Coordinator indicating that most referrals to the City would be discontinued due to budget reduc- tions and cut backs in personnel. Research done by the Central Permit Office has been eliminated. The only referrals the City will receive are those that affect sites within the.City's urban service area that are adjacent to our City limits. Loss of the bulk of the referrals means that the City will not be able to.comment or suggest conditions for projects within the City's sphere of influence that might have a substantial impact on Saratoga. Impacts obviously do not stop at city boundaries. If the City Council feels the County referral process is impor- tant to.be maintained, this concern should be made known to the County Board of Supervisors. Staff has prepared a letter expressing Council concerns for your approval. MF:cd v Submitted by Michdel Flores Assi tant Planner Approved by e 3 R� 9 iZ 1900& 13777 FRUITVALE AVENUE SARATOGA, CALIFORNIA 95070 (408) 887 -3438 xa�s;emt August 13, 1981 Board of Supervisors Santa Clara County 70 West Hedding Street San Jose, CA 95112 Honorable Members of the Board: On behalf of the City of Saratoga, I would like to express our concern with the recent decision by the County to discon- tinue the referral to the City of unincorporated land develop- ment projects which are within our sphere of influence. • The City acknowledges that the County is experiencing severe financial difficulties in establishing a balanced budget for this new fiscal year. However, the elimination of this County practice could have negative implications for our City planning functions as well. • Loss of all referrals except those which are immediately con- tiguous to our City limits means that the City will not be able to comment or recommend conditions for projects within our sphere of influence that might hAve a substantial impact on Saratoga. We fear we may become totally unaware of such proposed projects until they have received County approval. Considering the extensive planning.which our community has recently done for the hillside area to our west, we most certainly want to assure compatible development in the County lands beyond. We urge you to reconsider your decision to eliminate this program. If a reduction is determined absolutely essential, may we suggest that the Central Permit Office institute some type of alternative communication, e.g., the weekly transmittal to all cities of a listing of applications received, identified by assessor's parcel number, so that our staff may be alerted that some potentially significant activity is pending. Respectfully, Linda Callon Mayor of Saratoga LC /VMR:cd