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Home My WebLink About81-4 FOOTHILL STRATEGY REPORTar '•+ 6J'LK' � I . i ��,rK�, n .f .•'t�,' >f' • 1 _ 1. d � 11• � r a • , L La�jjjj' l r gI s s z _ _ .lam a _�.. �.. - y wi "ri'. _g � $ �- �� P _ate' r ,� " io-. . y. s z _ _ .lam a _�.. �.. - OFF,AMp 7 June 5, 1980 Duito -o, Planning Comm: PRELUDE TO A`FOOTHILL STRATEGY sY AN 3 01980 BEAN J. MISCZYNSKI & CHARLES JOHNSON Orovilln, Galitornh The'Oi'fice of Planning and ReseaYch is ;beginning work on -a Foothill Strategy dealing with develoioert t,ssues in the Sierra foothills. Probably it will have three parts: (a) a Miction Which presents carefully researched background information on major develbpinent issues in 'the foothills; (b) a section which sets out state policies with respect to foothill developments and (c) recommend- ations for administrative and legislative rhange. Work will be guided by an j advisory committea made up of foothill elected officials and other residents. I There will be abundant opportunity for public debate about drafts before { anything becomes final. The p,:oject will probably take about a year. Why a foothill. strategy A bureaucratic answer is that the o;Efice has a y. legislative mandate,*.o prepare state land use polioies. A more meaningful answer is that the foothills art the most rapidly changing piece of California, They are growing faster than anywhere else in the state. Tuolumne Countyls f� population is increasing at 11% per year, almost four times the state average. Admittedly the number of people added per year is minuscule by California;' standardsi But the cost of change depends as Much on 1.ts swiftness as on µ its scale. And in the hills] change is swift., Hill growth is not only speeding up► but it also seems to be seeking new forms.V. Many pedple move to the footh..11.s looking for something different from standards l issue urban and suburban California: Rut the.. don�t sees �d to Want, and often . Ake not ettin j traditional g q rural. California either. To some degrees the J, . k people of the foothills are trying to evolve a� new 1�-Iestyle, unique in the' world', that blends some measure of urban sophistication with rural peace. This is an elusive goal, easily lost if sought by too many too cuickly or if bungled by government at any level. Certainly state government has bungling potentials an aim of a foothill strategy is to reduce that potential. Another reason for A foothill strategy has to do with visibility. To the press and mont of California, the foothills are functionally invisible. Outaide the hill region, popular knowledge about hili transportation or s �F water problems or, a variety of other important hill matters is extremely limited. Although a low-kept profile is sometimes an advantage, it can work to the regionts disadvantage before the Legislature and when dealing with state administrative agencies. So an aim of a foothill strategy is'to raise the level of statewide,_ understanding of ;foothill problems. The detailed issue;; that the foothill strategy will cover will be selected by the advisory committee. Hut for the sake of example,•: several possible strategy issUes are listed below; With some there are clear possibilities for improvement. Others may prove to be hopeless, at least 3,h the short run., 7 Land. rise PlAnning Rdquitements °M- State law requires every city and county to prepare :a general plan with nine elements; and Creates a framework within which 'local gOvdtrdit at8 regulate zoning, subdivision's, and building. This framework of state Y law grew Up slowly, and was designed principally with urban area§ such apt k the Santa Clara valley and the Los Angeles basin in mind. Some of t1je requirements may hot Make sense in the foothills, or might make better sense in different forms. A foothill. strategy might help to evolve a more effective land use 'framework for the foothills, f i.` , �3- 2. Wildfires `Fire protection in foothill undeveloped areas is largely provided by' the California bepartment of Forestry. Fire protection for structures and developed areas comes from an amalgam of local fire districts and the Department of Forestry. The local fire districts are largely- volunteer. This.arrangement worked well in the past when there Was little development and whey. funding was abundant. Now development is spreading wildfirelike and Department of Forestry budgets are shrinking. j The nepartmer._ of Forestry has been voider pressure from the state i Legislative Analyst to reduce its role in providing structural fire, protection. So working out arrangements for providing continuing reliable fire protection to the foothills ,is a burning issue.; 3. The Fiscal Future Proposition l3 and the Gann Initiative are revolutionizing the way local }f i., _e 'government is financed in California,, These changes have a peculiarly } strong impact on rapidly growing areas# such as the foo3hills. These measures irAkO it considerably more difficult for 160tl ;overnments to fund the capital facilities and 3ervices required by r,ew development~ Also, the costs of servicing new development may I;e higher 'than usual in, the foothills because of unusual expenses such as 'snowplowing and the { cost of servicing more widespread development over rough terrain. 4. Water su ply The growing foothills have growing water need§. But most of the water flowing through the foothills is spoken for already by valley cacw nitias. 4 i' _q_ ' There isn't enough water in the pipes to serve new development in some areas. In a sizable part of the foothills, much of the water for ^ human use is carried by open ditches rather than by pipes: Ditches are both charming and inefficient, and they result in considerable water loss and non-drinkabilty. Eventually continued development in some areas will require piping those ditches; an enormously expensive project Piping will ad%Y complexity by altering water tables and irrigation availability';' The hills are already much dammed, and a remarkable number of additional dams have been talked abouto Full dam development will have profound implications for foothill development patterns, recreation, for traffic, and for water supply bona in the foothills and for the rest of the state. Y _. 5. Trwns.. r� taton Contrary to the idyllic rural it�ace, fool hil) ;`,-1—%0 are in places ' frequently congested and occas oxixllyy dangerous, Public transpoxtation is extremely limited. The Ulls 'L*Ih$P t w16th tjj:t zest of California the twin traumas of 'rising gasoline prices Grid diminishing road or transit money: ny foothill towns have expressed a need for a highway bypass, but thereis controversy about how the bypasses should be routed and . what effecfs they would have on :business in the existing town: There are projects underway to improve access roads into the foothills and sections of Highway 49, but also controversies about whether a forcibly -'� straightened freeway-Like road has a placerin the hills, 6 Medical Care The foothills) like most rural areas in dalifothiar are tiuedically Uhder-nt ;. served, Most towns have neither a hospital riot an outpatieciini'c. r . .ter. • . ii -5- I ,i i There are few doctors per parson in the foothills, which is particularly } alarming given the lar4e number of retired folks living there. ,1 E i. Economic Development The foothill economy runs off of its natural resources, in the form of forest products, mining, and tourism, It also feeds on its own growth in the sense that the construction industry is making up a^: increasing portion of the foothill economy. Commercial patternsare changing as 1 chain stores and shopping centers pehW.rate'this hitherto McClonaldsless realm. There is relatively little industry, but potential for enol -mous expansion in a few areas such as around Aul)urn and Poseville. The State has economic development programs, but it ,Is not clear what role they should play in the hills. There is no consensus about the foothills) future. As with the rest of California, it has its growthaholics'and nogrowthiacs, There is a fair contingent of environmentally -minded folk who argue that the foothills are precisely the place to uncourage growth, in order to keep it from going on the prime agricultural lands in the valleys; And there seems to be growing sentiment among Californias electronics industry that part of the hill lands offer the best prospect for their exprihs!;on short of leaving ealifo'rnia Vihally; there is abundant, Ament both within the foothiltj and outside that the regiones tranquility, Peace, and beauty should be protected and that growth should be stringently curbed: In its largest sense; a foothill strategy will try to set, out y policies for state agencies that have key roles to play in the substance ok this debate,