9/9/11
A dispute that arose between Arcata city officials and the California Coastal Commission over the city's coastal plan in August was settled Thursday.
Commissioners unanimously approved the portion of the city's Local Coastal Program that deals with land use regulations in Arcata's coastal zone, but at the city's request commissioners did not vote on the portion of the program that deals with how development occurs.
The commission's decision gives the Arcata City Council six more months to review changes coastal commission staff asked it to make to its coastal program in August. The city will use that time to work on the development portion of its Local Coast Program, said Community Development Director Larry Oetker.
”We felt like if we could get our land use plan approved we were 50 percent of the way there,” he said. “And then we can come back and work on our implementation plan.”
The commission's decision comes after the Arcata City Council voted on a resolution Wednesday in favor of the changes commission staff recommended to the land use portion of the program, according to Bob Merrill, the commission's North Coast District manager. In addition to requesting more time to review all of the recommended changes, city officials also believe the changes they agreed to make to the Local Coastal Program are consistent with the California Coastal Act, Merrill said.
The changes Arcata agreed to address were sea level rise, tsunami hazards, storm water management, wetlands, public access and recreation and visual resources, Oetker said.
Jennifer Kalt, Humboldt Baykeeper's citizen water monitoring coordinator, said during public comments that she was concerned about the proposed change to the Local Coastal Program that addressed the California Coastal Trail. In McKinleyville, there are signs pointing people to the Hammond Trail portion of the California Coastal Trail, she said. But when the trail crosses into Arcata there are no signs directing people.
”As we know in the current economic climate, it's necessary to have this in the LCP or it's not going to happen,” she said.
Arcata's Director of Environmental Services Mark Andre said the city already has planned a coastal trail through Arcata. The trail will be paid for by a Coastal Conservancy grant, and the environmental study process has begun.
