Point Reyes Light - September 16, 1999

Planning chief explains limits to Valley growth

Septic-system regulations should not be considered a bulwark against development in West Marin, Marin Community Development Agency director Alex Hinds told the San Geronimo Valley Planning Group this week.

Hinds, the county's relatively new chief of planning and land use, said he expects new septic technology to eventually replace the widespread use of individual septic systems and leach lines, which have traditionally limited the amount of development properties can support.

Should new wastewater systems allow greater development in West Marin, he said, the communities should respond by revising their community plans and zoning to reap the environmental benefits of the new systems without opening the door to unchecked growth.

Insisting the issues of wastewater systems and growth should be considered separately, Hinds told The Light that the county has started what he expects will be a lengthy review of its septic codes in consultation with state water officials and private consultants.

"I sure hope West Marin won't become open to wholesale development," he told the Planning Group on Monday night. "I don't think it will be."

Hinds' discussion with the San Geronimo Valley Planning Group was attended by about 45 Valley residents and homeowners, most of whom questioned Hinds and county planner Tom Lai about potential construction in West Marin, public viewsheds, and the need for environmental-impact reports.

Based on zoning and the size of open lots, the Valley could accommodate as many as 800 new homes, explained Lai, noting that his computation is a high estimate that does not take into account building site constraints or lots that cannot support any development at all.

Asked whether the county has or would study how many open lots in the Valley can actually support development, Lai responded, "That study should probably have been done when you did your community plan update."

One lot currently proposed for development is a Woodacre parcel remaining from the abandoned Skye Ranch subdivision, Lai said. Although the county Open Space District bought most of that property, the developers held onto six lots capable of supporting 12 new houses.

Because the Skye Ranch developers submitted a detailed environmental impact report for their proposed 135-house subdivision, the remainder parcels probably won't have to go through a repeat process, Lai said.

Should Valley residents want to control the amount of growth in their community, they should give the county authority to transfer development rights from one property to another in the text of their community plan, suggested Hinds.

With such permission, he said, the county could shift development away from sensitive properties - but probably could not export development over the hill. "It's real easy to find the places to send development from," Hinds said. "It's not so easy to find places to send them to."

Hinds, who's been at his post for six months, told the group he plans to make the planning process less torturous by giving applicants more information upfront about what to expect from Civic Center.

He added that he would like to make the Community Development Agency more "community-based" and more "sustainable," a term he conceded is "almost a cliché now."

Point Reyes Light Cover | News | Coastal Traveler