CORRESPONDENCE - #37 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Page 2 of 2 how the City could effectively increase parkland including raising its parkland standard to 3 acres per 1,000 residents, which is recommended for a City the size of Santa Ana, and a No-Net-Loss of Open Space Policy that would ensure that any open space land lost to development that is not 100% affordable, would be replaced at a 1-to-1 ratio. The October 6th letter is included with this letter. One important thing to note is that the October 6th letter provides an inaccurate figure for the City's current and projected parkland deficit. The City revised the City's current and projected parkland deficit figures after the letter was sent. The October 6th letter also provided policy language for a No-Net-Loss of Open Space Policy ("the Policy") that would not only help preserve the City's existing parkland, but actually create more parkland through the preservation and repurposing of the City's current open space land. By the City's own admission at the Planning Commission meetings on September 13, 2021 and November 8, 2021, the City's parkland is so acute that it feels there is no way of increasing the supply of parkland to a proper level. This is true if the City only uses its existing parkland to address its parkland deficit as the City currently proposes to do in the General Plan. However, the Policy language the Coalition provided proposes that open space, not just parkland, is preserved so that it can be repurposed as publicly accessible parkland. This open space land includes properties like the Willowick Golf Course. The Policy the Coalition proposes is a viable solution for addressing the City's park deficit. Other Environmental Justice Concerns In addition to concerns over the General Plan not addressing the City's current and future parkland deficit, the Coalition would also like to acknowledge that there are other EJ issues the City's General Plan does not adequately address. Community groups like Orange County Environmental Justice, Madison Park Neighborhood Association, Santa Ana Active Transportation, the Kennedy Commission, and Thrive Santa Ana have raised concerns over the fact that the General Plan policies will not solve issues over air quality, lead contamination of soil, mobility, and the intensification of development in the City's proposed 5 Focus Areas that will likely facilitate the displacement of current residents. The City claims it has done extensive community outreach over the last year. While there were multiple EJ forums and an EJ survey where residents and community groups raised the concerns mentioned in this letter, the City's General Plan does not fully, or even majorly, address them. The Coalition believes that true community engagement is not just about how many opportunities for community input the City hosts, but a true effort to address the input residents provide. For all the reasons stated in this letter we ask that the Council not adopt the General Plan being proposed tonight and instead direct Staff to work with residents and community groups to develop policies that actually address community needs, including the No-Net-Loss of Open Space Policy. Please contact Cynthia Guerra at cguerra@riseupwillowick.org if you have any questions. Sincerely, The Rise Up Willowick Coalition