CORRESPONDENCE - Closed Session #3

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January 18, 2022 Mayor Sarmiento, City Council Members, and Planning Department City of Santa Ana 20 Civic Center Plaza Santa Ana, CA 92701 RE: Item- 32 The City of Santa Ana's General Plan Update and Closed Session Item 3- Willowick Property Negotiations Dear Mayor Sarmiento and City Council Members, and Planning Department, The Rise Up Willowick Coalition ("Coalition") asks the Council not to adopt the proposed draft General Plan at tonight's City Council meeting. The proposed General Plan lacks the policies necessary to address the environmental justice ("EX) concerns and needs residents and community groups have consistently named throughout the General Plan update process. We ask that the Council delay the adoption of the plan and direct City staff to work with residents and community groups to develop and implement more effective policies. Unaddressed EJ Concerns The City is mandated to incorporate EJ principles into their General Plan update as required by SB 1000, a legislation intended to rectify the compounding effects of environmental injustice in communities disproportionately affected by this issue. SB1000 calls "a low-income area that is disproportionately affected by environmental pollution and other hazards that can lead to negative health effects, exposure, or environmental degradation"' a disadvantaged community ("DAC"). The CalEnviroScreen 4.0 mapping tool identifies nearly half of Santa Ana as DACs.2 One of the EJ concerns the proposed General Plan policies fail to address is Santa Ana residents' lack of access to parks and recreation. The General Plan fails to provide policies that will improve the City's deep park deficit. The City has not met the parkland standard in its Municipal Code which requires a ratio of 2 acres of parkland per every 1,000 residents. The current parkland deficit is 154.44 acres, which means that for every 1,000 residents there are only 1.54 acres of parkland.' In the City's Recirculated Draft Program Environmental Impact Report for the General Plan, that deficit is projected to increase to 346.41 acres by the year 2045 based on the development and population increases the City anticipates the General Plan's proposed policies will facilitate, or to 1.20 acres per every 1,000 residents.4 ' Government Code Section 65302.httr)s://Ieainfo.leaislature.ca.aov/faces/biIlTextClient.xhtmI?bill id=201520160SB1000 2 CalEnviroScreen 4.0.California Office of Environmental Health and Hazard Assessment. October 2021. https://oehha.ca.aov/ca lenviroscreen/report/ca lenviroscreen-30 3 Final Recirculated Draft Program Environmental Impact Report,Table 5.15 4, October,2021,p.5.15-28, httr)s://www.santa-ana.ora/sites/default/files/r)b/general-plan/NovPEIR2021/Volume%202/Ch 05-15 REC.pdf. °Ibid. 1