Residents Defending Granite Bay

RDGB Residents Defending Granite Bay
Mission Statement . . . . To promote sensible growth and preserve our rural residential lifestyle. A Letter from the President of RDGB . . . . . Dear Neighbors, The Residents Defending Granite Bay has changed its name to Save Granite Bay (this website will soon be updated to reflect that). Save Granite Bay is focusing on two local and countywide efforts that threaten our safety and way of life. The county is proposing an amendment to the Housing Element of the General Plan to strategically place emergency, residential and transitional housing in each supervisory district to be in compliance with state law. This means specific parcels of land may be rezoned near Auburn-Folsom Road and Douglas Boulevard and Sierra College and Eureka. If approved, felons including pedophiles and individuals with severe mental disorders will be housed in our community. This is especially of concern since the Granite Bay Sheriff Substation was closed last year for lack of funds and the Sheriff’s Department is projecting further cuts in personnel in 2010. The Granite Bay Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) approved zoning with restrictions; there must be a 1000 feet clearance between schools/parks and transitional and residential housing and residents must be actively enrolled and participating in a rehabilitation program. The Granite Bay MAC has only 1/14 say in what ultimately is decided; there are 14 MACS in the county and the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors have final decision-making. Save Granite Bay will conduct community outreach to inform residents of such a plan, track the amendment as it makes its way through the county process and make sure the restrictions recommended by the MAC are upheld. Supervisor Kirk Uhler is on a mission to change the face of Granite Bay to the liking of land developers that fund his political campaigns by “updating” the Granite Bay Community Plan. The results of the community survey will be reported at the March Granite Bay Municipal Advisory Committee Meeting. Save Granite Bay plans to obtain the results of the surveys and conduct an independent review. Save Granite Bay plans to make sure the county establishes land use criteria acceptable to the community and that any and all land use request are consistent and conform to the criteria. There are forty land use requests pending and if approved they will drastically alter the rural, residential lifestyle that attracted all of us to the area. We are at a critical point and it is imperative that you get involved now. We must gain control over the pending decisions that affect our community. Our immediate needs are the following: Volunteer to be part of a team to analyze results before the next MAC Volunteer to videotape MAC meetings Volunteer to post the video on YouTube Volunteer to put Save Granite Bay on Facebook Those wishing to volunteer should contact Marlene George ASAP. There will be a monthly meeting of Save Granite Bay before the MAC the first Wed of each month from 5:30 to 6:50 PM. The meeting place will be announced at about week before the March MAC meeting (watch this web site and your email in-box). Pedophile Housing in Granite Bay? While the Granite Bay Community Plan is RDGB's highest priority, something else important has come up. The following letter from one of our members explains it well. I attended my first Granite Bay MAC meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 6. One agenda item discussed was quite alarming to me: emergency, transitional and supportive housing in Granite Bay. The discussion concerned “expanding proposed uses into addition zoning designations.” While Jennifer Dzakowic, senior planner, cautiously confined terms to “emergency, transitional and supportive housing” according to “service providers,” what came out in the meeting was how this translates into housing for pedophiles, parolees, homeless and other groups. Ms. Dzakowic would not specifically name the types of people but did not dispute the discussion when it turned to which groups were in question. Dr. Gloria Freeman, MAC board member was utterly fatalistic about the proposal and argued how it’s inevitable since the state of California cannot build enough prisons. Supervisor Kirk Uhler abstained from the discussion and was completely silent. This is part of the Placer County General Plan, which was voted on about a year ago. I live very near the proposed area and while I no longer have a small child at home, I can see from my window many children who walk along Douglas Boulevard everyday. I hope the residents of Granite Bay become aware of this proposal and contact Supervisor Uhler with their concerns. Christine Erickson, Granite Bay The possible placement of transitional housing in Granite Bay has been in the works for more than a year and our supervisor has not mentioned word one about it on his website, in his emails to the community, or in his monthly presentations to the Municipal Advisory Council. Why has he been hiding this? Beyond that, "downtown" granite bay (where Douglas Blvd and Auburn-Folsom cross) where this housing is apparently being considered offers no public transportation, no economical shopping, no park, no nearby police station, etc. and is one block from a sizeable Junior High School. Sure, no one wants this next door, but there are some places where it just makes no sense. See more information on the Placer County website here. Developer Forges Ahead ....... At least one developer apparently thinks the Granite Bay Community Plan Update indicates a developer-friendly environment and is forging ahead with a major re-zone. Or, looking at it another way, if his project is approved, that may foretell a bad outcome of the Community Plan Update for Granite Bay Residents. The project involves a request to rezone a parcel of land on Olive Ranch Road (near Cavitt Stallman). The re-zone will add 40 homes to the existing zoning for a total of 89 homes instead of 49 homes. This property was already re-zoned to a higher density about 20 years ago and is effectively double-dipping. Information on the project is available on the Placer County website here. RDGB Membership Drive ....... RDGB is trying to expand its email list. We would like to reach a larger share of Granite Bay Households. If you have friends or neighbors that might have an interest in maintaining our quality of life, please provide us with their email addresses. We would also like to reach the officers of Home Owners Associations in hopes they will forward our messages. Please send us email addresses via an email. What's Up With Supervisor Uhler? . . . . The “transitional housing” that has been proposed for “downtown” Granite Bay is apparently supported by our Supervisor with no input from the community. At least he has not spoken to the issue or advised us on what is happening. Likewise he is supporting the Community Plan Update with only token comments that do not ring true (see table below). You can call supervisor Uhler on this or other issues …... his office phone is 916-787-8950 and his home phone is 916-652-5005 (yes, in an editorial in the Press Tribune he invited calls to his home). Time for a recall? See www.savegrantebay.com MAC Meetings Are Important . . . . The MAC no longer listens to the community, and things going on at the County are not always presented in a complete and timely fashion. Indeed, the MAC member with the greatest disdain for his neighbors is now the Chairman. Nonetheless, the MAC is our only public link to our Supervisor and the County staff and so is important. The next MAC meeting is Feb. 3, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. at the Eureka Union School District Office (5455 Eureka Road). Please attend if you can. Our collection of Uher quotes and our response:
Uhler Says:	The Truth is:
I do not support more commercial development on Douglas Blvd	The Developers have requested many Douglas Blvd re-zones and they are being entertained by County Staff (Uhler has done and said nothing to halt or resist this process)
I support reducing the Granite Bay build-out cap from 29,000 to 23,000	Planning Director Michael Johnson says “that's not possible”
“I am against spot zoning”	He orchestrated the first ever spot re-zone in Granite Bay, converting 700' of Douglas Frontage from 300' scenic setback to commercial (just west of Lake Center). Indeed, many of the proposed Community Plan changes are “spot” rezones.
“The Board of Supervisors made me do it”	In reality he had to sell the idea to the BOS. See the BOS meeting video here xxxx
“The State Requires the Update, the state is going to sue us, see this letter”	The letter says five of eight Community Plan elements must be reviewed each 8 years. In reality just one needs to be reviewed to be in conformance
Find an overview and Update history here. RDGB's take on the reasons for the Update here. Read the Granite Bay Community Plan here. See the County's website on the Update here. Join RDGB: Send an email. Tell your neighbors! The six month public input period has ended, but you can now voice your opinion on the Update at MAC meetings. MAC Comment on the Update on our blog: Blog Register your concern at this Supervisor recall website. Tell the Board of Supervisors what you think here. See your Supervisor at work here (in dark suit).		UPDATE MAP DETAILS
		Granite Bay group opposes proposed dear hunt in Granite Bay See the Group's Website Here
		FLASH: Read the letter from RDGB's Chair published in the Press Tribune on 4-28-2009. It is a response to Supervisor Uhler's recent Press Tribune editorial on why the Update is needed. See the letter here.
		FLASH: Read RDGB's exhaustive investigation into the dealings between Solar Power Inc. and Placer County. Two Supervisors have financial or personal interest in Solar Power Inc and apparent conflict of interest. See the Report here.