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Development Services Department, Planning Services Division, recommending the Board:
1) Receive and file the annual report for Fiscal Year 2010-2011 on the Oak Woodlands Management Plan (OWMP); and
2) Retain the fee amount as presently set, with the intention to review and update the fee, if necessary, after the conclusion of the currently pending litigation.
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Background: On May 6, 2008, the Board adopted the Oak Woodland Management Plan (OWMP) implementing the mitigation fee option, identified as Option B, in General Plan Policy 7.4.4.4 (Legistar 07-1022). The implementing ordinance (Ordinance 4771, codified as County Code Chapter 17.73) came into effect on July 7, 2008. A provision in the OWMP requires an annual report to the Board of Supervisors, with the first fee adjustment study occurring at least 12 months after adoption of the OWMP, and every March thereafter. This is the third annual report.
Section 17.73.090 of County Code states, The Board of Supervisors shall annually review the success of the conservation fund in-lieu fee program with regard to the ability to acquire conservation easements on oak woodland habitat, the costs of management and maintenance of oak woodlands, and the amount of the fee.
Through June 2011, the County received a total of $102,237 for oak canopy mitigation (Attachment A). The mitigation fund balance is currently $102,905, including interest generated by the account. No funds have been expended as of this date.
The total canopy removed last year was 5.13 acres (Attachment B), including about 0.2 acre for the capital improvement project on Durock Road. One project chose to partially mitigate the impacts utilizing Option A in the amount of 0.7 acre of replanting. The amount of tree loss due to development was 4.95 acres.
At this time the fund has accumulated $102,905 to mitigate for the loss of 18.5 acres of oak canopy removal (approximately $5,500 per acre). This amount seems reasonable because rural land cou...
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