20 Most Frequently Asked Questions About GP 2006, The Monterey County General Plan

They are the same plan. GP 2006 is the title of the General Plan Update approved by the Board of Supervisors. GP 2006 is often referred to as GPU4 because it is the fourth version of the General Plan Update the County has worked on.

GP 2006 is the blueprint for the development of the unincorporated Inland area of Monterey County. It includes land use policies, land use designations, and Area Plans that address the unique aspects of different geographic regions of the County.

The General Plan process spanned 7 years and hundreds of public meetings. It is a public process but not everyone agrees on how to plan for the County’s future. The County General Plan represents a compromise among competing views. Some of the more controversial issues surrounding the GP 2006 are 1) How changes are made to the General Plan; 2) The amount of growth; 3) Where growth will be located and 4) The timing of infrastructure improvements.

The Board of Supervisors can amend the general plan up to four times per year. This usually involves a special project, such as the East Garrison Village project at the old Fort Ord. A comprehensive change in a General Plan is called an update, which is going on right now. This usually happens at 20-year intervals and requires extensive public and environmental review.

5. Why wasn’t the coastal area of the County included in the General Plan update?

Monterey County is divided into two planning areas – the Inland area, which is fully under the jurisdiction of the Board of Supervisors and the Coastal Zone over which the California Coastal Commission also has jurisdiction. Because of the unique policies governing coastal development, the update of the County’s Local Coastal Program was deferred until after GP 2006 was adopted. It is anticipated that the update of the Coastal Area Plans will begin in the near future.

Webster’s Dictionary defines sprawl as haphazard growth. Sprawl is often illustrated by images from communities like Los Angeles and San Jose. Monterey County is protected from sprawl in many ways. For instance, GP 2006 focuses growth in existing population areas. In addition, much of the important farmland in South Monterey County is protected from development by the Williamson Act, which restricts specific parcels of land to agricultural or related open space use.

Of the Important Farmlands in Monterey County today, 2% or 5497 acres, is projected to be converted to urban use over the next quarter century. Since 5 out of every 6 new residents is projected to live in a city, the County will work with the cities and the Local Agency Formation Commission to advocate for orderly growth.

The Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments (AMBAG) projects growth in the unincorporated areas to be 35,000 from year 2000 to 2030. AMBAG projects Monterey County cities to grow by 166,000 residents during the same time period. GP 2006 accommodates for growth based on these figures.

State law requires that each city have a General Plan that accommodates its projected growth. Plans for further growth in cities are decisions that rest with the cities and their elected leadership.

Almost 9 out of every 10 new residents in unincorporated areas will live in residential communities called Community Areas or Rural Centers.

The GP 2006 designates seven areas, called Community Areas, for future concentrated growth. Five of the Community Areas are existing residential communities with their own unique identity. These are Castroville, Boronda, Pajaro, Chualar, and San Lucas. The sixth is Fort Ord. The seventh is Rancho San Juan, which is limited to a single, 671-acre development called Butterfly Village. GP 2006 contains rules about how these communities can develop and requires funding of basic services and needed infrastructure

Nine areas have been designated as Rural Centers. They are areas where communities already exist, can accommodate small amounts of additional growth and keep their rural character. In the northern half of the County the Rural Centers include Prunedale, River Road, San Benancio/Corral de Tierra, and Toro Park. In the southern half of the County the Rural Centers include San Ardo, Pine Canyon, Bradley, Lockwood, and Pleyto.

GP 2006 allows development outside of Community Areas and Rural Centers only if it promotes more affordable housing. A major residential subdivision proposed outside of a Community Area or a Rural Center may be considered only if at least 50% of the homes are “affordable”. Some development on lots of record is also allowed. (See next question).

A lot of record is an existing legal parcel. Under the County General Plan, the owner of the parcel has a right to build one single family home if it has a residential or agricultural land use designation, subject to satisfying all applicable building and local codes. There are approximately 6100 lots of record where a dwelling unit does not exist in the unincorporated area of Monterey County. Of this total 3500 parcels lie within the Inland area, and 2600 lie within the Coastal Zone.

The State requires that Monterey County create 2511 affordable housing units by 2008, and traditionally sets targets for communities every 5 years. Under GP 2006, Monterey County will be able to meet that target plus additional requirements that are expected over the next 20 years.

Yes. GP 2006 requires all types of residential projects to provide for affordable dwelling units:

*Within a Community Area, 20% of the units must be within the price range of families making less than 120% of the average county income – referred to as inclusionary housing.

*Within a Rural Center development may only occur if it promotes affordable housing and 25% of the units must be inclusionary and another 10% of the units must be workforce housing, which means it must be affordable to families with incomes from 120% to 180% of the average county income.

*In developments outside of Community Areas and Rural Centers the percentage of affordable housing increases to 30% inclusionary housing and 20% workforce housing. In other words ½ of these units must be within reach of families who would otherwise not be able to afford the average priced home.

County ordinance requires that inclusionary housing be deed restricted as permanently affordably in perpetuity.

GP 2006 anticipates the creation of a minimum of 12,000 new jobs and has land set aside for new commercial and industrial uses. AMBAG forecasts the need for nearly 17,000 new jobs for the residents living in unincorporated areas of the County. It is likely that the workplace of many residents living in unincorporated areas will be in one of the 12 cities.

The Agricultural Wine Corridor Plan is an important part of the 2006 General Plan. It will improve capacity to process grapes here in Monterey County and increase the economic viability of The County’s wine industry. Currently, a large percentage of grapes grown locally are trucked outside the County to be made into wine. This Corridor Plan provides for the streamlining of permits for up to 40 small wineries within an area from Route 68 to the San Luis Obispo County line, which is home to many of Monterey County’s existing vineyards

The General Plan identifies a number of routine and ongoing agricultural operations such as planting, harvesting, raising livestock and property maintenance that are appropriate for less regulation or more streamlined permitting. The General Plan also requires that projects that convert Important Farmland to urban uses must in exchange create permanent conservation areas or provide funds to enhance existing agricultural productivity. This would be required of the cities as well.

There are approximately one-quarter million acres of Important Farmland in Monterey County. GP 2006 limits conversion to less than 2% of this total through the year 2030 to accommodate future growth.

Improvements to roads, sewers, storm drains and water supply must be constructed as part of new developments. Roadway improvements outside of the boundaries of the development must be constructed concurrently or through a fair share development fee toward the total cost of the improvement. New developments are required to have an adequate and permanent long-term water supply and to fund their fair share of public safety services.

As the population grows, so will the volume of traffic regardless of where the growth occurs. To reduce congestion, the General Plan commits the County to develop traffic impact fees to address impacts of development.

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For additional information or questions on GP 2006 contact:
Carl Holm  (831-755-5103) or
Alana Knaster (831-755-5322)

The following are some of the key documents pertaining to the GPU:

• The 2006 General Plan

• The EIR for the 2006 General Plan (consists of 3 documents):

  • Draft Program EIR for GPU (Large 65 Mg file. May not be viewable for those with a slow internet connection)

  • EIR Response to Comments (1.5 mg file)

  • EIR Errata dated 12/28/2006

• Summarization of Related Information, such as background data on population growth, housing needs, traffic projections and more

Please visit our main GPU page in our site for a complete listing of all documentation relating to the General Plan Update.