Managing the Agricultural/Urban Interface 2011 CALAFCO Annual Conference Thursday, September 1, :45 AM – 12:15 PM 1 Jon Edney, Moderator Commissioner, Imperial LAFCo Elisa Carvalho, Presenter Interim Executive Officer Yolo LAFCo Marc Roberts, Presenter Community Development Director, City of Livermore Jurg Heuberger, Presenter Executive Officer Yolo LAFCo Planning Director, County of Imperial (Retired)

Managing the Agricultural/Urban Interface Exploring the challenges and opportunities in facilitating orderly urban growth while protecting open space and agricultural resources. Challenges in Managing an Interface Growth pressures (continued population increases) Economic pressures (greenfield development brings in more $$$) Politics (different councils/boards bring different philosophies) Williamson Act Contracts (going, going, gone?) Opportunities in Managing an Interface Planning tools (spheres, zoning, ordinances (numerical caps)) Ballot tools (urban growth boundaries) Increasing public interest in conservation IdealIncreasing Reality Urban Agriculture Open Space Urban Agriculture Open Space 2

Managing the Agricultural/Urban Interface Important Context: Part One…The Big Picture Not All Lands Are Equal Effectively managing the interface is a real challenge for all California counties as urban development continues to encroach on the state’s “important farmland” as defined by the California Department of Conservation (CDC) to include (a) prime farmland, (b) farmland of statewide importance, (c) unique farmland, and (d) farmland of local importance. Trending Dangerously Since it began preparing biennial reports in 1984, CDC calculates more than 1.3 million acres of important farmland in California has been converted for non- agricultural uses with four-fifths (1.0 million) becoming urbanized. The rate of important farmland losses in California since 1984 represents one square mile every four days, resulting in an area larger in size than Merced County. On the affirmative side, the rate of important farmland losses in California since 2000 (i.e. the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Act) has declined to one square mile every 13 days, equaling an area the size of San Francisco City/County. Don’t get too comfortable because if the current trend continues all of California’s important farmland will be entirely lost by the year

Managing the Agricultural/Urban Interface Important Context: Part Two… The Local Picture Population Growth and Agricultural Land Losses are Explicitly Tied The 10 most populous counties in California have collectively lost 133,115 acres of important farmland since This amount, equally the size of Napa County, represents 91% of the total important farmland loss in California during the period. 4

Managing the Agricultural/Urban Interface Now on to the Presentations… Exploring different approaches in “balancing” agricultural and urban uses through three distinct viewpoints: (a) LAFCo, (b) city, and (c) county.  Elisa Carvalho Interim Executive Officer, Yolo LAFCo  Marc Roberts Community Development Director, City of Livermore  Jurg Heuberger Executive Officer, Imperial LAFCo Planning Director, County of Imperial (Retired) 5