DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS AND PLANNING STEVEN E. WHITE, DIRECTOR AGENDA AGRICULTURAL LAND CONSERVATION COMMITTEE 1:00 p.m. 3:00 p.m. Fresno County Farm Bureau 1274 West Hedges Fresno, California 93728 CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL REGULAR AGENDA 1. Approve the May 3, 2017 Action Summary. 2. Review and make recommendation to the Board of Supervisors regarding PARTIAL CANCELLATION of AGRICULTURAL LAND CONSERVATION CONTRACT NO. 6456 (RLCC NO. 988). Contact person, Anthony Lee (559) 600-9613, email: anthonylee@co.fresno.ca.us 3. REVIEW AND DISCUSS recent and upcoming Board of Supervisors Agenda items regarding the Williamson Act program. Contact person, Mohammad Khorsand (559) 600-4022, email: mkhorsand@co.fresno.ca.us 4. PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS: (This portion of the meeting is reserved for persons desiring to address the Agricultural Land Conservation Committee on any matter within the Committee s jurisdiction and not on this Agenda.) 5. NEXT ALCC HEARING: May 2, 2018 6. ADJOURNMENT AL: G:\4360Devs&Pln\PLANNING\AG\Committee-LCC\2018 Agenda and Items\4-4-18\Agenda.doc DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND CAPITAL SERVICES DIVISION 2220 Tulare Street, Sixth Floor / Fresno, California 93721 / Phone (559) 600-4497 / 600-4022 / 600-4540 / FAX 600-4200 The County of Fresno is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS AND PLANNING STEVEN E. WHITE, DIRECTOR Agricultural Land Conservation Committee Staff Report Agenda Item No. 2 SUBJECT: LOCATION: Review and make a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors regarding a petition for PARTIAL CANCELLATION of AGRICULTURAL LAND CONSERVATION CONTRACT NO. 6456 (RLCC NO. 988), removing a 2.5-acre portion of a 19.87-acre parcel to create a separate parcel as a homesite. The subject parcel contains soils that are classified as Prime Farmland. Located on the north side of East Dinuba Avenue between South Crawford Avenue and South Porter Avenue approximately two miles north of the City of Dinuba (SUP. DIST. 4) (APN 373-300-04). Owner/Applicant Representative Gary and Ann Gipson Douglas Johnson STAFF CONTACT: Anthony Lee, Planner (559) 600-9613 Mohammad Khorsand, Senior Planner (559) 600-4022 RECOMMENDATION: Staff believes that the required Five (5)Findings under Government Code Section 51282(b) can be made, and therefore recommends that the Agricultural Land Conservation Committee (Committee) recommend that the Board of Supervisors approve the petition for partial cancellation of Agricultural Land Conservation Contract No. 6456, subject to the following conditions: 1. The landowner shall obtain the necessary land use approvals, including approval of a mapping application to create the 2.5-acre homesite parcel. 2. The Applicant shall pay the Cancellation Fee as determined by the County Assessor and certified by the Board of Supervisors for issuance of a Certificate of Cancellation by the Board. The Cancellation Fee shall be paid and a Certificate of Cancellation issued prior to recording of a parcel map to create the homesite parcel. DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND CAPITAL PROJECTS DIVISION 2220 Tulare Street, Sixth Floor / Fresno, California 93721 / Phone (559) 600-4497 / 600-4022 / 600-4540 / FAX 600-4200 The County of Fresno is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
ALCC Agenda Item No. 2 Page 2 of 5 BACKGROUND: The Agricultural Land Conservation Committee reviews petitions for cancellation of agricultural land conservation contracts for consistency with the purposes of the Williamson Act, pursuant to Section 51282(a) of the Government Code, and makes a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors to approve or deny the petition. The subject property is located on the north side of East Dinuba Avenue between South Crawford Avenue and South Porter Avenue approximately two miles north of the City of Dinuba (see Location Map Exhibit A, Zoning Map Exhibit B, Existing Land Use Map Exhibit C, and Aerial Map Exhibit D ). This petition was filed in conjunction with a Property Line Adjustment (PLA) Application to allow creation of a substandard stand-alone homesite parcel. DISCUSSION: The Williamson Act program is a voluntary program, whereby private landowners enter into contracts with local government for the purpose of restricting specific parcels of land to agricultural or qualified open space uses. In return, landowners receive property tax assessments which are lower than normal, because they are based upon farming and open space uses, as opposed to full-market value. The purpose of the Williamson Act is to provide an incentive for keeping the land in agriculture (at least for the duration of the Contract), which is typically ten (10) years. A Williamson Act Contract is an enforceable restriction, pursuant to Article 13, Section 8 of the California Constitution and 51252. Williamson Act Contracts are not intended to be cancelled, and, in fact, cancellation is reserved for unusual "emergency" situations. Therefore, the nineyear nonrenewal process has been identified as the legally-preferred method for terminating a Williamson Act Contract. The proposed petition is processed under the provisions of Government Code Section 51282(a), which allows the Board of Supervisors to grant tentative approval for cancellation of a contract if the Board can make one of the following findings: 1. That the Cancellation is consistent with the purposes of the Land Conservation Act (LCA) of 1965. 2. That the Cancellation is in the public interest. Per Government Code Section 51282(b), cancellation of a contract is consistent with the provisions of the LCA of 1965 if the Board can make all of the findings listed below: 1. That the cancellation is for land on which a Notice of Nonrenewal has been served, pursuant to Section 51245 of the Government Code. An executed Notice of Nonrenewal for ALCC No. 6456 was accepted by the County Recorder on September 11, 2017 and was assigned Document No. 2017-0114677. This Nonrenewal is for the 19.87-acre parcel known as APN 373-300-04, which includes the 2.5-acre portion subject to this petition. Removal of the 2.5-acre proposed homesite parcel leaves a balance of 17.37 acres. This acreage is below the minimum required
ALCC Agenda Item No. 2 Page 3 of 5 parcel size to be enrolled in the Williamson Act Program. The County s minimum parcel size for parcels with Prime soil is twenty acres. Based on the fact stated above, staff believes that Finding No. 1 can be made. 2. That the cancellation is not likely to result in the removal of adjacent lands from agricultural use. The subject 19.87-acre parcel contains soil that is classified as Prime Farmland on the California Department of Conservation s Important Farmland 2014 Map. The subject property was purchased in 1973 and has continuously been in agricultural production (vineyard). The Applicant proposes to cancel a 2.5-acre portion of the property to create a homesite parcel, to include an existing residence and related structures, that has been in ownership of the Applicants for over 30 years. The 17.37-acre balance of the property will be farmed at least for the duration that the land will remain under contract. Staff does not believe that removal of the 2.5-acre portion of the site from Contract restrictions will result in removal of adjacent land from agricultural uses; therefore, staff believes that Finding No. 2 can be made. 3. That the cancellation is for an alternate use that is consistent with the provisions of the County General Plan. The 19.87-acre parcel is designated for Agricultural use in the General Plan and is zoned AE-20 (Exclusive Agricultural, 20-acre minimum parcel size). The Agricultural and Land Use Element of the General Plan sets goals and policies promoting long-term conservation of productive agricultural lands. Policy LU-A.1 of the General Plan directs urban growth away from valuable agricultural lands to cities, unincorporated communities, and other areas planned for such development where public facilities and infrastructure are available or could be made available to accommodate the proposed development. Policy LU-A.6 states the County shall maintain twenty acres as the minimum permitted parcel size in areas designated as Agricultural. However, Policy LU-A.9 of the General Plan states the County may allow the creation of homesite parcels smaller than the 20-acre minimum parcel size, if the parcel involved in the division is at least twenty acres in size, subject to the following criteria: a. The minimum lot size shall be sixty thousand (60,000) square feet of gross area, except that a lesser area shall be permitted when the owner submits evidence satisfactory to the Health Officer that the soils meet the Water Quality Control Board Guidelines for liquid waste disposal, but in no event shall the lot be less than one (1) gross acre; and b. One of the following conditions exists: 1. A lot less than twenty (20) acres is required for financing construction of a residence to be owned and occupied by the owner of abutting property; or 2. The lot or lots to be created are intended for use by persons involved in the farming operation and related to the owner by adoption, blood, or marriage
ALCC Agenda Item No. 2 Page 4 of 5 within the second degree of consanguinity, there is only one (1) lot per related person, and there is no more than one (1) gift lot per twenty (20) acres; or 3. The present owner owned the property prior to the date these policies were implemented and wishes to retain his/her homesite and sell the remaining acreage for agricultural purposes. The subject property is located in the AE-20 (Exclusive Agricultural, 20-acre minimum parcel size) Zone District. The AE designation for the subject property took effect on August 31, 1976. As indicated in Finding No. 2, the 19.87-acre subject property was purchased in 1973 and has continuously been in agricultural production (vineyard) under the Applicant s ownership. The Applicant proposes to cancel a 2.5-acre portion of the subject property to create a separate homesite parcel to include the existing residence, and related structures, that was established on the subject property over 30 years ago. Based on the discussion above, staff believes the application is consistent with General Plan Policy LU-A.9 and therefore, Finding No. 3 can be made. 4. That the cancellation will not result in discontiguous patterns of urban development. The subject property and surrounding parcels are located in a rural area of the County, are designated as Agricultural and are zoned AE-20 (Exclusive Agricultural, 20-acre minimum parcel size). The surrounding parcels and the 17.37-acre balance of the subject parcel will continue to remain in agricultural use and the homesite will retain its existing residence as a separate 2.5-acre parcel. Based on these factors, the removal of the 2.5-acre portion of the subject 19.87-acre parcel will not result in discontinuous patterns of urban development. Based on the discussion above, staff believes that Finding No. 4 can be made. 5. That there is no proximate, non-contracted land which is both available and suitable for the use to which it is proposed that the contracted land be put, or that development of the contracted land would provide more contiguous patterns of urban development than development of proximate non-contracted land. County staff provided a map identifying similar size non-contracted parcels within a fivemile radius of the subject parcel and asked that the Applicant address why the identified non-contracted parcels could not be used for the proposed alternate use. The Applicant submitted information regarding the availability of those parcels identified by County staff. In addressing availability, the Applicants state that the property has been in their ownership for approximately 45 years and that they plan to continue farming the 17.37- acre balance of the subject parcel. As indicated in Finding No. 3, the Applicants propose a 2.5-acre homesite parcel on property that has been in their ownership for the past 45 years. This is consistent with Policy LU-A.9 of the General Plan which allows creation of homesite parcels smaller
ALCC Agenda Item No. 2 Page 5 of 5 than the minimum parcel size required by General Plan Policy LU-A.6 provided that the proposal meets certain criteria. Therefore, staff believes that Finding No. 5 can be made. OTHER REVIEWING AGENCIES: As of January 1, 2001, Government Code Section 51284.1(a) requires notification to be provided by the County to the Director of the State Department of Conservation (the Director) once a cancellation petition has been accepted as complete. Under Government Code Section 51284.1(c), the Director s comments, if provided, are required to be considered by the Board of Supervisors before acting on the proposed cancellation. The petition was forwarded to the Department of Conservation (Department) on December 12, 2017. Staff allows at least 30 days for the Department to provide comments. Staff has not received a response from the Department by the date the staff report was prepared. CONCLUSION: Based upon staff s analysis of the proposed alternate use against the consistency findings listed under Government Code 51282(b), staff believes all the findings can be made and therefore, recommends approval of partial cancellation of Agricultural Land Conservation Contract No. 6456 subject to the conditions listed on page one of the staff report. However, if the Committee believes that the required findings cannot be made, the Committee may recommend that the Board of Supervisors deny the cancellation of Agricultural Land Conservation Contract No. 6456. G:\4360Devs&Pln\PLANNING\AG\RLCC - Apps\Active Cancellation\RLCC 988 Gipson Pt CNX\ALCC\ALCC AI_2.docx
RLCC 988 LOCATION MAP BUTTONWILLOW PEDERSON RIO ALTA NAVELENCIA SUMNER WAKEFIELD SOUTH SUMNER SERNA KIME TWELFTH PARK G H Orange Cove I NINTH J PARLIER PORTER SHERIDAN HANSEN Orange Cove ORANGE PARLIER MANNING DUFF CHERRY Reedley OLSON TOBU ZUMWALT HUNTSMAN ENGLEHART PEDERSON SPRINGFIELD HUNTSMAN FRESNO COUNTY SPRINGFIELD CRAWFORD PORTER SUBJECT PROPERTY HILL MALCOLM MONSON DINUBA ANCHOR EXHIBIT A FLORAL FLORAL TULARE COUNTY µ Miles 0 0.225 0.45 0.9 1.35 1.8 Prepared by: County of Fresno Department of Public Works and Planning GJ
RLCC 988 STR 28-15/24 EXISTING ZONING MAP RIO PARLIER PORTER SHERIDAN HANSEN Orange Cove Orange Cove ENGLEHART AC MANNING M1 FRESNO COUNTY AC SPRINGFIELD CRAWFORD DINUBA PORTER SUBJECT PROPERTY EXHIBIT B MONSON PEDERSON ALTA HUNTSMAN HILL MALCOLM FLORAL Prepared by: County of Fresno Department of Public Works and Planning TULARE COUNTY µ FLORAL 0 875 1,750 3,500 5,250 7,000 GJ Feet
RLCC 988 EXISTING LAND USE MAP 155.2 SPRINGFIELD PORTER LEGEND FC - FIELD CROP - HARD SF#- SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENCE V - VACANT VIN - VINEYARD 39.21 28.62 CRAWFORD SUBJECT PARCEL FC 19.28 VIN SF2 17.37 155.2 15.81 2.5-ACRE PORTION SUBJECT TO THE CANCELLATION 23.7 LEGEND: Subject Property Ag Contract Land EXHIBIT C SF2 28.52 VIN 19.7 2.28 2.28 SF2 19.13 VIN 9.26 1.02FC 1.23 2.5 18.08 DINUBA 19.03 V μ 0 220 440 880 1,320 1,760 Feet Map Prepared by: GJ J:GISJCH\Landuse\ Department of Public Works and Planning Development Sevices Division
RLCC 988 AERIAL MAP 2.5-ACRE PORTION SUBJECT TO THE CANCELLATION SUBJECT PARCEL 17.37-ACRE REMAINDER EXHIBIT D