Santa Monica Mountains North Area Plan and Community Standards District Update
Project Specifications
Client: County of Los Angeles Department of Regional Planning
Location: Los Angeles County
Services: Environmental Review & Permitting, Biological Resources, Public Participation & Involvement, Client Support, Geospatial Sciences & Data Analysis
Under contract with the County of Los Angeles Department of Regional Planning, Aspen supported the County with the preparation of a biological assessment, noise technical study, and Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the County’s update to the Santa Monica Mountains North Area Plan (NAP) and Community Standards District (CSD). The Santa Monica Mountains North Area includes 33 square miles of unincorporated Los Angeles County lands from the 101 freeway corridor south to the Coastal Zone boundary. The North Area includes a mix of land uses – urbanized areas, rural residential, ranches, vineyards, and open space as well as California State Park lands and portions of the Santa Monica Mountains Recreational Area administered by the National Park Service. The NAP and CSD will serve as the basis for streamlining and facilitating future development in the Santa Monica Mountains North Area.
Aspen prepared a detailed biological assessment documenting plants and wildlife in the North Area and presented a tiered habitat ranking system and sensitivity indicators to assist with identifying protection levels for sensitive species. The County used the Information from the biological assessment to develop resource protection policies in the NAP and development standards in the CSD for the protection of biological and recreational resources. Aspen participated in three community meetings with the County held at the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District to address the approach to managing sensitive resources in the North Area and to provide preliminary findings of the biological assessment. In addition, Aspen prepared a noise technical study; the County used this study to develop noise thresholds for the CSD. The report was prepared in coordination with the County of Los Angeles Public Health Department. The study included previous noise measurements collected by County Public Health at/near event venues as well as multiple afternoon/evening noise measurements collected by Aspen.
Aspen supported the County with the conduct of a scoping meeting for the project EIR, which was held at the Los Angeles County Field Office in Calabasas. The scoping process was documented in a scoping summary and included in the EIR as an appendix; during scoping, 89 comment letters were received and 25 members of the public provided oral comments during the scoping meeting. A summary of the scoping comments was provided to the technical authors for consideration in preparing the EIR technical sections. (County prepared summary, Aspen prepared the scoping appendix for the EIR.)
Aspen prepared a Draft EIR that evaluated the impacts of implementing the updated policies in NAP and updated development standards in the CSD. The EIR evaluated 14 environmental issue areas. Wildfire was a key issue in the evaluation because of the destruction caused by the 2018 Woolsey fire. Other key issues included noise and traffic from event venues, protection of wildlife resources and trees, management of equestrian uses, and controlled growth. The NAP and CSD included updated policies and standards to address the concerns identified by North Area residents and resource agencies. Aspen supported the County with the public meeting before the Regional Planning Commission; Aspen presented the findings of the EIR and responded to comments from the commission. During the Draft EIR comment period, 87 written comment letters were received from agencies and the public as well as oral comments received during the public meeting. Aspen prepared a Final EIR that included the response to comments, changes to the Draft EIR, and the mitigation and monitoring plan (response document). Aspen supported the County at the decision hearings before the Regional Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors. The County Board certified the EIR and approved the NAP-CSD.