FINAL Prepared For: William S. Hart Union High School District 21380 Centre Point Parkway Santa Clarita, CA 91350 Castaic High School Supplemental Environmental Impact Report SCH No. 2004031110 860 Hampshire Road, Suite P Westlake Village, CA 91361 (805) 367-5720 FAX (805) 367-5733 JULY 2014 Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Report Castaic High School (SCH No. 2004031110) Prepared for: William S. Hart Union High School District 21380 Centre Point Parkway Santa Clarita, California 91350 Prepared by: Meridian Consultants LLC 860 Hampshire Road, Suite P Westlake Village, California 91361 July 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page Volume I – Final Supplemental EIR 1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1.0-1 2.0 Response to Comments ............................................................................................................. 2.0-1 3.0 Correction and Additions to the Draft EIR ................................................................................. 3.0-1 Volume II – Revised Draft Supplemental EIR Appendices Appendix 1.0 Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program A disc containing both the Final Supplemental EIR and revised Draft Supplemental EIR is attached on the inside back cover. Meridian Consultants i Castaic High School Supplemental EIR 029-001-13 July 2014 1.0 INTRODUCTION This Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Report (EIR) has been prepared by the William S. Hart Union (District) to evaluate modifications to the previously approved Castaic High School Project (referred to herein as the “Approved Project”). The Approved Project consists of the 198-acre “School Site,” which includes the 58-acre site for development of the high school campus. In addition, the Approved Project provides for the grading and construction of other facilities on the School Site (such as water tanks, helipad, debris basins, and perimeter road), and grading and construction of access roads. The District’s Governing Board (“Board”) certified the Castaic High School Final EIR (referred to herein as the “certified EIR”; State Clearinghouse No. 2004031110) on October 17, 2012. This Supplemental EIR evaluates modifications to the Approved Project to determine whether they would result in new or substantially more severe significant environmental impacts as compared with the impacts disclosed in the previously certified EIR. As presented in the previously certified EIR, the Approved Project consists of the School Site, which includes a 58-acre campus for a comprehensive high school with approximately 250,000 square feet of building area, including several classroom buildings, a library, a performing arts building, a multipurpose building, a physical education building with gymnasium, and an administrative building. Athletic facilities would include a 5,000-seat football/soccer stadium with a running track, tennis courts, basketball courts, baseball and softball fields, and other play fields. The stadium and other fields would have nighttime lighting for evening sports events. The Approved Project proposes 868 parking spaces at the School Site. As such, as Lead Agency, the District determined that as a result of new information and changes in the Approved Project’s conditions, a Supplemental EIR would be required to determine whether the Approved Project, as modified, would result in new significant impacts, or if identified significant impacts as disclosed in the previously verified EIR would be reduced or eliminated. The District is acting as Lead Agency for the environmental review of this Project pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (California Public Resources Code, Section 21000 et seq.) and in accordance with the Guidelines for the Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act (California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Section 15000 et seq.) because the District has the principal responsibility for approving changes to the Approved Project. The District, as the Lead Agency for this proposal, is required by State CEQA Guidelines Section 15089 to prepare a Final Supplemental EIR. The Final Supplemental EIR will be used by the District as part of its Meridian Consultants 1.0-1 Castaic High School Supplemental EIR 029-001-13 July 2014 1.0 Introduction decision-making process, including determining appropriate conditions for changes to the Approved Project and incorporating measures into the Approved Project to mitigate significant environmental impacts. The following documents were utilized during preparation of this Supplemental EIR and are incorporated into this document by reference. These documents are available for review at the William S. Hart Union High School District, 21515 Center Point Parkway, Santa Clarita, California, 91350. • Final Environmental Impact Report for the Castaic High School, SCH No. 2004031110, prepared for the William S. Hart Union High School District, October 2012 • Findings of Fact and Statement of Overriding Considerations, Castaic High School • Mitigation Monitoring Program for Castaic High School, prepared for the William S. Hart Union High School District, October 2012 • Addendum to the Castaic High School Final Environmental Impact Report, approved and adopted July 17, 2013 As discussed in the previously certified EIR, the Approved Project was determined to have no impact or less than a significant impact with regard to the following environmental topics: • Agricultural Resources • Greenhouse Gas Emissions • Hydrology and Water Quality • Land Use and Planning • Population and Housing • Public Services • Recreation • Utilities and Service Systems The previously certified EIR established that, with mitigation incorporated, the Approved Project would result in less-than-significant impacts related to the following environmental impact areas: • Biological Resources • Cultural Resources Meridian Consultants 1.0-2 Castaic High School Supplemental EIR 029-001-13 July 2014 1.0 Introduction • Geology and Soils The previously certified EIR established that the Approved Project would result in significant and unavoidable impacts with regard to the following environmental impact areas: • Aesthetics • Air Quality • Noise • Transportation and Traffic CEQA requires a comparative evaluation of a project and alternatives to the project, including the “No Project” alternative. The previously certified EIR addressed a reasonable range of alternatives for the Approved Project. There is no new information indicating that an alternative that was previously rejected as infeasible is in fact feasible, or that a considerably different alternative than those previously studied would substantially reduce one or more significant effects on the environment. This Supplemental EIR evaluates whether the Approved Project, as modified, would result in new or substantially more severe significant environmental impacts compared to the impacts disclosed in the previously certified EIR, or if identified significant impacts as disclosed in the previously certified EIR would be reduced or eliminated. Based on the modifications to the Approved Project, the District determined this Supplemental EIR should assess the following environmental topics, which are affected by the changes: • Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Emissions • Biological Resources • Geology and Soils • Hydrology and Water Quality Meridian Consultants 1.0-2 Castaic High School Supplemental EIR 029-001-13 July 2014 1.0 Introduction 1.1 SUMMARY OF THE REVIEW PROCESS The District released the Draft Supplemental EIR for a 45-day public review period beginning April 4, 2014, and ending on May 19, 2014. This Notice of Availability of the Draft Supplemental EIR for review was available to the general public for review at the following locations: • William S. Hart Union High School District, 21380 Centre Pointe Parkway, Santa Clarita, CA 91350 • Valencia Public Library, 23743 West Valencia Blvd., Valencia, CA 91355 • Castaic Public Library, 27971 Sloan Canyon Road, Castaic, CA 91384 • Stevenson Ranch Express Library, 26233 West Faulkner Drive, Stevenson Ranch, CA 91381 • Sloan Canyon Christian Academy, 28355 Sloan Canyon Road, Castaic, CA 91384 Following the completion of the review period for the Draft Supplemental EIR, the District prepared this Final Supplemental EIR as required by Section 15089 of the State CEQA Guidelines. The Final Supplemental EIR consists of comments received by the District during the 45-day public comment period, responses to those comments, and the January 2014 Draft Supplemental EIR, which has been updated to reflect new information, corrections, and changes based on the comments received (Volume II). Note that this Final Supplemental EIR incorporates the revised Draft Supplemental EIR by reference, and a disc containing the revised Draft Supplemental EIR is attached to this Final Supplemental EIR on the inside back cover. As required by the State CEQA Guidelines Section 15088(b), the District has provided copies of this Final Supplemental EIR to each public agency that submitted comments on the Draft Supplemental EIR. The Final Supplemental EIR and revised Draft Supplemental EIR are also available for review at the following location: William S. Hart High School District 21380 Centre Pointe Parkway Santa Clarita, California 91350 In addition, the Final Supplemental EIR and Draft Supplemental EIR are available on the District’s website at www.hartdistrict.org/castaic. Meridian Consultants 1.0-2