Rivieras Area Plan Prepared by the Lake County Community Development Department With the assistance of the Rivieras Area Planning Advisory Committee Adopted January 9, 2007 Rivieras Area Plan RIVIERAS AREA PLAN Table of Contents 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1-1 2.0 INTRODUCTION 2.1 The Planning Process 2-1 The Function of an Area Plan Purpose Focus Organization Methodology 2-5 Plan Preparation Citizen Participation Process Relationship to Other Plans 2-6 2.2 Orientation to the Rivieras Area 2-8 Climate County Geography Planning Area Geography 2.3 History and Development 2-9 Present Future 3.0 NATURAL RESOURCES 3.1 Land 3-1 Planning Area Geology and Soils 3-1 3.2 Water 3-3 Ground Water 3-4 Surface Water 3-5 Clear Lake Thurston Creek and Thurston Lake Water-Induced Erosion 3-7 Water Reclamation 3-8 3.3 Vegetation and Wildlife 3-11 Vegetation 3-11 Oak Woodlands 3-11 Mount Konocti 3-13 Thurston Creek 3-14 Black Forest 3-14 Riparian Vegetation 3-15 Rare, Threatened and Endangered Plants 3-17 Rivieras Area Plan Wildlife 3-22 Rare, Threatened and Endangered Species 3-22 3.4 Resources 3-26 Development Agriculture 3-26 Buffer Zones 3-29 Mineral and Aggregate Resources 3-31 Geothermal Resources 3-33 Conservation Cultural and Historical Resources 3-34 Scenic Views 3-36 4.0 PUBLIC SAFETY 4-1 4.1 Land 4-1 Slope Instability 4-1 Expansive Soils 4-3 Liquefaction 4-5 Volcanism 4-5 Seismic Activity 4-5 4.2 Water 4-7 4.3 Wildfire 4-10 4.4 Air Quality 4-14 5.0 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT 5-1 5.1 Economy 5-1 5.2 Housing 5-4 Future Housing Needs 5-6 5.3 Networks 5-9 Streets and Highways 5-9 Future Growth 5-13 Transit 5-16 Bicycle and Pedestrian 5-17 Utilities 5-20 Water 5-20 Wastewater 5-22 Storm Drainage 5-24 Solid Waste 5-24 Communications and Energy Systems 5-24 Telephone, Television and Internet 5-24 Power 5-25 5.4 Services 5-25 Parks and Recreational Facilities 5-26 Schools 5-28 Public Safety 5-29 Rivieras Area Plan Fire 5-29 Law Enforcement 5-29 5.5 Land Use and Zoning Plans 5-30 Commercial 5-32 Golf Courses 5-32 Residential 5-37 Agriculture and Rural Areas 5-42 Open Space 5-42 Special Zoning Recommendations 5-43 6.0 COMMERCIAL DESIGN GUIDELINES 6-1 List of Figures Figure 2-1 Rivieras Planning Area 2-2 Figure 2-2 Community Areas – Overview 2-3 Figure 2-3 Planning Area Population Characteristics 2-11 Figure 2-4 Population and Housing Unit Projections 2-12 Figure 3-1 Rare, Threatened and Endangered Plants Potentially Occurring within the Planning Area 3-19 Figure 3-2 Rare, Threatened and Endangered Animals Potentially Occurring within the Planning Area 3-22 Figure 3-3 Important Farmland in the Planning Area 3-28 Figure 3-4 Geothermal Setback in the Planning Area 3-34 Figure 3-5 Scenic Routes 3-39 Figure 4-1 Slopes of the Rivieras Planning Area 4-2 Figure 4-2 Shrink-Swell Potential in the Planning Area 4-4 Figure 4-3 Flood and Earthquake Hazards in the Planning Area 4-9 Figure 4-4 Fire District Boundaries 4-12 Figure 5-1 Functional Road Classification 5-9 Figure 5- 2 Traffic Volumes on State Highways 5-10 Figure 5-3 Traffic Volumes on County Roads 5-11 Figure 5-4 Acreage of Existing and Proposed General Plan Designations 5-31 Figure 5-5 Acreage of Existing and Proposed Zoning Designations 5-31 Figure 5-6 Buckingham Golf Course General Plan of Development 5-34 Figure 5-7 Riviera Hills Golf Course General Plan of Development 5-35 Figure 5-8 Soda Bay Community Area 5-40 Figure 5-9 Clear Lake Riviera Community Area 5-41 Rivieras Area Plan Acknowledgements Lake County Board of Supervisors Ed Robey Vice Chair, District I Jeff Smith Chair, District II Denise Rushing District III Anthony Farrington District IV Rob Brown District V Planning Commission Frieda Camotta District I Gary Briggs Chair, District II Marvin Butler District III Cliff Swetnam Vice Chair, District IV Gil Schoux District V Lake County Community Development Department Richard Coel Community Development Director Emily Minton Senior Planner/Project Coordinator With the Assistance of the Rivieras Area Planning Advisory Committee: Curtis Winchester, Chair Kit Larsen Ed Calkins, Vice Chairman Robert Morse Monte Black Russ Patterson Tony Braito Eric Seely Michael Fowler Angela Siegel Michael Friel Rob Suenram Graphic Credits: All graphics and maps produced by Lon Sharp, GIS Specialist. All other photos by Emily Minton, unless otherwise noted. Rivieras Area Plan 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Rivieras Area Plan is a guide for long-term growth and development in the planning area and is a complement to the Lake County General Plan. It is a planning tool that will facilitate refined planning decisions based on community values and priorities of the residents of the planning area. The relationship between the General Plan and an area plan must be mutually complementary and consistent. Policies in the area plan should supplement general plan policies, yet more precisely reflect the characteristics found in the planning area. The higher level of policy accountability for this plan ensures the residents of the future that the vision of the citizens in 2006 is carried out as adopted. County landowners and residents seek assurances that the use of a neighbor’s property will be compatible with the health, safety, welfare and preservation of property values, the economy and the County’s rural character. Therefore, facilitating land development and land use must balance a property owner’s right of reasonable use and the impact of that use on neighboring property owners. A long-range plan should provide adequate land use allocations to meet the community’s needs while also protecting vital natural resources. This plan includes two special study areas (Soda Bay and Clear Lake Riviera Community Areas). Land use designations have been amended where necessary to reduce potential land use impacts. Environmental concerns have been identified and policies developed to protect the unique natural features of the area. Several of the benefits of this plan are as follows: Plan policies and guidelines include fire protection measures. Plan policies and guidelines require utilization of buffer areas between incompatible uses. Plan policies and guidelines provide opportunities for the protection and use of existing resort and recreational opportunities along the shoreline of Clear Lake. This plan recognizes that agriculture is an important aspect of the rural character of the area. Properties in areas with safety and environmental constraints, including identified fault zones, landslide areas, steep slopes and areas of high erosion potential have been designated “RR”, Rural Residential or “RL”, Rural Lands to limit development to lower densities in these potentially hazardous areas. Future development will be directed away from areas of known environmental concern, including wetlands, through the use of low land use densities, and through conservation districts. Community areas have been developed within which additional development may be appropriate, dependent upon environmental constraints, health and safety concerns and the need for additional housing. The General Plan Update has identified these as community growth boundaries. Higher density residential development outside of these community growth boundaries is not appropriate due to existing infrastructure and safety constraints. Riparian corridors along existing creeks will be protected from the impacts of future development through the use of the “FF”, Floodway Fringe and “WW”, Waterway combining districts. Publicly owned parcels have been designated as Open Space. The “U”, Unclassified zoning district has been eliminated within the planning area. 1-1 Rivieras Area Plan To the extent possible, parcels containing land uses inconsistent with existing zoning districts have been rezoned to be consistent with the land use. The major recommendations within the two special study areas are: Soda Bay Commercial Area – Measures should be taken to enhance the economic viability of the area. Commercial development should be diversified in this area. Design guidelines are detailed in Section 6 of this plan. Clear Lake Riviera Commercial Area – Commercial development should be diversified in this area. The existing design guidelines established by the Clear Lake Riviera CC&R’s should be sustained. This area is designated for commercial development intended to support residents and tourists. No heavy commercial or industrial uses should be permitted. Mixed use development, with residences above the commercial uses should be considered. Guidelines are detailed in Section 6 of this plan. The recommendations in each of the basic land uses are as follows: Commercial – The Resort Commercial designation will be applied to existing resorts. All new commercial development should be subject to the Design Review Guidelines in the appendices of this plan. Planned Development Commercial is maintained for the marina in Buckingham, which accommodates boat storage and related watercraft services. Additional Service Commercial land use designations are provided adjacent to the existing self storage facility, along the south side of Highway 29, west of the intersection with Highway 281. Industrial – Industrial and manufacturing sites are not provided in this planning area due to the lack of a public sewer system and lack of appropriate sites. Residential – Future residential development should be directed to infill sites within the existing subdivisions. Additional lands within the community growth boundaries are designated for low density residential development of one dwelling unit per one to three gross acres, due to infrastructure restraints, including the lack of a public sewer system. These areas should be developed by clustering residential development and recreation areas should be included utilizing the planned development process.