(A)   Purpose: The purpose of this chapter is to create the city of Taft urban growth boundary (Taft UGB). The Taft UGB has the following objectives:

      1.   To encourage efficient growth patterns, discourage sprawl development and premature conversion of agricultural lands and open space to urban use and protect the city's quality of life by concentrating future development within the adopted urban growth boundary;

      2.   To promote on lands outside the Taft UGB ongoing agricultural, oil and gas, and other natural resource and open space uses such as preservation of natural resources, and protection of environmentally sensitive habitats, public and private outdoor recreation, uses that foster public health and safety, and productive investment for agricultural and oil and gas enterprises;

      3.   To manage the city's growth in a manner that fosters and protects the character of the city while encouraging appropriate economic development in accordance with the city's unique local conditions and general plan;

      4.   To allow the city to continue to meet its obligation to provide its fair share of regional housing needs for all economic segments of the population by directing the development of housing into areas where services and infrastructure are more efficiently available; and

      5.   To promote stability in long term planning for the city by establishing a cornerstone policy within the general plan designating the geographic limits of long term urban development and allowing sufficient flexibility within those limits to respond to the city's changing needs over time.

   (B)   Findings:

      1.   The protection of existing agricultural, oil and gas, open space, and other lands surrounding the city is of critical importance to present and future residents of the city.

      2.   Continued urban encroachment into agricultural, oil and gas, or open space areas may impair agriculture and oil and gas land uses and threaten the public health, safety and welfare by causing increased traffic congestion, and associated air pollution. Such urban encroachment would require both the unnecessary, expensive extension of public services and facilities and inevitable conflicts between urban, agricultural, oil and gas, and open space uses.

      3.   The unique character of the city and quality of life of city residents depend on the protection of a substantial amount of open space, rural, agricultural, and oil and gas land uses outside of the city's urban area. The protection of such lands not only ensures the continued viability of agriculture and oil and gas operations, but also protects the limited available water supply to surrounding communities and contributes to the protection of wildlife, environmentally sensitive areas, and irreplaceable natural resources.

      4.   This measure ensures that the important goals and policies of the 2010 general plan are inviolable against transitory and short term decisions and that agricultural, oil and gas, and open space lands are not prematurely or unnecessarily converted to nonagricultural or nonopen space uses without adequate public debate and a vote of the people. Accordingly, the city shall restrict the provision of urban services, or creation of urban uses, other than in certain circumstances and according to specific procedures set forth in this measure, within the territory of the Taft UGB as set forth and depicted as figure 1 on file in the city. (Ord. 817-16, 6-21-2016)

This ordinance hereby amends the Taft general plan by adding or amending the following in chapter 3.0 of the land use element of the 2010 general plan:

   CITY OF TAFT URBAN GROWTH BOUNDARY

The city of Taft (city) has adopted a UGB line denominated the city of Taft UGB (Taft UGB), as set forth and depicted in figure 1. Its purpose, principles, implementation procedures, and methodologies for amendment are set forth in this general plan amendment.

1.Purpose

a.The purpose of this amendment is to ensure that the preservation of agricultural production, oil and gas development, open space, and protection of environmentally sensitive habitat are inviolable against transitory and short-term decisions and that agricultural, oil and gas, and open space lands are not prematurely or unnecessarily converted to other non-agricultural or non-open space uses without public debate at a public hearing or a vote of the people.

b.Limiting urban sprawl through the use of an UGB enhances the sense of community, allows for development unique to the city of Taft, and promotes the efficient use of the city's infrastructure and limits public funding of infrastructure and road repair.

2.Principles

a.Continued urban encroachment into agricultural, oil and gas, and open space areas negatively impacts sensitive environmental areas, intrudes on open space irrevocably changing its utility, diminishes the quality of life, and threatens the public health, safety and welfare by causing increased traffic congestion, associated air pollution, and causing potentially serious water problems, such as pollution, depletion, and sedimentation of available water resources not only for the city of Taft but for its jurisdictional neighbors. Such urban encroachment may eventually result in both the unnecessary, expensive extension of public services and facilities and inevitable conflicts between urban and agricultural, oil and gas, and open space uses.

b.The unique character of the city, and quality of life of city residents, depends on the protection of a substantial amount of agricultural, oil and gas, and open space lands. The protection of such lands through the implementation of this measure not only ensures the continued viability of agriculture and oil and gas operations, but also protects the available water supply and contributes to flood control and the protection of wildlife, environmentally sensitive areas, and irreplaceable natural resources.

3.Implementation

a.The city hereby establishes the Taft urban growth boundary (Taft UGB), as set forth and depicted in figure 1, which shall be separately set forth and depicted in figure 3.0 land use map.

b. The city shall restrict urban services (except temporary mutual assistance with other jurisdictions) and urbanized uses of land to within the Taft UGB, except as provided herein and except for the purpose of completing roadways designated in the circulation element of the Taft general plan as of January 1, 2015. Other than the exceptions provided for herein, upon the effective date of this 2010 general plan amendment, the city and its departments, boards, commissions, officers and employees shall not grant, or by inaction allow to be approved by operation of law, any general plan amendment, rezoning, specific plan, subdivision map, conditional use permit, building permit or any other ministerial or discretionary entitlement, which is inconsistent with the purposes of this general plan amendment, unless in accordance with the amendment procedures of section 4, below, of this general plan amendment.

c."Urbanized uses of land" shall mean any development that would require the establishment of new community sewer and/or water systems or the significant expansion of existing community sewer and/or water systems; or, would result in the creation of residential densities greater than one primary residential unit per 10 acres in area; or, would result in the establishment of commercial or industrial uses which do not involve the cultivation, harvesting, or assembly of agricultural products or that are not related to the production of oil and gas or other mineral resources.

d.The Taft UGB may not be amended, altered, revoked or otherwise changed except by vote of the people or by the city council pursuant to the procedures set forth in section 4 of this general plan amendment.

4.Amendment Procedures

a.The foregoing purposes, principles and implementation provisions of this general plan amendment, and the Taft UGB may be amended only pursuant to one of the following methods:

1)The city council may, by a majority vote, amend the Taft UGB described herein for non-residential uses if it deems it to be in the public interest, consistent with the intent of this ordinance, provided that the amended boundary is adjacent to the Taft UGB established by this general plan. The result of the action would be a negative or neutral impact on the amount of land within the UGB. Such amendment may be adopted only if the city council makes the following finding:

(i)The land subject to the proposed Taft UGB boundary amendment is immediately adjacent to existing compatibly developed areas and the applicant for inclusion of land within the UGB has provided to the city evidence that the fire department, police department, department of public works, and the local water agency with jurisdiction over such land have adequate capacity to accommodate the proposed development and provide it with adequate public services.

2)The city council, following at least one noticed public hearing for presentations by an applicant and the public, and after compliance with CEQA, may amend, by majority vote, the Taft UGB described herein to implement the housing element of the general plan to achieve compliance with the applicable regional housing needs assessment pursuant to Government Code section 65580 et seq. The city council may amend the Taft UGB as described herein in order to accommodate lands to be designated for residential uses, provided that no more land may be brought within the UGB as required for compliance with state law for this purpose. Such amendment may be adopted only if the city council makes each of the following findings:

(i)The land is immediately adjacent to existing compatibly developed areas and the applicant for the inclusion of land within the Taft UGB has provided to the city evidence that the fire department, police department, department of public works, applicable water and sewer districts, and the school district with jurisdiction over such land have adequate capacity to accommodate the proposed development and provide it with adequate public services; and

(ii)The proposed development will address the highest priority need identified in the analysis, of the housing element, by which the city has determined it is not in compliance with state law, i.e., low and very low income housing; and

(iii)There is no existing residentially designated land of comparable size and accessibility available within the Taft UGB to accommodate the proposed development; and

(iv)It is not reasonably feasible to accommodate the proposed development by re-designating lands within the Taft UGB.

3)The city council following at least one noticed public hearing for presentations by an applicant and the public, and after compliance with CEQA, may amend, by majority vote, the Taft UGB described herein, based on substantial evidence in the record, if the city council makes each of the following findings:

(i)Application of the provisions of subsections 1) or 2) of these amendment procedures are unworkable and failure to amend the Taft UGB would constitute an unconstitutional taking of a landowner's property for which compensation would be required or would deprive the landowner of a vested right; and

(ii)The amendment and associated land use designations will allow additional land uses only to the minimum extent necessary to avoid such unconstitutional taking of the landowner's property or to give effect to the vested right.

4)The city council following at least one noticed public hearing for presentations by an applicant and the public, and after compliance with CEQA, may place any amendment to the Taft UGB or the provisions of this ordinance concerning any urbanized uses of land not subject to subsections 1), 2), or 3) on the ballot pursuant to the mechanisms provided by state law.

(Ord. 817-16, 6-21-2016)

The provisions of this chapter do not apply to any roadways designated in the circulation element of the Taft general plan as of January 1, 2015, nor to any development project that has obtained as of the effective date hereof a vested right pursuant to state or local law. (Ord. 817-16, 6-21-2016)

This chapter shall be interpreted so as to be consistent with all federal and state laws, rules, and regulations. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, part, or portion of this chapter is held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this chapter. If any provision of this chapter is declared invalid as applied to any person or circumstance, such invalidity shall not affect any application of this chapter that can be given effect without the invalid application. This chapter shall be broadly construed in order to achieve the purposes stated in this chapter. It is the intent of the city council that this chapter shall be interpreted by the city and others in a manner that facilitates the confinement of urban uses within the city's UGB thereby protecting agricultural, oil and gas, open space, and rural lands, and preventing urban sprawl. (Ord. 817-16, 6-21-2016)