Page 7 - Dinuba Sentinel 5-31-18 E-edition

The Dinuba Sentinel News
City Council revisits previously
Thursday, May 31, 2018 | A7 denied request
By Jackson Moore News@thedinubasentinel.com
A revised item, that previously received no support from council in its prior form, passed on a 3-2 vote at the May 22 meeting.
Earlier this year an applicant sought to rezone their property, on the northwest corner of El Monte Way and Englehart Avenue, from residential to commercial. The item died before the council due to a lack of motion. The reason for opposition was cited as a conflict with nearby residential areas.
The item was voted for reconsideration and returned to council, updated so that the northern third of the six-acre piece of land would remain residential to create a buffer from the remaining commercial zoning.
Councilwoman Linda Launer said, “I still have concern pushing the commercial portion of that property up that street into the
residential area, creating a pocket of commercial while the rest is residential to the west, to the east and to the north. Then we’d have this finger as commercial.”
Harness added, “I’m okay with the buffer, I can respect that. If the bottom portion was not already (zoned for commercial), I would not be willing to have this conversation. We have enough commercial. We have commercial we should be working with downtown, east side and still on the west side. I don’t support increasing commercial any more than we already have.”
Tim Conklin, a representative of the applicant, told the council during the public hearing, “It’s going to be commercial eventually, continuing on El Monte Way. The property went all the way down to the northern border and it caused a conflict with the resident to the north there, so we’ve scaled that back. Now it seems to me that the commercial zone conforms to the widened area planned for that road already. The commercial zone isn’t
going to extend past that.”
When asked for the reasoning of the application, Conklin replied, “Commercial property is probably worth more than residential, but at this point who knows if there is any value to either right now. But I think that was their intention ... I just don’t think that the revised map
is creating a conflict.”
Launer reaffirmed, “The
property just to the east of the proposed commercial part would have two residential properties that would face right into that commercial. I just think it’s really inappropriate to bring commercial property into a residential area - It’s not a good match for that overall area.”
Thusu motioned to accept the revised application. Councilman Emilio “Joey” Morales and Harness both voted yes while Launer and Councilwoman Maribel Reynosa voted no for a 3-2 vote.
In other council actions:
• Grant funds will provide the
city of Dinuba with a $157,446 Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety and Connectivity Study.
Related city efforts, such as recent bike lanes and signage, have received mixed reviews from the public. One resident told council during the public comment portion of the May 22 meeting that the recent signage was not a benefit and that she hoped no more money would go toward more signage.
However, this latest effort will be completely grant funded, and aims to help the city receive future grant funding for other projects.
City of Dinuba Public Works Superintendent Ismael Hernandez said, “When you have a plan like that and you apply for specific funding sources such as active transportation - your project has more opportunity to be accepted and awarded because it’s not just a piece of sidewalk being put in, but it is a piece of sidewalk that is connected to an overall goal of establishing an
active transportation program for the city.”
Patlan added, “As an example, over the last two years we applied for city routes to schools - for what we call the Roosevelt Versailles, connecting Viscaya to Euclid and the school. But we never scored high because it’s not part of a larger pedestrian connectivity plan.
“By doing this, we will show that along with the improvements
to Euclid, north to Nebraska where there is sidewalk and pavement missing on both sides of the road. That area would show a larger project that would improve connectivity for both pedestrians and bicycles. That’s the whole goal.”
The overall study will identify destination points in Dinuba and study the best ways to enhance active transportation - walking and bicycling - to those locations.
Department of Toxic Substances Control May 2018
The mission of DTSC is to protect California’s people and environment from harmful e ects of toxic substances by restoring contaminated resources, enforcing hazardous waste laws, reducing hazardous waste generation, and encouraging the manufacture of chemically safer products.
Draft Removal Action Workplan Available for Review
Proposed Cleanup for the Planned Kamm/Alta High School Dinuba, California
Public Comment Period: May 31, 2018 to July 2, 2018
The California State Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) invites you to review and comment on the draft Removal Action Workplan (RAW) for the Planned Kamm/Alta High School (Site). The 76-acre Site is located on the southwest corner of Kamm Avenue and Alta Avenue in the City of Dinuba, Tulare County, California 93618. The draft RAW describes the investigations and proposed cleanup for lead, pesticides, diesel, and oil contaminants from ranching activities at the Site. The Dinuba Uni ed School District (District) is proposing to clean up the Site prior to building a new High School. The proposed cleanup recommends excavation of approximately 70 truck- loads of contaminated soil. These cleanup activities would e ectively protect human health and the environment.
HOW DO I PARTICIPATE? During the public comment period, from May 31, 2018 to July 2, 2018, we encourage you to review the draft RAW and to provide comments. Please send comments no later than July 2, 2018, to Jose Luevano, Project Man- ager, DTSC Cal Center O ce, 8800 Cal Center dr., Sacramento, California 95826 or by e-mail to Jose.Luevano@dtsc.ca.gov.
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA): DTSC’s CEQA review for this project includes an analysis of the District’s draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR), which was made available for public comment from February 23, 2018 through April 16, 2018. While the draft EIR was developed for the school construction activi- ties, it also includes an analysis of project activities detailed in the RAW. DTSC will draft a Statement of Findings based on the EIR. DTSC has prepared a draft Notice of Determination on the EIR, which is also available for the public to review during the draft RAW public comment period. Once the District certi es the EIR, DTSC will le the Notice of Determination with the O ce of Planning and Research (PRC Section 21108 and Guidelines Section 15075(c)).
WHERE DO I GET MORE INFORMATION? The draft RAW and CEQA document are available online at DTSC’s EnviroStor website: http://www.envirostor.dtsc.ca.gov/ public or at the following locations:
Public Notice
Dinuba Uni ed
School District
1327 East El Monte Way Dinuba, California 93618 (559) 595-7200;
Call for hours
Dinuba Branch Library 150 South I Street Dinuba, California 95618 (559) 591-5828;
Call for hours
DTSC File Room
8800 Cal Center Drive Sacramento, California 95826 (916) 255-3758;
Call for an appointment
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For questions or additional information regarding the Site, please contact:
Jose Luevano, Project Manager, at (916) 255-3577 or Jose.Luevano@dtsc.ca.gov Tammy Pickens, Public Participation Specialist at (916) 255-3594, toll free at
(866) 495-5651, or Tammy.Pickens@dtsc.ca.gov
For media requests: Barbara Zumwalt, DTSC Public Information O cer, (916) 445-2964, Barbara.Zumwalt@dtsc.ca.gov
HEARING IMPAIRED INDIVIDUALS may use the California Relay Service at 711 or 800-855-7100 (TDD).
CNS#3136937
To place an ad in the Sentinel, call 591-4632.
@Thusu4super visor @kthusu
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