The Granite Bay Community Plan will be the focus of regular monthly meetings of the Granite Bay Municipal Advisory Council Subcommittee Working Group. Started in December 2010, the Working Group will review the goals and policies of the Community Plan and provide feedback on changes to the document to the Board of Supervisors.

Updating the Plan began in August of 2008, when the Board of Supervisors directed the County Planning Department to begin review of the document. The Plan, originally adopted in 1989, provides the framework for long-term growth and development. The Plan’s primary purpose is to direct the future land use and development in a manner that preserves the character and independent identity of the community. The circulation element of the plan, which included trail mapping, was updated in 2005.

By setting goals and policies for Granite Bay that are distinct from those applied countywide, the Community Plan outlines how the Placer County will manage growth, while retaining Granite Bay’s unique attributes. Planning staff has been working with the Granite Bay MAC, the public and Supervisor Kirk Uhler’s office.

“Without a doubt, the Granite Bay area is one of the finest places in the nation to live, work and raise a family,” said Supervisor Kirk Uhler, a resident of Granite Bay for 41 years. “As we near build-out, this plan update, focused only on reviewing goals and policies, will give us an opportunity to put the finishing touches on our fine community.”

A series of public meetings on the Plan began in 2009. The meetings were intended to help maintain a high level of citizen participation and open communication. At the first meeting, attended by over 400 people, staff provided an overview of the Plan’s review process. County staff also noted that a six-month comment period would end in June. The comment period allowed residents and property owners to submit suggestions for policy and/or land use changes.

The public took advantage of the opportunity to comment on plan revisions and by the June deadline the Planning Department had received:

* 284 Policy Change Request forms;
* 49 Land Use Change Request forms, affecting 53 parcels (341 acres), and the potential for 392 additional residential units.

The majority of these requests were individual parcels that would be allowed to subdivide their property through the Minor Land Division process if the proper land use designation was obtained.

In October 2009, more than 300 people attended another community workshop. At the workshop, the public participated in a community survey where they provided input and comment on community-requested policy and land use changes.

The Planning Department provided an update on the Granite Bay Community Plan review to the Supervisors in April 2010 and discussed several alternatives to keep the planning process moving forward. At their budget workshop in August, 2010, the Board of Supervisors voted to only update the policy section of the Community Plan and not make changes to the Land Use Map.

A draft Community Plan document is expected to be available for public review in early summer.

To participate in the Community Plan update process, interested residents and property owners can attend the meetings of the Granite Bay MAC Subcommittee/Working Group. Meetings are held on the same days as the regular MAC meetings.

Please visit the MAC/Subcommittee website for additional information by clicking on the following link: Granite Bay Community Plan Update