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Friday's Internet Edition, November 21, 2008.
CSD protests Wal Mart draft EIR
Agency comments critical of project impacts
By Rachael Ackerman
Herald Editor
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Saying the city of Galt has failed to adequately complete a notice pf preparation for environmental studies of the proposed Galt Wal Mart project, the Cosumnes Community Services District has issued a letter of protest to the city from their attorneys.
In the letter, the CCSD requests that the city revise the NOP and recirculate the document for an additional 30-day review period.
CSD comments on the draft EIR include concerns about impact to public services, traffic, water supply, accumulative effects of the project, greenhouse gases, and pedestrian access and safety to the project.
According to the CSD, the California Environmental Quality Act requires a notice of preparation include probable environmental effects of the project, something the CSD says the city has failed to do.
“Unfortunately, the NOP does not contain a discussion of the probable environmental effects of the project,” reads the letter. “Rather, the document merely identifies impact categories to be addressed, without any information regarding whether the impacts were expected to be significant or not.”
The letter continues by saying that the omission of the level of potential impact has denied interested parties the right to review those issues and make appropriate comments, as prescribed by law.
“Without a discussion of how bad various impacts are likely to be, commenting agencies and the public cannot provide meaningful comments and suggestions as contemplated by CEQA,” said the CSD.
In terms of impact to public services, the CSD charges that the city has failed to contact the CSD, as the lead fire and emergency medical agency in the project area, for the most information relative to the provision of service to the project.
“We encourage the city to contact the CSD as early in the project process as possible so it can provide the required information regarding medical response, water supply, and fire facilities and services to ensure the project’s impacts on these services can be mitigated to the extent feasible,” commented the CSD.
The letter also addresses traffic impacts, charging a project in that area would likely “adversely affect CSD’s fire and emergency response times” – information they want included in a separate fire and emergency services report, and a separate traffic study as part of the project EIR.
The CSD also requests that the city include all future projects planned for the area as determined by the city’s new general plan update to more adequately describe how intended development of the total area will impact the ability for the CSD to maintain adequate response times.
Received by the city on Tuesday, the letter has been forwarded to City of Galt Community Development Director Curt Campion and members of the city council for review.
“The CSD certainly has the right to review the documents, to raise issues, and make comments. That’s all a part of the EIR process, and that’s what we assume this letter is, their comments,” said City Manager Ted Anderson. “We will take these comments very seriously. The issues will be identified and reviewed without project consultants to see if they have any merit and, if so, what would be our next steps.”
Anderson said each issue raised by the CSD would be looked at individually and responded to as necessary.
“This is the normal process, and my feeling is we will work through the issues raised by the CSD,” said Anderson. “We just wish the CSD would come to us and sit down with their concerns instead of suddenly issuing us something in writing from their attorneys.”
A complete copy of the letter can be obtained at the city clerk’s office located at 380 Civic Drive in Galt.
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