Attachment 2Los Gatos General Plan 2040!
We are excited to announce that in October 2018, the Town of Los Gatos kicked
off the update to the Town’s General Plan. The update is scheduled to take
approximately two years, and throughout the process, the public is welcome to
provide input on how Los Gatos should evolve over the next two decades.
NEWSLETTER #1: GENERAL PLAN OVERVIEW
losgatos2040.com HAVE QUESTIONS?Town of Los Gatos
Planning Division
planning@losgatosca.gov
What is a General Plan?
Every jurisdiction in California must have a General Plan, which is the local
government’s long-term framework or “constitution” for future growth and
development. The General Plan represents the community’s view of its future
and expresses the community’s goals. The General Plan contains the goals
and polices upon which the Town Council and Planning Commission will base
their land use and resource decisions. California State law requires that each
Town, City, and County must adopt a General Plan for the physical development
of the jurisdiction and any land outside its boundaries that bears relation to its
planning. Typically, a General Plan is designed to address the issues facing the
jurisdiction for the next 20 years.
A general plan has three defining features:
•General. A General Plan provides general policy guidance that will be used
to direct future land use and resource decisions.
•Comprehensive. A General Plan is comprehensive, covering topics such
as land use, housing, economic development, infrastructure, public safety,
recreation, natural resources, and much more.
•Long-Range. A General Plan provides guidance on reaching a future
envisioned 20 or more years in the future. To achieve the vision, a
comprehensive plan includes goals, policies, and actions that address both
immediate and long-term needs.
VISIT THE UPDATE
WEBSITE TO:
▪Stay informed
▪Find out about
upcoming meetings
▪Sign up for
email updates
▪Share your ideas on
the Town’s future
ATTACHMENT 2
VISION AND GUIDING
PRINCIPLES
Based on community input,
a updated Vision Statement
will be developed to express
the ideal future for the
community and the Guiding
Principles will state the core
values that will be used to
reach the envisioned future.
Facilitate Broad, Inclusive Community Engagement (Task H)
Provide a range of opportunities for community members to be involved at each step in the development of the General Plan update.
General Plan Update
Initiation (Task A)
Establish website, public
outreach strategy, and
other set up activities.
Focused Research
(Task B)
Gather information and
describe key existing
conditions and trends
that will influence the
future of the community.
Why Update the Current General Plan?
The Town of Los Gatos adopted its current
General Plan in 2010. While the existing General
Plan is serving the community well, the Town
is doing an update to refine the General Plan,
address emerging trends and recent changes in
State law, and consider new issues. This effort
is intended to be a fine-tuning of the existing
General Plan, rather than a comprehensive
overhaul of the document. This planning effort
will also allow the General Plan to incorporate
best practices in planning to ensure Los Gatos is
resilient to future risks while also improving the
community’s quality of life.
The General Plan update will address:
BACKGROUND REPORT
The Background Report will
highlight existing conditions
and trends for a variety of
key topic areas including:
Land Use, Population
and Housing, Economics,
Infrastructure, Climate
Change, Environmental
Justice, and Transportation.
ISSUES, OPPORTUNITIES, AND
CONSTRAINTS SUMMARY
The Issues, Opportunities,
and Constraints Summary
will identify items that should
be addressed as part of the
General Plan update, including
findings from the Background
Report and items identified
by the Town Council, Planning
Commission, General Plan
Advisory Committee, and input
from the community.
Findings and Exchange
of Ideas (Task C)
Identify issues and
opportunities that
will shape the future
of the Town.
1. Land use
2. Transportation and mobility
3. Environmental sustainability
4. Evaluation and modifications to objective standards
5. Fiscal stability/responsibility
6. Diversity/inclusivity
7. Emerging trends
8. Recent State laws and General Plan Guidelines
9. Refinements and updates as necessary to the vision,
goals, policies, and action items in the General Plan
10. Participatory community engagement
Vision for the Future (Task D)
Establish the community’s
vision for its future,
and establish priorities
for the General Plan.
DO
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What are the steps in the General Plan update?
ALTERNATIVES REPORT
The Alternatives Report
will present alternative
approaches to land use
and policy that can be used
to address the identified
issues and opportunities.
This document will be used
by the Town to provide
direction on the focus of
the General Plan update.
PROGRAM
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACT REPORT
The Town Council,
Planning Commission,
and the public will use
the EIR during their
consideration of the
draft General Plan
to understand the
potential environmental
implications associated
with the update.
FINAL DOCUMENTS
At the end of the
update process, the
Town will publish an
adopted General Plan
and certified Program
EIR. The new General
Plan will be available for
use in printed or online
formats.
DRAFT GENERAL PLAN
The draft General
Plan will contain the
goals, policies, and
implementation actions
that will guide future
land use and resource
decisions within the Town
and guide the community
towards its envisioned
future.
Develop and Consider
Options (Task E)
Identify and evaluate
alternative land use
scenarios and evaluate
policy choices for
consideration.
Draft the Plan (Task F)
Prepare the updated
General Plan for public
review and comment.
Evaluate and Mitigate Potential Environmental Impacts (Task G)
Prepare a Program
EIR that evaluates the
potential physical impacts
of the goals, policies,
and programs of the
draft General Plan.
D ecide on a Course of Action (Task I)
Conduct public hearings
with the Planning
Commission and Town
Council to consider
the findings of the
Program EIR and adopt
a new General Plan.
These include workshops; online engagement; and General Plan Update Advisory Committee, Planning Commission, and Town Council meetings.
How Can You Make a Difference?
Get Involved!
For the General Plan to truly represent the community’s vision for the
future, we need your help. The success of this planning effort will
depend on the input of the community, and we have provided a range
of ways to hear your ideas for the future of Los Gatos. You have the
choice to attend a community workshop or provide input online from
the comfort of your home.
VISIT THE UPDATE WEBSITE
The update website (losgatos2040.com) is frequently updated with
information on the status of the General Plan update, announcements
of upcoming workshops and meetings, and publication of reports.
SIGN UP FOR E-MAIL UPDATES
On the update website (losgatos2040.com), you can sign up for email
notifications. By signing up, you will be notified when new documents
have been released and when meetings or workshops will be held.
ATTEND MEETINGS, WORKSHOPS,
AND POP-UP EVENTS
Not only are these great opportunities to learn about the General Plan
update, meetings and workshops are also a great place for your voice
to be heard and to listen to other’s ideas. Pop-up events will also be
held in Los Gatos to provide more opportunities for input.
Check losgatos2040.com for upcoming dates and locations.
.
ENGAGEMENT HQ
From the losgatos2040.com
website, click on the
“ENGAGEMENT HQ” button on the
Home page to open a range of
tools designed to get your input
and feedback on the future of Los
Gatos. During the update, you can
contribute to the conversation
anytime from any connected
device.
▪Share your ideas.
▪Support or expand on ideas
you like.
▪Respond to an instant poll or
survey.
▪Submit links, maps, photos,
and videos that help explain
your ideas for how to make
Los Gatos an even better place
to live, work, and play.
Engagement HQ will open in
October 2018. Please join the
discussion on our future.
Revised 09/11/2018