General Plan

State planning law requires that each city and county in California have a General Plan consisting of seven "elements" which include the Land Use, Circulation, Housing, Conservation, Noise, Open Space and Safety elements.

The general plan is intended to serve as a "constitution" for all future development within the city. The general plan sets broad policies; city ordinances and administrative procedures are the vehicles for the implementation of the general plan. In terms of city planning requirements, the primary implementation mechanism of general plan policies is the Zoning Ordinance, which translates the generalized nature of the Land Use, Housing, Circulation, and other elements’ policies into highly specific development standards.

The City's current General Plan expires in 2014.  Given the complexity of the General Plan, the process of a comprehensive update is a time consuming and costly process.  The City will be embarking on that update starting in 2011.  Please pay attention to this space and the City's Home Page for information and updates on that process.