Ventura County's Unique Growth Control Measure

This southern California county employs a different type of urban growth boundary. Rather than forbidding development outside the UGB, such developments are determined by the electorate.

1 minute read

October 12, 2005, 1:00 PM PDT

By Irvin Dawid

Save Open Space and Agricultural Resources (SOAR) "promised to maintain that semirural feel by preserving the agricultural greenbelts that for decades had separated the largest cities in this county of 800,000. Under the SOAR laws, city councils can still approve development that falls within the city's urban boundary. But any project outside urban borders is subject to a public vote."

"For a variety of reasons, the use of SOAR-like initiatives to contain growth has not caught on across the state. Although a few Bay Area cities have passed similar measures, Ventura County is alone in adopting restrictions for virtually every city as well as its unincorporated land.

...Although spacious single-family homes are still being built, some of the newest projects incorporate 'smart-growth' guidelines that squeeze more homes onto smaller lots and include a mix of condos, apartments and retail space."

Thanks to Irvin Dawid

FULL STORY: Staking New Territory in Growth Control

Wednesday, October 12, 2005 in The Los Angeles Times

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