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Pebble Beach: Mapping out proposed development

VERN FISHER/The Herald

Above: Pebble Beach residents and county planners gather at the first stop on their field trip through Pebble Beach, touring the sites of proposed development. They were looking at plans that have been posted at the site of the proposed construction.

TOUR GIVES GLIMPSE OF FOREST'S FUTURE

By KEVIN HOWE
khowe@montereyherald.com

Scattered in the green maze of the Del Monte Forrest of Pebble Beach are fluttering red flags and strands of orange plastic netting, markers for an ambitious makeover that owners of the golf resort and high-end residential area hope to see to completion over the next two years.

The Pebble Beach Co. gave a daylong guided tour Wednesday of 25 sites earmarked for development by the company's Del Monte Forest Preservation and Development Plan It drew 60 observers, including the zoning administrator, members of the Monterey County Planning Commission and Subdivision committee, company representatives and interested members of the public.

The expedition assembled at the Carmel Hill fire station just inside the Pebble Beach gate at Highway 1 in a drizzling rain that quickly gave way to scattered clouds and sunshine.

The tour was meant for policy makers, according to Thom McCue, county project planner, but was thrown open to whoever was willing to brave the weather, pack a sack lunch and devote seven hours to rolling through the forest in a convoy of Pebble Beach Co. vans.

The show was well-prepared.

Eleven stops were made at areas where "storyboards" were set up outlining what is planned in a particular area, with flags and outlining visible to show building locations and sizes.

Roxayne Spruance, who handles environmental questions and complaints for the company, came along to answer questions about what Pebble Beach Co. would do to mitigate impacts.

The Del Monte Forest Preservation and Development Plan calls for construction of a 216 acre, 18-hole golf course, a golf driving range, a total of 160 visitor-serving suites at the new golf course as well as at The Lodge at Pebble Beach and The Inn at Spanish Bay, relocation of the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center to a 41-acre site in the Sawmill Gulch area, creation of 33 residential lots within five subdivisions, construction of 60 employee housing units, and relocation and construction of roads and trials.

The plan also calls for preservation of 492 acres ** of forest land and critical wildlife habitat.

The proposed developments were the subject of a countywide ballot referendum that was approved in November 2000 by 64 percent of voters. ** The ballot measure, pushed by the Pebble Beach Co., played up the preservation of the forest land and a reduction in the number of allowed single family houses.

A draft environmental impact report prepared for the project identified four key impact areas with mitigations including:

• Biological: Developments in pine forests, areas where endangered plants grow, sensitive habitats. The company will mitigate those by reducing building sizes, land management, restoration, project redesigns and setting aside 492 acres in conservation and preservation easements.
• Water: Pebble Beach Co. has already addressed irrigation demands with its reclaimed water project.
• Traffic: A redesigned entrance to Pebble Beach at Highway 1 and Highway 68 and road changes inside the forest are planned.
• Construction: Management plans to control dust, noise and traffic while the project goes on are in place.

The project plan will be discussed by the Pebble Beach Land Use Advisory Committee at its March 11 meeting and by the county Subdivision Committee on April 8 in Salinas.

The county Planing and Building Inspection Department is accepting comments from the public and agencies, including the California Coastal commission, or the company's 1,200-page draft plan ** through March 22.

Copies of the report are available on the Planning and Building Department's Web site-- www.co.montere.ca.us/pbi/--and for review at the following locations:

• County Planning and Building Inspection Department, coastal office, 2620 First Ave., Marina, where a CD-ROM of the report may be purchased.
• County Administrative Office, 230 Church Street, Building 3, Salinas
• Public libraries in Carmel, Carmel Valley, Monterey, Pacific Grove and Seaside, and the Steinbeck Main Branch Library in Salinas.
• Pebble Beach Community Services District office, Forest Lake and Lopez roads, Pebble Beach.

The document may be also purchased at Kinkos, 799 Lighthouse Ave, Monterey, or 501 S. Main St., Salinas. Call them at 373-2298 or 769-9855 for a price estimate.

Kevin Howe can be reached at 646-4416

See Concerned Residents comments on this story (below).

NOTE: ** See Concerned Residents comments on this story (below).