November 14, 2022
Planning Commission
Dear Chair DeCardy, Vice Chair Harris, Commissioners Tate, Barnes, Do, Riggs, and Schindler and Staff,
The Draft Subsequent Environmental Impact Report prepared for the City of Menlo Park by ESA, dated November 2022, on page 546 546 states:
“Based upon these considerations, this SEIR does not include any evaluation of potential environmental effects of the updated Safety Element and new Environmental Justice Element. The City’s decision not to attempt such evaluation is based on the purpose and characteristics of each element, and is informed and supported by statute, regulation, and applicable case law indicating that it is not required by CEQA under these circumstances.”
SB 1000 passed in the California legislature in 2016, requiring an Environmental Justice Element to the General Plan. The 2016 General Plan was approved by the City Council 33 days before the required implementation of SB 1000 on January 1, 2012. This should be stated in the SEIR as an explanation to why it is not a consideration.
The new Environment Justice Element is mentioned thirty-two times in the ESA report and ten times in the Staff Report 22-062-PC. Yet there does not appear to be a draft Environmental Impact Report released to the public.
Without the Environment Justice Element, along with the updated Safety Element, a fully informed comment to the SEIR can not be made by the public. Therefore, the comment period should begin when the Environment Justice Element and updated Safety Element have been available to the public.
Respectfully,
Pam D Jones, resident
Forgetting history is the path to re-writing history.
