City, county meeting will consider plan
The Bakersfield City Council and Kern County Board of Supervisors will convene a joint meeting Monday at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council's chambers on Truxtun Avenue.
Included on the agenda is discussion of updating the metropolitan Bakersfield general plan, orginally known as the 2010 Plan.
Nearly two decades ago, city and county officials set aside entrenched animosities to jointly formulate and adopt a plan to guide growth and development in metropolitan Bakersfield. The plan was updated in 2004.
However spectacular growth, fueled by the migration of new residents fleeing high-priced urban areas of California, has created a call for a more comprehensive revision of the plan.
Rather than the slight adjustments made in 2004, the call has gone out for adoption of tougher development standards and consideration of the cumulative effects of projects on the environment and quality of life.
No longer should growth be assessed on a project-by-project basis. Rather, the city and county should more specifically map out metropolitan Bakersfield's future.
The extent of the general plan's revision will be discussed during Monday night's joint city-county meeting.
Also on the agenda will be discussion of use of federal highway funds, a proposed sales tax increase to pay for road improvements, construction of fire stations, fireworks regulations, habitat conservation, the South Beltway, animal control services, the siting of a solid waste transfer station and regulation of body arts shops.
