Hercules Issues CEQA Notice Of Intent For Draft Safety Element Update

Press release from the City of Hercules:

March 26, 2021

As required under the California Environmental Quality Act (California Public Resources Code § 21000 et seq.) and its implementing regulations (Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations § 15000 et seq.), the City of Hercules has prepared an Initial Study and intends to adopt a Negative Declaration for the update to the Hercules General Plan Safety Element.

Project Description: The project consists of an update to the City of Hercules General Plan Safety Element, which is the primary document for linking land use (Land Use Element 1998) and conservation decisions (Open Space and Conservation Element 1998) to local safety planning. The goal of the Safety Element Update is to reduce the potential short- and long-term unreasonable risk of death, injuries, property damage, and economic impacts resulting from the effects of natural and non-natural hazards.

The Safety Element was previously adopted in 1998 and is being updated to reflect the land use and regulatory changes that have taken place over the last 20 years and in response to the ongoing evolution in technology. Several revisions have been made, including, but not limited to:

1) updating the data, information, and references with more current sources;
2) incorporating additional language to comply with new and/or amended California State Laws; and
3) revising goals, policies, and implementation actions where progress has been made, where changes in situations have occurred, or to be responsive to community concerns.

As one of the nine State-mandated elements of the General Plan, the Safety Element Update addresses public safety through an analysis of existing hazard conditions that have the potential to cause loss of life, injury, property damage, economic loss, and social dislocation. For the City, these conditions and hazards include seismic and other geologic hazards, sea-level rise and flooding, urban and wildland fires, and hazardous materials, which are addressed in the Safety Element Update. (Hazardous materials are also addressed in the Hazardous Waste Management Plan Element 1990.) In addition to these natural hazards, the community has expressed concerns regarding oil and gas spills, power outages, active shooter situations, hazardous materials, and epidemics, all of which are addressed in the Safety Element Update.

The Safety Element Update contains the minimum content legally mandated by Government Code Section 65302(g), as well as additional issues per discretion of the City. The Safety Element Update includes: general hazard, risk reduction, and avoidance strategies; climate change vulnerability and measures to address those vulnerabilities; emergency response priorities; and comprehensive hazard mitigation to minimize disruption and expedite recovery following disasters. The Safety Element Update includes five goals and several policies and associated implementation actions that would contribute to meeting these goals. Policies include: implementing safety policies, seismic risk reduction measures, emergency preparedness and public education, fire service and mitigation, stormwater infrastructure, sea level rise impact reduction, and hazards such as active shooter scenarios, infectious disease preparedness, and hazardous materials by rail.

The Safety Element Update establishes goals, policies, and implementation actions to address the objectives of the City as they relate to safety and hazards. The Safety Element Update is linked—by attachment—to the City of Hercules Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP), which was prepared in conjunction with the Safety Element Update.

Project Location: The City of Hercules is located within the West County portion of Contra Costa County, which includes the urbanized shoreline of San Pablo Bay. The City is separated from the remainder of Contra Costa County by the Briones Hills and open space lands. The incorporated City of Pinole is located south of Hercules and the unincorporated community of Rodeo is located north of Hercules. The geographic scope of the update to the City’s Safety Element is citywide.

Public Review/Public Comment Period: Copies of the proposed Negative Declaration and Initial Study and the Safety Element Update itself, and all documents referenced therein, are available for public review at the following locations:

• City of Hercules, 111 Civic Drive, Hercules, California 94547
• City’s Website for the General Plan/Safety Element Update at https://www.ci.hercules.ca.us/government/planning/safety-element-hazard-mitigation

A 30-day public review period for the Negative Declaration begins on Monday, March 29, 2021, and ends Thursday, April 29, 2021. If you would like to comment, please send your written comments by mail or email so that they are received no later than 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 29, 2021 to:
Robert Reber, Community Development Director, City of Hercules, 111 Civic Dr., Hercules, CA 94547 (rreber@ci.hercules.ca.us)

Public Hearings: 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers located at 111 Civic Drive, Hercules or via ZOOM:

• Before the Planning Commission—anticipated on May 3, 2021
• Before City Council—anticipated on May 25, 2021

Please note that agendas are subject to change. Please contact the Community Development Department at (510) 777-8200 or the City’s website to confirm the hearing dates.

This press release was produced by the City of Hercules. The views expressed are the author's own.