San Juan Capistrano, the Orange County city famous for its 225-year-old mission, has recently hired two teams of consultants to assess the effects of growth on the city and devise plans to preserve the community's unique character.
The city's mayor blames the recently developed communities nearby for the city's traffic congestion. Citizen concerns, as well as a proposal to widen a nearby interstate and build 14,000 homes on unincorporated land, prompted the city to hire the consultants. The teams will study the potential effects of the roadway improvements on the city and examine the possibility of annexing land to curtail development. The city has successfully preserved its ridgelines and created a cultural heritage commission, but some say stricter development standards, like those in place in Los Gatos or Carmel, should have come sooner. Nevertheless, local officials have expressed optimism that by taking their consultants' advice, modern development can be managed within their historic community.
Thanks to California 2000 Project
FULL STORY: Now It's Commuters Who Come Back To San Juan Capistrano
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Economic & Planning Systems, Inc.
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research