The Ukiah Valley Smart Growth Coalition considers the visioning process to be a participatory community activity that melds the voices and views in the Ukiah Valley into a long-term liveable plan. This new vision for our valley is surfacing in response to the assault we are experiencing from outside development businesses. While knowing what we do not want is more apparent at this point, we are also recognize the need to move forward with what we do want. Upcoming events will be scheduled to involve the diverse views of the people in our valley in "Imagining Ukiah".

What follows are priorities that should be adhered to in our valley as well as some of the broad strokes of planning that we propose should guide our conversations.

Ukiah Valley Smart Growth Strategy-

• Plan growth within the framework of existing limits of water, sewer and road capacity
• Create a "planning ceiling" based on the currently planned expansion of 1700 sewer hook-ups (Remember, this number is insufficient even for what is currently zoned for housing!)
• Prioritize the allocation of these hook-ups by approving project with the following priorities:

1. Projects on land ALREADY zoned for housing - (stop rezoning from agricultural, industrial or commercial)
2. Projects that provides affordable housing & higher density like town-homes, condos, zero-lot line
3. Projects that minimize off-site traffic impacts or that fully pay for the off site traffic improvements they make necessary. 

• Coordinate planning with serious JOINT effort by the City of Ukiah and the County, side by side with our community to deal with these hard realities. We now have 6 or more planning processes that are meant to set standards for growth. But they are unconnected, complex and unknown to most residents

We propose that :

Our community decides how we grow- NOT outside big money interests. 

More people get involved in planning how we want our community to be 

Our officials look at proposed developments ALL together :

We need to know the TOTAL effect they'll have- on our lives and pocket books

We must live within the resources we HAVE (water, sewer, roads).  

We must make sure the people who live here already get their share of water and sewer hook-ups, not let big new developments gobble up more than their fair share 

We must demand thorough fiscal review of development projects. Who will pay for the needed new road system, sewer expansions, police and fire service?  

New projects use resources sustainably, minimize waste and promote local production of what's 
needed to live. We see no good reason to put housing on farmable land.