As reported in October 14’s montereyherald.com, one of Carmel Valley’s "township’s" most vocal proponents has circulated a map of the proposed Carmel Valley Master Plan, which has arrows pointing to the locations of roughly 20 new residential and commercial developments that are in different phases — anywhere from the proposal stage to some that are completed.
The map is a harbinger of what many Carmel Valley residents fear - the over development of their quaint town. Residents feel the county supervisors, who make land-use decisions in all unincorporated areas of the county, do not have their best interests at heart when approving development projects.
Proponents of Measure G, which will go to a vote on November 3, believe that incorporating Carmel Valley will change that. As well as deciding whether to incorporate, they will vote for members of the town council and whether, in the future, council members will be chosen from districts or at large. The results of these council-related votes will be mute if incorporation is voted down.
Opponents say "The Map" is a scare tactic that gives the false impression a population boom is imminent in Carmel Valley.
Proponents say that approval of the proposed Rancho Cañada and September Ranch housing developments, high-end communities Tehama and the Santa Lucia Preserve, and a new self-storage facility all reinforce the rumblings that the current line-up of county officials "rubber-stamp" projects, with little or no consideration for the community at large.
During a special Carmel Unified School District board meeting recently, developer Alan Williams unveiled a revamped plan, reducing the number of dwellings significantly, and developing a large portion of the property as park land.
However, even as "Project Redux," proponents claim the subdivision would add a tremendous amount of traffic to the area; they are also fearful that it would fill in part of the flood plain north of the Carmel River. Yet Williams said the flood plain concerns are unwarranted as precautions have been taken to create flood relief elsewhere. "If it floods this year, we're better off than we've ever been," Williams said.
Additional projects on the map include a new Safeway and the Storage PRO self-storage facility. Both were completed more than two years ago and have arguably reduced traffic in and out of the valley.
While proponents condemn the self-storage facility, it has proven quite popular with locals looking for extra storage space. Steve Mirabito, the facility's owner (and a resident of the East Bay), said his facility is nearly full and that 90 percent of its users either live or work in Carmel Valley.
"The first day we opened for business," Mirabito said, "it was incredible how many people who were commuting outside of the area (for self-storage) were lined up because of the pressure to drive outside of the valley to get storage."
If Carmel Valley residents no longer travel to Sand City or Seaside to visit their self-storage, there is less traffic on the road.