Gonzales appeals to LAFCO, says Vista Lucia housing project application is complete.

A project that has been 20 years in the making, Vista Lucia, envisions 3,498 homes being developed on 771 acres of agricultural land northeast to Gonzales over a span of 30 years.

One necessary step is annexation of the land into the City of Gonzales. City Council approved the project last year, and then the City applied to the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) of Monterey County in February, asking for its approval. LAFCO's staff deemed the application incomplete.

Now, the City of Gonzales is asking LAFCO's commissioners to deem the application complete. 

LAFCO is scheduled to hear the appeal on Monday, Aug. 24. 

LAFCO staff responded to Gonzales officials in March noting there was not a property tax transfer agreement and saying an annexation map and geographic description were required, as well as a plan for public transportation. They determined it didn’t comply with LAFCO’s agricultural preservation policy, which requires a third-party organization to oversee the agricultural conservation easement. 

Gonzales has since addressed three of the issues. On Aug. 17, the Gonzales City Council approved a City-County property tax transfer agreement. The one that remains is the ag conservation policy, which includes identifying the organization that would be responsible for the ag easement. 

Beyond those concerns, others have been raised. LandWatch Monterey County sent a letter to LAFCO expressing water supply concerns regarding the Vista Lucia Project and the city’s proposed agricultural mitigation. “This is particularly urgent because the City has represented in the EIR that it will be providing the water supply for thousands of proposed houses through an apparent new appropriation of groundwater from the overdrafted basin,” LandWatch Executive Director Michael DeLapa wrote.

According to the Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency, the housing development’s water demands would be lower than the current groundwater demands in that area for agricultural use. 

According to a July report from Gonzales City Manager Carmen Gil, city officials hope that once mitigation measures are completed, the Vista Lucia project will be approved by this fall. 

City staff say having more housing in the city would provide opportunities for locals to purchase a home. Critics, on the other hand, raised concerns about its viability since price points range from $555,000 to $650,000 and the average median income in the city is about $76,060.