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SCAG 2020-04-01  April 1, 2020 Ms. Cheri Flores, Planning Manager City of La Quinta 78-745 Calle Tampico La Quinta, California 92253 Phone: (760) 777-7067 E-mail: clflores@laquintaca.gov RE: SCAG Comments on the Notice of Preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Travertine Specific Plan [SCAG NO. IGR9513] Dear Ms. Flores, Thank you for submitting the Notice of Preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Travertine Specific Plan (“proposed project”) to the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) for review and comment. SCAG is the authorized regional agency for Inter-Governmental Review (IGR) of programs proposed for Federal financial assistance and direct Federal development activities, pursuant to Presidential Executive Order 12372. Additionally, SCAG reviews the Environmental Impact Reports of projects of regional significance for consistency with regional plans pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and CEQA Guidelines. SCAG is also the designated Regional Transportation Planning Agency under state law, and is responsible for preparation of the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) including the Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS) pursuant to Senate Bill (SB) 375. As the clearinghouse for regionally significant projects per Executive Order 12372, SCAG reviews the consistency of local plans, projects, and programs with regional plans.1 SCAG’s feedback is intended to assist local jurisdictions and project proponents to implement projects that have the potential to contribute to attainment of Regional Transportation Plan/Sustainable Community Strategies (RTP/SCS) goals and align with RTP/SCS policies. SCAG staff has reviewed the Notice of Preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Travertine Specific Plan in Riverside County. The proposed project includes development of a master planned community containing a mix of uses including up to 1,200 dwelling units, a resort facility with up to 100 rooms, recreational uses such as a golf facility with clubhouse and 12-hole golf course, parks, a public trail system, and 162.5 acres of open space on 876 acres. When available, please send environmental documentation to SCAG’s Los Angeles office in Los Angeles (900 Wilshire Boulevard, Ste. 1700, Los Angeles, California 90017) or by email to au@scag.ca.gov providing, at a minimum, the full public comment period for review. If you have any questions regarding the attached comments, please contact the Inter- Governmental Review (IGR) Program, attn.: Anita Au, Associate Regional Planner, at (213) 236-1874 or au@scag.ca.gov. Thank you. Sincerely, Ping Chang Manager, Compliance and Performance Monitoring                                                              1 Lead agencies such as local jurisdictions have the sole discretion in determining a local project’s consistency with the 2016 RTP/SCS for the purpose of determining consistency for CEQA. Any “consistency” finding by SCAG pursuant to the IGR process should not be construed as a determination of consistency with the 2016 RTP/SCS for CEQA.  April 1, 2020 SCAG No. IGR9513 Ms. Flores Page 2       COMMENTS ON THE NOTICE OF PREPARATION OF A DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT FOR THE TRAVERTINE SPECIFIC PLAN [SCAG NO. IGR9513] CONSISTENCY WITH RTP/SCS SCAG reviews environmental documents for regionally significant projects for their consistency with the adopted RTP/SCS. For the purpose of determining consistency with CEQA, lead agencies such as local jurisdictions have the sole discretion in determining a local project’s consistency with the RTP/SCS. Please note the Draft 2020 RTP/SCS (Connect SoCal) was released for public review on November 14, 2019 until January 24, 2020. The Final Connect SoCal is anticipated to be adopted by SCAG’s Regional Council in late April 2020. Please refer to Connect SoCal goals and growth forecast for RTP/SCS consistency for future projects. The Proposed Final Connect SoCal is now available for review here: https://www.connectsocal.org/Pages/Connect-SoCal-Final-Plan.aspx. 2016 RTP/SCS GOALS The SCAG Regional Council adopted the 2016 RTP/SCS in April 2016. The 2016 RTP/SCS seeks to improve mobility, promote sustainability, facilitate economic development and preserve the quality of life for the residents in the region. The long-range visioning plan balances future mobility and housing needs with goals for the environment, the regional economy, social equity and environmental justice, and public health (see http://scagrtpscs.net/Pages/FINAL2016RTPSCS.aspx). The goals included in the 2016 RTP/SCS may be pertinent to the proposed project. These goals are meant to provide guidance for considering the proposed project within the context of regional goals and policies. Among the relevant goals of the 2016 RTP/SCS are the following: SCAG 2016 RTP/SCS GOALS RTP/SCS G1: Align the plan investments and policies with improving regional economic development and competitiveness RTP/SCS G2: Maximize mobility and accessibility for all people and goods in the region RTP/SCS G3: Ensure travel safety and reliability for all people and goods in the region RTP/SCS G4: Preserve and ensure a sustainable regional transportation system RTP/SCS G5: Maximize the productivity of our transportation system RTP/SCS G6: Protect the environment and health for our residents by improving air quality and encouraging active transportation (e.g., bicycling and walking) RTP/SCS G7: Actively encourage and create incentives for energy efficiency, where possible RTP/SCS G8: Encourage land use and growth patterns that facilitate transit and active transportation RTP/SCS G9: Maximize the security of the regional transportation system through improved system monitoring, rapid recovery planning, and coordination with other security agencies* *SCAG does not yet have an agreed-upon security performance measure. For ease of review, we encourage the use of a side-by-side comparison of SCAG goals with discussions of the consistency, non-consistency or non-applicability of the goals and supportive analysis in a table format. Suggested format is as follows: April 1, 2020 SCAG No. IGR9513 Ms. Flores Page 3       SCAG 2016 RTP/SCS GOALS Goal Analysis RTP/SCS G1: Align the plan investments and policies with improving regional economic development and competitiveness Consistent: Statement as to why; Not-Consistent: Statement as to why; Or Not Applicable: Statement as to why; DEIR page number reference RTP/SCS G2: Maximize mobility and accessibility for all people and goods in the region Consistent: Statement as to why; Not-Consistent: Statement as to why; Or Not Applicable: Statement as to why; DEIR page number reference etc. etc. 2016 RTP/SCS STRATEGIES To achieve the goals of the 2016 RTP/SCS, a wide range of land use and transportation strategies are included in the 2016 RTP/SCS. Technical appendances of the 2016 RTP/SCS provide additional supporting information in detail. To view the 2016 RTP/SCS, please visit: http://scagrtpscs.net/Pages/FINAL2016RTPSCS.aspx. The 2016 RTP/SCS builds upon the progress from the 2012 RTP/SCS and continues to focus on integrated, coordinated, and balanced planning for land use and transportation that the SCAG region strives toward a more sustainable region, while the region meets and exceeds in meeting all of applicable statutory requirements pertinent to the 2016 RTP/SCS. These strategies within the regional context are provided as guidance for lead agencies such as local jurisdictions when the proposed project is under consideration. DEMOGRAPHICS AND GROWTH FORECASTS Local input plays an important role in developing a reasonable growth forecast for the 2016 RTP/SCS. SCAG used a bottom-up local review and input process and engaged local jurisdictions in establishing the base geographic and socioeconomic projections including population, household and employment. At the time of this letter, the most recently adopted SCAG jurisdictional-level growth forecasts that were developed in accordance with the bottom-up local review and input process consist of the 2020, 2035, and 2040 population, households and employment forecasts. To view them, please visit http://www.scag.ca.gov/Documents/2016GrowthForecastByJurisdiction.pdf. The growth forecasts for the region and applicable jurisdictions are below.   Adopted SCAG Region Wide Forecasts Adopted City of La Quinta Forecasts Year 2020 Year 2035 Year 2040 Year 2020 Year 2035 Year 2040 Population 19,663,000 22,091,000 22,138,800 40,800 47,000 47,700 Households 6,458,000 7,325,000 7,412,300 16,500 18,900 19,100 Employment 8,414,000 9,441,000 9,871,500 16,600 20,900 21,500   MITIGATION MEASURES SCAG staff recommends that you review the Final Program Environmental Impact Report (Final PEIR) for the 2016 RTP/SCS for guidance, as appropriate. SCAG’s Regional Council certified the Final PEIR and adopted the associated Findings of Fact and a Statement of Overriding Considerations (FOF/SOC) and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (MMRP) on April 7, 2016 (please see: http://scagrtpscs.net/Pages/FINAL2016PEIR.aspx). The Final PEIR includes a list of project-level performance standards-based mitigation measures that may be considered for adoption and implementation by lead, responsible, or trustee agencies in the region, as applicable and feasible. Project- level mitigation measures are within responsibility, authority, and/or jurisdiction of project-implementing agency or other public agency serving as lead agency under CEQA in subsequent project- and site- specific design, CEQA review, and decision-making processes, to meet the performance standards for each of the CEQA resource categories. April 1, 2020 SCAG No. IGR9513 Ms. Flores Page 4       Please note the Draft Connect SoCal PEIR was released for public review from December 9, 2019 to January 24, 2020. The Final Connect SoCal PEIR is anticipated to be certified by SCAG’s Regional Council in late April 2020. Please refer to the certified Final Connect SoCal PEIR and adopted Findings of Fact and a Statement of Overriding Considerations (FOF/SOC) and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (MMRP) for future projects. The Proposed Final Connect SoCal PEIR is now available for review here: https://www.connectsocal.org/Pages/Final-2020-PEIR.aspx.