Monterey County Local News: Land Use & Development


All Local Land Use & Development News articles contributed by our local media allies and other local newsrooms.

Image caption: The 1965 law known as the Williamson Act has been responsible for keeping about half of California's farmland out of the hands of developers.
The Williamson Act: How the Law That Protects California’s Farmland Works

The Williamson Act, passed in 1965, now keeps more than 16 million acres of farmland out of the hands of developers. Here's how the law puts the brakes on the development of California agricultural properties.

Image caption: Does California’s signature environmental law protect the state’s scenic beauty, or cause more problems than it solves?
CEQA: The Surprising Story of CA’s Key Environmental Law

The California Environmental Quality Act, CEQA, is both the state’s signature environmental legislation, and is also often named as the villain in the state’s housing shortage. But the story may not be that simple.

Image caption: The Baldwin Hills area in South Los Angeles is one region where a state conservancy would keep open land accessible to the public.
California’s 10 State Conservancies: How They Protect Parks and Open Land

How California’s 10 state conservancies buy up open land and shield it from developers to preserve the natural environment for public use.

Image caption: Since 1972, the California Coastal Commission has ruled over the state’s shoreline.
California Coastal Commission: Where It Comes From, What It Does

What is the California Coastal Commission? How one of the state’s most powerful agency protects public access to the state’s scenic coast from Mexico to Oregon.

Image caption: How California reclamation districts turned millions of acres of wetlands into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush.
Reclamation Districts: Turning ‘Swamps’ Into Farmland

California has used reclamation districts to turn millions of acres of unusable swamps into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush. Here’s how it happened.

Image caption: Zoning laws tell you what you can and can't build on the property you own. How does government get away with that?
How Zoning Laws Shape California and Society

Zoning laws determine what can be built and where. These laws have shaped California, but are they really just tools for social engineering? The history of zoning is closely tied to racial segregation, as well as the state's shortage of …

Image caption: Lighthouse Field in Santa Cruz, which might be a huge resort if not for the Coastal Commission.
The Public Shore Protectors

The future of 1,100 miles of spectacular coastline is in the hands of the California Coastal Commission, which is beloved by coastal environmentalists, notorious among those who favor development, and little-known in the inland parts of the state.

King City Rustler logo From King City Rustler...

03/14/2025
Image for display with article titled Westside Fuel Break Progress Continues in South Monterey County

The Westside Fuel Break in South Monterey County is making significant progress, announced Cal Fire BEU on March 5.

KSQD logo From KSQD...

03/14/2025
Image for display with article titled Threats to Coastal Conservation

Dan Haifley, a long-time ocean conservationist and former director of O'Neill's Sea Odyssey and Save Our Shores, gives us an update on the multiple threats to ocean ecosystems and marine sanctuaries posed by the cuts to federal staff and budgets by the executive branch.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

03/14/2025
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said today he will grant State Farm’s request to raise home insurance premiums by 22% on average if the company agrees to certain conditions — and wins approval at a public rate hearing next month.

California Local Pin Marker From Los Angeles Times...

03/12/2025
Read on to learn the story behind the Army Corps of Engineers abrupt release of billions of gallons of water from two California dams despite pushback from water managers and state elected officials.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

03/10/2025
From pushing for oversight of the FAIR Plan to providing tax breaks for premiums, California lawmakers try to fix insurance market problems.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

03/09/2025
It’s legal in California to evict tenants for nonpayment even when they can pay all their overdue rent. A proposal pending in the Legislature seeks to change that.

California Local Pin Marker From Monterey Herald...

03/06/2025
More flareups are possible at the Moss Landing batter storage facility are possible as crews work to delink batteries and clean up. Read on for more information.

Monterey County Weekly logo From Monterey County Weekly...

03/05/2025
Image for display with article titled Expansion at Cardinale Stadium Seeks to Diversify Events and Attract Female Soccer Teams.

Three years ago, Cardinale Stadium was packed with fans attending Monterey Bay FC’s first home game. The local United Soccer League team played several games away while the stadium modernization was still underway.

Monterey County Weekly logo From Monterey County Weekly...

03/05/2025
Image for display with article titled A Community Outreach Process in Marina, Paid for by Cal Am, Gets Off to a Rocky Start.

Just before 10am on Saturday, March 1, about a dozen people start trickling into a building at UC MBEST, a research facility operated by UC Santa Cruz just northeast of Imjin Parkway at Reservation Road.

Monterey County Weekly logo From Monterey County Weekly...

03/05/2025
Image for display with article titled The Bridge Drug Treatment Program Closes Escrow on a More Expansive Location.

Space was tight at The Bridge Restoration Ministry in Pacific Grove, a multi-phase drug rehabilitation program begun in 2006 in a historic eight-bedroom home where 22 men live and receive treatment.

California Local Pin Marker From Monterey Herald...

03/05/2025
Read on for details about the $1 million restoration underway at the historic Cooper-Molera Adobe in downtown Monterey.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

03/04/2025
This appears to be the first such injunction since the U.S. Supreme Court let cities crack down on homeless encampments in California and beyond.

California Local Pin Marker From Monterey Herald...

03/03/2025
The Highway 218 bridge in Del Rey Oaks is where the work on the Fort Ord Regional Trail and Greenway is being concentrated in Del Rey Oaks. Read on for details.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

03/03/2025
Oakland Democrat Buffy Wicks said lawmakers will soon see 20 bills to speed up housing construction, along with more on energy, water and transit.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

02/27/2025
The governor has proposed spending climate bond money dedicated to wildfire mitigation in various ways. Some lawmakers think a focused strategy would be more effective.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

02/26/2025
Each year, legislation aimed at better wildfire mitigation fails – often due to cost or conflict with environmental regulations.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

02/26/2025
Feather River College is still reeling from the 2021 Dixie Fire, which destroyed hundreds of homes in the surrounding community and warped the housing market. The college is one of many schools that have tried — and failed — to secure state grants to build more student housing.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

02/26/2025
Ricardo Lara said he will look at information provided by State Farm before revisiting his previous decision to reject the company’s emergency rate hike.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

02/23/2025
A passel of recent California laws were supposed to supercharge the construction of desperately needed housing. According to YIMBY Law, they haven’t even come close.

King City Rustler logo From King City Rustler...

02/21/2025
Image for display with article titled Monterey County Youth Protect Los Angeles Waterways From Post-Fire Contamination

MONTEREY COUNTY — Adriaan Urquidez, a young adult from Monterey County, is part of a massive response to protect the burned areas of Los Angeles from taking another hit. This time from winter storms.