MAC Supports Agricultural Storage, Approves Garage
At their Monday night virtual land use meeting, the Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) voted to support a potential upcoming Alameda County ballot measure that would propose changing the amount of development on agricultural parcels of land.
The ballot measure that would amend Measure D (passed in November 2000) would increase the “floor area ratio” on buildings and equestrian facilities. For example, on a 100-acre (4,356,000 square feet) parcel, a “floor area ratio” of .01 would allow the equivalent of one acre (43,560 square feet) of building area for non-residential buildings.
As proposed, the ballot measure would apply the .25 floor area ratio which is now allowed for greenhouse to all types of agricultural buildings.
The MAC said that allowing agricultural property owners to be able to store more on their land without having to travel out of the area is a good idea
“Storage is at a premium and it’s good to be able to have some flexibility on these properties.”
The Board of Supervisors would have to vote to approve the measure by November of 2021 to make the March 2022 ballot at the earliest.
The MAC also approved an application to allow the construction of a new accessory structure on the front part of the lot at 4235 Krolop Road. The variance will allow a 500-square-foot two-car garage and for the current garages to be converted into an accessory dwelling unit.
The next virtual MAC meeting is scheduled for Monday, September 20 starting at 6:00 p.m. Two agenda items on the General Purpose meeting docket include an overview by Community Development Agency director Casey Farmer on the county’s redistricting process; and a presentation by the Alameda County Office of Emergency Services on the current evacuation process in case of a catastrophic event.
The MAC meeting information can be found on the County website: https://acgov.org/bc/cvmac/