The Redding Planning Commission has begun CEQA scoping for the Riverfront Specific Plan Update, opening a public hearing Feb. 10 on the scope of the environmental impact report that will help shape the city’s long-range riverfront policy.
Planning consultant Dan Amstin of MIG said the specific plan has been in progress for about two and a half years and is now moving into detailed drafting alongside the EIR. He said the notice of preparation opened Jan. 28 and runs through March 2, and that the city expects another round of public review in late spring before the plan returns to the Planning Commission and City Council.
Amstin described the update as a program-level policy document, not a development project, and said it will address land use, mobility, environmental preservation, floodplain issues and implementation tools such as design standards and coordination. He also said the current framework reflects prior community and council direction, including a roughly 150-foot buffer in parts of the northern riverfront.
Commissioners and members of the public focused on habitat, floodplain impacts, traffic and how much flexibility the future plan should allow. Commissioners asked for analysis of ongoing maintenance impacts and cumulative ecological effects, while staff said the EIR is not the tool to change floodplain regulations, though the specific plan could later include policy language on floodplain management.
Several speakers urged protection of riparian habitat and wildlife corridors, opposed housing on the riverfront and called for stronger pedestrian access and traffic safety around Park Marina Drive. Others pressed for preserving the rodeo grounds and keeping enough flexibility for grants, private investment and future redevelopment.
Director Jeremy Pagan told commissioners that zoning code updates tied to the housing element are coming and said he hopes to bring a draft tree ordinance to the commission in the spring.