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 MONTEREY COUNTY

COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE

SALLY R. REED COUNTY ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER

P.O. BOX 180 SALINAS, CA 93902 (831) 755-5115 FAX (831) 757-5722 www.co.monterey.ca.us

August 26, 2002

Paul Wouldenberg, President
Del Monte Forest Property Owners
P.O. Box 523
Pebble Beach, CA 93953

RE: Highway 68/Highway 1 Gate Improvements

Dear Paul:

Thank you for your recent thoughtful inquiry regarding the status of the Highway 68/Highway 1 interchange improvements. It is the position of the County Planning and Building Inspection Department, with concurrence from County Counsel, that an Environmental Impact Report is required for the Highway 68 improvements. Specifically, issues that need to be addressed include cumulative and growth inducing impacts associated with all the proposed County and City of Monterey-Highway 68 improvements, together with the proposed Pebble Beach Company development in the Del Monte Forest. I have been advised that any lesser environmental review to include the preparation of a mitigated Negative Declaration would be inadequate and open to legal challenges.

I have been further advised that the most efficient and procedurally acceptable method of environmental review of the Highway 68 improvements is to include them in the analysis of the Pebble Beach Company's proposal for Del Monte Forest, given that these projects are clearly linked. This process is currently underway with the Draft EIR expected to be circulated at the end of 2002.

An alternative approach would be to prepare a separate Environmental Impact Report for the County Highway 68 improvements that would address the issues outlined above. Given that the current EIR is well underway and scheduled for public meetings in December, we may well have a certified EIR by the middle of next year. Once the current EIR is complete, it could be used for consideration of the Highway 68 improvements independently of the approval of the Pebble Beach Company Del Monte Forest project. There is a good possibility that the preparation and completion of a separate EIR would occur after the completion of the current EIR making the alternative option duplicative and an inefficient use of resources.

In conclusion, we believe we are following the most expeditious route to complete the Highway 68 improvements given the level of environmental review that is legally required. As the current EIR process approaches completion we will consider, along with the Pebble Beach Company, options for bringing these improvements forward independently for consideration as quickly as possible. I welcome and request further input from you in the future regarding this process.

Sincerely,

/ss/

Sally R. Reed
County Administrative Officer

c:	Dave Potter, Chair, Board of Supervisors Scott Hennessy, Director of Planning & Building Inspection