Open space bill shelved

Santa Cruz County’s bid to form an open-space district took a hit last week as advocates asked state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, for more time to craft the legislation to satisfy conservation groups outside the county.
“We have considerable local support,” said Terry Corwin, the director of the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County, which sponsored the bill. “We now need to address a narrow, but legitimate, concern raised by the statewide conservation community.”
The Land Trust asked Simitian to shelve Senate Bill 211 after groups outside the county opposed amendments to the bill that created a seven-member advisory board in Watsonville and gave the city veto power over potential land acquisitions in that area.
The bill passed the state Senate and was approved by an Assembly committee in August. It would have enabled county supervisors to put a measure on the ballot to create an open-space district in the county.
As it was written, the bill allows supervisors to bypass the Local Agency Formation Commission review process, which includes multiple public hearings and requires organizers to find a funding source before a district is created.
An open-space district could put bond measures on a ballot to purchase land for preservation.