The Soledad City Planning Commission on June 12, 2025 voted to recommend that the City Council accept draft land‑use and circulation maps for the city's General Plan 2045 and authorize staff to begin environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The motion passed unanimously.

Senior planner Ariana Mora, who presented the maps, said the item "is critical to developing a draft general plan" and asked the commission for direction on any modifications before staff completes the full draft and accompanying environmental analysis.

The draft maps reflect community engagement held since 2024, steering‑committee technical reviews and two alternatives the public considered last year. Major land‑use proposals include a downtown designation intended to encourage mixed uses and activity; neighborhood centers for small, walkable retail near residential areas; blended residential and multifamily neighborhood categories aimed at providing more flexible housing types; and two gateway designations (Northern and Southern) to prioritize commercial and visitor‑serving uses at town entries.

On circulation, staff incorporated planned public‑works projects and traffic engineering work. The draft shows a proposed "road diet" and pedestrian upgrades on West Street, intersection improvements across town, added crosswalks and pedestrian routes, and a proposed connection across the railroad to improve access from industrial to commercial areas. Staff reported that several roundabout locations were removed or scaled back after community feedback and follow‑up technical review. Several circulation elements flagged in the draft are tied to the Miramonte development'including roundabouts and upgrades near San Vicente Road, West Street and Orchard Lane'because Miramonte's approved tentative map identifies those primary access roads.

Commissioners raised traffic and emergency‑access concerns repeatedly. Several speakers urged the city to continue pursuing an additional freeway entrance/exit to reduce bottlenecks and to keep the city's safe‑routes‑to‑school work and pedestrian improvements at the forefront of near‑term implementation. Commissioners and members of the public urged prioritizing human factors and on‑the‑ground observation in addition to traffic simulation work when designing crosswalks and other interventions.

The Monterey Salinas Transit (MST) district provided a written comment read into the record asking to be a stakeholder on circulation projects that affect transit routes and bus stops; MST noted that a high share of its passengers walk or bike to access buses and requested that transit‑area improvements meet ADA and transit design standards.

The commission made a motion recommending the council accept the draft land‑use and circulation maps as presented, including any changes recommended by the commission at the meeting, and to authorize staff to proceed with environmental documentation under CEQA. The motion passed with a 5‑0 vote.

Next steps described by staff include incorporating the commission's feedback into a full draft general plan, preparing the environmental review, and continuing community outreach before the plan is returned to the Planning Commission and City Council for final action. Staff said they anticipate a target of January 2026 for an adopted general plan, subject to the environmental process and any adjustments requested by the council.