Sacramento LAFCO certifies EIR, expands spheres of influence for Airport South project despite community opposition

The Sacramento Local Agency Formation Commission on a unanimous vote certified an environmental impact report (EIR) and approved amendments to the spheres of influence for the City of Sacramento and the Sacramento Area Sewer District tied to the Airport South proposal, LAFCO project number 2023-03.

The decision, moved by a commissioner during the meeting, adopts staff recommendations including LAFCO resolutions 2025-09 (certify EIR and adopt findings), 2025-10 (approve SOI amendment for the City of Sacramento) and 2025-11 (approve SOI amendment for Sacramento Area Sewer District). The motion passed "unanimously," the clerk announced.

Why it matters: The SOI change clears a key regulatory step that would allow future city-level land-use decisions and potential annexation proceedings for roughly 474 acres of largely agricultural land near the airport. Opponents warned that approving the SOI and certifying the EIR would make it easier for large industrial development to move forward near homes, a school and habitat protected under the Natomas Basin Habitat Conservation Plan; supporters argued the move will create local…