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Yolo County holds public scoping meeting for Clark Pacific facility expansion EIR; commission raises questions about parceling and ag mitigation
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Summary
Yolo County planners and their CEQA consultant held a public scoping meeting to gather input on the environmental topics to be studied in an EIR for Clark Pacific’s proposed expansion on about 77 acres north of Woodland.
Yolo County planners held a public scoping session at a Planning Commission meeting to gather input on the scope of an environmental impact report (EIR) for the proposed Clark Pacific Facility Expansion Project, a prospective expansion of an existing prefabricated concrete/manufacturing site north of Woodland.
The county’s CEQA consultant, Rainey Planning and Management, explained the procedural steps: the county issued a Notice of Preparation (NOP) and is accepting public input during the 30‑day scoping period ahead of a draft EIR. The draft EIR will be circulated for at least 45 days, followed by a final EIR and subsequent public hearings for the project entitlements.
Project summary: Clark Pacific seeks to redesignate and rezone roughly 77 acres of agricultural land immediately west of its existing industrial facility to heavy industrial, subdivide the parcel into up to seven lots, and accommodate up to 500,000 square feet of new industrial building area in a conservative, worst‑case analysis for CEQA. The site is in the unincorporated county north of Woodland, adjacent to California Northern Railroad tracks, and near a small number of residential and institutional uses including a single‑family residence southeast of the site, the Happy Ranch care program, and the Maples event venue.
Why it matters: The EIR will evaluate potential impacts on agricultural resources, air quality, greenhouse gas emissions and energy, hydrology and water quality (including water supply), noise and transportation, and cumulative impacts. Commissioners and members of the public were invited to comment on the scope during the scoping period.
Key issues raised at the scoping meeting: Several commissioners and staff discussed the project description and the decision to subdivide the parcel into seven lots. Commission members asked why Clark Pacific was proposing subdivision rather than retaining a single parcel, and whether the stated reason — phasing agricultural‑mitigation payments to reduce upfront mitigation costs — is the best approach. Commissioners suggested alternatives such as retaining one parcel while applying mitigation measures that tie payments or other obligations to actual phases of development, to prevent long periods of converted but fallow land without mitigation.
Commissioners also asked staff and the consultant to analyze growth‑inducing and cumulative effects, particularly whether industrial rezoning might influence future urban expansion or service requests and whether LAFCO review would be required if the project sought city services. County staff said LAFCO would not be required unless the project requested services from the City of Woodland.
Other topics commissioners requested the EIR to study closely included: - Transportation and infrastructure: pavement condition, fair‑share road improvements, access constraints and impacts associated with heavier truck traffic; the county asked that analysis consider the PG&E right‑of‑way and other site constraints. - Water supply and wastewater: each conceptual lot shows a well and septic; commissioners asked for assessment of local groundwater and septic capacity and how that would affect build‑out assumptions. - Agricultural mitigation timing: staff and commissioners asked for measures to avoid converting agricultural land without concurrent mitigation or active agricultural use while parcels remain undeveloped. - Greenhouse gas emissions and cumulative benefits: multiple commissioners noted that Clark Pacific’s prefabrication business may reduce lifecycle emissions of buildings statewide, and asked the EIR to consider the upstream and downstream greenhouse‑gas implications alongside local emissions.
Applicant comment: Eric Wenge, representing Clark Pacific, told the commission the company values its long presence in the county and seeks flexibility to expand as production and storage needs grow. He said parceling was proposed to allow phased development and to spread the cost of ag‑mitigation obligations over time; Clark Pacific intends to continue farming portions of the property that are not yet developed. The applicant acknowledged the county would analyze a conservative build‑out scenario for CEQA.
Process and next steps: Rainey and county staff invited written comments during the NOP scoping period; staff provided contact information and encouraged commenters to submit written comments in addition to verbal remarks at the meeting. Commissioners and staff discussed the project description and requested that the EIR reflect realistic development scenarios tied to the applicant’s intent while also analyzing a reasonable worst‑case build‑out for environmental impact purposes.
No decisions were made at the scoping meeting; the session was held to gather issues and suggestions that the county and its consultant will address in the draft EIR preparation. The county said it will include an alternatives chapter, cumulative analyses and a project‑description that the consultant will refine based on comments received during the scoping period.
