Eureka council reviews draft Gulch Greenway ordinance to protect gulches while accommodating state housing requirements

Eureka City Council members on the evening of a special meeting received an update on a draft Gulch Greenway Ordinance intended to map and better regulate development in the city's gulches to protect streams, wetlands and riparian habitat while preserving sites identified for housing.

The ordinance proposes a parcel-based Gulch Greenway overlay that would screen properties within roughly 100 feet of steep slopes, riparian drip lines, flood lanes and known wetlands and apply tiered permit requirements ranging from administrative zoning clearances to conditional use permits that would trigger environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). "We would create a parcel specific map of all of the parcels in Eureka that are within or 100 feet of steep slopes, riparian drip lines, flood lanes, and known streams or wetlands," consultant Ben Noble said during his presentation.

City staff and Noble said the mapping problem is practical and financial: a site-by-site stream and wetland survey to draw precise greenway boundaries is cost-prohibitive at a citywide scale, so the screening-overlay approach is intended to flag parcels for additional review rather than preclude development outright.…