Planning commission recommends City Council adopt updated Open Space and Conservation Element with inventory corrections and implementation tracking

The Fullerton Planning Commission on April 22 recommended that the City Council adopt an updated Open Space and Conservation Element (Appendix M) to replace Chapter 19 of the city’s general plan.

Senior planner Yan Gao, who led the presentation, said the update is intended to comply with state requirements referenced in the hearing as "Senate Bill 14 25" (signed 2022) and that the update addresses equitable access, climate resilience and rewilding. Gao said the work was developed with consultant Michael Baker International and an accompanying appendix captures public survey responses; staff described the update as a policy-level general plan amendment that does not change land use or zoning and said it is CEQA-exempt under the common-sense exemption.

Gao outlined the element’s scope: a citywide open-space inventory (staff cited 50 public parks totaling about 665 acres, seven joint-use school parks at about 18 acres and five habitat conservation areas totaling roughly 700 acres), goals and policies tied to equitable access and rewilding, and an internal action plan of more than 130 items for departmental implementation. Gao said the update will be forwarded to Parks & Recreation and then to City Council for final adoption tentatively in May 2026; the adopted element will also be submitted to the governor’s office of land use and climate innovation (formerly OPR).

Public commenters urged stronger implementation and noted local conservation priorities. One in-chamber commenter raised watershed-cleanup volunteer programs and asked about the northern Tree Farm parcels; another, Curtis Gamboa, described the presentation as informative but warned Fullerton has fiscal pressures and said "your city is in a $10,000,000 deficit." Zoom commenter Jane Rifert asked that the element prioritize conservation areas and include creek maps, endangered-species lists and specific District 4 resources.

Commissioners’ questions focused on two areas: the accuracy and meaning of the open-space inventory (particularly whether school fields listed as joint-use remain accessible to the public) and how staff will track and report implementation. Commissioners pressed staff to verify whether school fields remain available and to correct any inventory errors; staff said parks that were locked have been removed where known but agreed to re-check and refine the draft in response to feedback. Staff also described the action plan as the implementation tool that can be updated without amending the policy element and said departments will coordinate to assign responsibilities and reporting. Staff noted the state requires periodic reporting on general-plan progress.

A motion to recommend adoption of Appendix M with a condition directing staff to refine the draft open-space inventory and address park/school discrepancies passed unanimously. The commission’s recommendation will be transmitted to the Parks & Recreation Commission and then to City Council for final action.