The questionable zoning change process started in 2013

In 2013 Diamond Bar updated their General Plan Housing Element.

That update process produced the land use map below:

Diamond Bar General Plan Land Use Map Updated September 2013

"Open space" areas are circled in red. The trails around Diamond Bar Center were designated as "open space" during that process. See the larger map here.

Then in 2014, the city updated its zoning:

Current Diamond Bar Zoning map, last updated in 2014

All the open space designations disappeared! Notice how all the areas circled in red are now zoned for residential housing. See the larger map here.

This was a direct violation of Government Code § 65860, which requires consistency between general plan land use map designations and zoning.

It remains the case that all of our natural open space is still zoned for housing.

Then, in 2016 Diamond Bar began working on a new General Plan.

Now we're seriously concerned a about the Diamond Bar Center Trail area.

The new General Plan's proposed language, states that the 450 acres of Diamond Bar Center trails will be "preserved in perpetuity."

But, notice the General Plan's Existing Parks, Open Space, and Recreation Facilities map below.

Notice that Diamond Bar Center Trail area is designated only as a "Vacant Natural Area", not open space.

This seems odd, since the area around Trigger Lane in the lower left is designated as Open Space/Greenways/Trails

Here's the question: if the Diamond Bar Center trail area is to be protected in perpetuity, why isn't it also designated as open space? See the larger map here.

It gets even more interesting.

Notice the Current Land Use Planning Map below:

According to city officials, this is the definitive map which will be used for the General Plan Update, currently underway. In other words, this is the future being planned for us.

Notice that the Diamond Bar Center trails are now designated as a "Planning area."

While, once again, the Trigger Lane area in the lower left corner is designated as Open Space. See the larger map here.

A Planning Area is natural land designated for development.

According to proposed General Plan language, a Planning Area: "...is applied to properties where creative approaches are needed to integrate future development with existing natural resources."

The General Plan Document which defines a Planning Area can be found here. It mentions Government Code 65450. The specific language of that statue can be found here.

Bottom line: There are no constraints on natural open space development in these areas.

Millennium Development in The Country. Is this what "integrating future development with existing natural resources" means in Diamond Bar?

The time to save our trails is now.

While Diamond Bar's General Plan is still being developed.

Official General Plan language (See it here.) states that the city owns our Diamond Bar Center trail area land. That means we, the citizens own the land.

That means we can save it from development. We can have it designated as natural open space.

But we must work together. We must get involved. We must work smart. And we must do it now.

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And, please educate your friends.