by Eileen Jorgensen
At 2,400 feet above sea level, our neighborhoods are situated in a transitional zone between the rolling Sierra foothills and the steeply rising Sierra Nevada mountain range. The magnificent forests, fertile soil, abundant springs and wetlands, rich diverse plant and animal life and temperate climate together with an extraordinary history, all combine to make our neighborhoods and community especially unique.
In 1968, in response in part to the new highway that split our town, the Nevada City City Council successfully nominated much of downtown for Federal National Historic District status. They also established a local Historical Ordinance to protect the newly established District. These actions began a series of events with the goal of protecting the uniqueness of all of Nevada City.
Additionally, in 1987 concerned leadership in Nevada City wrote into their General Plan their goals to maintain the appearance of the corridor along Highway 49 and within the Cities Sphere of Influence, as one of its ‘distinctive characteristics’ as an entryway into historic Nevada City. They established goals to preserve Nevada City’s existing essential character, namely that of a “small, compact historical town surrounded by a green wooded enclosure.” More specifically, they added goals to maintain the appearance of the corridor along Highway 49 and within the City’s Sphere of Influence where our neighborhoods are located.
Later, the Scenic Corridor Ordinance was adopted to implement these General Plan goals. It recognized that the properties along Highway 49 (the south-north section starting at the Banner Overpass and the east-west section from Highway 20 heading toward Downieville) are prime development sites and it enshrined a strategy to protect them as important entryways to town. .
The Scenic Corridor is 300 feet from both sides of the edge of the highway right-of-way. The City’s Zoning Map shows the “SC” designation of these areas. The Ordinance requires that development in the Scenic corridor contain sufficient design and landscaping features to protect and enhance the aesthetics of the Corridor. This would be done by hiding development from the highway and preserving the existing tree cover and topography to the greatest extent possible. In addition, all projects require special review prior to approval. Tree clearance within 50 of the highway-right-of-way is prohibited except as approved during review of a development plan and no bright lights or unnecessary signage are allowed.
Over the years, the implementation of the Scenic Corridor Ordinance has been a big success. Some of the large government projects approved in the vicinity of our neighborhoods were sensitive to the Scenic Corridor Ordinance, Even when under County jurisdiction, they honored the “low visibility and screening requirements.” For instance, the Elks Lodge and new Juvenile Hall were asked by the City to be set back from the highway and to preserve the natural vegetated berms which helped to screen the sites. The Indian Trails Subdivision kept a generous wooded setback too. The position of the Rood Center and the deep setback there was a result of the City working with the County when it was in the design stage.
However, recently there has been slippage: the County constructed a solar field without screening and a new County project was built nearby without minimal setback or screening. Most recently, a large mural was proposed at the North Bloomfield intersection.
Let’s get back on track. There are many large projects coming soon along this section of Highway 49 that must be held to Scenic Corridor standards. The new Courthouse and the United States Forest Service facility will be built in the next few years and there are other undeveloped sites slated for residential projects. All these projects need design review under the Scenic Corridor Ordinance so that they will meet its excellent goals and preserve the rural quality of our environment.
My hope is that interested neighbors within the GCHNA, GCNA and Nabob Hill/Oregon Hill community would be willing to work together and follow these projects as they come up. By developing a working relationship with City and County leadership to hammer out some basic design criteria for the corridor guided by the Scenic Corridor Ordinance, we can make sure that no mistakes are made. A local Planner has expressed interest in helping with this.
At our last meeting, GCHNA voted to create a committee that would focus on this effort. Contact eileen@themagiccarpet.biz if you want to be involved.