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San Joaquin County March 4, 1998 Community Development Department Page 3 It is the purpose of this correspondence, along with other data being transmitted by the District to the County to establish this fact in order to ensure that either this Project is not allowed to proceed at this time or, in the alternative, that this Project provides adequate revenue to the District to offset the cost of new facilities made necessary by the Project as further outlined in this correspondence. Additionally, any approvals granted by the County with respect to the Project must be consistent with the County General Plan, and to be consistent, such approvals must be compatible with the objectives, policies, general land uses, and programs specified in the plan (see Government Code Section 53860, subd. (a) (ii); see also Lesher Communications, Inc. v. City of Walnut Creek (1990) 52 Cal. 3d 531). In light of the fact that the County has adopted specific policies in the General Plan relating to the adequacy of school facilities, it is important for the County to consider these policies along with the impact of any proposed project on school facilities prior to granting approval to a developer to proceed. Given the ongoing shortfall between the state authorized $1.93 per square foot residential developer fee and the actual cost of providing school facilities to new development, the District and various representatives of the local development community have on numerous occasions agreed between themselves to a supplemental fee of $1.34 per square foot (plus periodic inflation) for new residential units. This so- called supplemental fee, along with the current $1.93 per square foot fee, come close to fully mitigating the impacts of new residential development on District facilities. The District has contacted the developer of the Project and has provided the developer with a copy of the District's standard supplemental school fee agreement which implements the supplemental fee of$1.34. Should the developer of the Project refuse to agree to payment of the supplemental fee in order to mitigate the impacts caused by the Project on the District's facilities, in accordance with the standard set forth in the General Plan, and based upon the data provided by the District, the Planning Commission should refuse to grant approval to the Project in its current form. Unlike certain communities which have allowed development to proceed without providing for adequate school facilities, San Joaquin County has established a record of working to ensure that schools which are adequate to serve development and which are a credit to our community are available consistent with new residential growth. The provisions of the County General Plan simply mirror this policy.