Agenda Packet_2026-03-03 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Environmental Justice The General Plan's Core Values reinforce the City's commitment to enabling all persons to enjoy equal access to healthy environments, healthy foods, parks and recreational facilities, and civic engagement opportunities. However, the City recognizes that throughout its communities, some bear a disproportionate burden of pollution and associated health risks. The concept of environmental justice (EJ) seeks to correct this inequity by reducing pollution and increasing public investments in these communities and ensuring their input is considered in decisions that affect them. Environmental Justice in the General Plan An EJ community is an area of the City where residents have the highest risk of exposure to pollution in the air, water, and soil. This pollution may be caused by passing vehicles or by the daily activities of businesses and institutions. Residents in these areas also tend to be burdened by socioeconomic and health issues, such as higher rates of language barriers, poverty, and asthma. Such areas also tend to experience lower rates of investment and improvements from individuals, private companies, and public agencies. Removing and addressing the root causes of EJ concerns in the built environment has been made a high priority by the community and the City Council, especially as experienced by low-income neighborhoods and vulnerable households throughout the City. As such, that commitment has been memorialized in over 150 EJ-focused policies and implementation actions within the City's General Plan. Commitment to Addressing EJ Issues To demonstrate the City's commitment to EJ, the Planning Division formed a new section, Neighborhood Initiatives and Environmental Services (NIES), within the Planning and Building Agency at the end of 2022 to focus on supporting Santa Ana's disadvantaged communities through General Plan EJ policy and implementation work. In 2025, the NIES team worked diligently to begin implementing and addressing the EJ-related actions in the General Plan. RTransit Zoning Code Update and Implementation On June 17, 2025, the Santa Ana City CouncilEl F71 �*r approved an historic update to the Transit Zoning Code (TZC) to restrict industrial land uses and - enhance public health. Since adoption, the Planning Division has shifted attention in this area from drafting new land use regulations to ,J implementation. :.. ! - Since the shift to implementation, staff have prioritized direct community and business interactions, including outreach to 130 industrial »Above: Picture of small group breakout as businesses and held 21 one-on-one sessions to part of a Transit Zoning Code Update workshop. 15 City Council 10 — 23 3/3/2026