Winter 2023
Upcoming Events
This Sunday, November 12th beginning at 1:00 our Mexican neighbors and friends are meeting at the town plaza to hear several prominent local leaders speak to the issues with the proposed PDU. The meeting is designed to make sure La Paz hears the voices of Todossantenos. This event will only be in Spanish, but all are welcome to attend and to sign the petition that will be circulated and included in the lawsuit challenging the legality of replacing our PDU with theirs. Please bring your voter’s card, resident card, Mexican driver’s license, or passport if you want to sign as one of these forms of identification is require.
On Thursday, November 16th from 4:30 to 6:00 there will be a Protect Todos Santos presentation on the proposed PDU and our water situation at Santos Pecados Restaurant at Calle Jose Maria Morales and Pavon. Cocktails from 4:30 to 5:00 with the presentation from 5:00 to 6:00. If you plan on attending, please send an email to Gail Bosch at boschgail@gmail.com with the number of guests in your party. Hope you can make it.
The Proposed La Paz PDU
We were all shocked in April at a meeting with IMPLAN to learn they are going to rewrite our PDU. Here are some of the major problems we are concerned about.
Problem 1: Their plan does not even come close to complying with the General Law of Human Settlements. The law was created by the federal government to lay out the requirements all PDU’s developed throughout the country must contain. The word Sustainable is found 158 times in the document and what IMPLAN created is the opposite of sustainable.
Problem 2: It was designed to prioritize development and revenues to the Municipality through development fees and ignores the natural beauty and character of our pueblo.
Problem 3: IMPLAN ignored the legal requirement to provide risk assessments for power, water and other infrastructure needs to ensure their plan for growth does not exceed their capacity. In our case they are all already over their capacity.
Problem 4: It does not create a plan for funding our currently needed sewage, solid waste, water, and electrical infrastructure needs, it only adds to them by dramatically increasing the number of residents.
Problem 5: It creates 50,000 new lots which would result in 175,000 new residents. Currently we have about 25,000 residents in the region, so it represents a 700% increase.
Our PDU Versus Their PDU
Our PDU was designed to protect our pueblo from overdevelopment. Their PDU will create a ton of new development.
Our PDU laid out policies to promote our rural heritage, natural landscapes, and historic town center. Their PDU will completely change the character of our pueblo.
Our PDU specifically banned building on the primary and secondary dunes. Their PDU does not adequately protect them.
Our PDU created minimum lot sizes in the coastal RT zone of 2,000 square meters. Their PDU will allow lots as small as 400 square meters so 5 homes can be built where 1 is currently allowed.
Our PDU restricted development to single family homes along the coast. Their PDU will create urban sprawl in many areas.
Our PDU only allowed construction on 25% of the lot. Their PDU increases it to 40% or more, eliminating much of the natural vegetation between dwellings.
Our PDU only allowed 2 stories to be built with a maximum height of 7.5 meters in the town and in most coastal areas. In most areas, their PDU eliminates the height limit and allows an extra level plus a rooftop shade structure.
Our PDU only allowed eco-resorts to be built with a maximum density of 10 rooms per hectare or one room per quarter acre. Their PDU creates a new hotel zone that allows much higher room densities and up to 4 floors.
Our PDU had areas designated for agriculture. Their PDU eliminated them.
Our PDU was written by our community. Their PDU did not have a single person from Todos Santos involved in drafting the document.
We are Taking Legal Action Now Before the New PDU is Voted On
Protect Todos Santos is funding a lawsuit accompanied by the petition signed by local residents and foreign nationals to inform IMPLAN and the local officials that will vote on their plan, the problems and violations it contains. We will be asking the judge to not allow a vote on the plan until the case is settled. If IMPLAN is not willing to work with us on a better plan, we will try to kill their plan and keep our current plan in place. Even if it does get approved, we will have the opportunity to have it voided due to the many federal laws the plan does not comply with.
If you want to provide comments directly to IMPLAN is more information on the plan and instructions on this page on how to submit them: https://www.protecttodossantos.org/the-proposed-new-pdu.
If you want to sign the petition it will be available at the offices of AmeriMex Reality on Calle Juarez across from the Cultural Center from November 9th to the 25th. Their offices are open Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 3:00. Be sure to bring a form of ID. Acceptable ID includes a Mexican driver’s license, temporary or permanent residency card, voter ID or passport.
Our Water Crisis
Protect Todos Santos hired PhD Hydrologist William Sanford, a professor at Colorado State University, to review the reports on the Todos Santos aquifer and prepare a report of findings and recommendations. He found three significant threats to our town’s aquifer.
1.Over Extraction
Thirty to fifty percent more water is being extracted from the aquifer than is recharged in an average year. Here is a chart showing the over extraction in 2020 and estimates for 2025 and 2030 in red.
2. Saltwater Intrusion
When the aquifer water levels drop below sea level saltwater replaces the freshwater in the aquifer. The saltwater is denser than freshwater so the saltwater sits at the bottom of the aquifer and reduces the amount of fresh water the aquifer can store. According to Dr. Sanford samples should be taken on a regular basis to determine how far inland saltwater is intruding.
3. The Invasive Plant Arundo/Carrizo
As you can see in the photo, the plant has filled the Todos Santos aquifer, and it is estimated it is transpiring or consuming about 500,000 cubic meters of water a year (the equivalent of 50,000 water trucks) while impeding the flow of water from the spring.
Detailed information on the report’s findings and recommendations can be found on our website at: https://www.protecttodossantos.org/solving-our-water-crisis
Update on the Ogden Dune Lot Construction
Some of you may be wondering why the dune project in Las Tunas on Vista Ballenas that was shut down last April has been going full bore for the past month. The answer is the lot owner Eddie Ogden decided to start construction. The problem is he violated a court injunction that was supposed to stop the project until the case went to trial. Our response has been to file a lawsuit against Eddie in federal court to stop the project. It is very frustrating and hard to look at, but our attorney John Moreno feels confident the project will be shut down. We are also hoping the court will require the construction to be demolished, and the dune restored.
We Hope You Will Consider Making an Investment Into Our Future.
Even though much of the work we do is performed by volunteers, as we have grown, we have had to hire several staff members to help with the workload. The good news is that we are now accomplishing so much as you hopefully understand as you read this newsletter.
To ensure we can continue to battle the municipality and the looming threat of their new PDU and our desperate need to solve our water crisis which threatens our future, we hope you will consider visiting our website and donating to our organization. Donations are tax-deductible in the United States. They can be one-time, or you can sign up for a small monthly donation. Every bit helps us protect this magical place we all love and call home.
Muchas Gracias,
The Team at Protect Todos Santos
