Public Review Draft – May 2024
9 Environmental Justice
Element
CONTENTS
Introduction ........................................ 3 What is Environmental Justice? .................................. 3 Relationship to Other General Plan Elements ........ 3
Scope ............................................................................. 10 Content of the Environmental Justice Element .... 10
Background and Context .................. 12
Statutory Requirements .............................................. 12 Identifying Environmental Justice Communities .. 12
Public Participation ........................... 22
Publicity and Outreach Strategy ............................... 22 Community Outreach Events ................................... 23 Community Survey ..................................................... 25 Community Profile ............................ 28
Race and Ethnicity ...................................................... 28 Household Income and Poverty Status ................... 30 Unemployment ............................................................ 30 Educational Attainment ............................................. 31 Language Spoken and English Proficiency ............. 32 Age ................................................................................ 33 Environmental Justice Concerns in
Visalia ................................................. 35 Community Health ..................................................... 35 Pollution Exposure ..................................................... 42 Healthy Food Access.................................................. 62 Physical Activity .......................................................... 69 Public Facilities ............................................................ 78 Safe and Sanitary Housing ......................................... 84 Civic Engagement ....................................................... 93 Objectives and Policies ...................... 99
9-3 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
INTRODUCTION
What is Environmental Justice?
The State of California defines Environmental Justice
as “the fair treatment of people of all races, cultures, and incomes with respect to the development,
adoption, implementation, and enforcement of
environmental laws, regulations, and policies”
(California Government Code Section 65040.12). “Fair
treatment” means no group of people should bear a
disproportionate share of the negative environmental
consequences resulting from industrial, governmental,
and commercial operations, and policies.
While it is the hope that all people have convenient
access to safe housing, clean environments, adequate
community services, and healthy foods, the reality does not always align. Today, and throughout California
history, low -income residents, communities of color,
tribal nations, and immigrant communities often bear a
disproportionately large burden of exposure to
environmental hazards, such as pollution burdens,
urban heat islands, resulting in increased negative health outcomes for these groups. Conditions in these
communities can be traced to a variety of factors such
as underinvestment, inequitable land use and zoning
policies, lack of access to necessary amenities, and lack of meaningful public engagement with community
residents. These factors resulted in systemic
disadvantages for these communities . Environmental
justice seeks to remedy disproportionate health and
environmental burdens through democratic values of
fairness and equity. This Environmental Justice
Element addresses public health risks and
environmental justice concerns citywide as well as for
those residents living in Visalia’s Neighborhoods of
Focus.
Relationship to Other General
Plan Elements
The Planning for Healthy Communities Act of 2016
(Senate Bill 1000) was enacted to address
environmental justice at a local and regional level. The legislation requires cities and counties to incorporate policies and programs to promote environmental
justice in their general plans. The purpose of Visalia’s Environmental Justice Element is to develop a robust
set of goals, polices, and programs which prioritize
improving the health and quality of life of the city’s
vulnerable residents. As provided by State Government
Code 65302(h), the Environmental Justice Element has
the same weight as the other mandatory elements of a
General Plan and shall be internally consistent with the other elements.
The goals, policies, and programs in this Environmental Justice Element align with and expand upon those
found in other elements of the existing General Plan
which promote healthy, diverse, and equitable
communities in Visalia. Various policies within the
Environmental Justice Element closely relate to
subjects addressed in the following Elements:
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-4
Land Use Element. Establishes the framework for
shaping the types and location of new development
along with strategies to maintain and enhance existing
development and character within the City. The City’s
most recent Land Use Element was adopted in 2014.
Circulation Element. Supports the Land Use Element
by identifying the major roads and transportation
systems necessary to support the development of the
land uses and densities laid out in the element. In
addition, the Circulation Element encompasses
objectives and policies that focus on establishing
secure, accessible, and efficient multi -modal
transportation systems to facilitate the movement of
individuals and goods throughout the City. The City’s
most recent Circulation Element was adopted in 2014.
Housing Element . Ensures that there is sufficient
residential capacity available to meet the minimum
needs established by the State for various income levels.
The City’s most recent Housing Element was adopted
in 2023.
Safety and Noise Element. Identifies hazards to
people and infrastructure and includes safety
considerations in the planning and decision- making
process by establishing policies related to future
development that will minimize the risk of personal
injury, loss of life, property damage, and environmental damage associated with natural and human -caused
hazards. The noise section identifies noise sources
within the city and includes mitigation measures to
reduce their impacts and regulate noise sources. The
City’s most recent Safety and Noise Element was
adopted in 2024.
Parks, Schools, Community Facilities, and Utilities
Element. Establishes the fundamental building blocks
for new neighborhoods, including the development and
maintenance of parks, schools, and important services
such as fire, police, water supply, wastewater and solid waste collection, and other utilities. This Ele ment
supports the policies and programs found in the Land
Use and Circulation Elements. The City’s most recent
Parks, Schools, Community Facilities, and Utilities
Element was adopted in 2014.
Open Space and Conservation Element. Ensures
the conservation of natural resources in Visalia. This
element addresses open space resources; land resources
including farmland and minerals; water resources
including groundwater and waterways; biological
resources; and cultural and historic res ources. This
Element supports the policies and programs addressed
in the Air Quality and Greenhouse Gases Element. The
City’s most recent Open Space and Conservation
Element was adopted in 2014.
Air Quality and Greenhouse Gases Element.
Identifies six air pollutants which contribute to poor air quality in Visalia and the San Joaquin Valley Air Basin and establishes policies and programs to reduce the
creation of these pollutants. In addition, an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions and its impacts are
identified, along with subsequent policies and programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This element
supports the policies and programs found in the Land
Use and Circulation Elements. The City’s most recent
Air Quality and Greenhouse Gases Element was
adopted in 2014.
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Many environmental justice -oriented policies are
already present in other General Plan elements.
Table 9-1, below, provides a list of these policies. The goals, policies, and programs in the Environmental
Justice Element aim to fill the gaps in other General
Plan elements and ensure the General Plan fully
addresses the environmental justice needs of the
community
Table 9-1 Policies in Other Elements Supporting Environmental Justice Efforts Policy Number Policy Text Page Number
Land Use Element
LU-P-19 Ensure that growth occurs in a compact and concentric fashion by implementing the General Plan’s phased growth strategy. 2-28
LU-P-29 Use regional and community parks and open space to enhance gateways to the City and as a buffer between adjacent communities.
2-32
LU-P-38 Develop a City-wide street tree and landscape master plan that enhances the City’s overall identity and lends distinct character to specific streets and districts. 2-38
LU-P-45 Promote development of vacant, underdeveloped, and/or redevelopable land within the City limits where urban services are available and adopt a bonus/incentive program to promote and facilitate infill development in order to reduce the need for annexation and conversion of prime agricultural land and achieve the objectives of compact development established in this General Plan. 2-39
LU-P-46 Adopt and implement an incentive program for residential infill development of existing vacant lots and underutilized sites within the City limits as a strategy to help to meet the future growth needs of the community.
2-39
LU-P-48 Establish criteria and standards for pedestrian, bicycle and vehicle circulation networks within new subdivisions and nonresidential development. 2-45
LU-P-50 Provide development standards to ensure that a mix of detached and attached single family and multi-family housing types can be compatible in a single development.
2-45
LU-P-58 Establish an Affordable Housing Overlay Zoning District (AHO) to promote the development of affordable housing on infill land within the existing City limits in areas designated by the General Plan for multi-family residential development.
Participation by affordable housing developers in the AHO program would be voluntary, with the incentives offered intended to make development of afforda ble housing feasible.
2-47
LU-P-72 Ensure that noise, traffic, and other potential conflicts that may arise in a mix of commercial and residential uses are mitigated through good site planning, building design, and/or appropriate operational measures.
2-53
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-6
Table 9-1 Policies in Other Elements Supporting Environmental Justice Efforts Policy Number Policy Text Page Number
LU-P-74 Create new streets and public open spaces in East Downtown designed to be the focus for social and economic activities. Establish urban design guidelines to ensure that new projects help to shape and activate parks and streets; provide continuity and visual references; connect to contiguous development; and anticipate a future when central Visalia is the most sought after in-town residential and business address in the San Joaquin Valley.
2-54
LU-P-103 Require buffering land uses adjacent to existing or planned residential areas adjacent to industrial designations. Such uses may include parks, drainage ponds, open space, or other such uses.
2-60
Circulation Element
T-P-1 Provide transportation facilities based on a “Complete Streets” concept that facilitate the balanced use of all travel modes (pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit users), meeting the transportation needs of all ages and abilities and providing mobility for a variety of trip purposes.
4-11
T-P-2 Optimize roadway operations with priority given to signal timing coordination in order to increase traffic-carrying capacity and decrease air pollution and congestion. Roundabouts shall be considered when feasible and beneficial as an alternative to traffic signals.
4-11
T-P-23 Require that all new developments provide right-of-way, which may be dedicated or purchased, and improvements (including necessary grading, installation of curbs, gutters, sidewalks, parkway/landscape strips, bike and parking lanes) other city street design standards. Design standards will be updated following General Plan adoption.
4-29
T-P-30 Give high priority to public transportation systems that are responsive to the needs of commuters, the elderly, persons with disabilities, the youth, and low-income citizens. Continue to work with transit providers to expand services to these populations and to underserved areas of the City.
4-35
T-P-33 Work with transit operators to establish transit stops adjacent to community and regional parks, senior housing facilities, areas with a high concentration of medical facilities, major employment centers, and major retail and commercial centers. 4-35
T-P-41 Integrate the bicycle transportation system into new development and infill redevelopment. Development shall provide short term bicycle parking and long- term bicycle storage facilities, such as bicycle racks, stocks, and rental bicycle lockers. Development also shall provide safe and convenient bicycle and pedestrian access to high activity land uses such as schools, parks, shopping, employment, and entertainment centers.
4-40
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Table 9-1 Policies in Other Elements Supporting Environmental Justice Efforts Policy Number Policy Text Page Number
T-P-50 Provide pedestrian facilities that are accessible to persons with disabilities and ensure that roadway improvement projects address accessibility and use universal design concepts.
4-41
T-P-51 Locate sidewalks, pedestrian paths, and appropriate crosswalks to facilitate access to all schools and other areas with significant pedestrian traffic. Whenever feasible, pedestrian paths shall be developed to allow for unobstructed pedestrian flow from within a neighborhood.
4-41
Housing Element
HE Policy 1.4 The City shall encourage a mix of residential development types in the city, including single family homes on a variety of lot sizes, as well as townhomes, row houses, live-work units, planned unit developments, accessory dwelling units, and multi-family housing.
136
HE Policy 2.2 The City shall encourage the development of vertical and horizontal mixed -use development projects as a means to increase housing supply while promoting diversity and neighborhood vitality.
138
HE Policy 2.4 The City shall provide a wide range of housing types (e.g., mixed use, flats, podium townhouses, row houses, small-lot single-family residential, and live-work lofts) in the Downtown and East Downtown areas, as well as encourage both affordable and market-rate housing opportunities.
138
HE Policy 3.1 The City shall encourage the development of housing that is affordable by design, such as small lot single family units, second units, and manufactured homes. 140
HE Policy 3.6 The City shall utilize available funds to subsidize the development of affordable housing for low-, very low-, and extremely low-income households. 140
HE Policy 3.10 The City shall strive to work with developers to ensure that low- and moderate- income housing is located within walking distance of or has access to public transit and services.
140
HE Policy 4.3 The City shall lead efforts to institute a holistic approach to neighborhood revitalization, including proactive code compliance, renter and landlord education programs, infrastructure reinvestment, and community engagement. 146
HE Policy 5.1 The City shall encourage the development of housing for elderly, persons with disabilities, large families, families with female heads of household, families and persons in need of emergency shelter, and farmworkers, where compatible with surrounding land uses and where site conditions and service capabilities permit.
Sites considered especially appropriate for these uses are those accessible to day care and transit, case management, commercial, and medical services. 147
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-8
Table 9-1 Policies in Other Elements Supporting Environmental Justice Efforts Policy Number Policy Text Page Number
HE Policy 5.2 The City shall encourage the development of housing types that meet the needs of baby boomers and seniors, such as housing on smaller lots with modest building footprints and encourage development of affordable senior housing. 147
Safety and Noise Element
S-P-15 Require remediation and cleanup of sites contaminated with hazardous substances. 8-11 Parks, Schools, Community Facilities, and Utilities Element PSCu-P-1 Prepare a Parks and Recreation Master Plan to implement Park policies in this General Plan. The Plan should include:
An assessment of existing and future recreational needs, including the needs of specific user groups and the needs of older areas of the community as well as those in new neighborhoods; […]
5-9
PSCu-P-2 Strive to achieve and maintain a citywide standard of at least five acres of neighborhood and community parks per 1,000 residents.
5-10
PSCu-P-5 Create new community parks in the Northwest, Southwest, and Southeast quadrants, consistent with the Parks and Open Space diagram and the following planning guidelines:
5-11
PSCu-P-6 Create a high-quality, accessible neighborhood park system based on the needs of the surrounding community, the Parks and Open Space diagram and the following planning guidelines:
PSCu-P-16 Provide at least one community center in each of the City’s four neighborhood quadrants. Use existing and new community center facilities to provide multicultural programs and teen recreation activities and provide space for meetings and classes. Community centers should be designed with community input, including guidance from a cross-section of user groups. 5-14
PSCu-P-24 Promote innovative park design that responds to neighborhood needs and user groups.
5-16
PSCu-P-37 Work with Visalia Unified School District and the Tulare County Office of Education to locate additional continuation schools and other special programs. 5-25
PSCu-P-39 Promote the location and development of vocational and trade schools and alternative and continuing education programs such as Visalia Charter Independent Study.
5-25
PSCu-P-42 Work with Tulare County Library to ensure that the central library remains an attractive and vibrant Downtown destination.
5-25
Open Space and Conservation Element
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Table 9-1 Policies in Other Elements Supporting Environmental Justice Efforts Policy Number Policy Text Page Number
OSC-P-2 Develop open space corridors along selected community waterways, power transmission line right-of-ways and abandoned railroad right-of-ways to serve as links between park and recreation facilities.
6-3
OSC-P-5 Support community gardens as a valuable open space resource. 6-3 OSC-P-11 Create incentives for new development along waterways to include pocket parks, patios or plazas that front onto the creek corridor as an amenity to residential occupants or visitors to commercial developments.
6-7
Air Quality and Greenhouse Gases Element
AQ-P-2 Require use of Best Management Practices (BMPs) to reduce particulate emission as a condition of approval for all subdivisions, development plans and grading permits, in conformance with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District Fugitive Dust Rule.
7-8
AQ-P-6 Amend the Street Tree Ordinance to promote use of plants and trees that are efficient pollutant absorbers.
7-9
AQ-P-9 Continue to mitigate short-term construction impacts and long-term stationary source impacts on air quality on a case-by case basis and continue to assess air quality impacts through environmental review. Require developers to implement Best Management Practices (BMPs) to reduce air pollutant emissions associated with the construction and operation of development projects. 7-9
AQ-P-11 Continue to work in conjunction with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and others to put in place additional Transportation Control Measures that will reduce vehicle travel and improve air quality and to implement Air Quality Plans.
7-10
AQ-P-12 Support the implementation of Voluntary Emissions Reduction Agreements (VERA) with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (the District) for individual development projects that may exceed District significance thresholds.
71-5
AQ-P-17 Prepare and adopt a Climate Action Plan that incorporates a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Reduction Plan. The GHG Emissions Reduction Plan will quantify current and anticipated future emissions and focus on feasible actions the City can take to minimize the adverse impacts of General Plan implementation on climate change and air quality.
7-15
Source: City of Visalia General Plan
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-10
Scope
This Element contains goals, policies, and programs
designed to enhance the participation and
empowerment of historically marginalized populations,
referred to in this Element as the “ Neighborhoods of
Focus." This Environmental Justice Element addresses
public health risks and environmental justice concerns
citywide and for those residents living in Visalia’s
Neighborhoods of Focus. The goals, policies, and
programs of this Element focus on the following areas:
• Reducing pollution exposure and improving air
and water quality.
• Promoting healthy food access.
• Promoting physical activity and healthy lifestyles.
• Promoting “civil engagement” in the public
decision-making process.
• Promoting public and recreational facilities.
• Promoting safe and sanitary homes.
• Prioritizing improvements and programs that
address the needs of Neighborhoods of Focus.
Content of the Environmental
Justice Element
To aid in the understanding of environmental justice
and how the City will address environmental justice
concepts, this Element is organized as follows:
• Introduction
This section provides a brief overview of
environmental justice concepts and the statutory
obligation for communities. A discussion on the
content and scope of this Environmental Justice
Element is also provided.
• Background and Context
This section discusses environmental justice
principles and the methodology for identifying
Neighborhoods of Focus within the Visalia city
limits. This section also identifies and shows the
location of the Neighborhoods of Focus in
Visalia.
• Public Participation
A key principle of environmental justice is
engaging the communities most impacted by
pollution burden and other environmental justice
factors. This section summarizes the community
outreach and publicity strategy employed for this
effort. A full summary of comments received at
each topic station during the community
workshop can be found in Appendix D.
• Neighborhoods of Focus: Context and
Demographics
This section identifies the Neighborhoods of
Focus in Visalia and provides an evaluation of
baseline demographic data for each community.
Data analyzed in this section includes race and
ethnicity, household income and poverty status,
educational attainment, spoken language and
English proficiency, and age.
• Environmental Justice Concerns
This section provides an evaluation of baseline
(2023) environmental issues within the
Neighborhoods of Focus including pollution
burden, healthy food access, physical activity,
public facilities, safe and sanitary housing,
language isolation, and civic engagement.
• Objectives and Policies
The goals and policies described in this section
establish how the City will incorporate
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environmental justice into decision making and
support positive outcomes for affected residents.
For the purpose of this Environmental Justice
Element, “goals” refer to the resulting purpose of
an effort and “policies” refer to a guiding action
that carries out a particular goal.
• Implementation
This section establishes the implementation
programs the City will undertake to address
environmental justice concerns citywide and in the
Neighborhoods of Focus. For the purpose of this
Environmental Justice Element, “implementation
programs” refer to specific actions, programs, or
techniques which carry out a particular policy.
• References and Appendices
This section Includes a comprehensive list of
associated appendices and reference materials.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-12
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT
Statutory Requirements
With the enactment of Senate Bill (SB) 1000, California Government Code Section 65302(h) requires local
jurisdictions to incorporate environmental justice in
their general plans. The law requires local governments to develop policies to reduce the disproportionate
exposure to pollution in neighborhoods that also
experience increased social and economic challenges.
These requirements are organized into two subsections:
Section 65302 (h)(1) through Section 65302 (h)(2),
which are summarized in the call out box to the right.
Identifying Environmental
Justice Communities
California law refers to communities with high levels of environmental and socioeconomic vulnerability as
“disadvantaged communities.” Identifying
communities faced with social, economic, and
environmental challenges as “disadvantaged” does not
accurately capture the many strengths these
communities also possess, such as a strong sense of
community and local community -based organizations
and residents working to improve their neighborhood.
In recognition of the many assets and importance of
this area to t he well -being of the City of Visalia,
determined that any area which qualifies as a
“disadvantaged community” is more accurately
identified as a “Neighborhood of Focus.”
California Government Code Section 65302(h)
65302 (h)(1) adds to the required elements of the
general plan an environmental justice element, or
related goals, policies, and objectives integrated
in other elements, which identifies
“disadvantaged communities.”
• 65302 (h)(1)(A) identifies objectives and
policies to promote the following in
disadvantaged communities:
o Public facilities;
o Food access;
o Safe and sanitary homes;
o Physical activity;
o Exposure to pollution, including
improving air quality; and
o Any unique or compounded health risks.
• 65302 (h)(1)(B) identifies objectives and
policies to promote civic engagement in the
public decision-making process in
disadvantaged communities.
• 65302 (h)(1)(C) identifies objectives and
policies that prioritize improvements and
programs that address the needs of
disadvantaged communities.
65302 (h)(2) requires the adoption or revision of
environmental justice element, or related goals,
policies, and objectives, upon the revision of two
or more elements concurrently on or after January
1, 2018.
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Methodology and Analysis
The City used two geospatial screening tools that
analyze socioeconomic, environmental, and health
factors to identify if a Neighborhood of Focus exists
within the city limits.
CalEnviroScreen 4.0
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 is a screening tool developed by
the California OEHHA and is the primary screening
tool used by the CalEPA to identify disadvantaged
communities in California. CalEnviroScreen uses 21
indicators to assess pollution burdens and populatio n
vulnerabilities for each census tract in California and assigns a score for each indicator. The higher the score, the more that census tract is impacted by that indicator.
Individual indicator scores are then summarized into
two primary metrics: pollution burden and population
characteristics, which are together calculated to
determine an overall CalEnviroScreen score. Census
tracts in the top 25 percent of overall CalEnviroScreen scores (percentile scores between 75 and 100) are
identified as disadvantag ed communities by the
CalEPA. Figure 9 -1 shows overall CalEnviroScreen
scores for Visalia.
EJScreen
EJScreen is a screening tool developed by the US
Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) that
combines environmental and socioeconomic factors to
calculate environmental justice index scores for each
census block group in the United States. EJScreen
provides an environmental justice index score for 12
environmental indicators that then receive a percentile score compared to both countrywide and statewide
scores. For the purposes of this Environmental Justice
Element, Visalia block groups were compared to
statewide percentile scores and a 75th percentile filter was used as the threshold for identifying environmental justice communities.
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Cumulative Scores
The Pollution Burden score identifies census
tracts that are disproportionately affected by
pollution exposure and other adverse
environmental conditions that pose negative
health effects and environmental degradation.
The Population Characteristics score identifies
census tracts with higher concentrations of people
with physiological traits, health status, or
community characteristics that can result in
increased vulnerability to pollution.
The overall CalEnviroScreen score is a
cumulative score that combines the Pollution
Burden and Population Characteristics scores and
represents the cumulative impact of environmental
and socioeconomic effects on a community.
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Visalia General Plan | 9-14
Figure 9-1 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Cumulative Scores, City of Visalia
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Figure 9-2 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Pollution Burden Scores, City of Visalia
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Visalia General Plan | 9-16
Figure 9-3 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Population Characteristics Scores, City of Visalia
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SB 535 Communities
In 2012, Senate Bill (SB) 535 tasked CalEPA with
identifying disadvantaged communities. Disadvantaged
communities in California are targeted for investments
from State funding to improve public health, quality of life, and economic opportunity. In 2022, CalEPA
updated its designation of disadvantaged communities
to include any census tract that meets one or more of
the following four criteria:
1. Census tracts receiving the highest 25 percent
of overall scores in CalEnviroScreen 4.0
2. Census tracts lacking overall scores in
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 due to data gaps but
receiving the highest five percent of
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 cumulative pollution
burden scores.
3. Census tracts identified in the 2017
Disadvantaged Community designation as
“disadvantaged,” regardless of their scores in
CalEnviroScreen 4.0
4. Lands under the control of federally
recognized Tribes
Figure 9-4 shows census tracts in Visalia identified as disadvantaged communities under the 2022 SB 535
designation criteria by the CalEPA.
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Visalia General Plan | 9-18
Figure 9-4 SB 535 Disadvantaged Communities, City of Visalia
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Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus
The term “ Neighborhoods of Focus” refers to the
census tracts within the city where residents experience disproportionate pollution burdens, health impacts, and socioeconomic barriers. The City has identified four
neighborhoods as part of Visalia’s Neighborhoods of
Focus. Below is a list of Visalia’s four Neighborhoods of Focus and the census tract(s) included in each:
Table 9-2 Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus
Neighborhood Name Census Tracts
North-West Visalia Tract 10.03 (6107001003)
Oval Park Tract 10.04 (6107001004)
Tract 11 (6107001100)
Tract 12 (6107001200)
East Visalia Tract 13.02 (6107001302)
Seven Oaks Tract 17.01 (6107001701)
Source: City of Visalia; Mintier Harnish
Figure 9-5 shows Visalia’s Neighborhoods of Focus.
These neighborhoods were determined primarily based
on SB 535 census tract boundaries, CalEnviroScreen
4.0 scores, and defining features (i.e., major roads).
2020 Census Tract Redistricting
The census tracts listed above are those used in the
2010 U.S. Census, however, in 2020, four of these six
census tracts were split up to form new, additional
census tracts as a result of redistricting. Table 9-3 shows the redistricting changes made to the census tracts
within the Neighborhoods of Focus.
As of October 2023, CalEnviroScreen 4.0 uses 2010
census tracts to showcase data on pollution exposure,
environmental effects, sensitive populations, and
socioeconomic factors. Given the importance of
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 in determining which areas of
Californian cities experience greater social inequities and environmental burdens, this Element uses the 2010
census tract boundaries to identify Visalia’s
Neighborhoods of Focus.
Table 9-3 Visalia Redistricting Changes in
Visalia’s Neighborhoods of Focus
2010 Census Tract 2020 Redistricting
Changes
Tract 10.03 (61070001003) Split into Tracts 10.07,
10.08, 10.11, and 10.12
Tract 10.04 (6107001004) Split into Tracts 10.09 and
10.10 Tract 11 (6107001100) Split into Tracts 11.01 and
11.02 Tract 12 (6107001200) No change
Tract 13.02 (6107001302) Split into Tracts 13.05 and
13.06 Tract 17.01 (6107001701) No change
Source: U.S. Census Bureau (2023)
Additionally, American Community Survey (ACS) data
is not available for redistricted census tracts prior to 2020. As a result, for certain topics in the demographics analysis, 2019 ACS data is used. To ensure 2019 data
was still consistent with current conditions in these
census tracts , a weighted average of 2021 ACS data
from each set of redistricted 2020 census tracts was
compared against 2019 ACS data.
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Visalia General Plan | 9-20
Location and Context
North-West Visalia
The North- West Visalia Neighborhood of Focus
includes one census tract in the northwestern area of
the city. The residential areas in this Neighborhood of Focus are primarily located north of W Goshen Avenue
to the northern Visalia City Limit. The portion of this neighborhood west of N Shirk Road is primarily
industrial and manufacturing. North -West Visalia
extends east to North Mooney Boulevard, North
Giddings Street, and Dinuba Boulevard. It should be
noted that the census tract that covers North- West
Visalia extends slightly beyond Visalia City Limits to the north, most of which is agricultural land.
Note: Census tract boundaries used to identify the
North-West Visalia Neighborhood of Focus (Census
Tract 10.03) received heavy redistricting changes from
the 2020 Census as a result of substantial new
residential developments in the area. As shown in
Table 9-3, Census Tract 10.03 was split into four tracts during the 2020 redistricting. A majority of residences in new Census Tracts 10.07 and 10.08 , and significant
portions of Census Tracts 10.11 and 10.12, have been
constructed within the last 20 years. As a result of these changes, the portions of this neighborhood that have
undergone extensive growth may not experience the
same disproportionate burdens, impacts, and barriers
described in this element as other lo nger-established
portions of this neighborhood.
Oval Park
The Oval Park Neighborhood of Focus includes three
census tracts in the north -central area of the city. The Oval Park neighborhood is centered around SR 63
extending from SR 198 to the northern City Limits. The
eastern boundary of the neighborhood is North Santa
Fe Street and extends west to North Mooney
Boulevard, North Giddings Street, and Dinuba
Boulevard. The southern portion of the Oval Park
neighborhood includes commercial areas of
Downtown Visalia around Main Street.
Seven Oaks
The Seven Oaks Neighborhood of Focus includes one
census tract in the east -central area of the city. This neighborhood is bordered by SR 198 to the north,
South Watson Street to the west, East Walnut Avenue
to the south, and the San Joaquin Valley Railroad tracks to the east. The Seven Oaks neighborhood is primarily
residential with some commercial and medical uses
along South Santa Fe Street and South Court Street.
East Visalia
The East Visalia Neighborhood of Focus includes one
census tract in the eastern area of the city. The
neighborhood is bordered by SR 198 to the south,
North Santa Fe Street to the west, Houston Avenue to
the north, and Visalia city limits to the east. The
neighborhood is also bisected by SR 216. The northern
and eastern portions of the East Visalia neighborhood
are primarily residential, whereas western and southern portions include a mixture of commercial around Main
Street and light industrial around East Goshen Avenue.
It should be noted that both census tracts in East Visalia extend beyond the Visalia City Limits to the east, most of which is agricultural land.
9-21 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-5 Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-22
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
A key principle of environmental justice is engaging the residents most impacted by pollution burden and other
environmental justice factors. In August 2023, the City facilitated a series of community engagement events to
gather community input on environmental justice
issues. This section provides an overview of the
publicity strategy for this effort, as well as a summary of the community engagement eve nts, and feedback
received. The publicity and outreach strategy included:
• Three community outreach events
• An online and physical community survey
• E-blasts, social media posts, community flyers,
and coordination with local schools and CBOs
The feedback received throughout the public
participation process was used to develop the goals,
policies, and programs contained in this Environmental
Justice Element.
Publicity and Outreach
Strategy
Several methods were used to publicize the
Environmental Justice Element and associated
community engagement opportunities. Below is a
summary of the City’s publicity strategy. See Appendix
E for copies of publicity materials used throughout the process.
Project Website
The project website ( HouseVisalia.com) was updated
one to two weeks before each event with the
information, time, and location of the event. The
environmental justice community survey was also
posted on the project website from July 27, 2023,
through November 30, 2023.
E-Blasts
Email blasts (e- blasts) were sent out to the project
mailing list one week before each event with a follow
up email sent one day prior or morning of the event. E- blasts also went out at least once a month promoting
the environmental justice survey. A total of 11 e-blasts were sent over the course of five months that included
event information (time, location, goal of the event), a link to the project website, and a link to the
environmental justice survey.
Community Advertising
The Project Team created a vinyl banner that was
displayed at numerous community events to encourage
community input on the Environmental Justice
Element. The banner included the project logo,
directions to provide feedback, and a QR code to the
environmental justice survey. The banner was also
displayed at the Cowhide football game, a highly
anticipated annual high school rivalry game, on October 27, 2023.
Farmer’s market booth from August 5, 2023, event.
Physical surveys of the online community survey
were available at all outreach events.
9-23 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
School District Email
The Project Team coordinated with the Visalia Unified
School District to share the environmental justice
survey to all parents and school district staff via email.
The email included a link to the survey and a brief
written announcement about the project and purpose
of the survey.
Community Based Organization (CBO)
Outreach
The Project Team contacted seven CBOs that work
with environmental justice communities in Visalia
and/or the surrounding region. CBOs are valuable
partners in the engagement process since they actively
work in environmental justice communities and have
established relationships and trust with community
members. City staff contacted CBOs to provide
information about the overall project and how
community members can get involved. Many of the
CBOs that were contacted for this effort were
recommended by community members during the first
two community outreach events.
Social Media
The Project Team posted notifications of the
environmental justice survey and outreach events on
the City’s social media pages that included event
information, the survey link, and a link to the project website. Between July and November 2023, the Project
Team made nine social media posts across Facebook,
Instagram, LinkedIn, and X (formerly known as
Twitter).
Community Outreach Events
Throughout August 2023 and November 2023, the City
facilitated three in-person community outreach events.
All three events featured similar content and activities to ensure any community members who attended only
one event would receive the same information as
attendees at any other event. See Appendix A for all of the materials used at the community outreach events.
Farmer’s Market Booth
August 5, 2023
The Project Team facilitated a “pop -up” booth at the
Visalia Farmers’ Market on Saturday, August 5, 2023.
The purpose of the booth was to provide community
members with an understanding of environmental
justice topics and identify crucial issues within the
community and suggest preliminary ideas for potential
improvements. In attendance was one City staff
member and two members of the consultant team. The
booth consisted of an informational poster with an
overview of environmental justice and an interactive
activity. All booth materials and activities were available in both English and Spanish.
The booth activity encouraged participants to identify
issues in Visalia related to the six environmental justice topic areas and potential solutions to those issues. The activity was framed around the idea if the participant
was “Mayor for the Day” what i ssue would they try to
solve or opportunity they would implement.
Participants were provided with an index card to write
down their issue and corresponding solution.
Completed index cards were displayed for other
participants and marketgoers to read. The Project Team
Booth at the El Grito En Visalia event on September 16, 2023..
Booth at the 2023 Farmworker Women’s Conference
event on November 16, 2023.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-24
was available to answer questions, facilitate dialog and provide activity assistance.
In addition to the activity, participants had the
opportunity to take the environmental justice
community survey. The Project Team had hard copy
surveys available, in both English and Spanish, and
cards with the survey QR code. A full summary of
feedback received during the community workshop can
be found in Appendix D.
In total, 20 people visited the pop -up booth over the
course of three hours. The Project Team received eight
activity cards and eight completed environmental
justice surveys.
El Grito En Visalia Event Booth
September 16, 2023
The Project Team facilitated a second pop-up booth at
the El Grito En Visalia event on Saturday, September
16, 2023. The El Grito En Visalia event is a Mexican
Independence Day celebration with a variety of
activities, performances, and food. The purpose of the
booth was to provide community members with an
understanding of environmental justice topics and
identify key issues in the community and propose initial ideas for improvements. In attendance were two City
staff members, one of which was a Spanish- speaker,
and three members of the consultant team.
The booth featured an informational poster on
environmental justice, available in both English and
Spanish. The poster provided an overview of
environmental justice topics and emphasized the
significance of community outreach in identifying
issues within e nvironmental justice communities. The
booth featured an interactive exercise like the Farmers’ Market booth (Outreach Event #1). Participants
received colored index cards and were asked to identify neighborhood issues related to an environmental justice topic. Following this, participants were encouraged to
propose potential solutions. Completed index cards
were displayed on the booth table for other participants to read and to generate more interest toward the booth.
City staff and the consultant team wer e available to
answer questions and help as needed.
About 20 people attended the pop- up booth over the
course of two hours. The Project Team received 10
activity cards and seven completed environmental
justice surveys. A full summary of feedback received
during the community workshop can be found in
Appendix D.
2023 Farmworker Women’s
Conference
November 16, 2023
The Project Team facilitated a booth at the 2023
Farmworker Women’s Health, Safety, Employment,
Education and Environment Conference on Thursday,
November 16, 2023, at the Visalia Conference Center.
The Farmworker Women’s Conference is an annual
conference that provides farmworker women resources
and information to maintain and improve the health,
safety, and quality of life for both them and their
families. The conference is attended primarily by Latina, Spanish-speaking women who work in the Central
Valley agricultural industry.
The booth was in the conference exhibit hall and
consisted of an environmental justice informational
9-25 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
poster, informational flyers, and a vinyl banner with the QR code to the online environmental justice survey.
The booth materials were provided primarily in Spanish
with English translation available if needed.
Additionally, since the conference was not sp ecific to Visalia, the booth had a small sign that asked “Vives en Visalia?” (Do you live in Visalia?) to draw the attention of Visalia residents. Three City staff were in attendance, two of whom were Spanish-speaking.
The central focus of the booth was to encourage
participation in the environmental justice community
survey, which participants could fill out either in person or online. Additionally, cards featuring a QR code to
access the survey were provided for those interested in completing the survey later. A shorter version of the
environmental justice survey, containing nine
questions, was created, and made available in hard copy form. This condensed survey could be completed
quickly (in less than five minutes), catering to attendees with limited time between conference sessions and
booth visits. See the “Community Survey” section for
more information on the differences between the long
survey and short survey.
The conference drew approximately 1,300 attendees,
and during the four -hour booth duration, the Project
Team collected a total of 81 completed surveys (32 in
Spanish and 49 in English). An additional 31 online
surveys were submitted on the same day.
Community Survey
The environmental justice community survey was
available online from July 27, 2023, through November
30, 2023, in both English and Spanish. The survey was
created using the platform Maptionnaire, which allowed
for interactive mapping questions within a traditional
online survey. The survey was divided into six sections covering the six environmental justice topic areas
(pollution exposure, public facilities, food access, safe and sanitary housing, physical activity, and civic
engagement) with the goal of un derstanding lived
experiences of community members related to each
topic area. Each section had two to five questions that were either multiple choice or interactive mapping
questions with a total of 18 questions.
A total of 885 survey responses with meaningful data
were gathered throughout the outreach process,
including physical survey responses received at
outreach events. The English survey received 833
responses, and the Spanish survey received 52
responses. Although the survey was optimized for
online participation, printed versions of the survey were available at in -person community outreach events.
Printed surveys included the same questions in the
online survey and were later entered into Maptionnaire
by the Project Team following each outreach event.
An abbreviated version of the printed survey was
created for the Farmworker Women’s Conference to
allow conference attendees with limited time to visit the booth to complete the survey in less than five minutes.
The Project Team selected nine questions from the full- length survey to include in the abbreviated survey, with at least one question per topic area. When entering
abbreviated survey responses in Maptionnaire, the
Project Team left questions not included i n the
abbreviated survey blank. See Appendix B for a copy of
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-26
the full -length and abbreviated printed survey , and
Appendix C for a full summary of all survey responses.
The survey asked participants to identify where they
lived in Visalia by selecting one of 11 zones provided
on a map (see Figure 9 -6). The areas were created by
grouping census tracts using key features (such as major roads and railroad tracks) and CalEnviroScreen 4.0
census tract scores. This information allowed the
Project Team to better understand where in Visalia
respondents live while also maintaining anonymity of
individual respondents. The zone(s) included in the
Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus are as follows:
• North Visalia1: Zone 1 and Zone 2
• Oval Park: Zone 8
• Seven Oaks: Zone 9
• East Visalia: Zone 10
How Survey Responses are Used in the
Environmental Justice Element
Survey responses are used in this Element to
supplement the analysis of environmental justice
concerns in Visalia. It should also be noted that about 56 percent of all survey respondents (498 respondents)
provided a response for the zone/location- specific
question of the survey. To maintain the integrity of
survey data, survey responses that did not answer the
zone/location-specific question are not included in
discussions of survey results referencing neighborhood
1 North Visalia includes two Zones because Zone 1
includes primarily non-residential uses and minimal
responses were received from residents in this Zone.
areas but are included in survey result discussions that reference all survey respondents.
9-27 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-6 Residential Zones from Visalia Environmental Justice Community Survey
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-28
COMMUNITY PROFILE
Residents in the Neighborhoods of Focus represent
diverse cultures, incomes, and ages. Additionally, many residents in the Neighborhoods of Focus provide
critical support to the agricultural and service industries in the surrounding San Joaquin Valley region. This
section summarizes the population and socioeconomic
factors for each Neighborhood of Focus.
Race and Ethnicity
Analyzing the racial and ethnic makeup of communities
helps to identify potential disparities related to pollution burdens, health impacts, and quality of community
services. Race and ethnicity factors are often tied to a community’s overall health equity and the social
determinants of health, along with income, educational
attainment, employment status, and access to
healthcare. Through understanding and addressing
environmental justice inequities, further inequities can be prevented. Table 9-4 shows a summary of racial and
ethnic demographics in the Visalia Neighborhoods of
Focus compared to citywide and countywide totals.
North-West Visalia
The North-West Visalia Neighborhood of Focus is the
largest of the four Neighborhoods of Focus with a total population of 25,636, which is about 19 percent of the
citywide population. The largest racial/ethnic group in North-West Visalia is Hispanic/Latino (51 percent),
which is slightly less than the City of Visalia (52 percent) and Tulare County ( 65 percent). The second largest
racial/ethnic group is white alone (39 percent), which is similar to the City of Visalia (38 percent) but about 10 percent higher than Tulare County ( 29 percent). The
percentage of residents that identify as Asian alone in North-West Visalia ( eight percent) is higher than the
citywide percentage (five percent) and the countywide
percentage (three percent).
Oval Park
The Oval Park Neighborhood of Focus has a total
population of 15,986, about 12 percent of the citywide
population. The largest racial/ethnic group in Oval
Park is Hispanic/Latino (74 percent), which is
significantly higher than the City of Visalia (52 percent) and Tulare County ( 65 percent). The second largest
racial/ethnic group is white alone (12 percent), which is significantly less than any other Neighborhood of
Focus as well as the city (38 percent) and county (29
percent). About 10 percent of resident s in Oval Park
identify as Asian alone, which is higher than any other Neighborhood of Focus as well as the city (five percent) and county (three percent).
East Visalia
The East Visalia Neighborhood of Focus has a total
population of 9,219 , which is about seven percent of
the citywide population. The largest racial/ethnic group
9-29 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
in East Visalia is Hispanic/Latino ( 63 percent), which is higher than the City of Visalia (52 percent) and
slightly lower than Tulare County (65 percent) . The
second largest racial/ethnic group is white alone ( 28
percent), which is less than both the city (38 percent) but similar to the county (29 percent).
Seven Oaks
The Seven Oaks Neighborhood of Focus is the smallest
of the four Neighborhoods of Focus with a total
population of 6,626, about five percent of the citywide population. The largest racial/ethnic group in Seven
Oaks is Hispanic/Latino (63 percent), which is slightly higher than the City of Visalia (52 percent) but similar to Tulare County (65 percent). The second largest
racial/ethnic group is white alone (32 percent), which is slightly less than the city (38 percent) but slightly higher than the county (29 percent).
Table 9-4 Race and Ethnicity in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus Race/Ethnicity North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
White alone 38.7% 12.1% 27.8% 31.9% 38.4% 28.5%
Black or African
American alone
0.1% 1.3% 2.2% 1.2% 1.8% 1.3%
American Indian and
Alaska Native alone
0.0% 0.5% 0.4% 0.2% 0.4% 0.6%
Asian alone 8.0% 9.9% 5.5% 2.6% 5.1% 3.2%
Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander
alone
0.1% 0.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.1% 0.1%
Some other race alone 0.0% 0.7% 0.0% 0.0% 0.1% 0.2%
Two or more races 2.2% 1.0% 0.9% 1.7% 1.8% 1.5%
Hispanic or Latino 50.9% 74.3% 63.3% 62.5% 52.2% 64.6%
Total Population 25,636 15,986 9,219 6,626 132,104 461,898 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2019 (5-year Estimates), Table B03002 Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-30
Household Income and
Poverty Status
As shown in , in 2019, the median income within the
Community of Focus ranged from $26,591 in Oval Park
to $83,097 in North -West Visalia. Compared to the
median income of both Visalia residents ($62,263) and
Tulare residents ($49,687), the median incomes within
the Co mmunity of Focus vary significantly. North -
West Visalia has the highest median income ($83,097)
which is significantly higher than both the City of
Visalia and Tulare County. Oval Park has the lowest
median income ranging from $26,591 in Census Tract
12 to $43,364 in Census Tract 10.04. East Visalia has a median income ranging from $57,241 in Census Tract
13.01 and $60,185 in Census Tract 13.02, which lies
between that of Visalia and Tulare County. Seven Oaks
reports a median income of $48,945, which is low er
than both Visalia and Tulare County. Mean income
follows a similar trend, although Oval Park ($55,387) is the only community that is below both Visalia ($82,412) and Tulare County ($69,493). North -West Visalia has
the lowest poverty rate (13 percent), f ollowed by East Visalia (25 percent) and Seven Oaks (30 Percent). Oval
Park has the highest poverty rate of 38 percent, which
is higher than both Visalia (18 percent) and Tulare
County (25 percent).
Table 9-5 Income and Poverty in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
Median Income 83,097 26,591 -
43,364
60,185 48,945 62,263 49,687
Average Income (Mean) 108,155 55,387 70,392 78,570 82,412 69,493 Population in Poverty 12.9% 38.2% 24.6% 30.2% 18.1% 25.1% Total Population 25,636 15,986 9,219 6,626 132,104 461,898 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2019 (5-year Estimates), Table S1501 Unemployment
The unemployment rate of residents directly influences
the mental, physical, and financial health of those
unemployed, their families, and the community at large.
Gaps in employment can significantly reduce the
amount of disposal income available to individuals and
their families, which can impact the ability to pay for essential items such as housing, food, and other living expenses. This decreased spending caused by a
temporary or long-term reduction in disposable income
can have a direct impact on the total amount of money
spent locally, which in turn can negatively impact the
local economy of the region. Additionally, the many
stressors associated with being unemployed can cause a
number of physical health problems, including high
blood pressure, diabete s, and heart disease, as well as mental health problems, such as anxiety and depression.
9-31 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
As shown in Table 9 -6, the Neighborhoods of Focus
have varying levels of unemployment compared to the
city and the county. Oval Park has the highest
unemployment rate (seven percent), which is
significantly higher than the City of Visalia (three
percent) and similar to Tulare County (six percent).
East Visalia has the second highest unemployment rate
(two percent), followed by Seven Oaks (one percent)
and North-West Visalia (one percent).
Table 9-6 Unemployment in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
Unemployment Rate 1.3% 6.6% 2.2% 1.4% 3.0% 5.6%
Total Population 25,636 15,986 9,219 6,626 132,104 461,898 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (DP03), 2019 Educational Attainment
The level of educational attainment achieved by
residents influences their social determinants of health, which in turn tends to impact their level of accessibility and involvement in public decision -making processes.
According to the California Healthy Places Index, all
people should be able to seek opportunities for higher
education, access quality jobs and higher wages, gain
knowledge to make healthy choices, and build
important social and cognitive skills.
As shown in Table 9 -7, the Neighborhoods of Focus
have varying levels of educational attainment across the four neighborhoods when compared to the City of
Visalia and Tulare County. Oval Park has the lowest
level of educational attainment in both education
categories, where 23 percent report having a high
school diploma or higher and less than two percent
report having a bachelor’s degree or higher. High
school attainment is significantly lower than the City of Visalia (79 percent) and Tulare County (67 percent).
East Visalia has the second lowest rate of e ducational attainment, where 37 percent of residents have a high
school diploma or higher and eight percent have a
bachelor’s degree or higher. Seven Oaks has an
educational attainment rate generally consistent with
the City of Visalia and Tulare County, where 72 percent of the population has a high school diploma or higher
and 8 percent have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
North-West Visalia has the highest rate educational
attainment where 83 percent of residents have a high
school diploma or higher and 29 percent have a
bachelor’s degree or higher, which is greater than both the City of Visalia and Tulare County in each category.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-32
Table 9-7 Educational Attainment in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
High School or Higher 82.5% 23.2% 36.6% 72.2% 78.7% 66.9% Bachelor’s or Higher 28.9% 1.8% 7.8% 7.9% 19.6% 11.9%
Total Population 25,636 15,986 9,219 6,626 132,104 461,898 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (S1501), 2019 Language Spoken and English
Proficiency
It is common for residents of impacted communities to
speak languages other than English. Historically, this
has created additional barriers to navigate the traditional public decision -making processes without additional
resources and support. Both English and Spanish are
the primary languages spoken in the Community of
Focus. This is consistent with the statistics of Visalia and Tulare County, though there is some variation in
the exact proportion Spanish and English speakers in
the Community of Focus compared to the city and
county.
As shown in Table 9-8, English is the primary language
spoken in all neighborhoods and in both the City of
Visalia and Tulare County, with the exception of Oval
Park. Spanish is the primary language spoken in Oval
Park and is spoken by 49 percent of the population,
followed by English with 32 percent. The percent of
Spanish speakers in Oval Park is similar to Tulare
County (44 percent) and significantly higher than the
City of Visalia (28 percent). English is spoken at a
similar rate in East Visalia (51 percent) and Seven Oaks (51 percent) but is more common in North- West
Visalia (60 percent). Spanish is more widely s poken in Seven Oaks (37 percent) when compared to East Visalia
(34 percent) and North- West Visalia (26 percent).
Notably, Noth-West Visalia has the lowest percent o f
Spanish speakers with 26 percent, which is similar to the City of Visalia (28 percent). Asian and Pacific Island
languages make up the third most common language
category across all neighborhoods, the City of Visalia, and Tulare County. Oval Park has the largest
population of Asian and Pacific Island language
speakers with 9 percent, which is significantly higher
than all geographic areas included in this study. The City of Visalia has the second largest population (three
percent) while Tulare County has the smallest ( two
percent). Other languages, which includes Arabic and
Creole, are the least commonly spoken languages and
account for less than one percent of languages spoken
in each of the regions.
9-33 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Table 9-8 Language Spoken at Home - Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
English Only 60.2% 32.1% 50.9% 50.5% 59.0% 44.8%
Spanish 28.3% 54.5% 33.5% 41.0% 30.1% 47.4%
Other Indo-European
Languages
2.9% 0.0% 3.0% 0.2% 1.4% 1.4%
Asian and Pacific Island
Languages
3.0% 9.6% 4.4% 3.1% 3.3% 2.1%
Other Languages 0.2% 0.1% 0.5% 0.1% 0.4% 0.4%
Total Population 25,636 15,986 9,219 6,626 132,104 461,898 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (S1601), 2019 Age
Age distribution analysis related to environmental
justice examines the extent to which the most
vulnerable populations, namely the young and elderly,
are impacted. These age groups are more susceptible to
health impacts from environmental hazards such as air
pollution and extreme heat. Children may also be more
likely to spend time outdoors or in playgrounds, which
can expose this age group to environmental hazards
such as lead in soil or pesticide residue on grass.
Considering age distribution in environmental justice
efforts ensures the needs and concerns of different age groups are considered, resulting in mo re equitable and sustainable communities for all residents.
As shown in Table 9 -9, the percentage of residents
between the ages of 15 and 64 is generally similar
between the Community of Focus, the City of Visalia,
and Tulare County. Seven Oaks has the highest
proportion of the population aged 15 to 64 (67 percent) followed by North-West Visalia (65 percent) and Oval
Park (65 percent). Children under 15 years old make up
a relatively similar percentage of each popula tion, with East Visalia having the highest percentage of residents under the age of 15 (33 percent). Seven Oaks has the
smallest percentage of residents under 15 years old with 23 percent, which is lower than both the City of Visalia (25 percent) and Tular e County (26 percent). The
community of focus has a lower percent of residents
aged 65 or older compared to the City of Visalia (12
percent) and Tulare County (11 percent). North- West
Visalia has the smallest population aged 65 or older (7 percent) and Seven Oaks has the highest (10 percent).
Oval Park and East Visalia have a comparable
percentage of residents aged 65 or older, with East
Visalia slightly higher.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-34
Table 9-9 Age Distribution - Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus Age Group North-
West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven
Oaks
City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
Children (<15) Count 7,419 4,204 3,026 1,539 33,058 119,670 Percent 28.9% 26.3% 32.8% 23.2% 25.0% 25.9%
General Population
(15-64)
Count 16,554 10,322 5,296 4,426 83,822 290,697
Percent 64.6% 64.6% 57.4% 66.8% 63.5% 62.9%
Older Population
(65+)
Count 1,663 1,460 897 661 15,224 51,531
Percent 6.5% 9.1% 9.7% 10.0% 11.5% 11.2%
Total Population 25,636 15,986 9,219 6,626 132,104 461,898 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (DP05), 2019
9-35 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE CONCERNS IN VISALIA
Community Health
The risk and severity of chronic health problems such
as asthma, obesity, heart disease, and diabetes can be a direct or indirect result of someone’s environment.
Residents of environmental justice communities tend to
have higher rates of these chronic health problems due
to increased pollution exposure (at work and/or at
home), lack of physical activity, lack of access to healthy foods, unhealthy living conditions, or a combination of these factors. Lack of investment and incompatible land uses in residential areas can either cause or worsen these chronic health conditions, resulting in someone’s
overall health being partially determined by their zip
code. This section describes the presence of chronic
health problems in Visalia.
Asthma
Asthma is a chronic lung condition that causes an
individual’s airways to narrow and swell, making it
difficult to breathe and triggering symptoms such as
coughing, wheezing, and chest tightness. Although it is unclear what causes asthma, exposure to high levels of
air pollutants such as traffic, particulate matter, smog, and diesel exhaust can trigger asthma attacks. People
who live, work, or spend time outside near major roads, highways, and railways are at higher risk of more
frequent and severe asthmati c attacks that can lead to emergency room (ER) visits.
Table 9 -10 shows the number of children and adults
diagnosed with asthma in the Visalia Neighborhoods of
Focus compared to the City of Visalia and Tulare
County. The asthma rates for children in Oval Park
(eight percent) and East Visalia (seven percent) are
slightly higher than the citywide and countywide asthma rates for children. The asthma rates for adults in Oval Park, Seven Oaks, and East Visalia are similar to the city and county, however, the adult asthma rates in North -
West Visalia (19 percent) are slightly higher than the
city, county, and other Neighborhoods of Focus .
Overall the asthma rates in the Visalia Neighborhoods
of Focus are similar to the city and county for both
children and adults, with some neighborhoods’ rates
being slightly higher (within two to three percent).
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 measures the Asthma Indicator by
estimating the average number of asthma related ER
visits per 10,000 people , measuring the most severe
asthma attacks . As shown in Figure 9-7 , in Visalia,
census tracts in Oval Park and North-West Visalia have
asthma percentile scores between 44 and 52, meaning
the rate of asthma related ER visits are higher than 44 to 52 percent of census tracts in California. Seven Oaks and one of the census tracts in East Visalia have slightly lower percentile scores, between 38 and 40.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-36
Table 9-10 Rate of Asthma in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East
Visalia
Seven
Oaks
City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
California
Children (0-17)
ever diagnosed
with asthma
5.6% 8.1% 6.7% 6.0% 5.9% 6.2% 12.3%
Adults (18+) ever
diagnosed with
asthma
19.4% 12.1% 15.7% 14.3% 16.3% 14.1% 16.1%
Source: California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), 2020 Obesity
Obesity is a health condition that is present when a
person’s body mass index (BMI) is equal to 30 or more.
Individuals who are obese have a higher risk of serious health problems that can require regular medical care to manage, including heart disease, diabetes, high blood
pressure, high cholesterol, and liver disease. Two major factors that contribute to increased obesity rates include physical activity and access to healthy food options. In environmental justice communities, inequitable
development patterns and policies often lead to a higher prevalence of unhealthy food options, such as fast food and liquor stores. Additionally, these communities also tend to receive less investment in neighborhood
infrastructure that promotes physical activity, such as sidewalks, trees, and bike lanes. Additionally, low -
income households may lack the money, education, or
tools to purchase and prepare healthy foods and often
cope with food insecurity by consuming nutrient- poor
but calorie-rich foods that can increase risk of obesity and/or malnutrition.
As shown in Table 9 -11, the adult obesity rates in the Neighborhoods of Focus tend to be slightly higher than
the citywide and countywide rates. Oval Park (43
percent), East Visalia (44 percent), and Seven Oaks (45 percent) are all two to four percent higher than the
citywide obesity rate. North-West Visalia has a slightly lower adult obesity rate (39 percent) than the city and county. Additionally, the obesity rate across the
Neighborhoods of Focus, city, and county are 12 to 18
percent higher than the statewide obesity rate (27
percent). This data suggests that residents in Visalia, particularly the Neighborhoods of Focus , may face
greater challenges with access to healthy food options
and opportunities for physical activity.
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Table 9-11 Rate of Obesity in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East
Visalia
Seven
Oaks
City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
California
Adults (18+) with
a BMI of 30+
39.4% 42.6% 44.0% 44.5% 40.5% 41.9% 26.8%
Source: California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), 2018 Note: 2018 data is the most recent year that CHIS has for all Neighborhoods of Focus Census Tracts Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-38
Figure 9-7 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Asthma Related ER Visits, Visalia
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Diabetes
Diabetes is a chronic health condition that occurs when the body does not produce enough insulin or when the
body cannot use the insulin it has effectively. Over time, the symptoms of diabetes can cause serious health
problems, including heart disease, vision loss, and
kidney disease. There are two types of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is thought to be caused by genetic disposition, not environmental or lifestyle choices, whereas type 2
diabetes can be prevented through regular physical
activity and healthy food choices. Regardless of type,
management of diabetes requires healthy lifestyle
choices including healthy food choices, regular physical activity, controlling blood pressure, and controlling
cholesterol, all of which can be more challenging for
environmental justice communities that tend to
experience lower incomes and less access to regular and high-quality medical care.
The rate of diabetes in North -West Visalia and Oval
Park is slightly higher than the city and county average, as shown in Table 9 -12, whereas the diabetes rate in
Seven Oaks and East Visalia are similar or slightly lower compared to the city and county. Additionally, the
diabetes rates across the Neighborhoods of Focus, City
of Visalia, and Tulare County are three to seven percent higher than statewide diabetes rates (11 percent).
Although neighborhoods that reflect higher rate s of
diabetes may not be due to environmental conditions ,
it demonstrates the importance of providing an
environment that promotes healthy lifestyle choices in
these neighborhoods such as adequate sidewalks, parks,
and recreational opportunities, as well as access to
healthcare and healthy food.
Table 9-12 Rate of Diabetes in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East
Visalia
Seven
Oaks
City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
California
Adults (18+) ever
diagnosed with
diabetes
17.3% 17.7% 16.0% 14.0% 15.3% 15.5% 11.1%
Source: California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), 2020 Heart Disease
Heart disease includes a variety heart conditions and is the leading cause of death in the United States. The
most common type of heart disease in the U.S. is
coronary artery disease, which can cause heart attacks.
Risk factors for heart disease include high blood
pressure and blood chole sterol, diabetes, and obesity.
Heart disease can be prevented through regular physical activity and a healthy diet, both of which are less easily attainable in environmental justice communities due to
a lack of neighborhood infrastructure that promotes
physical activity (i.e. parks, sidewalks, proximity to high traffic roads) and lack of healthy food choices due to
income, access to full-service grocery stores, or time or knowledge to prepare healthy foods at home.
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Visalia General Plan | 9-40
As shown in Table 9 -13, the rate of adults diagnosed
with heart disease in the Neighborhoods of Focus are
similar (within one to two percent) to the citywide,
countywide and statewide heart disease rates.
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 measures the Cardiovascular
Disease Indicator by estimating the number of people
per 10,000 who visited the ER for a heart attack. As
shown in Figure 9-8, other than Seven Oaks, all Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus have Cardiovascular Disease
Indicator percentile scores between 60 and 70, with
East Visalia being the highest, meaning the rate of heart attack related ER visits are higher than 60 to 70 percent of census tracts in California.
Table 9-13 Rate of Heart Disease in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus North-West
Visalia
Oval Park East
Visalia
Seven
Oaks
City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
California
Adults (18+) ever
diagnosed with
heart disease
6.6% 6.2% 6.9% 7.3% 7.5% 7.1% 6.9%
Source: California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), 2020
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Figure 9-8 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Heart Attack ER Visits, Visalia
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Pollution Exposure
Pollution exposure occurs when people come into
direct contact with pollutants in the air, water, food, or soil. Pollution can be the result of polluting land uses (e.g., industrial facilities, agriculture), heavy or high traffic transportation facilities (e.g., railroads, freeways), or household conditions (e.g., lead paint, indoor air
quality). Environmental justice communities, especially low-income communities, are more likely to live or
work near one or more polluting sources due to
underinvestment and land use decisions that
concentrated polluting land uses near low -income
communities. Living or working near polluting land
uses can result in a higher risk of serious health issues such as respiratory infections, cancer, or heart disease due to consistent and regular exposure to one or more
pollutants.
This section discusses the major pollution burdens in
Visalia based on data from CalEnviroScreen 4.0 and
EJScreen.
Diesel Particulate Matter
Diesel Particulate Matter (DPM) is a type of air
pollution that derives from diesel engine emissions.
Major sources of DPM include on - and off - road
mobile sources such as trucks, buses, cars, ships, trains, and heavy machinery (e.g., tractors). For this r eason, DPM is concentrated near ports, rail yards, and
freeways where there are high traffic volumes.
DPM is made up of extremely small particles of dirt and soot that come out of the exhaust pipes of vehicles.
With consistent exposure, these particles are easily
inhaled and cause irritation to the eyes, trouble
breathing, heart disease, and lung cancer. Children,
elderly, and people with existing respiratory diseases
such as asthma are more vulnerable to the negative
health effects of DPM.
Visalia is located along SR 99, which is a major north- south highway for passenger vehicles and trucks and is
a major source of DPM in neighboring communities.
Although most of the areas within the city limits that
are adjacent to SR 99 are non -residential, SR 99
intersects with SR 198, which is an east-west connection that diverts truck and passenger traffic directly through Visalia. The city is also bisected by two other California highways: SR 216 (east-west) and SR 63 (north-south).
Figure 9-10 shows concentrations of DPM emitted near
the populated part of census tracts as reported in
CalEnviroScreen 4.0. In Visalia, the census tracts
located along SR 198 and SR 63 have the highest DPM
percentile scores. Tract 10.04 in the northern portion of the Oval Park Neighborhood of Focus has the highest
DPM percentile score in the city at 77, meaning that the tons of DPM emitted per year is higher than 77 percent
of census tracts in California. The percentile scores in other Neighborhoods of Focus census tracts range
from 38 in East Visalia to 69 in Seven Oaks.
In the community survey, air pollution from cars and
trucks was one of the most reported types of pollution
across all areas in Visalia, accounting for 40 percent of all respondents . As shown in Figure 9 -9, 42 to 48
percent of respondents in North Visalia, Oval Park,
Seven Oaks, and Non -EJ Areas reported experiencing
air pollution from cars and trucks in their
neighborhood. East Visalia has a significantly lower
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response rate for air pollution from cars and trucks
compared to other areas of the city, accounting for only 28 percent of responses. Seven Oaks has the highest
response rate for air pollution from cars and trucks,
accounting for 48 percent of respondents in the
neighborhood, most likely due to the neighborhood’s
close proximity to SR 198 and South Santa Fe Street ,
which is a major north-south corridor through the city.
Figure 9-9 Community Survey Responses – Air pollution from cars and trucks
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Non-EJ Zones North Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Air pollution from cars and trucks
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-44
Figure 9-10 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Diesel Particulate Matter – Visalia
Note: The community survey responses shown on the map are points that survey respondents identified as issue areas. The numbe r of points shown is not representative of all survey responses, as not all respondents answered the mapping question.
9-45 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Ozone
Ozone is a gas formed when oxygen- containing
compounds react with other air pollutants (e.g., carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide) in the
presence of sunlight and can be either good or bad
depending on where it is found. Ozone found in the
earth’s upper atmosphere provides protection from the
sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays at the earth’s surface. In
contrast, ozone found at the ground level is the primary component of smog and can cause adverse health
impacts such as respiratory irritation, lung disease,
asthma, and cancer. Common air pollutants that create
ozone at the ground level include cars, trucks, power
plants, chemical plants, and farms.
To monitor ozone levels across California, the
California Air Resources Board (CARB) maintains a
network of air monitoring stations, one of which is in
Visalia on North Church Street. Ozone levels are
typically their highest in the afternoons and summer
months when the days are longer and hotter, therefore,
the CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Ozone Indicator score is
determined based on the daily maximum ozone
concentration in summer months (May – October).
As shown in Figure 9-11, all census tracts in Visalia have an Ozone Indicator percentile score between 89 and 94,
meaning the ozone concentrations in Visalia is 89 to 94 percent higher than all other census tracts in California.
Ozone concentration in northern and eastern Visalia is
slightly higher than other areas of the city. This
demonstrates that ozone pollution exposure affects not
only Visalia ’s Neighborhoods of Focus , but also the
citywide population.
Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5)
PM2.5 is a form of air pollution that that is made up of very small particles (less than 2.5 micrometers in
diameter) and can include a variety of particles,
including organic chemicals, dust, soot, and metals.
Particulate matter can come from any activities
involving combustion, such as transportation,
agriculture, industry, and construction.
The small size of PM2.5 particles can cause serious
health effects on the heart and lungs, as these fine
particles can penetrate deeper into the lungs if inhaled.
Exposure to PM2.5 can result in lung irritation,
exacerbation of asthma and other respiratory diseases, lung disease, heart disease, and increased risk of strokes.
PM2.5 levels are monitored by CARB’s air monitoring
stations, which is used by CalEnviroScreen 4.0 to
measure the PM2.5 Indicator percentile scores based on
annual average concentrations of PM2.5. Similar to the
Ozone Indicator percentile score, in Visalia the PM2.5
Indicator percentile scores for all census tracts are
between 97 and 99 (see Figure 9 -13), meaning the
PM2.5 concentrations in Visalia are 97 to 99 percent
higher than all other census tracts in California.
Did you know?
The size of particle matter has a direct relation
to its potential health impacts. PM2.5 particles
are smaller than the thickness of a human hair.
Particles of this size can more easily penetrate
into the lungs and even into the bloodstream.
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Visalia General Plan | 9-46
Figure 9-11 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Ozone Concentration, Visalia
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Figure 9-13 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 PM2.5 Concentration, Visalia
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Pesticide Use
Pesticides are chemicals used to control insects, plant diseases, and other pests that threaten crops. Pesticides applied in agricultural areas can become airborne and
drift to neighboring communities and become a
significant source of pollution exposure to residents.
Chronic exposure to harmful pesticides can cause
serious health issues such as respiratory illnesses, birth defects, cancer, and neurological impacts
2. Additionally,
environmental justice communities, especially in the
California San Joaquin Valley, are more likely to work
in the agricultural industry resulting in higher risk of exposure at work.
Although over 1,000 pesticides are registered for use in California, the CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Pesticide Use
Indicator assesses only 132 of the most toxic and
volatile active pesticide ingredients residents may be
exposed to. The indicator adds the total pou nds per
square mile of these selected pesticide ingredients for the years 2017-2019 for each census tract. Some of the
active pesticide ingredients assessed as part of the
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 indicator found in and around
Visalia include:
• 1,3-dichloropropene. Typically used in soil that
can cause short-terms and long-term health
impacts to humans if exposed, such as nose and
throat irritation, chest pain, difficulty breathing,
skin sensitivity, and chronic respiratory issues.
• manocozeb. A fungicide typically used a variety
of crops (notably potatoes, apples, and grapes)
2 National Institute of Health. Tudi, Muyesaier et al. “Exposure Routes and Health Risks Associated with Pesticide Application.” Toxics vol. 10,6 335. 19 Jun. 2022, doi:10.3390/toxics10060335 that can cause health impacts to humans such as
thyroid issues, cancer, and birth defects.
Manocozeb was banned in the European Union in
2021 due to severe birth defects reported.
• paraquat dichloride. An herbicide typically used
to control weeds and to reduce moisture for pre-
harvest crops. Paraquat can have severe health
impacts on humans such as respiratory failure,
kidney failure, liver failure, and death.
As shown in Figure 9 -15, Visalia is surrounded by
farmland with some areas of the city having little to no buffer between residential and agricultural uses making these areas more susceptible to pesticide drift. As
shown in Figure 9-16, census tracts on the outer edges
of the city that are adjacent to agricultural areas have much higher CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Pesticide Use
percentile scores than other areas of the city.
Two census tracts in Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus
have pesticide percentile scores above 75. The census
tract in East Visalia has a percentile score of 90,
meaning the pounds of active pesticide ingredients used per square mile is higher than 90 percent of the census tracts in California. The census tract in North- West
Visalia has a percentile score of 79. It should be noted that these two Neighborhoods of Focus extend beyond
the city limits into agricultural areas that are not within the city.
In the community survey air pollution from pesticides
or dust was the most commonly reported type of
pollution experienced in all areas of the city, accounting
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for 56 percent of all respondents. As shown in Figure
9-14 below, North Visalia had the highest response rate for pesticide and dust pollution, accounting for 66
percent of respondents, which is 24 percent higher than any other pollution type reported in North Visalia.
North Visalia and Seven Oaks have a higher re sponse
rate for pesticide and dust than Non- EJ Areas of the
city, whereas Oval Park and East Visalia have a lower
response rate . Although East Visalia has one of the
highest CalEnviroScreen Pesticide percentile scores, as seen in Figure 9-16, it had a lower response rate in the community survey compared to other parts of the city.
Figure 9-14 Community Survey Responses – Pesticide Use
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Non-EJ Zones North Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Air pollution from pesticides and dust
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Figure 9-15 Farmland Surrounding Visalia
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Figure 9-16 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Pesticide Use, Visalia
Note: The community survey responses shown on the map are points that survey respondents identified as issue areas. The number of points shown is not representative of all survey responses, as not all respondents answered the mapping question.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-52
Drinking Water Contaminants
Public water systems in California have a high rate of
compliance with drinking water standards set by the
State. However, contaminants may still be introduced
into the water system by a variety of sources including natural occurrence, accidental discharge , industrial
release, and agricultural runoff. Exposure to
contaminants in drinking water, even in small amounts,
can have adverse health effects over time such as cancer and pulmonary issues.
CalEnviroScreen’s Drinking Water Contaminants
Indicator is a measure of a combination of contaminant
data that takes into account the average concentrations of 16 contaminants and violations compared to other
census tracts
3. North-West Visalia has a Drinking Water
Contaminants Indicator percentile score of 78, making
it the only Neighborhood of Focus with a Drinking
Water Contaminants Indicator score that exceeds the
75th percentile threshold, as shown in Figure 9 -17.
Drinking Water Contaminant scores for other
Neighborhoods of Focus ranged between 67 and 68.
Table 9 -14 shows the percentile scores for each
contaminant and violation in the North- West Visalia
census tract. The individual contaminants in North-
West Visalia with the highest percentile score include
1,2,3 t richloropropane, nitrate, total coliform rule
violations, and dibromochloropropane.
3 It should be noted that the CalEnviroScreen Drinking Water Contaminants Indicator does not indicate whether drinking water is safe to drink. For up-to-date drinking water compliance information, please visit calwater.com.
Common Drinking Water Contaminants in
Visalia
The following drinking water contaminants
have the highest percentile scores in the
Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus out of the
16 contaminants and violations
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 measures for its
Drinking Water Contaminants Indicator.
1,2,3-Trichloropropane: A carcinogen
typically found in agricultural regions where
it is used as a soil fumigant. Health Concern:
cancer
Nitrate: A chemical used in fertilizer that
typically contaminates drinking water via
agricultural and urban runoff and discharges
from municipal wastewater treatment plants.
Health Concern: cancer
Dibromochloropropane: A pesticide
chemical used for as a fumigant in
agriculture. Health Concern: cancer
Source: EWG, 2021
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Table 9-14 North-West Visalia Drinking
Water Contaminant and Violation Percentile
Scores
Contaminant or Violation Percentile
1,2,3-Trichloropropane (TCP) 92.1
Arsenic 32.63
Chromium, Hexavalent 61.63
Dibromochloropropane
(DBCP)
87.32 Gross Alpha 45.11
Lead and Copper Rule (lead
only)
34.39 Nitrate as N 89.11
Perchlorate 85.78
Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) 77.84
Total Coliform Rule (TCR)
Violations
89.85 Total Trihalomethanes (THM) 6.87
Note: This table only contains percentiles for contaminants and violations with a percentile above 0.0.
Source: CalEnviroScreen 4.0, 2021
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-54
Figure 9-17 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Drinking Water Contaminants, Visalia
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Groundwater Threats
Groundwater, which is water stored beneath the
Earth’s surface in underground aquifers, can be
contaminated by commercial, industrial, and
agricultural sites that store and dispose of hazardous
materials on land or in underground storage tanks .
These underground storage tanks can leak and
contaminate soil and groundwater, which is often used
for drinking water. Common contaminants from these
sites include gasoline, heavy metals, and pesticides.
Other groundwater threats include produced water
ponds, industrial sites, airports, dairies, dry cleaners, and publicly owned sewage treatment plants. Although
these are potential groundwater threats, a leak could
contaminate soil or groundwater that could expose
residents to chemicals and contaminants that can have
short-term or long -term health impacts such as
irritation, headaches, dizziness, cancer, or reproductive harm. In addition to the threat to water quality, the
presence of these contaminants can limit future
development or repurposing of these sites due to
cleanup costs and liability concerns.
The CalEnviroScreen 4.0 groundwater threat indicator
identifies cleanup sites that could potentially impact
groundwater based on type of site and proximity to
residentially populated areas based on information from the State Water Resources Control Board ( SWRCB).
The SWRCB's GeoTracker Database identifies nine
groundwater threat sites in Visalia, three of which are in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus (see Table 9-15).
Figure 9- 18 shows the groundwater threat sites and
CalEnviroScreen 4.0 census tract G roundwater Threat
Indicator scores.
North-West Visalia is the only Neighborhood of Focus
that has a groundwater threat percentile score over 75, with three groundwater threat sites.
Table 9-15 Groundwater Threat Sites in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus Site Cleanup
Status
Site Name Potential Contaminant of Concern
Open -
Remediation
Cooper Power Systems
Facility
• 1,2-dichloroethylene – a flammable, colorless liquid used for solvents and chemical mixtures that can cause serious health impacts such as liver cancer.
• chlorinated solvents – industrial chemicals used primarily for metal cleaning and production plastics, lacquers, PVC, and perfumes. Chlorinated solvents can cause dizziness, nausea, and liver and lung damage.
• chromium - used to produce heavy metals and can cause respiratory issues, skin irritation, cancer, gastrointestinal issues, and reproductive harm.
• volatile organic compounds - gases that are emitted into the air that can cause serious health impacts such as cancer Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-56
Table 9-15 Groundwater Threat Sites in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus Site Cleanup
Status
Site Name Potential Contaminant of Concern
Open -
Remediation
Goshen and Shirk Road;
Snyder General/Stanley
Bost
• volatile organic compounds (see above)
Completed –
Case Closed (as
of 11/1/2023)
Kawneer Company • 1,1,1-trichloroethane - a colorless liquid that can cause irritation to the eyes and skin, dizziness, headaches, nausea, or liver damage.
• dichloroethene - a flammable colorless liquid that can cause irritation to skin and eyes or drowsiness.
• other inorganic/salt
Source: State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) GeoTracker Database , 2024.
9-57 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-18 Groundwater Threats in Visalia
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Visalia General Plan | 9-58
Hazardous Waste and Toxic Releases
Hazardous Waste
Certain facilities, such as chrome plating companies and mechanical manufacturers, use chemicals that generate
hazardous waste that can be harmful to health and the
environment. Hazardous waste can be liquids, solids, or gases and can range from automobile oil to highly toxic chemicals used at heavy industrial sites. Negative effects of living near a hazardous waste site include possible air, water, or soil contamination, decreased property values, and economic disinvestment.
According to CalEnviroScreen 4.0, there are 33 waste
generators in Visalia, 21 of which are within the
Neighborhoods of Focus. Most of the hazardous waste
generators (about 71 percent) within the
Neighborhoods of Focus are located in North- West
Visalia in the industrial areas located in the western
portion of the neighborhood as shown in Figure 9-19.
Many of the hazardous waste generators within
residential areas are drug stores with a pharmacy
department that generate hazardous waste related to
pharmaceuticals.
Toxic Releases
Some industrial facilities can release toxic chemicals
into the air that present potential health risks to
surrounding communities. Environmental justice
communities tend to be at higher risk of exposure to
toxic chemicals because low -income neighborhoods
tend to be located in closer proximity to industrial areas.
The U.S. EPA maintains a Toxic Release Inventory
(TRI) to track the release of toxic chemicals from
industrial facilities. According to the TRI, there are
eight facilities in Visalia that release toxic chemicals, seven of which are located within the North- West
Neighborhood of Focus. As shown in Figure 9 -19,
most of these facilities are located in Visalia’s industrial area west of N orth Shirk Road and north of West
Goshen Avenue.
Nitrate compounds are the most common chemicals
released from the industrial facilities in Visalia, making up more than 75 percent of releases. Exposure to
nitrate can cause a variety of negative health impacts
including blood disorders, reproductive harm, birth
defects, and cardiovascular problems. Other chemicals
released from industrial facilities in Visalia include
chromium, nickel, and peracetic acid.
Cleanup Sites
Cleanup sites are properties that are contaminated with hazardous materials and require cleanup actions from
the property owners before new development or
operations can happen on that site. Cleanup sites not
only present an increased risk of exposure to hazardous materials but can also increase the amount of
underutilized land in a community due to high cleanup
costs and risk of liability, limiting the benefit of that land to the surrounding community.
As shown in Figure 9 -21, there are 38 cleanup sites in Visalia, 27 of which are in a Neighborhood of Focus.
All but one census tract in the Visalia Neighborhoods
of Focus have a Cleanup Sites Indicator percentile score between 89 and 93. A high concentration of cleanup
sites are in the southern portion of Oval Park and East Visalia.
Brownfield Development
Cleanup sites are often referred to as
“brownfields.” The reuse and development of
brownfield sites is limited by the costs and
processes required to mitigate and remove the
presence of pollution on the site. Brownfield sites
can often take years or even d ecades to cleanup
and redevelop, resulting in increased blight and
vacant land in communities and reducing the
potential benefits of that site to the surrounding
community and residents.
In Visalia, one major site for the development of a
brownfield is the proposed Visalia Civic Center
along North Burke Street and East School Avenue
near the railroad. The property was previously
owned by the Union Pacific Railroad and was
assessed by the EPA to have soil contamination
from lead. The vacancy of the site resulted in illegal
dumping and the lost use of Mill Creek.
Redeveloping this site as a Civic Center can not
only eliminate potential exposure risk, but also
provide a significant community benefit.
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Figure 9-19 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Hazardous Waste Sites, Visalia
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Figure 9-20 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Toxic Release Sites, Visalia
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Figure 9-21 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Cleanup Sites, Visalia
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Healthy Food Access
Adequate access to healthy, affordable, and culturally
appropriate food is key to high quality of life in any
community. Food access is determined not only by
physical proximity to grocery stores and other food
providers, but also the affordability and availability of healthy foods in residential neighborhoods .
Environmental justice communities often have a more
difficult time achieving food security than other areas since residents in these communities tend to have lower incomes, limited access to a vehicle , or lack the
equipment or skills to prepare healthy foods at home.
Food Environment
The food environment represents the quantity and type
of food providers in a community, such as grocery
stores, farmer’s markets, food banks, and community
gardens. The food environment also represents the
presence of unhealthy food options in a community,
such as liquor stores and fast food.
Grocery Store Access
As of 2023, there are a total of 23 grocery stores within the Visalia city limits. Of those 23 grocery stores, 10 are located within the Neighborhoods of Focus (see Table
9-16), and five are located just outside of the
Neighborhoods of Focus but within a half mile walking
distance. Figure 9- 22 shows the locations of grocery
stores within Visalia as well as residential areas that are within a half mile walking distance of each store. As
shown in Table 9-17 about 91 percent of residential ly
zoned parcels in Oval Park are within a half mile of a
grocery store, which is significantly higher than other areas of the city, primarily due to Oval Park’s central location along major commercial corridors.
The percentage of residentially zoned parcels within a half mile of a grocery store in North-West Visalia (23 percent), East Visalia (26 percent), and Seven Oaks (20 percent) is significantly lower than non-EJ areas of the city (41 percent).
Table 9-16 Grocery Stores in Visalia
Neighborhoods of Focus
Neighborhood Grocery Store(s)
North-West Visalia Walmart Neighborhood Market
Oval Park MT&Y Oriental Food Market
Carniceria y Taqueria Nueva Italia
Bangkok Thai Grocery Store
Vallarta Supermarkets
Watson's Health Foods
Food 4 Less
Target
Smart and Final
East Visalia FoodMaxx
Seven Oaks There are no grocery stores
located in the Seven Oaks
Neighborhood of Focus
Source: City of Visalia, Mintier Harnish (2024)
9-63 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-22 Food Environment, Visalia
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-64
Table 9-17 Percentage of Residential Areas within ½ mile of a Grocery Store, Visalia Number of
Residentially
zoned parcels
Number of residentially zoned
parcels within ½ mile of a
grocery store
Percentage of residentially
zoned Parcels within ½ mile of a
grocery store
North-West Visalia 9,403 2,145 22.8%
Oval Park 4,382 3,979 90.8%
East Visalia 2,363 602 25.5%
Seven Oaks 1,477 297 20.1%
Non-EJ Areas 26,603 10,977 41.3%
Citywide 44,228 18,000 40.7%
Source: City of Visalia; Mintier Harnish (2024)
There are five cultural grocery stores in Visalia, four of which are located in the Oval Park Neighborhood of
Focus. Cultural grocery stores carry products specific to certain cultures that are not necessarily carried by
mainstream supermarkets. Culturally specific grocery
stores are important not only to increasing food
availability, but also in maintaining cultural traditions and affirming group identity and community.
Farmer’s Market and Alternative Food Sources
In addition to grocery stores, farmer’s markets, fruit
stands, gardens, and food banks are alternative ways for residents to access healthy foods. Figure 9-23 shows the percentage of community survey respondents that
reported getting healthy foods from local farmer’s
markets, community or private gardens, and/or local
food banks or pantries.
Farmer’s Markets
The Visalia Farmers’ Market is held in two locations
throughout the year. The Main Market is available year- round every Saturday on West Main Street at the
courthouse parking lot. The Kaweah Health Market is
available during summer months (May through August)
on Wednesdays in southwest Visalia on Akers Street
and Tulare Avenue . Customers can use CalFresh
benefits at the Farmer’s Market by using EBT cards and
WIC Fruit and Vegetable Vouchers to purchase tokens
that can be used like cash at vendor stalls. The Visalia Farmer’s Market also participates in California’s Market Match program where CalFresh and WIC customers
can receive a dollar-to-dollar match up to $10 to $15 per day. Allowing these food assistance benefits at local
farmer’s markets helps make fresh fruits and vegetables more accessible and affordable for low-income families.
9-65 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Community and Personal Gardens
Community and personal gardens are another way for
residents to access fresh fruits and vegetables, however, this requires space, upfront costs, and specialized
knowledge that many residents, especially
environmental justice communities, may not have
access to due to income, space, or education.
Food Banks
Food banks and similar programs help low -income
households obtain fresh, canned, and frozen food and
meals necessary to fill gaps in food assistance programs such as CalFresh. Food banks or pantries are often
operated by non -profit organizations and provide
boxes of food and serve meals to low -income
households on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. There
are four food pantry/meal services in Visalia, all of
which are located in the Oval Park Neighborhood of
Focus near Main Street and Dinuba Boulevard.
Individuals that use these services tend to be homeless individuals or low-income households, many of whom
do not have access to a personal vehicle and rely on
alternative transportation methods to access food
pantry services.
Figure 9-23 Community Survey Responses – Alternative Food Sources 27%
5%
2%
26%
6%
0%
18%
3%
5%
33%
8%
0%
14%
5%
0%
22%
4%
1%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
Visalia Farmer's Market Private or community garden Food bank/pantry Non-EJ Zones North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-66
Food Insecurity
While there are several grocery stores both within and
immediately adjacent to the Neighborhoods of Focus,
other factors such as household income can impact an
individual's ability to purchase healthy foods on a
regular basis. Table 9-18 shows the median income of
census tracts in each of the Neighborhoods of Focus
compared to the citywide and countywide income
levels. Except for North -West Visalia, all
Neighborhoods of Focus have a median income less
than the citywide median income. Additionally, Oval
Park and Seven Oaks both have a lower median income
than the countywide median income. Similarly, except
for North- West Visalia all Neighborhoods of Focus
have a higher poverty rate than the city with Oval Park having the highest poverty rate.
Table 9-18 Median Income and Poverty
Rate
Median
Income
Poverty Rate
North-West Visalia $83,097 9.3%
Oval Park $26,591 -
$43,364
26.1% - 44.2%
East Visalia $60,185 24.4%
Seven Oaks $48,945 21.3%
City of Visalia $62,263 16.2%
Tulare County $49,687 23.8%
Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2021)
Barriers to Healthy Food Access
In the community survey, respondents were asked what
prevents them and their family from regularly getting
healthy foods. Figure 9-24 shows the top five responses throughout the community (see Appendix C for a full
summary of responses).
The most common response across all neighborhoods
and citywide was that healthy foods are too expensive,
accounting for about 25 percent of all survey
respondents. The cost of healthy food had a
significantly higher response rate in Oval Park (46
percent) and East Visalia (42 percent), compared to
other neighborhoods in the city. Additionally, the
convenience of fast -food restaurants tends to be a
bigger barrier to healthy food access for
Neighborhoods of Focus, compared to other areas of
the city. The lack of time and knowledge of how to
prepare healthy meals at home both tend to be a bigger
barrier to healthy food access in Neighborhoods of
Focus compared to other areas of the city.
As shown in the survey results, convenience can be a
major determinant of daily food choices. Beyond cost,
healthy food often requires more time, effort, and
background knowledge to prepare making it more
inconvenient for working families. At the same time ,
fast food and take out can often present itself as a more convenient and cheaper alternative.
9-67 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-24 Community Survey Responses – Barriers to Healthy Food Access Although Figure 9 -25 shows that most survey
respondents reported that they do not currently use
food assistance benefits and have not used food
assistance benefits in the past five years, Oval Park,
Seven Oaks, and East Visalia had a much higher
number of residents who reported currently using food
assistance benefits or have used food assistance benefits in the past five years compared to other areas of Visalia.
Although food assistance programs such as CalFresh
are a resource available to low-income households, not
all low -income households meet the income
requirements to be eligible to receive benefits. In 2021, Feeding America estimated that Tulare County had a
food insecurity rate of about 14 percent, of which about 12 percent reported an income above the CalFresh
income limits. Tulare County’s food insecurity rate is
slightly higher than the California average of about 11 percent, however the percent of food i nsecure
households above the CalFresh income limits is
significantly lower than the statewide average of 42
percent.
Additionally, CalFresh benefits may not always cover
the cost of meals, especially in areas with a higher cost of living. Feeding America estimates the average meal
cost in Tulare County is $3.62, which is slightly lower than the average estimated meal cost of $3.92 statewide. 28%
7% 9% 7%
26%26%
6% 5% 4%
26%
46%
11%
16%
11% 13%
33%
13% 13% 12%
23%
42%
19%
11%
5%
19%
25%
6% 8%
4%
22%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
Healthy food is too
expensive
Fast food is more
convienent in my
neighborhood
I do not have time to
cook and prepare
healthy meals regularly.
I am not good at cooking I do not have any
problems with getting
and preparing healthy
food on a regular basis
Non-EJ Zones North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-68
CalFresh benefits in California cover approximately
$2.50 to $3.00 per meal depending on the household
size. Food pantries in Visalia commented that many
households use their meal services when their CalFresh
benefits run out towards the end of the month.
Figure 9-25 Community Survey Responses – Use of food assistance benefits 5%
29%
6%
11%
3%
37%
6% 6%
15%
28%
18%
7%8%
25%
17%
12%
9%
22%
17%
13%
5%
25%
8% 8%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
I am currently using food
assistance benefits.
I am not currently using food
assistance benefits and have
not used food assistance
benefits in the past five years.
I am not currently using food
assistance benefits, but have
in the past 5 years.
I want to use food assistance
benefits, but I am not eligible.
Non-EJ Zones North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents
9-69 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Physical Activity
Regular physical activity is important in maintaining
good physical and mental health. The built
environment, including, but not limited to, the
availability and quality of parks, open spaces, pedestrian infrastructure, and bicycle infrastructure, can
significantly impact the accessibility of recreational and active transportation opportunities. Environmental
justice communities often have reduced access to these
opportunities within their neighborhoods due to a
variety of factors including the lack of phys ical
infrastructure that promote physical activity (i.e., parks, sidewalks), safety concerns (i.e., crime, vehicle traffic, street-lighting), or incompatible land uses that make it uncomfortable to be outside due to noise, air quality, or heat (i.e., proximity to freeways, industrial uses, lack of shade and trees).
Active Transportation
Biking and walking, whether for transportation or
recreation, is a low -cost way for many people to get
daily physical activity if the proper infrastructure is available. Providing and maintaining safe pedestrian
and bicycle infrastructure can improve acces s to these modes of transportation for all residents.
In the community survey, respondents were asked what
prevents them from walking in their neighborhood and
to identify any specific areas where they experience
these barriers on a map, which are shown in Figure 9-
28. In Oval Park, over 49 percent of survey respondents indicated that a lack of street lighting is the largest barrier to walking in their neighborhood, which is over 11 percent more than responses from other areas of the
city. Over 37 percent of responses in Oval Park also
reported crime as being a large barrier to walking, which is over seven percent more than other responses
throughout the city. Crime, feeling unsafe crossing
streets with vehicle traffic, and a lack of s treet lighting were the next most f requently reported barriers to
walking across all Neighborhoods of Focus , although
many Neighborhoods of Focus also reported a lack of
sidewalks, a lack of nearby places to walk to, and
walking being unpleasant as general barriers to walking.
Visalia has an existing bike network throughout the city of Class I, Class II, and Class III bike facilities as shown in Figure 9-26. In the community survey, respondents
were asked what prevents them from biking in their
neighborhood and to identify any specific areas where
they experience these barriers on a map, which are
shown in Figure 9 -27. In all areas of Visalia, safety
concerns from vehicle traffic were the most reported
barrier to biking in respondents’ neighborhoods, as
shown in Figure 9 -27. Individual comments from
respondents noted that this safety concern primarily
stemmed from speeding vehicles, poor bike lane
conditions, and a lack of dedicated, protected bike lanes throughout the city to protect bicyclists from vehicles.
Respondents from Oval Park reported higher rates of a
lack of bike lanes as a barrier to biking compared to
other areas of Visalia (30 percent), although all other Neighborhoods of Focus apart from East Visalia also
cited a lack of bike lanes as a general barrier to biking.
Other common barriers to biking across Visalia’s
Neighborhoods of Focus include crime and lacking a
functioning bike.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-70
Figure 9-26 Bicycle Facilities in Visalia
Note: The community survey responses shown on the map are points that survey respondents identified as issue areas. The number of point s shown is not representative of all survey responses, as not all respondents answered the mapping question.
9-71 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-27 Community Survey Responses of Pedestrian Issues
Note: The community survey responses shown on the map are points that survey respondents identified as issue areas. The numbe r of points shown is not representative of all survey responses, as not all respondents answered the mapping question.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-72
Figure 9-28 Community Survey Responses – Barriers to walking
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Crime Not enough
sidewalks
Not enough
places to walk to
that are close by.
I feel unsafe
crossing streets
with vehicle
traffic.
Not enough
street lighting
I have a health
condition or
disability that
makes it difficult
for me to walk.
It is not pleasant
to walk in my
neighborhood
because of noise,
air pollution, lack
of trees/shade,
high
temperatures, or
something else.
I don’t want to
walk more.
Other
Non-EJ Zones North Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents
9-73 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-29 Community Survey Responses – Barriers to Biking Park Accessibility
Access to quality parks and other recreational areas
promote physical activity and provide green spaces that help reduce the effects of air pollution and extreme
heat. There are 34 parks, one plaza, one skate park, and one sports park in Visalia, 16 of which are located
within the Neighborhoods of Focus:
1. Lion’s Park is located at 6500 West Ferguson
Avenue. The park includes trees, barbeques, a
playground, a basketball court, and a multi-
purpose field.
2. Foxwood Park is located just south of the
intersection of West Ferguson Avenue and
North Roeben Street. This small park contains
trees, grassy open space, and benches.
3. Soroptimist Park is located at the intersection
of Linwood Street and Prospect Avenue,
immediately adjacent to Oak Grove
Elementary School. This park’s amenities
include picnic tables, barbeques, a playground,
a basketball court, and a multi-purpose field.
4. Woodland Park is located at 1701 North
Woodland Street. Its amenities include covered
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
Crime I do not have a
bike or my bike
needs repair.
I do not know
how to ride a
bike.
There is not
enough bike
parking at my
destination.
There are not
enough bike
lanes.
I don’t feel safe
riding on streets
with a lot of
car/truck traffic
Places I want to
go are too far
away to bike to.
I have a disability
of health
condition that
makes it difficult
to bike.
It is not pleasant
to bike in my
neighborhood
because of noise,
air pollution, lack
of trees/shade,
high
temperatures, or
something else.
I don’t want to
bike more.
Non-EJ Zones North Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-74
picnic tables, a barbeque, a playground, a
basketball court, a ball field, a walking path,
and an open play area.
5. Riverway Sports Park is located at 3611
North Dinuba Boulevard, just off Highway 63.
This is a highly popular sports park, particularly
in the spring and fall seasons. Its amenities
include a splash pad, picnic areas, a tot lot, a
playground, soccer fields, a baseball complex ,
and a softball complex.
6. Fairview Park is located at the intersection of
West Wren Drive and North Highland Street,
immediately adjacent to the Global Learning
Charter School. Its amenities include a walking
loop, a playground, and soccer fields.
7. Riverbend Park is located at the intersection
of Court Street and Wren Drive. This park’s
amenities include a covered picnic area, a
playground, a walking path, and an open play
area.
8. Summers Park is located at the intersection of
Summers Lane and West Fergusen Avenue,
immediately adjacent to the Manuel F.
Hernandez Community Center. This 3.7 acre
park has three lighted basketball courts, picnic
tables, a barbeque, and a children’s play area.
9. Wittman Village Park is located just west of
the intersection of Pearl Street and North
Court Street. This park offers picnic tables,
barbeques, an open play area, a playground,
and a basketball court. This park is also
adjacent to the Wittman Village Community
Center and a community garden.
10. Lincoln Oval Park is located just north of the
intersection of North Court Street and
Northeast 2nd Avenue. Its amenities include
trees and an open play area.
11. Provident Skate Park is located at 345 North
Jacob Street, behind the Anthony Community
Center and immediately adjacent to Recreation
Park. This 24,00 square feet skate park is one
of the largest municipal skate parks in
California and includes a large fun box, barbell,
volcanoes, and a snake run ending in a bowl.
The park can accommodate 50 to 75 skaters at
one time.
12. Recreation Park is located at the intersection
of North Jacob Street and West Center
Avenue. Its facilities include a baseball
stadium, picnic tables, a barbeque, an ADA
accessible playground, a lighted basketball
court, a lighted volleyball court, and a pickleball
court.
13. Miki City Park is located at the intersection of
South Stevenson Street and West Mineral King
Avenue. This park honors the 50 -year
relationship between Visalia and Miki, Japan,
Visalia’s sister city. Its amenities include
drought-tolerant landscaping, a small walking
path, and a small plaza.
14. Jefferson Park is located at the intersection of
South Watson Street and West Myrtle Avenue,
across the street from Mt. Whitney High
9-75 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
School. This park’s amenities include a
playground, picnic tables, barbeques, a multi -
purpose field, a lighted softball field, and a
lighted basketball court.
15. Garden Street Plaza is located in downtown
Visalia on 300 E. Main St. This shaded outdoor
space contains trees and a water feature and
hosts many outdoor events throughout the
year.
16. Mill Creek Garden Park is located at the
intersection of North Lovers Lane and Mill
Creek Parkway. Its amenities include picnic
tables, a barbeque, a multi- purpose field, a
walking path, an open play area, and a soccer
field.
Figure 9-30 shows the locations of parks within Visalia as well as a half mile buffer area around each park, plaza, and sports field. As shown in Table 9- 19, about 78
percent of residentially zoned parcels in the
Neighborhoods of Focus are within a half mile walking
distance of a park; interestingly, this is about six percent higher than other residentially zoned areas in the city.
Although access to parks is very high in Oval Park and
Seven Oaks, approximately 28 percent of North- West
Visalia residents and 42 percent of East Visalia residents do not live within a half mile walking distance of a park.
Table 9-19 Park Accessibility
Number of
Residentially Zoned
Parcels
Number of Residentially
Zoned Parcels within ½
mile of park
Percentage of Residentially
Zoned Parcels within ½ mile
of a park
Visalia Neighborhoods
of Focus
17,625 13,811 78.4%
North-West Visalia 9,403 6,774 72.0%
Oval Park 4,382 4,224 96.4%
East Visalia 2,363 1,373 58.1%
Seven Oaks 1,477 1,441 97.6%
Non-Neighborhoods of
Focus
26,603 19,072 71.7%
Citywide 44,228 32,883 74.3%
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-76
Figure 9-30 Park Accessibility in Visalia
Note: The community survey responses shown on the map are points that survey respondents identified as issue areas. The numbe r of points shown is not representative of all survey responses, as not all respondents answered the mapping question.
9-77 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
In the community survey, the high cost of gym
memberships, a lack of recreational sports fields, a lack of nearby neighborhood parks, and lacking the time to
exercise as a result of work or childcare were reported as the main barriers to engaging in regula r physical
activity across all of the Neighborhoods of Focus.
Although these barriers were reported, approximately a
quarter of respondents across all Neighborhoods of
Focus did not report having difficulty getting regular
exercise. Over 31 percent of resp onses from Seven
Oaks reported higher rates of a lacking the time to
exercise as a barrier to engaging in regular physical
activity, which is over eight percent more than other
responses throughout the city. Oval Park and East
Visalia neighborhoods reporte d generally higher rates
of a lack of nearby sports fields and/or parks in good
condition as a barrier to engaging in regular physical
activity; however, Table 9-19 shows that 96 percent of
Oval Park residentially zoned parcels are located within a half mile of a park, while only 58 percent of East
Visalia residentially zoned parcels are located within a half mile of a park. Individual comments from
respondents clarif ied that concerns about park
conditions generally stem from feeling unsafe, with
several residents stating that the presence of unhoused individuals living in parks caused them to avoid visiting local parks. Other residents expressed concern about
park access, stating that a lack of sidewalks and unsafe walking conditions kept locals, especially families with younger children, from visiting nearby parks and
recreational sports fields.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-78
Figure 9-31 Community Survey Responses – Barriers to physical activity Public Facilities
Public facilities include public service and amenities
such as community centers, libraries, public transit,
parks and recreation facilities, water and sewer services, streets and sidewalks, and health care services.
Environmental justice communities often lack access to
some or many of these public facilities, or the facilities that do exist are in poor condition, due to lack of
transportation, underinvestment, or lack of engagement
between public agencies and these communities when
decisions on public facilities are being made. A lack of access to public facilities can negatively impact health care access, educational opportunities, physical and
mental health, and overall quality of life.
Educational Facilities
Educational attainment can be a predictor of income,
socioeconomic status, and health. People with higher
educational attainment not only tend to have higher
incomes than people with lower educational attainment,
but also tend to be at lower risk of seriou s health
conditions and pollution exposure. Access to
educational institutions such as primary and secondary
schools; continuing education; and community colleges
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
Gym
memberships
are too
expensive.
There are not
enough fields
or courts to
play
recreational
sports.
Available
fields, courts,
or parks in my
neighborhood
are not in
good
condition.
I do not have
time to
exercise
because of
work,
childcare, etc.
My job
includes
physical labor
so I do not
exercise
outside of
work.
I have a
disability or
health
condition that
makes it
difficult for me
to exercise.
I do not like or
want to
exercise.
I do not have
any problem
getting regular
exercise.
Other
Non-EJ Zones North Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents
9-79 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
and universities are important in providing educational opportunities to environmental justice communities.
Primary and Secondary Schools
Primary and secondary schools include schools that
serve kindergarten through 12th grade. Visalia is served by a single school district, Visalia Unified School
District, which serves a total of 28,893 students across Visalia, Goshen CDP, Ivanhoe CDP, Patte rson Tract
CDP, West Goshen CDP, and other surrounding
unincorporated areas. Out of the 42 public schools in
the district, 38 are located within the Visalia City Limits.
Of those 38 schools, 15 are located within the
Neighborhoods of Focus. These schools teach a range
of grade groups from preschool through 12th grade,
including 11 elementary schools, 1 middle school, and
3 high schools. However, it should be noted that the
East Visalia Neighborhood encompasses no public
schools. In addition to the community’s public schools, there are nine private schools in Visalia, three of which are located in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus:
Catholic School of Visalia (pre -kindergarten through
12th grade), Charter Home School Academy
(kindergarten through 8th grade), and St. Paul’s School (pre-kindergarten through 8th grade). All schools
within the Neighborhoods of Focus have adequate
sidewalks adjacent to school campuses as well as
adequate sports field facilities for their respective
students.
Continuing and Higher Education
Visalia Unified School District offers continuing
education programs for adults to earn their high school diplomas or GED, complete language courses, and
complete career technical programs. These courses are
provided at Sequoia High School (continuation high
school) and Visalia Adult School, however only Sequoia
High School is located within the Neighborhoods of
Focus. Additionally, Visalia Unified School District
offers early college high school courses at Vi salia
Technical Early College High School; altho ugh this
high school is not located within the Neighborhoods of
Focus, any high school student living within the District may attend. One private career -training college (San
Joaquin Valley College’s Visalia Campus), one
community college (College of the S equoias), and two
universities (Fresno Pacific University Visalia campus
and Golden State College) are located within Visalia
City limits; however, none are located within the
Neighborhoods of Focus.
Public Libraries
Libraries are an important public service that ensures
that books, literary resources, media, databases, and
services are accessible to the public. Visalia has one
public library, located at 200 W Oak Avenue in Visalia.
The library is a branch of the Tular e County Library
system and offers access to books, eBooks, magazines,
and other digital media loans, as well as large printing services, a music recording space and equipment, help
for students, adult literacy classes, basic computer skills classes, and p reparation classes for both the U.S.
citizenship test and the written driver’s license test. The Visalia Public Library is located within the Oval Park
neighborhood.
Public Transportation
Public transportation can serve as an important public
service, especially for households and individuals who
do not have regular access to a personal vehicle or are Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-80
unable to walk or bike. As shown in Figure 9 -32, the
City of Visalia Transit operates 12 fixed bus routes
which operate year round and are only closed on
various holidays. This transit system serves Visalia,
Farmersville, Exeter, Goshen, and Tulare. Ten of these
twelve routes intersect the Visalia Neighborhoods of
Focus: Route 1, Route 2, Route 5, Route 6, Route 7,
Route 8, Route 9, Route 11, Route 15, and Route 16
The fixed-route service provides transportation services to 13 local schools located within and adjacent to City limits, including three which are located within the
Neighborhoods of Focus: Green Acres Middle School,
Redwood High School, and Sequoia High S chool. In
addition to its fixed -route service within the transit system’s boundaries, the City’s transit system connects with Tulare InterModal Express, Tulare County Area
Transit, Kings Area Regional Transit and Greyhound.
The City also operates the Sequo ia Shuttle from
Memorial Day weekend through early September,
which offers round -trip transportation between
Sequoia National Park and Visalia. Accommodations
for passengers with disabilities are offered through the City’s Complementary Paratransit “Dial -A-Ride”
service. The Dial -A-Ride is organized to provide
comparable paratransit services for ADA certified
individuals with disabilities that prevent them from
riding the VT fixed-route buses.
According to City’s 2016 Long Range Transit Plan,
Visalia Transit saw approximately 5,700 riders in 2016
and aims to have 18,350 riders in 2035. The main transit center for the City is located at 425 E Oak Avenue,
which is within the Oval Park neighborhood. One-way
fares are $1.75 and $3.00 for a full day bus pass. The
City provides discounted fares for seniors, ADA
certified, and disabled passengers, as well as free
ridership to children six years old and younger.
Medical and Emergency Services
Hospitals
Living close to a range of nearby medical facilities
greatly improves access to necessary healthcare.
According to the California Department of Public
Health, there are 45 medical facilities in Visalia. Of
these facilities, there are sixteen skilled nursing facilities, two surgical clinics, three chronic dialysis clinics, four home health agencies, six hospice centers, fourteen
primary care clinics, and one general hospital that
provides emergency services. As shown in Table 9-20,
10 of these facilities are within the Neighborhoods of
Focus, including one general care hospital, one surgical center, three clinics, two hospice centers, two home
health agencies, and three intermediate skilled care
facilities.
9-81 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-32 Public Transit System, Visalia
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-82
Table 9-20 Medical Facilities in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus Facility Name Type/Services Provided Address
Visalia Ambulatory
Surgical Center
Ambulatory Surgical
Center
105 E Noble Avenue
Family Healthcare
Network
Community Clinic 501 N Bridge Street
Omni Family Health Community Clinic 311 W Noble Avenue
Planned Parenthood Community Clinic 211 N Stevenson Street Kaweah Health
Medical Center
Emergency Care
Hospital, General Acute
Care Hospital, Home
Health, Hospice
400 W Mineral King Avenue
Lenity Home Care Home Health Agency 315 W Oak Avenue
Seva Hospice Hospice 100 Willow Plaza
Sierra Vista Residential
Care Home
Intermediate Care
Facility/Developmentally
Disabled – Nursing
1412 N Maple Street
Steele's Visions –
Terrace
Intermediate Care
Facility/Developmentally
Disabled – Nursing
2146 N Terrace Court
Emergency Facilities
In times of emergency, it is important for citizens to
have nearby emergency services to ensure prompt, safe
handling of a variety of urgent situations. Close
proximity to emergency services such as fire and police stations increases the response time to e mergency
situations that can affect the life and safety of residents.
This section discusses the emergency facilities available in Visalia.
Police station(s)
Police departments are an important community
service that maintains public order and safety, enforces the law, and investigates criminal activity. The Visalia Police Department has four stations, with the City’s
headquarters located at 303 S. Johnson Street in Visalia.
The remaining substations are located at 204 NW Third
Street, 4100 S. County Center, and 420 N. Burke Street, all of which are located in Visalia. The department
employs over 250 employees, including police
personnel, community service offic ers, parking
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enforcement officers, communications operators,
records specialists, administrative support personnel,
crime lab technicians, property and evidence
technicians, and civilian investigators. Two of Visalia’s police stations are located within the Oval Park
neighborhood.
Fire station(s)
The Visalia Fire Department provides a wide range of
emergency and non -emergency services including fire
suppression, emergency medical services, hazardous
conditions, fire prevention, and public safety education.
As of 2019, the Fire Department had 78 total personnel
including 70 safety personnel. The most recent year of
response time data for the Fire Department is from
2019; at this time, the department met the National Fire Protection Association’s response time criteria of six
minutes for 90 percent of all calls. The Visalia Fire Department has six stations throughout the city which
are staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and are
located at the following addresses:
• Fire Station 51: 309 S. Johnson Street
• Fire Station 52: 2224 W. Monte Vista
• Fire Station 53: 5025 W Walnut Avenue
• Fire Station 54: 440 W. Ferguson Street
• Fire Station 55: 6921 W. Ferguson Avenue
• Fire Station 56: 1968 S. Lovers Lane
Visalia Fire Stations 51, 54 and 55 are located within the North-West Visalia and Oval Park neighborhoods;
however, firefighters from any station may respond to
calls originating from within the Neighborhoods of
Focus, depending on type of incident, location, existing or potential emergencies, and resources available.
Community Centers
Community centers are important community assets
that help provide programs and resources that support
physical activity, educational opportunities, social
services, youth services, and community involvement.
Community centers can also serve as important
community partners for government agencies since
they often have established trust in the community and
are already implementing programs in line with
environmental justice goals. Effective environmental
justice policies can help support services offered by
community centers in environmental justice
communities and encourage continued partnerships
with these centers to increase transparency and
connection with community. The following community
centers and resource centers are in the Neighborhoods
of Focus:
• The Anthony Community Center (345 North
Jacob Street) is located in the City of Visalia
Recreation Park and includes a community space
as well as a gymnasium. The space hosts various
events and classes hosted by the City’s Parks and
Recreation department. In addition, the
community space can be rented for private and
public events and meetings.
• Visalia Senior Citizen Center (310 North
Locust Street) provides a wide variety of social
and engaging activities, including recreational
sports, art, and other classes on weekdays. This
center also provides low cost, nutritious meals for
seniors in the community.
• The Visalia Unified School District Family
and Community Resource Center (505 North
Court Street) helps families access needed
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-84
resources to increase the success of students and
increase access to needed services for students and
their families. Promoted services range based on
individual student needs and includes support
groups, support for American Indian students,
support for foster youth, support for students
experiencing homelessness, and support for
migratory students.
• The Source LGBT+ Center (109 NW 2
nd
Avenue) is a community space that supports the
LGBT+ community in Visalia through research,
education, and advocacy in the community. The
Center aims to improve access to mental health
systems, promote community health equity for all,
and create a more inclusive and accepting
community.
Safe and Sanitary Housing
Housing conditions contribute to the overall health and safety of residents. Household income heavily
determines the type , location, and quality of housing someone lives in since newer housing in neighborhoods
with more community amenities (i.e., good schools,
parks, safe streets) tend to be more expensive.
Occupants of housing built before the widespread
adoption of building standards and regulations are at
higher risk of pollution exposure in their homes,
particularly asbestos and lead. Additionally, older
housing may have poor ventilation that can lead to
mold, uncomfortable indoor temperatures, and
increased exposure to indoor and outdoor pollutants.
Household overcrowding can also have serious health
impacts on occupants. Overcrowding occurs when the
number of occupants in a household exceeds the
capacity of a dwelling unit, typically measured by the
number of rooms and the age and relationship of the
occupants. Overcrowding can lead to a variety of
adverse health outcomes, such as exposure to infectious disease, increased stress, and sleep disorders. High rent and home prices increase risks of overcrowding and
homelessness and leave households with less income to
spend on home improvement/repairs, healthy food,
healthcare, and other goods and services. The following sections describe the existing housing conditions in
Visalia.
Lead Exposure
Lead is a toxic heavy metal that can enter the
bloodstream and cause serious neurological or
behavioral health problems, especially in young children due to their developing brains and increased risk of
exposure. Historically, lead was used as an additive in house paint, plumbing materials, and gasoline.
Although the use of lead in common household items
and building materials is now regulated, house paint is still a significant source of lead exposure in older,
unrenovated homes.
CalEnviroScreen 4.0’s Children’s Lead Risk from
Housing indicator calculates lead exposure risk by
combining the percentage of homes with a higher
likelihood of having lead-based paint (LBP) hazards and the percentage of low -income households with
children. CalEnviroScreen 4.0 calculates the likelihood of LBP hazards based on the age of housing. The older
the home, the higher likelihood of LBP hazards.
As shown in Figure 9 -33, Oval Park is the only
Neighborhood of Focus in Visalia with a Children’s
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Lead Risk from Housing indicator score in the 75 th
percentile or higher, ranging between 77 and 98. The
homes in the Oval Park neighborhood, especially those
closer to Downtown Visalia, tend to be older than those in other areas of the city that have newer growth and
development. It should be noted that Seven Oaks has a
percentile score of 74, which is high compared to other areas of the city even though it is not above the 75
th
percentile threshold. Seven Oaks is also located more
centrally near downtown where there are older homes.
According to the United States Environmental
Protection Agency (USEPA), homes built prior to 1978
are at a much higher risk of LBP exposure if proper
measures have not been taken to test for and mitigate
the presence of LBT in the home. As shown in Table
9-21, Oval Park and Seven Oaks have a much higher
percentage of homes built prior to 1980 (61 percent and 77 percent respectively) compared to other
Neighborhoods of Focus, the city, and the county. This
means housing units in Oval Park and Seven Oaks are
at a higher risk of LBP exposure. Additionally, renters in these areas may not have the knowledge of the
home’s history and renovations or may not be allowed
to make renovations due to lease restrictions.
Table 9-21 Age of Housing Stock
Year Built North-
West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
Built 2020 or later 30 37 - - 325 841
Built 2010 to 2019 1,565 135 175 10 4,770 12,156 Built 2000 to 2009 2,544 449 705 12 10,164 24,053 Built 1990 to 1999 677 423 666 169 6,708 22,834 Built 1980 to 1989 225 835 610 308 7,205 22,058 Built 1970 to 1979 491 539 123 615 8,993 27,175 Built 1960 to 1969 - 529 71 248 3,322 14,797 Built 1950 to 1959 86 880 132 316 3,441 12,591 Built 1940 to 1949 - 378 147 312 1,528 6,729 Built 1939 or earlier 16 575 14 151 1,348 7,956 Total Occupied
Housing Units
5,634 4,780 2,643 2,141 47,804 151,190
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Visalia General Plan | 9-86
Table 9-21 Age of Housing Stock
Year Built North-
West
Visalia
Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of
Visalia
Tulare
County
Percentage of
occupied housing
units built prior to
1980
10.5% 60.7% 18.4% 76.7% 39.0% 45.8%
Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2022), Table B25034.
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Figure 9-33 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Children’s Lead Risk from Housing, Visalia
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Visalia General Plan | 9-88
Housing Conditions
The conditions of the existing housing stock can be an
indicator of the living standards of residents. Although the data on housing conditions is limited, the U.S.
Census provides information on the availability of
plumbing and kitchen facilities as well as the age of the housing stock (year the structure was built), which can provide a starting point for assessing the conditions of the existing housing stock . Housing units typically
require more repairs and renovations as they get older
to maintain a good condition, therefore knowing the
year a housing unit/structure was built can be an initial indicator of substandard conditions. Homes typically
start needing major repairs (i.e., roofing, major
appliances, heating and air conditioning systems) after 20 to 25 years.
A majority of housing units in the Visalia
Neighborhoods of Focus, with the exception of North-
West Visalia, were built prior to 2000, suggesting that most housing units have already undergone major
improvements and repairs, or will be in need of these
improvements in the near future.
North-West Visalia, however, has seen the largest
growth in the past two decades, with almost 45 percent
of occupied housing units built between 2000 and 2009.
This suggests that several homes in this area may be in need of major repairs in the next five years, which may result in major home costs to residents of North- West
Visalia.
Although this data can provide information about how
many homes may need major repairs or maintenance, it
is difficult to know how many homes have undergone
these repairs. As shown in Figure 9 -34, about 49
percent of respondents in Oval Park and 35 percent of
respondents in Seven Oaks said homes in their
neighborhood are old and need major repairs, which is
higher than other areas of the city and is consistent with U.S. Census data . Additionally, about 41 percent of
respondents in Oval Park, 33 percent of respondents in
Seven Oaks, and 31 percent of respondents in East
Visalia said it is too expensive to make the necessary
repairs for homes to feel safe and comfortable, which is higher than other areas of the city.
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Figure 9-34 Community Survey Responses – Housing Issues Survey respondents were asked to select one of four
options that best described the physical condition of
homes in their neighborhood. As shown in Figure 9-35,
with the exception of Oval Park and North- West
Visalia, the most common response across all areas of
the city was that most homes are older but in overall
good condition, needing only minor repairs. In Oval
Park, 39 percent of respondents selected “some homes
need major repairs, several homes need minor repairs”
and 25 percent of respondents selected “several homes
are in need of major repairs”, which is a significantly higher response rate than any other area in the city. This suggests that the Oval Park Neighborhood of Focus
has poorer housing conditions than other areas of the
city.
As suggested by the U.S. Census data, respondents
from North- West Visalia reported that most housing
units in their neighborhood are newly constructed or
newly remodeled.
20%
25%
9% 12%
49%
41%
35% 33%
28% 31%
20%
25%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Homes are old and need major repairs It is too expensive to make necessary repairs to make homes safe and comfortable.
Non-EJ Zones North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-90
Figure 9-35 Community Survey Responses – Housing Conditions Housing Cost Burden
A household is considered cost burdened when more
than 30 percent of the household income is spent on
housing (i.e., rent, mortgage payment, utilities) and
severely cost burdened when more than 50 percent of
the household income is spent on housing. Housing
cost burden can have several negative effects on health and quality of life by limiting a household’s ability to pay for other goods and services (e.g., food,
transportation, recreation), increasing risk of
overcrowding or homelessness, and limiting a
household’s ability to contribute to a savings or
retirement fund.
Although any household, regardless of income, can
experience housing cost burden, low -income
households are at higher risk of being cost burdened
and severely cost burdened. As shown in Figure 9 -38,
census tracts in Oval Park and Seven Oaks have a
higher Housing Cost Burden percentile scores than
other areas of the city . As mentioned in the previous
section, these areas also have a higher rate of older
housing units that may have costly repairs or
renovations that can result in higher housing
maintenance costs for homeowners or increased rental
costs, which can cause fina ncial hardship for those
already cost burdened.
Overcrowding
A housing unit is considered overcrowded when there
is more than one person per room. Overcrowding can
occur when a household either cannot find or afford
housing with enough rooms to accommodate all
members of the household. Figure 9-36 shows the rate
overcrowding in the Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus
based on U.S. Census data. Oval Park and East Visalia
19%
62%
14%
4%
58%
33%
4% 5%
25%
11%
39%
25%
5%
59%
30%
5%
18%
50%
24%
9%
31%
47%
16%
6%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Several homes are newly
constructed new or newly
remodeled
Most homes are older, but in
overall good condition with
only some needing minor
repairs
Some homes need major
repairs, several homes need
minor repairs
Several homes are in need of
major repairs
Non-EJ Zones North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents
9-91 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
have a higher rate of overcrowding compared to other
Neighborhoods of Focus, the city, and the county . In
most areas across the city, except for Seven Oaks,
overcrowded units are comprised mostly of renters.
Figure 9 -37 shows that 33 percent of survey
respondents in Oval Park reported “too many people
living together in one home” as a housing issue in their neighborhood, which is significantly higher than any
other area in the city.
Figure 9-36 Overcrowding by Tenure in Visalia Neighborhoods of Focus Figure 9-37 Community Survey Responses - Overcrowding as a Housing Issue
5%
12% 11%
3% 5% 6%
4% 4%
4% 2%
4%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
North-West Visalia Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of Visalia Tulare County Overcrowded renters Overcrowded owners
14% 14%
33%
15% 16% 16%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
Non-EJ Areas North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Respondents who reported too many people in same home as a housing issue in their neighborhood 0%
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-92
Figure 9-38 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Housing Cost Burden, Visalia
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Civic Engagement
Meaningful community engagement is key to creating
equitable policies and programs that meet the needs of
all residents. Unfortunately, environmental justice
communities have historically been excluded from
these conversations, resulting in inequitable planning
practices. Factors such as language barriers, time and
location of public meetings, and knowledge of topics
influence if and how people participate in the public
decision-making process. Innovative engagement
strategies and partnering with community -based
organizations (CBOs) can make community workshops
and meetings more accessible to environmental justice
communities. Traditional methods of community
engagement, such as community meetings held at
government buildings can be difficult for people to
attend due t o scheduling conflicts, language barriers, lack of transportation, and lack of overall trust in
government agencies.
Internet Access
It is increasingly common for government agencies to
post notices, documents, informational materials online and host virtual community meetings. Although an
online format can make participating in the public
decision-making process more convenient for many
people, it also requires households to have access to a computer or smartphone and high- speed internet. As
shown in Figure 9-39, the percentage of residents in the Neighborhoods of Focus with access to at least one
computer or smartphone is similar to that of the city
and state percentages. The percentage of residents in
the Neighborhoods of Focus with a broadband internet
subscription is slightly less than the city and state
percentages, with the exception of East Visalia . This suggests that residents in the Neighborhoods of Focus
may have a more difficult time accessing online
information or virtual meetings than other areas of the city due to a lack of dependable, high-speed internet.
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-94
Figure 9-39 Internet Access in Visalia
Linguistic Isolation
Language isolation occurs when households have
individuals over the age of 14 who have limited English proficiency. These households face disadvantages when
seeking information about meetings and engagement
opportunities, particularly if the information an d
materials are solely available in English and no language interpretation/translation is available. According to
CalEnviroScreen 4.0, two census tracts in Oval Park
score above the 87 th percentile for linguistic isolation (see Figure 9 -41), meaning that the percentage of
households in these census tracts that do not speak
English well is higher than 87 percent of census tracts in California . The primary languages spoken besides
English in Oval Park include Spanish, Tagalog, Chinese, and other Asian/Pacific-Islander languages.
Although most survey respondents did not select “I
don’t understand or have trouble understanding
English” as a main barrier to community participation,
about 10 percent of Oval Park respondents reported it
as a barrier to participation. This is significan tly higher than any other area of the city, as shown in Figure 9-42.
Ensuring meaningful and effective participation from
individuals with limited English proficiency requires the commitment to providing meeting notices, and
informational materials in languages other than English.
This can bridge the language barrier and en able
individuals with limited English proficiency to access
crucial information about community meetings and
engagement opportunities. Additionally, offering
language interpretation services at these meetings is
vital to facilitate active involvement from individuals with limited English proficiency, allowing them to fully 98%
93%
98%
96% 96% 97%
86% 87%
95%
88%
90%
93%
80%
85%
90%
95%
100%
North-West Visalia Oval Park East Visalia Seven Oaks City of Visalia California Percent of households with one or more computer Percent of households with broadband internet
9-95 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
understand discussions, express concerns, and
contribute to decision-making processes.
Apart from English proficiency, many people who are
proficient or native English speakers can have a difficult time understanding the terminology and subject matter
related to planning documents and processes. Many
planning documents can also be long, dense, and data
heavy, which can be difficult for the public to read,
understand, and provide meaningful feedback on.
Creating engagement and information materials in a
way that is easy to understand can make the subject and processes of planning more accessible to a wider
audience.
Figure 9-40 Community Survey Responses – Language barriers Barriers to Community Involvement
There are several reasons that prevent people from
participating in community meetings and outreach
events such as scheduling, comfort level with the
subject matter or speaking in front of other people,
distrust in government, or lack of knowledge about how
to get involved. To get more people involved in the
public decision -making process, it is important to
understand why people aren’t participating and find
ways to overcome those barriers.
Survey respondents were asked to select the top three
reasons that prevent them from attending public
meetings. Figure 9 -42 shows the top five reasons
selected by respondents in the Neighborhoods of
Focus. In Visalia, improving publicity of events and
engagement opportunities, providing childcare, creating spaces that allow people to feel comfortable sharing
their opinions, and explaining how community
feedback will be used are all ways the City can begin to break down these barriers to participation.
0%
10%
2%
3%
2% 1%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
North Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Non-EJ Zones Percent of respondents that reported language as a barrier to public participation Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-96
Figure 9-41 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Linguistic Isolation, Visalia
9-97 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
Figure 9-42 Community Survey Responses – Barriers to participation Simply holding public meetings and events does not
ensure meaningful engagement. Publicizing meetings
and events where people are most likely to see them is
essential. As shown in Figure 9-42 between 29 percent
of all survey respondents said they do not know when
or where meetings are happening. In the community
survey, participants were also asked where and how
they get information about news and events in Visalia.
As shown in Figure 9-43, an overwhelming majority of
respondents reported getting their information through
social media and word of mouth (i.e., friends, family,
neighbors).
34%
20%
29%
6%
14%
30%
18%
31%
11% 10%
36%
15%
31%
21%
10%
35%
28% 27%
10% 8%
27% 25% 25%
6%
17%
29%
17%
26%
7%
11%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
I don’t know when or
where meetings are
happening
I am too busy to attend
meetings
I don't think my
opinions will be taken
seriously or any real
change will come from
attending meetings.
No childcare I don’t feel comfortable
speaking in front of
people.
Non-EJ Zones North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-98
Figure 9-43 Community Survey Responses – Information sources 0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Social media Local newspaper
or magazine
Bulletin boards
at local
businesses
A newsletter
from a local
community
organization or
agency
School
newsletter or
parent
organization
Word of mouth City of Visalia
website
Non-EJ Zones North-West Visalia Oval Park Seven Oaks East Visalia All Respondents
9-99 | Public Review Draft / May 2024
OBJECTIVES AND POLICIES
Objective EJ-1 Physical Activity and Healthy Lifestyles To increase physical activity and healthy lifestyles to reduce health risks for residents of all backgrounds and improve the pedestrian network for safer, more convenient travel. [Source: New objective]
Policies
EJ-1.1 The City shall encourage employers and developers to include secure bicycle parking and storage in existing and new businesses and in all new development projects. [Source: New policy] EJ-1.2 The City shall promote physical activity programs and healthy lifestyle education programs offered to residents and encourage residents to regularly participate in active lifestyles. [Source: New policy]
EJ-1.3 The City shall collaborate with the Visalia Unified School District, Board of Education, parent teacher associations, and community residents to identify and address access and safety issues for students arriving at school by bike or on foot. [Source: New policy] EJ-1.4 The City shall collaborate with private and public partners to enhance pedestrian amenities, such as lighting, shade, benches, trash and recycling receptacles, bathrooms, water fountains, particularly in the Neighborhoods of Focus. [Source: New policy]
EJ-1.5 The City shall prioritize compliance with American Disability Act (ADA) standards and accessibility for all pedestrian, transit, and bicycle improvements, through ongoing engagement and incorporation of feedback from disability stakeholder groups. [Source: New policy] Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-100
Objective EJ-2 Health Equity
To increase health equity and improve access to medical services. [Source: New objective] Policies
EJ-2.1 The City shall encourage the provision of a range of medical and health services (e.g., primary, preventive, specialty, prenatal, dental care, mental health) in a manner accessible to all residents. [Source: New policy]
EJ-2.2 The City shall coordinate with the Tulare County Public Health and Human Services Agency (HHSA), California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), and other public agencies during master planning efforts to identify and integrate design elements into land use plans that encourage physical activity and pollution exposure reduction measures. [Source: New policy] Objective EJ-3 Air Quality
To improve air quality conditions so all residents can live, work, and play in their community without disproportionate risk of air pollution and related negative health impacts. [Source: New objective]
Policies
EJ-3.1 The City shall continue working with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to determine what, if any, mitigation measures can be implemented to reduce air pollution impacts to the Neighborhoods of Focus and residential areas adjacent to the State Route 99 and State Route 198. [Source: New policy]
EJ-3.2 The City shall encourage the retrofitting and installation of appropriate air filtration at existing schools, residences, and other sensitive receptor uses adversely affected by air pollution sources. [Source: New policy]
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EJ-3.3 The City shall enforce California’s five-minute maximum diesel truck idling law, require warehouse and distribution facilities to provide adequate on -site truck parking, and require refrigerated warehouses to provide generators for refrigerated trucks. [Source: New policy] Objective EJ-4 Pollution Exposure
To actively support and expand land use development patterns, transportation infrastructure, pollution mitigation, and other techniques to reduce pollution exposure. [Source: New objective]
Policies
EJ-4.1 The City shall require new sensitive land uses and/or industrial and commercial land uses to incorporate setbacks, barriers, landscaping, or other design and development standards as necessary to minimize pollution exposure. [Source: New policy] EJ-4.2 The City shall encourage the Tulare County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office to provide pesticide use education to raise awareness about the potential health impacts from pesticide use and process to report pesticide violations. [Source: New policy] EJ-4.3 The City shall encourage existing stationary sources of pollution emissions to use feasible measures to minimize emissions that could have potential impacts on community health. [Source:
New policy]
EJ-4.4 The City shall minimize heavy truck traffic by designating truck routes away from residential areas and sensitive land uses in and around the Neighborhoods of Focus. [Source: New policy] EJ-4.5 The City shall ensure that residents and businesses are made aware of the potential adverse pollution, noise, odor, vibration, lighting, and the effects of toxic materials and emissions when pollution generating land uses are proposed near them. [Source: New policy] Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-102
Objective EJ-5 Access to Healthy Foods
To expand access to nutritious and affordable food to reduce food insecurity and to support varied cultural and nutritional food choices. [Source: New objective] Policies
EJ-5.1 The City shall encourage food stores and retailers to improve the quality and selection of healthy foods and fresh food products, particularly in the Neighborhoods of Focus. [Source: New policy] EJ-5.2 The City shall support the planning and development of community gardens within walking distance of high-density residential areas. [Source: New policy] EJ-5.3 The City shall promote a full range of urban agriculture activities, including farmers’ markets, farm stands, community gardens, on-site garden produce market stands, and urban farms. [Source: New policy]
EJ-5.4 The City shall promote healthy food and beverages at City -sponsored events, programs, and recreation activities. [Source: New policy]
Objective EJ-6 Public and Recreational Facilities
To ensure residents of all ages have access to a range of safe and accessible opportunities for recreation and physical activities. [Source: New objective] Policies
EJ-6.1 The City shall strive to maintain and improve recreational facilities with adequate lighting, signage, extended park supervision/hours, and programs representative of the multicultural needs and income levels of the community. [Source: New policy]
EJ-6.2 The City shall strive to enhance public facilities, infrastructure, services, and crime prevention strategies that are responsive to community needs. [Source: New policy]
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EJ-6.3 The City shall encourage the use of existing parks, public venues, and programs through marketing, promotion, and reduced rates for the Neighborhoods of Focus. [Source: New policy] Objective EJ-7 Equitable Civic Engagement
To fully engage the public in City decision-making and facilitate public involvement in civic life. [Source: New objective]
Policies
EJ-7.1 The City shall partner with appropriate organizations (e.g., community -based, faith -based, advocacy, and service) that have built relationships, trust, and cultural competency to conduct meaningful outreach for relevant planning initiatives and environmental justice concerns. [Source:
New policy]
EJ-7.2 The City shall provide translation and interpretation services at public meetings on issues affecting populations whose primary language is not English. Translation time should not be counted as a part of a person’s time limit for comments. [Source: New policy] EJ-7.3 The City shall strive to make public meetings, notices, and education materials available online and in-person and accessible to all residents. [Source: New policy] EJ-7.4 The City shall strive to schedule events using different days, times, and formats (e.g., virtual and digital accessibility) to encourage and facilitate participation among community members with work, school, family, and other obligations that conflict with more traditional scheduling. [Source:
New policy]
EJ-7.5 The City shall implement a transparent public decision- making process through effective public outreach, engagement, and participation that is inclusive of socially disadvantaged individuals and groups. [Source: New policy]
Environmental Justice
Visalia General Plan | 9-104
EJ-7.6 The City shall support opportunities for all residents to engage in community service that integrates community health and civic engagement. [Source: New policy] Objective EJ-8 Safe and Sanitary Homes
To ensure all residents enjoy living conditions that are both safe and healthy, while also providing a mix of affordability. [Source: New objective] Policies
EJ-8.1 The City shall promote awareness of City regulations and enforcement measures citywide to improve unsafe and unsanitary conditions, focusing on trash and dumping, overcrowded housing, maintenance of older homes, graffiti, and lack of building and yard maintenance. [Source: New policy]
EJ-8.2 The City shall encourage the rehabilitation of substandard housing conditions and preservation of affordability for dwellings owned/occupied by lower -income households in the Neighborhoods of Focus. [Source: New policy]
EJ-8.3 The City shall review new development projects for natural surveillance design techniques and apply proven best practices in urban planning for crime reduction. [Source: New policy]