Community Resource

EIR Scoping Comment Guidance

Use this guidance to help draft clear, specific comments to the City during NOP scoping. Good comments are location-specific, evidence-based, and include a concrete request for EIR analysis and mitigation.

What Good Comments Look Like

1) Start with a specific location and condition

Say exactly where the issue is and what happens there now.

• Name the street, intersection, corridor, or facility.
• Identify a time window (for example, school pickup, PM peak, nighttime).
• Describe the observed condition (for example, lane blockage, speeding, turning conflicts, noise events).

2) Explain how the project could worsen that condition

Connect your concern to a project feature.

• Added trips, shuttle operations, off-site parking, construction phases, helipad activity, or diverter changes.
• Keep this causal link factual and specific.

3) Request a specific EIR study action

Ask for concrete analysis instead of general statements.

• Identify the corridor, intersection, or receptor that must be studied.
• Specify time periods and conditions to include.
• Ask for assumptions, methods, thresholds, and outputs to be disclosed.

4) Tie your request to CEQA impact categories

Use Appendix G categories so the request is easier for staff and consultants to scope.

• Transportation (safety, circulation policy conflicts, emergency access)
• Air Quality (sensitive-receptor exposure)
• Noise (temporary and permanent increases)
• Hazards and Hazardous Materials
• Cultural and Tribal Cultural Resources
• Recreation

5) Ask for enforceable mitigation

Ask for commitments that can be implemented and verified.

• Specify mitigation type (design, operations, curb controls, routing, etc.).
• Request measurable performance standards.
• Request monitoring, reporting, and corrective-action triggers.

6) Include evidence

Attach supporting facts when possible.

• Dated photos or short videos
• Observation logs with times and locations
• Annotated maps
• Facility hours and distance measurements for sensitive receptors
• Relevant city policy excerpts

7) Focus on physical effects, not preferences

Frame the issue as a physical environmental impact.

• Use terms such as safety hazards, emergency access limits, idling emissions, noise, and exposure at sensitive receptors.
• Do not rely only on statements of preference.

8) Use the same structure for each issue

For each issue, include:

1. Location and existing condition
2. Project-related worsening mechanism
3. Specific requested EIR analysis
4. CEQA category connection
5. Requested mitigation and monitoring
6. Evidence attached

Quick One-Paragraph Template

I request that the EIR analyze [LOCATION] during [TIME WINDOWS]. Existing conditions include [OBSERVED CONDITION], and project elements such as [PROJECT FEATURE] may worsen [PHYSICAL IMPACT]. Please evaluate this issue under Appendix G [CATEGORY], disclose assumptions and methods, and identify feasible mitigation with measurable performance standards, monitoring, and corrective-action triggers. Attached evidence includes [ATTACHMENTS].