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Greenbelt Alliance In the News

August 21, 2002

Coyote Valley panel created

Subheading

The council also gave directives to the task force that some fear open the door for the panel to redefine and loosen conditions that must be met before building can begin.

The action begins a three-year process during which the task force will create a plan for growth in Coyote Valley, a vast open tract of land that is to be a sprawling business park and a 600-megawatt power plant.

The 20-member task force approved by the council includes San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales, council members Forrest Williams and Pat Dando, Santa Clara County Supervisor Don Gage, four developers, two organized labor leaders and Jim Cunneen, president of the San Jose/Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce.

Environmental groups say the task force has neither advocates for transportation and affordable housing nor representatives from San Benito and Monterey counties, which will be affected by the valley's growth.

"What seems to have occurred is to strip out most of the advocacy organizations from one side of this equation,'' said Craig Breon of the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society. "I think what you'll end up with is not the most vigorous of debates and not the best plan.''

But Gonzales and Williams, who drafted the directives for the task force and chose the members, say the group is balanced and represents all viewpoints. The task force will also seek opinions from others, they said.

Representatives of the Audubon Society and the Greenbelt Alliance also voiced concerns about the directives adopted by the council.

Breon said one of the key directives -- that the new development plan should allow for the current conditions to be changed -- was "overly constraining'' and could point the task force toward changing conditions for growth.

But Gonzales said the conditions, set down years ago, need to be re-examined.

The current conditions could trigger the construction of 25,000 homes in Coyote Valley, once 5,000 jobs are created in the northern section of the valley -- a move that would cripple the city's ability to provide police, fire and other services throughout San Jose.

Gonzales said the council wants the task force to consider these questions: "Will the trigger mechanism work in today's environment and the environment of the future? And do they need adjustment?''

The directives for the task force include:

• Create a new growth plan that allows current economic prerequisites that trigger development to be changed based on the area's revenues to cover police, fire and other city services.

• The line between residential development in mid-Coyote Valley and the southern part of the valley, designated as a greenbelt, shall not be moved.

• Create a plan for not fewer than 25,000 homes and 50,000 jobs.

• Identify locations for schools, libraries, parks and trails.

Councilman Chuck Reed had expressed concerns about the task force's directions but voted for them Tuesday, saying they did not limit the scope of the panel's work.

Contact Rod Foo at rfoo@sjmercury.com or (408) 975-9346.

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