Home > Resource Center > In the News Home > Greenbelt Alliance in the News

Greenbelt Alliance In the News

June 1, 2006

Hillside preservation initiative on fall ballot could affect Almaden

Subheading

The initiative has the backing of environmental organizations Sierra Club, Greenbelt Alliance, the Santa Clara Audubon Society and the Committee for Green Foothills. They've joined forces to create an alliance called PLAN--People for Land and Nature. Those against the initiative have formed an alliance called the Alliance for Housing and the Environment, consisting of the Santa Clara Association of Realtors, the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors and the Santa Clara County Farm Bureau.

Michele Beasley with the Greenbelt Alliance said the goal of the initiative was to "strike a balance between existing cities and towns and the rural part of the county to maintain quality of life."

"You can already see more and more development happening in unincorporated parts of the county. It fragments open space and farmland, and increases traffic congestion, which is one of the biggest issues in Santa Clara County. We can't continue to sprawl out. We need to build more compactly," Beasley said.

Under current legislation, the board of supervisors could vote to relax restrictions on development in the county, Beasley said, adding the initiative puts that decision in the hands of the voters.

The initiative seeks to limit development by increasing minimum parcel size on hillsides and ranch land. On hillsides, the initiative would reduce the number of homes that could be built from eight to four per 160 acres. The minimum parcel size for ranch land would increase from 20 acres to 40 acres, but, depending on the slope, a ranch could be as big as 160 acres. In order to protect the aesthetics of the county, the initiative prohibits development on ridgelines, hilltops or slopes of 30 percent or more but would allow housing for farm workers to be built on ranch land and large-scale agricultural land.

In Almaden Valley, the initiative would affect development along the Santa Teresa Hills and other hillsides, particularly around the Calero Reservoir. District 10 Councilwoman Nancy Pyle said she is committed to protecting the hillsides in Almaden.

"I'm hoping the open space measure keeps the Almaden hills clear of homes and provides the scenic view we've all been accustomed to," Pyle said.

Development in Almaden has already started creeping into the rural areas and hillsides, particularly with the building of "monster" homes along foothills, according to Pyle's office. The Glenview area is one example.

While the initiative has drawn the backing of former San Jose mayors Susan Hammer, Tom McEnery and Janet Gray Hayes, it is being opposed by the very group of people the initiative aims to protect--farmers. The Santa Clara County Farm Bureau has taken an official position against the initiative.

Jenny Derry, executive director of the farm bureau, said that far from preserving farming as an economically viable industry, it would make it more difficult for farmers to continue farming.

"For farmers and ranchers, generally their biggest investment is their land," Derry said, "and this initiative will devalue their property."

Derry said farmers often raise money by taking out a loan on their farm. Currently, a farmer who owns 160 acres can take out a loan on just 40 acres. But, under the initiative, the farmer could not break up the 160 acres into smaller parcels, making it harder to get a loan from a bank.

The Open Space Authority has taken a neutral position on the initiative.

Executive director Patrick Congdon said his organization supports protection of hillsides and open space, but that all affected parties must be considered.

Congdon said for many farmers and ranchers, their land is almost like their retirement package and something they could pass on to their family members.

Congdon would rather see partnerships formed between farmers and environmentalists to jointly come up with a strategy for land conservation.

In terms of impacts to the environment, there were other projects that would be far more significant, he said.

"Issues like Coyote Valley are far more important," Congdon said referring to a proposed plan to develop the area. "When you look at Coyote Valley and at the potential impacts in terms of air-quality issues, transportation issues and urban sprawl, that has more of an impact than the single-family residences that go in on large tracts of land."

For more information on the initiative and to see a map of affected areas, visit www.openspace2006.org.

###