When it comes to Coyote Valley development, we’ve got two words:
Sue ’em.
When it comes to Coyote Valley development, we’ve got two words: Sue ’em.
It’s unfortunate that this item should be added to a court docket. Our society is overly litigious, but the Coyote Valley planning process, so egregious in so many ways, roars forward.
Now, the out-of-control planning process features the likelihood that the city will break a long-standing process to build houses only after sufficient jobs are in place in Coyote Valley.
It’s apparent that lawsuits, and lots of them, are the only way to get the attention of San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales and his cohorts at City Hall.
Which groups have reasons to sue? Let’s count.
Environmentalists ought to sue. Water and pollution issues ought to be enough to get the environmentalists and their lawyers in court to stop the development of Coyote Valley.
Gavilan Community College and the Morgan Hill School District should sue.
Both districts have no representation on the Coyote Valley Specific Plan Task Force, but both will be required to educate the students of Coyote Valley.
If Gonzales and Councilman Forrest Williams’ successfully remove the decades-old requirement for 5,000 jobs in Coyote Valley before housing development can occur, paying for those students’ educations gets a lot harder.
Businesses pay property taxes but don’t have any children associated with them, like many houses do. If San Jose removes these triggers, Gavilan and MHUSD lawyers ought to be at the courthouse the next day with lawsuits in hand.
If you think the development of the Coyote Valley will have little impact on San Benito County, think again. Consider how we will be impacted by the new residents, increased traffic, noise, and pollution not to mention unnecessary new competition for industry and jobs.
Adding more residents will make our commutes longer and more dangerous than they already are.
Bringing more jobs to Coyote Valley will undoubtedly herald the arrival of people in Hollister looking for housing that is more affordable than in Santa Clara County.
But, of course, there has been no consideration of these impacts on our local infrastructure.
How many more cars can Highway 25 handle? How many of our local tax dollars will be spent to give Coyote Valley students a chance to attend Gavilan College?
Those questions have not been answered. Indeed, there appears to be little concern in San Jose about the impact the development of the Coyote Valley will have on the rest of the region.
Given the shabby treatment of the South Valley by San Jose, and before it’s too late to undo the potential harm caused by reckless Coyote Valley development, please, sue ’em.
