GILROY
– After alleging last week that fellow city councilmen breached
ethics on land use issues more than once in recent months, Mayor
Tom Springer has announced he will not vie for Gilroy’s top
political spot in the November election.
GILROY – After alleging last week that fellow city councilmen breached ethics on land use issues more than once in recent months, Mayor Tom Springer has announced he will not vie for Gilroy’s top political spot in the November election.
The decision leaves incumbent Councilman Al Pinheiro as the lone mayoral candidate midway through the city’s filing period.
“After a lot of thought and soul searching, I have decided I will not seek re-election as mayor of the City of Gilroy,” Springer said. “I have decided to pursue other things in my life, and I do not anticipate having a future in politics.”
The mayor’s statement was left on the answering machine of a Dispatch reporter. In a telephone interview, a reserved Springer declined to comment much further, only noting that he reached his decision after having a private discussion with a trusted friend.
After City Council’s controversial split decision last week to annex a Day Road property into Gilroy boundaries, Springer said he would use Garlic Festival weekend to mull over another mayoral run. On Friday, however, Springer made his decision to take himself out of local politics when his term expires in three months.
Springer has been mayor for one four-year term. He spent another four years on City Council before being elected to the top spot.
Springer’s exodus was triggered in part by a July 21 City Council decision to move the Gilroy boundary 60 acres north. The annexation brought a property being developed by Glen Loma Group and a Catholic church for roughly 250 homes, a parish and a Catholic elementary school into Gilroy boundaries.
Springer and Councilman Peter Arellano opposed the annexation because the environmental review did not take into account the likelihood that Gilroy’s second public high school will replace the development of the homes. Springer said the annexation violates state environmental laws and is the second breach of ethics by the Council in the last several weeks.
The other breach of ethics, Springer says, happened when a special committee recommended a property for the city’s arts and cultural center. Some members, according to Springer, had a conflict of interest because they live near the site and potentially will benefit from increased property values.
“Tom is a very intelligent man, but I’m very surprised he’d question the ethics of any councilmember,” Pinheiro said Sunday. “I’m not about to question someone’s ethics just because someone doesn’t agree with my point of view. This is a very ethical council.”
Pinheiro said he anticipates having a challenger for the mayor’s position before the Aug. 13 filing deadline. He declined to predict who the potential candidates may be.
As for Councilman Peter Arellano, who has yet to announce whether he will seek re-election in November; the news needs digesting.
“I’m flabbergasted. I’m in shock right now, I really don’t know what to say,” Arellano said Sunday upon hearing the news.
Arellano said Springer’s announcement will not impact whether he seeks re-election.
“It’s a separate issue,” Arellano said.
Eric Leins is a staff writer with the Gilroy Dispatch
