Coyote Valley must be saved for all to enjoy
Coyote Valley for All. Forever.
That commitment by the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority has been met with overwhelming public support for preserving the valley, bolstered by research that affirms its value for wildlife, water and climate resilience.
Now it’s up to the San Jose City Council. Today, members unanimously should approve a recommendation by the General Plan Task Force to change the valley’s land use designation from industrial to open space and agriculture.
Why is solidarity important? Because this is just the beginning of a battle.
A 2-million-square-foot Amazon warehouse with 500 truck bays has been proposed right in the middle of Coyote Valley at Bailey and Santa Teresa Avenues. Property owners threaten to sue the city if the General Plan change blocks them from building it.
Some council members may be reluctant to go up against those landowners. Voters, take note.
The scene for this conflict was set in the 1980s, when San Jose planned Coyote for tech campuses and thousands of good jobs that the city lacked. But much of the land is flood plain, extremely expensive to develop. It never happened.
In 2014, the Open Space Authority and the Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) teamed up to pass a parcel tax for the authority. The tax measure listed saving Coyote Valley as its main goal. It passed with 68% of the vote.
Then POST, the authority and the City of San Jose — with voters’ approval in another measure — collaborated to buy nearly 1,000 acres of North Coyote Valley. Negotiations were rooted in appraised value; that’s how POST rolls. The $96 million purchase was announced in November 2019. In 2020, voters renewed the authority’s parcel tax with 81% approval.
Owners of the would-be warehouse site say the proposed general plan amendment constitutes a taking, which is government seizing a property for public use. A taking requires compensation. The planning commission fell for it and opposed the change. But it would be a taking only if the land had no practical use or sale value under the new plan.
Since the North Coyote purchase, more than 2,000 additional acres have been secured for farming or open space, some with the help of state agencies and Santa Clara County. Most if not all property owners in the area have been approached. There are also farmers who would like to buy land.
Mayor Sam Liccardo became a champion of saving Coyote Valley after the Coyote Creek floods in 2017. He learned that restoring natural water flows into the valley’s flood plain would help control flooding and improve the quality of our ground water supply.
He believes property owners along the east side of Monterey Highway, separate from the main preservation area, need help with allowable land use. Working with Council members Sergio Jimenez, Pam Foley, Raul Peralez and David Cohen, Liccardo put out a memo Friday proposing to study what kinds of businesses could be compatible with a stellar public wildlife preserve across the road. That makes sense.
But Coyote Valley never was seen as a place for warehouses. It was all about good jobs. Warehouses increasingly use robots to move goods. Trucks still need human drivers — but for how long?
The San Jose City Council should be of one voice: Coyote Valley is a treasure that should be saved for all. Not for warehouses.