GILROY
– Ellyn Atkins just about can’t read the newspaper anymore.
That’s not an attack on Gilroy media. Rather, it’s a swack at
Gilroy’s City Council.
GILROY – Ellyn Atkins just about can’t read the newspaper anymore. That’s not an attack on Gilroy media. Rather, it’s a swack at Gilroy’s City Council.
Its use of economic incentives to lure Wal-Mart and its decision to make hotels keep registration information for police investigations are two examples of how the city dais is out of touch with its residents, Atkins says.
“I don’t feel that I’m the only one that finds these things outrageous,” Atkins said. “I don’t think most of the citizens are getting their views heard.”
Atkins, 44, is a first-time political office candidate, but she can draw on 17 years of life experience in Gilroy to make improvements here.
“In the almost 18 years that I’ve lived here, I’ve tried my hardest to think of what new public facility we have and I can’t think of one. There’s plans for a sports park, there’s plans for this or that, but the town’s almost doubled … and what extra quality of life do we have?”
If Atkins is elected, she will try to put out a general survey of the community asking residents about their priorities and concerns.
The full-time San Jose State sociology student’s priority will not be bringing in new retail businesses. Atkins says she is not against growth and building new things, but questions the choices past Councils made regarding new retail.
Regarding Wal-Mart, Atkins says she’d prefer it didn’t exist in Gilroy and believes Council should not have given the retail giant incentives to build its store on Arroyo Circle.
“I know for a fact they’re spending hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to fight to get into anywhere in Northern California. Why would you have to hand them (incentives)?” Atkins said. “I thought surely no one would go for this. The next thing you read is ‘oh yeah, they did.’ ”
Regarding Costco, Atkins asks why the city didn’t point the store toward the vacant lot at Forest Street and Leavesley Road.
“Why would you be eating up agricultural land when this property sits there. You don’t even have to build a light for it,” Atkins said. “Everything we’ve built, to me, is away from town. Now I have four places to buy lumber, two of which I don’t even go to because it’s so unpleasant to drive there. Nobody comes from San Francisco or Taiwan and goes ‘I’m gonna buy clothes and get me some lumber and some meat.’ ”
Although Atkins believes economic incentives have been overused on the retail sector of the market, she is pro-economic-incentives for luring clean industry.
Several members of the existing Council are longtime Gilroyans, but Atkins has the sense their business backgrounds are clouding their understanding of the town.
“When you have a majority of the people having something to do with real estate, you could see where the town is almost entirely focused on real estate transactions,” Atkins said.
Atkins shares other candidates’ interests in revitalizing downtown, but she says her approach would be more realistic than others’. For instance, she can appreciate the idea of bringing a train museum to downtown Gilroy between Old Gilroy and Alexander streets but says the area is seedier than Council members seem to know.
“A little reality is what people need when they talk about revitalizing downtown,” Atkins said.
Atkins wants to see the police department start a foot patrol beat in the downtown area as nighttime entertainment opportunities expand.
For Atkins, public safety goes beyond providing police and fire protection to residents. She sees trimmed trees and working sewers as part of public safety, too. Atkins would support an audit of the city’s books if she is elected, hoping to spend less wherever possible to make increases to things like street maintenance more doable.
Atkins wants Gilroy to join the Open Space Authority but doesn’t believe membership in the agency is the only way to preserve land. Atkins wants the city to encourage as much infill development as possible rather than allow housing to sprout up on the outskirts of town.
Sprawl is the main reason, Atkins believes, some parts of Gilroy have damaged sidewalks and untrimmed trees despite there being more sales tax revenue due to the new retail stores.
“Yes we have more parks, but we have them because there are more houses. And yes we have some intersections that are upgraded, but that’s needed because of the new development that’s there,” Atkins said.
“It’s kind of like the lottery deal where (the new revenue) is supposed to add. I don’t see where it added. I don’t see how we’ve gotten ahead.”
