In a crushing rebuke to Gilroy’s pro-growthers, Councilman Roland Velasco defeated Mayor Perry Woodward and a tough urban growth boundary initiative was passed by voters.
Velasco pulled in 66 percent of the vote to Woodward’s 34 percent. The anti-sprawl measure, which requires residential development beyond the designated boundary to go before voters, did even better with 65.8 percent of the vote.
Woodward, who was appointed mayor in January following Don Gage’s December 2015 resignation, was the architect of a plan to convert 721 acres of farmland into more than 4,000 new homes. The plan infuriated residents, who organized a petition drive to place the Measure H growth control initiative on the ballot.
Velasco voted against the North Gilroy Neighborhood District plan when it came before the council but he opposed Measure H because he felt it would tie the hands of future councils. The growth restrictions, which will force the city to grow within city limits rather than expand its boundaries will be in force through 2040. The Gilroy Chamber of Commerce, which led the opposition to Measure H, endorsed Velasco.
“The community was very frustrated over the tone coming out of the mayor’s office. They did not appreciate adding 4,000 homes to Gilroy outside of the general plan process,” Velasco said at a victory party at the Old City Hall restaurant as he led in early results. “What we need to focus our energy on is economic development, not more housing. I think that sort of message really resonated with people. They want safe, strong neighborhoods, they want more jobs here in Gilroy.”
Two new council members and one incumbent led the seven-person field for three open seats. Anti-growth advocate Fred Tovar and incumbent Cat Tucker, who has served nine years and is the only woman on the council, won seats. Paul Kloecker, a planning commissioner who opposed the 721 acres, tracked ahead of fellow planning commissioner Tom Fischer for the third spot by 91 votes, with four precincts left to count.
Ebay executive Daniel Harney, who was appointed in January to fill Woodward’s council seat after Woodward was appointed mayor, trailed in sixth place.
Council members must now appoint a community member to fill the seat vacated by Velasco for the next two years.
At several election night parties across Gilroy, local candidates and their supporters sipped wine, and ate hors d’oeuvres as the results came in.
At First Street Kitchen & Cocktails early in the evening, Harney remained hopeful, but said, “I plan to apply for the fourth position to serve out the remaining two years.”
Harney, a naturalized citizen (from Canada) who voted in his first general election on Tuesday, spent much of the last two months hitting the pavement and speaking to Gilroy voters. “It’s a lot of hard work. I think I underestimated how much effort was required to do it. I hit over 3,000 homes over the course of the election season, participated in seven forums and different engagements. So it was really draining physically. It’s been a really tough campaign season.”
Big winners of the night, Gilroy Growing Smarter—the coalition behind Measure H—were enthusiastic as the measure maintained its early lead throughout the night.
“We are excited. It’s a great time,” said Joe Lovecchio, who started the 3,000-strong Facebook group, Gilroy Community for a Better Downtown, and was an early supporter of the anti-sprawl measure. “I can’t believe that all this hard work has finally paid off. We are excited and can’t wait to see what happens after.”
He said the experience of putting a citizen-led measure on the ballot, a first for Gilroy, was a “real eye-opener” about the necessity of staying involved in local government. “As community members we need to be involved. We need to be active. Let’s work together to build the community we want.”
At Velasco’s election night party, City Councilman Dion Bracco, who was not up for re-election, voiced surprise over the local and national results. “We kind of get drowned out when we have a big national election. I think it hurts us because people don’t pay attention [to local issues]. We can see that in how some of the council candidates are stacking up.”
He added: “The national stuff is just out there—it’s nothing that anyone expected.”
As for Measure H, though it was widely panned by the current City Council, Bracco struck a conciliatory tone.
“We serve at the pleasure of the voters and we will live with those boundaries. One thing in the city we always show is we can take on any challenge.”
The downtown arts center, which has been in a state of limbo for the last several years as plans for its expansion have stalled at City Hall, was brought up by multiple candidates for City Council the last couple months as a way to revitalize downtown.
“I’ve known Roland for a long time and he has always been an arts supporter,” said L. Mattock Scariot, local filmmaker and member of the Gilroy Arts Alliance, which operates the city’s downtown arts center. “He has always said we need to get things moving, not just talk. So I’m just waiting for him to get in there and take those next steps and make some things happen. It’s only a matter of time until we get a bigger arts center, more public art out in Gilroy and just build a better, more artistic community.”
At Fred Tovar’s election night party at The District Theater, music was pumping and lights were flashing on the dancefloor as the former GUSD school board president maintained his lead in the City Council race the entire night. “It’s his time. Gilroy is going to be very lucky to have him,” said sister-in-law Tiny Tovar. “When you are confident and ready to make a change, people will follow.”
Surrounded by supporters, Tovar said: “It feels good. All the hard work, walking every precinct in Gilroy. My 12 years in public office paid off. The community understands I am here to listen and that I am ready to fight for Gilroy.”
Also at The District was Rachel Perez, who won a seat on the Gavilan College Board of Trustees: “I’m feeling really good. Without my committee and supporters, I probably would not be here. We walked every street in Hollister and canvassed all of Gilroy and a lot of San Martin.”
She added: “I really want to give people in the three communities I am serving a real voice at the college and make it a place the community is proud of and to do the right thing for students.”
