Gilroy
– City Council rejected a proposal to lower age restrictions at
Village Green Estates, one of Gilroy’s few affordable senior
housing communities, and refused to endorse a $5 tax on car owners
that would have brought the city $100,000 annually.
Gilroy – City Council rejected a proposal to lower age restrictions at Village Green Estates, one of Gilroy’s few affordable senior housing communities, and refused to endorse a $5 tax on car owners that would have brought the city $100,000 annually.
During Monday night’s meeting, council members unanimously voted down the request to knock down the age threshold for Village Green from 62 to 55, despite intense campaigning in recent months by a 58-year old disabled Hollister man.
Scores of residents in the community rallied behind the cause, arguing that a lower age threshold would create a greater mix in the assisted living community in the northwest quadrant.
Councilmen remained unconvinced, however, arguing that a change runs counter to the city’s original intentions to have the community serve people closer to retirement age.
The council’s “centered on the same theme that occurred several years ago.
“The conversation that occurred last night could have been a tape recording of [several] years ago,” City Administrator Jay Baksa said, referring to when the project first came before the council for approval. “The council did not at all change their mind.”
The council voted 7-0 to retain the existing age limit for the community, which has more than a dozen unoccupied market-rate homes.
Councilmen were less united on their decision to not endorse SB 680, a state senate bill that would finance transportation improvements through a county-wide tax of $5 on each registered vehicle.
While Gilroy would receive $100,000 annually for eight years for road repairs, councilmen remained unconvinced that the city would see a fair share of the money.
They voted 4-3 to reject endorsement of the bill, with Mayor Al Pinheiro and councilmen Paul Correa and Roland Velasco voting in favor of it.
Don Gage, Santa Clara County Supervisor, and Carl Guardino, head of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, appeared before council to answer questions regarding the bill.
Gage, a Gilroy resident and former mayor who represents South County, has thrown his support behind the measure, which would translate to an estimated $56 million over eight years
Only Councilmen Craig Gartman and Velasco, a senior policy aide to Gage, asked detailed questions during council discussion of the bill. Velasco said he had intended to vote against endorsement, but changed his mind following a presentation by Gage and Guardino.
Councilman Bob Dillon, who voted against it, said that “you hate to turn down anything Don Gage asks for because he’s been so good for South County. But when I looked at the proposal it just did not add up to me with bringing anything back to Gilroy. … In addition, it’s a tax. If you want extra money, go to the voters. I’m philosophically opposed to [instituting] a new tax and calling it a fee.”
So far, nine of the 15 cities in Santa Clara County have approved the measure. Gilroy is the first to reject it. Gage, who was surprised by the council’s discussion given the lack of debate, said he plans to make another appeal to councilmen who voted against it.
“I think what they didn’t understand is the fact that (State Senator) Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) and the governor wanted all of the cities’ support. … And if one of them declined that was the end of it.”
He added: “I would like to have them review it based on those facts and let them vote again.”
