Q
&
amp; A With San Jose City Councilwoman Nancy Pyle
Q & A With San Jose City Councilwoman Nancy Pyle
In the aftermath of an embarrassing scandal over a backroom deal for a garbage services contract, San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales stepped down from a number of his appointed positions, including the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority and the Coyote Valley Specific Plan Task Force, where he was a co-chairman. His replacement on the task force is Councilwoman Nancy Pyle, who represents the Almaden area of San Jose. Wednesday, Pyle sat down with The Dispatch to share her thoughts on the Coyote Valley plan, which aims to turn the rural buffer between San Jose and Morgan Hill into a bustling development of 25,000 homes, 50,000 jobs and 80,000 residents.
How difficult is it to come into a process like this, and not only participate, but be expected to lead it?
It’s always tough, especially when we’re talking about a four-year lead. That’s not an easy task. I had been monitoring it, I had been keeping abreast of the task force. It’s got to be one of the most exciting things we will be doing in the next 20 years. I have spent a tremendous amount of time making sure I understand the history, the background, … all of the nitty-gritties of the program.
In your research so far have you discovered anything you believe needs to be changed or looked at in a different way?
There’s been so much input. You can’t start all over and think in terms of changing what’s already been decided upon in a consensus forum. Two high schools on one campus is problematic. Two high schools on one site doesn’t work. There’s too much rivalry. Too much sense of [wanting] their own school. There’s 100 percent agreement on my part with the people in Morgan Hill on that point
What will that mean for the plan?
I have no idea what the alternative will be. When you have 7,000 acres, every time you make a change, something else is going to be changed. It’s a case of looking at the big picture and seeing what would be a better fit.
Would either Morgan Hill or Coyote Valley be better served by having a new school district?
Every time you begin a new school district, you have to have a superintendent, your own sets of rules and regulations, your own money to make it run. It’s more difficult than one would think to run your own school district.
The current task force member representing the Morgan Hill Unified School District is no longer a district trustee. Now that two task force members have been replaced, is there a way for a new member to represent the district?
Our door is always open to the Morgan Hill school district. I don’t see them voicing concerns to want to replace Russ [Danielson, the current task force member]. It is a city of San Jose project. They don’t seem to want to do that. We don’t want to alienate any of our neighbors, but the task force has been in place for four years.
We imagine there are shared concerns in your district and South County, particularly with traffic. How will a new town of 80,000 people not overwhelm the surrounding areas with traffic?
Caltrain is of such vital significance. We do want to have a stop at Coyote Valley. So Caltrain is going to help in reference to Coyote Valley traffic. The whole transportation plan is quite complex. The interior traffic is meant to be fairly self-contained. The goal is to get people out of their cars and using golf carts, or that type of thing. Maybe they will be solar powered, or that type of thing. The goal of Coyote Valley is if you’re living there, you will be working there.
How do you intend to include South County in the Coyote Valley process?
I think the Morgan Hill School Board is assured that our intent is to work with them and not against them. It’s like ignoring the elephant under the rug. There are some things you have to look at and make sure you have addressed concerns. I have a lot of friends. I know just about everybody on the [Morgan Hill] City Council and have worked with them and I think I have engendered a little bit of trust. I want to work with them, but that does not mean they will be the tail wagging the dog. We do respect and value their input.
Local environmentalists have been very critical of the plan and say they’re not represented on the task force.
I am at a loss for that one. I’m not sure why it is they say that. The greenbelt is always a source of a lot of talk. We lost one environmentalist on that task force (Terry Watt of the Silicon Valley Conservation Council). We are in the process of taking suggestions to replace that person and it will be another environmentalist. It’s a very important component of the task force.
There’s a perception that developers and homebuilders are not only paying for the planning process, but directing it.
There’s no more representation on part of developers than there are from elected officials. There’s an underlying mistrust of developers. Without developers you and I wouldn’t have the house we live in. The service they provide is very valuable. Obviously, some of the things they say make a lot of sense. They do not have final say over what happens. Or sway. From a standpoint of access to this office, we don’t favor one over another.
Before he left the task force, Mayor Gonzales said he wanted to accelerate the planning process to accomplish as much as possible before he leaves office. Now that he’s gone, the accelerated schedule is still in place. Why?
There are various reasons. One is, we’re getting into fiscal analysis and financial study. That will be quite complex. We want that to be very well vetted. The next few months we’ll be getting into the nuts and bolts of Coyote Valley. It’s not just the big picture anymore. The council or some makeup of the council will be voting soon on Coyote Valley. We want to make this as absolutely transparent as we can. We will be posting schedules in advance on the Web site. So there will be more of a heads-up on what’s coming.
How would you feel if Coyote Valley turns into housing developments and strip malls, which is everyone’s biggest fear?
I would feel that that would be a failure. That’s not what we’re looking for. That’s like hitting all the wrong keys on the piano. We’re looking at the mixed-use pattern of businesses and residential. The concept is that if you need to go to the drycleaners, you can bicycle there or easily walk there. Once you get into that mold and you see how it works and people don’t have to get into their cars, it is great.
At a Glance
– Elected to San Jose City Council in November 2004
– Former trustee of San Jose Evergreen Community College
– Teacher in the San Jose Unified School District for 25 years
– Born and raised near Syracuse, New York; moved to San Jose in 1969.
