San Martin
– Incorporation proponents declared Monday they have enough
signatures to submit their petition for cityhood.
San Martin – Incorporation proponents declared Monday they have enough signatures to submit their petition for cityhood.
Before San Martin can incorporate, proponents must hand in application materials including a petition with signatures from 25 percent of the community’s registered voters, accounting for about 710 names out of a possible 2,834. As of Monday, at least 930 signatures had been collected and “more are pouring in,” said Sylvia Hamilton, president of the San Martin Neighborhood Alliance, the grassroots group that formed in 2000 to lead an incorporation effort.
They needed at least 850 signatures to accomplish their goal of a 20 percent margin of error for the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters, which will verify the names and addresses before they are counted.
Now that proponents are confident enough signatures have been gathered, Hamilton said the petition and a package of application materials would be submitted this week, possibly Wednesday.
The application materials will go to the Santa Clara County Local Agency Formation Commission, the land-use body overseeing the incorporation process. After the petition’s signatures are certified by the registrar of voters, the community of San Martin must pay for a comprehensive fiscal analysis and an environmental impact report that could cost more than $150,000.
There is still some uncertainty among LAFCO officials and neighborhood alliance members on who would pick the consultant who does the study. Incorporation proponents want to pick their own consultant to save time, which is what recently incorporated cities in Riverside County did. However, counties may interpret the state’s broad incorporation policies differently. Two weeks ago, the neighborhood alliance penned a letter to local LAFCO officials suggesting proponents should pick their own consultant. LAFCO has not yet responded to that request but Hamilton said she plans to meet with the agency’s officials in February to iron out further details.
Members of the neighborhood alliance are hoping to meet all requirements in time for a March 2008 election when voters could decide the matter.
Hamilton credited her 42 petition circulators who’ve worked since early December to gather names and drum up community support.
Incorporation proponents want to form a town council to protect against county decision makers who have power over San Martin land-use issues. Many incorporation proponents would like to see the rural community of 7,000 residents between Morgan Hill and Gilroy stick to its country roots, avoiding sewer systems, sidewalks and tax increases for residents.
“I think it’s always important for people who live in communities like San Martin to have a voice to guide their future,” said Swanee Edwards, a member of the Santa Clara County Central Committee of the Democratic Party. “They want to stay rural and want to be able to determine their future.”
