Morgan Hill – Gavilan College will open a campus in Coyote Valley whether or not the City of San Jose approves the controversial development that could bring as many as 50,000 new jobs, 25,000 new homes, and 80,000 new residents to an area just north of Morgan Hill, President Steve Kinsella said Friday.
“It’s obvious higher education had not been considered when San Jose planned to plop about 80,000 workers into the northern portion of our district,” Kinsella said. “We’ve felt compelled to respond.”
Kinsella said Measure E, which voters approved last spring, will fund the college’s efforts to find land and conduct the necessary studies to build the campus. Currently, Kinsella said the college is considering a 55-acre parcel of land on Bailey Avenue near Santa Teresa Boulevard across from IBM. Negotiations on the land are still in its early stages, Kinsella said, but if the property is secured, he hopes to seek help from the state to fund construction.
“We’re probably a year away (from finalizing the plans),” he said.
Kinsella discussed Gavilan’s Coyote plans during a presentation at the Chamber of Commerce’s quarterly business forum Friday at Golden Oak Restaurant.
He addressed a crowd of local business leaders, along with former city planner Dave Bischoff and Mayor Dennis Kennedy. The presentation, called “Coyote Valley Specific Plan the Morgan Hill Perspective,” gave the audience an update on the city’s and college’s negotiations with the City of San Jose regarding Coyote Valley planning.
Bischoff and Kennedy gave the city’s perspective of San Jose’s Coyote Valley plan. Kennedy said the city doesn’t oppose the plan and applauds the smart-growth approach of integrating jobs and housing, an internal transit system, walkable neighborhoods and open space amenities. They said the plan presents benefits for Morgan Hill businesses. However, the city also has major concerns.
Bischoff outlined five main concerns – traffic, housing, water supply, the greenbelt, and schools.
Morgan Hill city officials anticipate at least 43,000 people will have to commute into Coyote Valley, and it is likely that more than 20 percent will commute into Coyote Valley from the south. The area will need mitigations such as the road widenings, or even one additional lane in each direction on U.S. Highway 101, and improvements to mass transit, including double tracking CalTrain.
“Some mitigation will require a regional approach, but we hope San Jose will pay its fair share,” Bischoff said.
Rose Meily covers politics for the Morgan Hill Times. Reach her at (408) 779-4106 or at rm****@*************es.com.
