Ben Anderson opined in his Feb. 22 Dispatch column that Save
Open Space-Gilroy had taken the wrong approach in declining to
participate in the East Gilroy Specific Plan and in our stated
intention to continue to
”
watchdog
”
the Westfield Mall proposal for a portion of the 660 acres.
Save Open Space-Gilroy responds to off-base charges by columnist
Dear Editor,
Ben Anderson opined in his Feb. 22 Dispatch column that Save Open Space-Gilroy had taken the wrong approach in declining to participate in the East Gilroy Specific Plan and in our stated intention to continue to “watchdog” the Westfield Mall proposal for a portion of the 660 acres.
On the first charge, it’s a little unclear whether columnist Anderson is truly critical of SOS-Gilroy for not joining the EGSP. On one hand he states that this makes us part of the problem and on the other hand he says “It isn’t as much the fact SOS-Gilroy didn’t volunteer …”
Either way, we hope it is clear now that SOS-Gilroy did not seek to join the EGSP primarily because we did not agree with the mission. We felt, and still feel, that the current optimal use of the 660 is agriculture. Given this point of view how could we sign up to help design a plan for urban development?
If the EGSP had been recharged with the task of deciding what the long-term use of the land should be, e.g. agriculture, commerce, industry, …, that would have been a discussion that we would have been happy to join.
Now, as to the second charge, Mr. Anderson apparently understood that it was our intention to “throw rocks” at the internal workings of the EGSP after having declined to participate. This was not our intention. The plan designed by the EGSP would have sat in the larger context of the cities process which would have included General Plan amendments, a submittal of a request to LAFCO for an Urban Service Area inclusion, environmental impact reports, official public hearings, etc.
This larger process is what SOS-Gilroy was pledging to faithfully monitor and speak out on – not the internal EGSP process. We can understand, however, how Mr. Anderson could have misunderstood our earlier letter. We hope this clarifies.
David Collier, Connie Rogers and Carolyn Tognetti for SOS-Gilroy
The Dispatch gives the letter the Golden Quill, which is awarded occasionally for a well-written letter.
Former school board member reminds all of seat belt stand
Dear Editor,
As should be well remembered, I championed the purchase of a school bus with seat belts a year prior to it becoming state law, because I thought it would make sense to not purchase an outdated bus brand new just because we could skirt the law by a few months and save a couple of dollars.
Reading parent’s concerns regarding the logical use of seat belts for students, I am glad I took that stand. The argument against the seat belts was ridiculous.
Dave McRae, former school board member, Gilroy
A few local history heroes who deserve a pat on the back
Dear Editor,
Great thanks are due to Pat Snar-Escamilla for creating a wonderful display and write-up about jazz singer Ivie Anderson for the Gilroy Historical Museum when she was its director – and to Tom Howard, museum researcher extraordinaire, who has scoured census records for Gilroy, Louisiana, and Oklahoma in an effort to pin down the details of Ivie’s early years. 
Another history hero couple is Mark and Debbie Davis of Express Media Graphics, they have lent their creativity and manufacturing assets to the Gilroy Historical Society’s film project, allowing Gilroyans the chance to own historical films at a very low price.
Phill Laursen, Gilroy
