[Sosfbay-discuss] Fwd: Update on BAREC
WB4D23 at aol.com
WB4D23 at aol.com
Tue Feb 7 16:47:33 PST 2006
In a message dated 2/7/06 12:30:57 AM Pacific Standard Time,
info at savebarec.org writes:
Dear BAREC Friends:
It has been a number of months since you received BAREC news. This note
should bring you up to date on efforts to keep BAREC as agricultural land, its
current status, and what you can do to help. The articles, programs, and
details are on our website, _www.savebarec.org._ (http://www.savebarec.org/)
1. SAN JOSE MERCURY ARTICLE LAST WEEK: Last week Connie Skipitares did a
short article in the "San Jose Mercury News" titled "Report Due on Housing at
Old Research Station"
(_http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/the_valley/13741297.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.j
sp_
(http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/the_valley/13741297.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp) ). In this
article Santa Clara Mayor Mahan stated: "The State's going to sell the
property; there is no way we can prevent that. We have to be reasonable in
allowing rezoning; we cannot withhold entitlements unreasonably, especially when we
cannot offer a good alternative." Well, Mayor Mahan, we do have a plan for
environmental, growing healthy food, and nutrition education which you can see
on our website (_http://www.savebarec.org/docs/barec-land-use-option.pdf_
(http://www.savebarec.org/docs/barec-land-use-option.pdf) ). The University of
California at Santa Cruz has offered to help us. Our county's environmental
education has only one week in K - 12. Other Bay Area counties have a much
more comprehensive approach. We have also made an offer to purchase BAREC at
an agriculturally zoned price but neither the State nor the City will talk
or listen to anyone in the community since before BAREC became available for
sale. Please write a Letter To the Editor regarding saving BAREC. Make sure
you place your address and phone number at the bottom of your letter.
Following are the ways to send your letter:
email: _letters at mercurynews.com_ (mailto:letters at mercurynews.com)
mail: 750 Ridder Park Drive, San Jose 95190
fax: 408-271-3792
2. LIST BAREC AS A SANTA CLARA COUNTY PLACE NEEDING PRESERVATION: Contact
Sal Pizarro at the San Jose Mercury News and tell him to add BAREC to the
list of places which should be preserved in Santa Clara County:
email: _spizarro at mercurynews.com_ (mailto:spizarro at mercurynews.com)
phone: 408-920-5473
3. PRELIMINARY EIR DUE LATE FEBRUARY: In October the City of Santa Clara
had an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) scoping meeting and announced that
the Preliminary EIR would be coming out in early Spring. However, they are
now saying it will come out late this month...February. The neighbors and
active Save BAREC members wrote their EIR concerns. After the Preliminary EIR
comes out we will have 45 days to respond and then they will incorporate these
thoughts into the final EIR for the City Council approval. One important
EIR alternative is "no project". If the City Council approves a BAREC housing
EIR which they currently appear to want, they will then vote to change the
BAREC zoning from agriculture to medium density housing. A key component for
the BAREC housing proposal is 165 units of low income high rise senior
housing. Since the existing Santa Clara senior housing projects all have many
vacancies, should our historical agricultural land be taken for unneeded housing?
4. BANNED CANCER CAUSING CHEMICAL DIELDRIN IN BAREC SOIL: We have
recently uncovered information about the chemicals in the BAREC soil. The most
serious is Dieldrin which is an extremely long lasting chemical banned from usage
by EPA in 1989. There is three times more Dieldrin on BAREC than is
allowable by EPA standards. Dieldrin is associated with cancers and Parkinson.
It could have been one of the chemicals the State sprayed by helicopter from
the 1950s through the 1970s. It may also be the major reason why so many
people living adjacent to BAREC have had or have cancer. Dieldrin is extremely
dangerous when airborne. It appears that the State's plan to clean up the
soil contamination is to move the top two feet of soil off the site. Moving the
soil combined with construction will place Dieldrin in the air and could
make the cancer problem even more serious both for the community and wherever
the contaminated soil is placed. Our suggestion is to clean up the soil
biologically on site. We have a plan to do this and a soil scientist willing to
take on the job. This, however, is not the way the State or any of our local
governments clean up soil. It would be a major paradigm shift for them. We
believe this is the reason the State and City have announced a Preliminary
EIR completion date three times in the past three years. They didn't expect
to be watched so closely. If you know anyone who can give us detailed
information about Dieldrin for the EIR, please let us know.
5. COUNTY SUPERVISOR BEALL NEEDS ENCOURAGEMENT TO SUPPORT BAREC: We gave a
second BAREC presentation to the Cory Neighborhood Association which is
adjacent to BAREC. County Supervisor Jim Beall's assistant, Jean Cohen, was at
this meeting. From her comments it is clear that Beall has not yet made a
decision about his BAREC support. Last September we gave him "the best
presentation of any community group in all of his years of public service".
Admittedly the BAREC issues are complicated and most of our legislators appear to
support developers more than meeting community needs. Beall said he is is not
beholden to developers. Let's keep writing him to make sure he supports
what the community wants and needs. One important thought to add in your note:
Beall's District 4 is the only county district of five districts which has
no county park. However, District 4 has many county residents. BAREC is in
the middle of District 4 and could become District 4's county park especially
since the State did not offer it to them as required by law. Note also that
Beall is running for State Assembly next November. You may write him at:
email: _jim.beall at box.co.santa-clara.ca.us_
(mailto:jim.beall at box.co.santa-clara.ca.us)
phone: 408-356-7710
fax: 408-299-2038
mail: CountyGovernment Building, East Wing, 70 West Hedding Street, San
Jose, CA 951101
assistant's name: Jean Cohen (408) 277-3924
6. FRONT COVER NEWS: In late November the "Metro"
(_http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/10.19.05/index.html_
(http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/10.19.05/index.html) ) and the "Rose Garden Resident" both did front cover
articles on BAREC. The "Metro" was the first to cover the State and City's
unethical and illegal issues relating to the BAREC sale. On public television
Mayor Mahan stated: "If the county will step forward and say we will join
with the City of Santa Clara and purchase some of that [land] or if the City
of San Jose wanted to contribute, it would be marvelous. To have 17 acres
reserved as open space would be magnificent." Yet, the "Metro" article states
that San Jose Councilman Ken Yeager met with Mahan to offer San Jose parks
money to help keep BAREC in open space and Mahan never followed through. Note
that Mahan and Yeager are running against each other for Jim Beall's County
Supervisor position next November. BAREC is caught in the middle of politics.
Authors Vrinda Normand and Mary Gotttschalk did excellent pieces in these
two weekly newspapers.
7. BAREC ON TELEVISION: In December ABC Channel 7 6 p.m. News did a BAREC
special with wonderful aerials from its helicopter. This special included
an interview in front of BAREC and adjacent to our Save BAREC Van. Each day
this van is parked in front of BAREC on Winchester. Thanks to Kirk Vartan for
moving the van every 72 hours and getting the van organized. Thanks to
Brian Everett for use of his van and thanks to Pat Fox and Kathryn Mathewson for
their sign contributions.
8. VIVA FILES FOR NON PROFIT STATUS: In December VIVA (Valley Initiative
for Values in Urban Agriculture and Horticulture) filed papers for its federal
non profit status so in the near future those who donate to help BAREC will
be able to receive a tax write-off. VIVA is the foundation which offered to
purchase BAREC. We have found a donor to purchase all 17 acres at $10,000
per acre as is. This is the price that the UC Regents quoted was its value at
the time they voted to return it to the State.
We appreciate your support and anything you can do to prepserve our State's
agricultural history by saving BAREC from housing. Given the State and
City's agenda, this next few months may determine BAREC's fate. Consequently, we
will need your help more than ever.
Friends of BAREC
888-BAREC-80
_info at savebarec.org_ (mailto:info at savebarec.org)
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.cagreens.org/pipermail/sosfbay-discuss_lists.cagreens.org/attachments/20060207/c199d4b2/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
An embedded message was scrubbed...
From: "SaveBAREC" <info at savebarec.org>
Subject: Update on BAREC
Date: Tue, 7 Feb 2006 00:26:06 -0800
Size: 25096
URL: <http://lists.cagreens.org/pipermail/sosfbay-discuss_lists.cagreens.org/attachments/20060207/c199d4b2/attachment.mht>
More information about the sosfbay-discuss
mailing list