[Sosfbay-discuss] Fwd: BAREC: Need Help as we near the end, Update / Late Meeting Agenda Request
WB4D23 at aol.com
WB4D23 at aol.com
Wed May 2 18:36:14 PDT 2007
Here is the most recent email I have received from Save BAREC. As
previously noted, the GPSCC endorsed this effort back in March 2005. I have suggested
that GPSCC members in the City of Santa Clara be contacted about this --
both to support Save BAREC and as an organizing activity for the GPSCC (e.g., to
get some GPSCC activists who live in Santa Clara). I request 10 minutes for
discussion. Note particularly below that there is a good possiblity Santa
Clara city residents will be needed to circulate referendum petitions (i.e.,
to put challenge approval of the development if the City Council approves it).
In that case, circulators may need to be City residents. Obviously,
petition signers will need to live in Santa Clara. Warner
In a message dated 4/28/07 4:06:23 PM Pacific Daylight Time,
kmathewson at secretgardens.com writes:
Hello BAREC Supporters:
Following is good news in our efforts to keep BAREC in open space:
1. This past week the Santa Clara Planning Commission voted to delay their
BAREC discussion and vote because the Final EIR meeting for Valley Fair was
being held the same night and both are huge changes to the BAREC neighborhood.
It will probably be held on Monday May 14th at 7 pm and the following night
the City Council may have its BAREC hearing and vote. We will keep you
informed.
2. Last week the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors voted to support
the County Historical Commission's letter stating that the BAREC EIR was not
sufficient and that BAREC was sufficiently historically important that it
should be placed on the state historical registry. This is something that the
Santa Clara City Historical Commission has been unwilling to address.
3. We have gone before the San Jose Rules Committee to place BAREC on the
City Council Agenda with the hopes that San Jose will begin negotiating for
BAREC as a San Jose City park now that it is clear the city of Santa Clara has
no intention to keep BAREC in open space nor to save any of its history.
4. Keep adding to to the BAREC/Santa Clara EIR document with any new
information or comments you have. You can do this up until the day the Santa Clara
City Council votes on approving the Final EIR. It looks like this will be
Tuesday, May 15th. For those who made comments it is very important that you
read the State's comments to yours as most do not have substance and do not
address all your issues. However, do use a lot of words. We need your
comments to prove this, however. Send them to:
TO: Gloria Sciara, Project Manager
City of Santa Clara, Planning Division
1500 Civic Center Drive
Santa Clara, CA 95050
"Gloria Sciara" _GSciara at ci.santa-clara.ca.us_
(mailto:GSciara at ci.santa-clara.ca.us)
FAX: 247-9857
Following are some research and support projects for which we need extra
help. We are coming down to the final days and this help is most important in
saving BAREC from housing. Those starred are the most important ones.
HISTORY RESEARCH ISSUES:
*1. BAREC STRAWBERRY JAPANESE CULTURAL RESEARCH PROGRAM: Why did the
State spend so many pages in the Final EIR refuting the importance of this
research program? Was it because the story is too important and a major reason why
BAREC is historically important? The State did not use local historians for
their report and, therefore, the people they got to prove their points were
not the people who really know our local history. We need more research on
the importance of the BAREC research on strawberries and the importance of the
Japanese Cultural Research Program at BAREC so we can refute what the State
is saying.
*2. VETERANS ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDING'S RELATIONSHIP TO THE CIVIL WAR
VETERANS HOME: The State is hiding something here and showing us conflicting
stories. Recently the State renewed its five year lease to the Veterans Office on
the corner of BAREC. At the last meeting they said that the reason they did
not include this land in the BAREC housing proposal is because the county
was responsible for this land. The original entrance to the 1880s home and the
home for the Civil War Veterans is adjacent to the Veterans Office (road,
sidewalk, and trees) Why?
*3. FIND A NEWSPAPER ARTICLE: There are living people that have told us
that in the San Jose Mercury News that when the veterans’ home was closed in
1963 that the State did not own this land. We need someone to go through the
newspaper to find this.
4. RESEARCH RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN BAREC AND WINCHESTER HOUSE: Especially
important is the Civil War connection. There is a library at the Winchester
House.
MISCELLANEOUS RESEARCH
1. CONTACT THE PEOPLE WHO WROTE COMMENTS TO THE DRAFT EIR: Make sure the
people who wrote comments to the Draft EIR read their comments and comment
back. We need to show that the State did not do a thorough job addressing the
issues that were raised.
2. STATISTICIAN FOR INFORMATION COLLECTED ON BAREC CANCER CLUSTER: The
neighborhood has done a good job collecting the information about the people who
have had or have cancer around BAREC but it needs to be put in a
professional format.
3. LEGAL RESEARCH ON PRECEDENTS FOR STATE OFFERING LOCAL GOVERNMENTS LAND
AND FOR OPEN SPACE FEES RATHER THAN HOUSING: The law states this is a
requirement but we need precedents. What should the fair price for open space be?
*4. FOUNDATION AND DONATION MONEY: To keep BAREC in open space we have
raised $200,000. We probably will need more. The big high tech valley
companies all have organic food in their cafeterias for their employees so we know
there are people with money who will support local organic food. What
foundations or people will donate money for a more sustainable Silicon Valley?
5. BIOREMEDIATION RESEARCH: We need more people and reports on soil
bioremediation to clear up in particular Dieldrin and Arsenic and the many other
chemicals which do not have toxicity ratings.
6. WRITTEN LETTERS FROM BAREC NEIGHBORS REGARDING STATE DROPPING CHEMICALS
FROM PLANES: We need written signed letters with details from the BAREC
neighbors who experienced the State dropping chemicals from airplanes from the
1950s to the 1960s. Questions to ask: How long did it take? How often? What
day of the week? What time of day? How low did they fly over the property?
Was the wind blowing? What was the smell like and how long did it last?
ORGANIZATIONAL PROJECTS
*1. BAREC MAILING LIST: We need help to set up BAREC mailing list so those
who do not have an email can receive US Postal mail.
*2. GENERAL FILING AND FINDING: We have collected a lot of information and
it needs to get into the public record. Help is needed here.
*3. ORGANIZING THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING: We need help organizing the City
Council meeting the evening the Santa Clara City Council will vote to
approve the Final EIR and change BAREC's zoning.
*4. SANTA CLARA CITIZENS TO HELP GATHER SIGNATURES FOR REFERENDUM: If the
City Council votes to change BAREC's zoning we will need to collect more
than 7000 signatures in 30 days. We need help organizing and doing this.
5. INFORM ALL SAN JOSE CITY COUNCILMEN: Let them know about the BAREC
issues and why it is important that San Jose rather than the city of Santa
Clara take BAREC.
************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com.
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Subject: BAREC: Need Help as we near the end, Update
Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2007 15:58:29 -0700
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