[Sosfbay-discuss] Open Space

[Wes Rolley]

We have two issues going on that involve open space and how it might be 
used. 

The first is the situation with BAREC.  Kathryn Mathewson sent out a 
report this week which begins with:
> Currently SaveBAREC has a CEQA lawsuit.  The hearing for this CEQA 
> lawsuit will be tomorrow morning, July 18th at 9 a.m.  The location is 
> 191 North First Street, San Jose, Courtroom 21.  Judge Nicols will be 
> presiding.  The public can listen but not speak.  Our San Francisco 
> environmental attorney, Mark Wolfe, is doing an excellent job. 
and it ends with and appeal for volunteer time and/or money.  I would 
guess that they need money more than anything else.

The second issue involves the entire county.  According to a story today 
in the Morgan Hill Times:
> The California Supreme Court threw a wrench into the Santa Clara 
> County Open Space Authority's plans when it ruled unanimously that $56 
> million in taxes were illegally collected.
http://morganhilltimes.com/news/246774-open-space-tax-ruled-illegal

It was one of the first cases of "vote by mail" in the County. 

> Proposition 218 limited the ability of local governments to impose 
> real property assessments. Five years later, the Open Space Authority 
> imposed the county-wide tax through a vote by mail. Of the 
> approximately 314,000 official ballots mailed, 48,100 were returned, a 
> 15 percent response rate.
>
> Immediately, the taxpayer's association filed a lawsuit charging that 
> the tax was illegal because it did not meet Prop 218's "special 
> benefit" distinction.
According to Supervisor Don Gage (Dist. 1)...
> The Supreme Court ruling is bad news," he said Thursday. "We don't 
> lose the whole tax, the first part was legal and they say the second 
> part wasn't, but with the revenue, the county had been purchasing a 
> lot of open space land to keep in perpetuity. Now they don't have the 
> dollars to do that, there will be fewer and fewer open spaces and more 
> land used for development."
I frequently disagree with Gage, and I am a bit surprised by the direct 
nature of his statement as he is well connected with and mostly funded 
by developers.  This specific ruling may have ramifications beyond our 
local question... one that could affect how other communities proceed 
with special parcel assessments.

The question of Open Space, it's preservation and non-use, is all 
connected to the concept of bio-diversity.  I will be writing more on 
that, and the Delta, in my next MH Times article to be submitted today 
for running next week.

Wes

-- 
"Anytime you have an opportunity to make things better and you don't, then you are wasting your time on this Earth" Roberto Clemente

Wes Rolley
17211 Quail Court, Morgan Hill, CA 95037
http://www.refpub.com/ -- Tel: 408.778.3024