San Jose District 10 Councilwoman Nancy Pyle has instructed city staff to explore alternative sites around Almaden Valley for a controversial sports field complex, the Almaden Resident has learned.
The city council passed a General Plan amendment last December that would allow for a sports complex in the South Almaden Valley Urban Reserve. But lawsuits challenging the fields--claiming the fields would threaten the water table in the area--have the project bottled up.
In an effort to get the project under way, Pyle is looking at other sites in the valley that could support a sports fields project without causing any environmental damage or drawing other lawsuits.
Pyle's instructions to look at alternative sites to the McKean Road land--which has traffic drawbacks in addition to the environmental problems--has city staffers consulting a list drawn up by the South Almaden Valley Rural Alliance more than two years ago. The list identifies several possible public and private parcels of land that could support a sports field complex, including a 33-acre parcel on Harry Road.
That particular piece of land, as well as the others on the list, is within city limits, which would answer many of the environmental questions, as the fields could be irrigated with city water instead of wells in the urban reserve.
"I know how important it is for children to have recreation facilities," Pyle said. "My office has been working diligently to make this happen so that these fields become a reality for District 10."
"We're looking to solve the soccer field problem that we inherited when we came into office," added Lee Wilcox, Pyle's chief of staff. "We're looking at a variety of options at this point to be create safe fields for children in Almaden."
Former District 10 Councilwoman Pat Dando was the driving force behind the McKean Road project, getting the General Plan amendment passed two weeks before leaving office. Dando had been working with the Almaden Youth Association, trying to get the sports field project under way for several years, and secured nearly $2 million in public funds for the complex. Dando had said the city looked at all alternative sites in Almaden Valley and decided that none would be suitable for the fields.
Nancy Lascola, the president of the South Almaden Valley Rural Alliance, said the organization is heartened that the city is now looking at SAVRA's list of alternative sites.
"This list has been floating around for two years," she said. "It's been amended and cleaned up, given more details, but it's been in the public record for years. We felt it was ignored."
In addition to the Harry Road site, SAVRA suggested the city look at land on Santa Clara County Water District property.
"We've always thought it was necessary to look at different sites, but [the city] never would," Lascola said.
The Harry Road site was included in a District 10 capital projects handout from Pyle's office that was distributed at an Almaden Valley Community Association meeting in early June. Included on the list, dated May 31 of this year, was an item called "District 10 Sports Fields," described as a city-AYA partnership to develop sports fields along McKean Road.
Under the "status column," the document reads: "Staff currently reviewing site development alternatives for a parcel of land on Harry Road in South Almaden as a potential site for the project. Negotiations with the property owner will not begin until staff concludes that the parcel of land can be effectively utilized for the sports fields and related parking areas. Staff will provide status update to District 10 office in June." No report has yet been made.
Wilcox said that these alternative sites for the fields are just options, and the city is exploring all possibilities.
"It's all very premature," Wilcox said. "It's a matter of doing the research now. We're trying to get a broad perspective of where we can go in District 10."
Wilcox would not say if the proposed fields project would be run by the city's recreation, parks and neighborhood services department, or by the AYA, which is the group Dando had tabbed to run the McKean Road complex.
AYA President Dan Smyth did not return calls for comment. |
