In September of 1999 I opened a column with the line "These battles...are like banging your head against a wall - we don't get anywhere and it's starting to hurt". I was talking generally about and the value of saving environmentally sensitive areas and farm land versus urban sprawl. I'm not sure if anyone other than my wife read the article but I'd like to think they did. I'd also like to think it was food for thought for those inspired people who went on to craft the MOU between Santa Cruz County, the City of Watsonville, and the California Coastal Commission which resulted in an approved third high school site for the Pajaro Valley School District. A great community and county-wide victory.
The Pajaro Valley, hopefully, will now get its desperately needed third high school. Not to have done so would have threatened a whole generation of Watsonville youth. Nobody ever questioned that. And it was this crisis that galvanized all of us throughout the county.
In these situations timing is everything.
The new members on the Watsonville City Council thought saber rattling with the politicos from the other end of the county was tiresome and counter-productive. The council's senior members were ready to put down their sabers and try something different if there was a way to get the third high school.
The environmental community has been actively fighting to save farm land and Pajaro Valley wetlands for over a decade. They would much rather spend their time creating programs and working on wetland restoration activities than spend all of their energy and resources fighting to defend them. They too were willing to work to find common ground.
The problem was, and still is to a large extent, the site. It's in the Coastal Zone, it protrudes into the environmentally sensitive slough in several negative ways, it's close enough to the airport to cause concern, it's productive farmland, and its beautiful open space with convenient freeway access. Growth inducement, however, was the biggest threat.
In meetings in the north end of the county, mid county, and mostly in the Pajaro Valley people brought together by this crisis started talking about solutions. Traditional allies, the Latino community and the Environmental community talked of ways to get back together and walk hand in hand as they should. Folks who had not talked outside of formal negotiation meetings and the courtroom were ready to compromise if they could get what they needed.
Watsonville Council member Rafael Lopez picked up the telephone and called Assembly member Fred Keeley and asked if he could help. Assembly member Keeley, poised for the opportunity, jumped into this fertile environment marshaling his staff and resources. Councilman Lopez worked tirelessly with the negotiating team and the city council. His leadership and negotiation skills belied his years.
The co-operation between the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors and the Watsonville City Council was integral to this success. City Manager Carlos Palacios and his staff giving up evenings and weekends in their mostly unheralded critical contribution was vital to this success. Chris Lyons of Watsonville Wetlands Watch and Ken Kimes of Community Alliance of Family Farmers dared to take a risk investing their time and reputation. It would not have happened without Assembly member Fred Keeley leading the team through six weeks of marathon sessions.
This Coastal Commission has a reputation of disapproving everything. But they were so impressed by this unprecedented coalition and the resulting protection of six thousand acres of farm land and wetlands lying West of Highway 1 that it approved the school site.
The MOU and subsequent Coastal Commission site approval is a great victory for everyone. It's a victory for the environment, agriculture, the county, and the city.
Yes, our third high school site was approved, but we got much more.
We got the county's commitment to expand housing opportunities for farm workers and other low-income people. This includes increasing quality, affordable housing for all segments of the community, with particular emphasis on ag-workers, families w/children, and first-time home buyers. This also includes the creation of new incentives for the development of new affordable housing units such as priority processing and other mechanisms. The county also committed to geographically dispersing affordable single and multi-family housing throughout the county North and South.
We preserve agricultural land. Annexation and development can be insidious. Slowly over a period of time, piece by piece, farmland and can be irrevocably lost. Once gone it's gone forever. Also a minimum number of acres must remain in agricultural production in the Pajaro Valley to keep it a viable industry here. Ancillary businesses would fail as agricultural acreage drops.
We preserve wetlands. This protection of our unique and beautiful wetlands will inspire students with experiences in living laboratories. Such learning programs improve academic achievement and revitalize teaching. We'll establish a nature center, develop educational curricula, build destinations and facilities for school field trips, and provide wildlife restoration and enhancement programs. We'll focus on the valley's most valuable natural resource, a thriving complex of freshwater wetlands and surrounding open space, where waterfowl, hawks, rare plants and willow thickets will be conserved for the enjoyment and benefit of future generations.
These are all great things - It was the right thing to do. The successful work of this coalition was a win for everyone. This experience, this sweet taste of victory, will surely help us go on to meet future challenges successfully. I believe we've learned how to work effectively together and that bodes well for the Pajaro Valley.
Chuck Carter grew up in Watsonville and is a City Council member. He can be reached @ 763-4000 voice mail box 5403.