The development of Coyote Valley (CV) is moving forward and a
specific plan is now taking shape to create a city of 25,000
housing units for a population of about 75,000 to 80,000 people and
about 50,000 jobs over the next 10 to 20 years. A new city is in
the process of being created on our northern border.
The development of Coyote Valley (CV) is moving forward and a specific plan is now taking shape to create a city of 25,000 housing units for a population of about 75,000 to 80,000 people and about 50,000 jobs over the next 10 to 20 years. A new city is in the process of being created on our northern border. You may see all the details at the San Jose Web site at www.ci.san-jose.ca.us.coyotevalley.com
In case you’re not aware of it, Coyote Valley is currently within the jurisdiction of the Morgan Hill School District. Think about it. At full buildout, the MHSD will be responsible for educating the children of another 80,000 people in addition to our Morgan Hill, San Martin and other unincorporated Santa Clara County populations.
The recent passage of Measure C authorized a population increase to 48,000 people in the City of Morgan Hill by the year 2020. Considering San Martin (soon to become its own city?) and other unincorporated Santa Clara County areas within MHSD, this population base will easily exceed 50,000 people by 2020. In other words, there will be 50,000 people in Morgan Hill/San Martin and another 80,000 people in Coyote Valley.
The question I pose is this: Isn’t it time for the formation of a new Coyote Valley School District?
Development of Coyote Valley is a reality and the San Jose CV Task Force is proceeding with the following schedule:
• March – August 2004: Analyze and Conceptualize Design Alternatives: Layout roads, parks, residential and commercial areas and the number and placement of schools
• May – Dec. 2004: Prepare and Review Draft Coyote Valley Specific Plan: Land use, circulation, infrastructure, financing, construction phasing
• Jan. – Aug. 2005: Prepare and Review Design Guidelines and Coyote Valley Zoning District: Building types and designs, landscape design, open space and public facilities (including schools)
• Sept. – Nov. 2005: Begin Formal review process
• Dec. 2005: Final Public Hearings
Therefore, the first phase of Coyote Valley construction is estimated to begin about 2006 or 2007. Consider the following:
• MHUSD currently has eight elementary schools, two middle schools and two high schools (Live Oak and Sobrato) serving San Martin, MH and South SJ.
• To serve a population base of over 50,000 people by the year 2020, Morgan Hill will need another couple of elementary schools and, perhaps, another middle school.
• To serve the population of Coyote Valley will require at least an additional eight to 10 elementary schools, more middle schools and one or two more high schools.
I submit that the people living, working and going to school in Coyote Valley will be more closely aligned with metropolitan San Jose than with suburban Morgan Hill. Coyote Valley will consist of high density multi-story living units in a closely developed area as compared to Morgan Hill/San Martin with its predominately single-family detached houses spread out over many square miles.
The lifestyle and living/working conditions will be completely different in Coyote Valley, and I believe that will be cause for conflicts to arise between the parents and students of Coyote Valley and Morgan Hill/San Martin. When budgets get tight, who do you think will win the fight – 80,000 residents in Coyote Valley or 50,000 residents in Morgan Hill? Finally, busing Morgan Hill and San Martin middle school students to Martin Murphy in San Jose and other schools in Coyote Valley simply doesn’t make sense.
The time has come to actively work with the Coyote Valley Task Force in the formation of a new Coyote Valley School District. I believe it is more appropriate for Coyote Valley to have its own independent school district to serve its own population of 80,000 people than for the MHSD to try and serve a population base which will be 60 percent larger than Morgan Hill/San Martin. Furthermore, I believe there are now two schools that could serve as the seeds for a new Coyote Valley School District – Los Paseos Elementary and Martin Murphy Middle. In addition, a cooperative agreement could be reached between MH Unified and Coyote Valley Unified to allow students in Coyote Valley to attend Sobrato until the first high school is completed in Coyote Valley.
Some may wonder why we need to think about more schools and a new school district when MHSD is considering closing Burnett Elementary and giving “pink slips” to principals. But when we consider the population explosion that will occur over the next 10-20 years, we would be wise to plan for the consequences now. Isn’t it better to be proactive than reactive? Let’s stop talking about all the reasons it can’t be done and start talking about how it can be made a reality. It’s our future and we need to take hold of it.
Bob Benich is a Morgan Hill resident and a member of the Planning Commission who has a lengthy resumé of civic involvement. Readers interested in writing a guest column should contact editor Walt Glines at [email protected] or 779-4106.
