The Morgan Hill City Council is likely to hear some resistance at their Dec. 7 meeting to a proposed partnership with another local agency to buy property that could bring a public trail to the top of El Toro Mountain.
Item 19 on the agenda for the meeting, which starts at 7 p.m., includes a recommendation by city staff to partner with the Santa Clara County Open Space Authority to purchase property on the way up El Toro for “future open space preservation and public trail access,” a city staff report reads.
The property in question is located at the end of West Main Avenue, where the city’s “El Toro Access Strategy”—which the council approved in February 2015—calls for a “neighborhood access point” to a future network of public trails on the side of the mountain, according to the city staff report.
If the council approves the deal, the city and OSA would equally share the $1.51 million cost of the land purchase. The city’s Capital Improvement plan currently budgets $320,000 for El Toro Trail development and preservation from the open space fund. The staff report says there is enough funding in the open space budget to fund the city’s full $755,000 share of the purchase.
The use of the funds “would not impact other projects,” the staff report adds.
Since 2007, the city’s Trails Master Plan has included a “vision for access to El Toro Mountain,” the staff report continues.
The city and OSA have in fact partnered on the El Toro project since 2009. Since that time, the city has acquired 85 acres on the mountain, and the OSA has purchased 33 acres.
The city has held a series of meetings on the subject in recent weeks, and many residents have already responded with an online petition to stop the public trail. The petition at change.org, titled “Save El Toro Mountain in Morgan Hill, CA,” cites fears of an increased risk of wildfire and reduced public safety if the mountain becomes open to the public.
“The neighborhoods and landowners around this beautiful acreage have voiced their opposition for years, but the city is in discussion to purchase land and develop the base of the mountain to establish a trailhead,” the petition reads, in part.
The petition was started by Joe McMorrow of Morgan Hill.
Other property on the peak that overlooks the west side of Morgan Hill, which would accommodate the city’s preferred trail strategy, is privately owned. Most of these owners have been unwilling to sell throughout negotiations with the OSA in recent years, according to city staff.
The Pravettoni family owns the 6.6-acre parcel recommended for city/OSA purchase on the Dec. 7 agenda.
“Should the council elect to move forward with this opportunity (to purchase the Pravettoni property), the OSA would take the lead on developing a public planning access for the site, while working closely with city staff,” the staff report reads.
The types of trails and other amenities, such as benches or picnic tables, would be determined by further outreach to the nearby neighborhoods and community.
Regardless of the council’s decision Dec. 7, the city’s El Toro Access Strategy will remain focused on establishing a “primary trailhead” near the intersection of Spring and DeWitt avenues. However, such an access point has been impeded by the unwillingness of the other private property owners to sell or grant permission to the city and OSA for public use.
Siebert makes it official
Councilmember Gordon Siebert will formally resign his seat on the five-member body after the Dec. 7 meeting.
Siebert, who will be leaving office approximately halfway through his second four-year term, told his colleagues in September that he was planning to move out of the state as 2016 came to a close. His resignation letter to City Clerk Irma Torrez states he and his wife have relocated to Nashville, Tenn., to be closer to their daughter and grandchild.
“As I depart, it is my hope that many of the issues that I have worked on will continue to be studied, and hopefully resolved, by council and staff in the future,” Siebert’s resignation letter says. “One of my key issues has been balancing expenses with revenues, seeking efficiency, equity and economy, while keeping in mind that we must exercise common sense and compassion as well. There remains much to do to keep our constituents informed, especially about the overarching financial costs and resources that impact City services.”
Siebert and his wife have lived in Morgan Hill since 1989.
The council will decide at a future meeting how to replace Siebert for the remainder of his term. Options include appointing a new councilmember from the community, or holding a special election early 2017.
Also on the Dec. 7 council agenda are:
• A staff report on the city’s unfunded liabilities, which include $29 million for employee pension plans and $2.4 million for “other post employment benefits” for former staff, reads the city staff report. Staff notes that the council has taken recent steps to “prefund” some of these liabilities by setting up an “irrevocable trust” financed by local public revenues.
Public infrastructure is another area where the city faces a mountain of unfunded obligations. “With the current backlog of street maintenance of approximately $20.5 million…it was determined that the city has an annual funding gap of approximately $5.8 million for its streets, parks and public facilities infrastructure maintenance,” the staff report for the Dec. 7 agenda item states.
• Consideration of buying 100 percent “renewable, carbon free” electricity for city facilities and properties from the Silicon Clean Energy Authority when the program starts selling alternative forms of power in early 2017.
The SVCE was created last year by Morgan Hill and 10 other cities in Santa Clara County “to launch and operate a community choice energy program,” reads a city staff report for the Dec. 7 agenda item. “SVCE will source clean, competitively-priced electricity on behalf of residents and businesses with participating jurisdictions.”
Under SVCE, energy customers can choose what level of renewability or cleanliness they want in the electricity they consume, while paying a slightly higher cost for cleaner, more renewable options.
If the council upgrades to the 100 percent renewable, carbon free option, known as “GreenPrime,” the city’s electricity cost would go up about 4 percent, or $50,000 per year, according to the staff report. However, employing the cleanest energy option available under SVCE is “the highest leadership example for local residents and businesses considering their energy sourcing options, similar to examples set via municipal procurement of hybrid or electric vehicles or LEED certification of buildings.”
The 25-agenda-item Dec. 7 Morgan Hill City Council meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at council meeting chambers, 17555 Peak Ave. A link to the full agenda, with additional links to staff reports and supporting exhibits, can be found on the city’s website.
