Like all of Santa Clara County, Morgan Hill has a rich agricultural history. Most of today’s remaining actively grown agriculture (ag) is in South County. To preserve our region’s proud history, residents throughout the county want to see active ag preserved to the maximum extent possible.
Our community has invested significant time and resources in evaluating alternatives to preserve viable ag. Morgan Hill’s forward thinking, citywide Agricultural Preservation Program was developed with guidance from respected ag preservation and economic consultants. It includes a “stay ahead” provision requiring preservation to occur before development.
Morgan Hill has pledged to invest millions of dollars in ag preservation from a fund that continues to grow as the city develops. We have a plan that effectively saves the most ag while providing other benefits to our community and region.
It is unrealistic to think that if we don’t change anything, South County ag land will remain ag. We have ample evidence to the contrary. Every parcel in unincorporated South County has development rights, including active ag parcels.
San Martin is a visual example of ag land turned into housing on large acreage parcels. If you go to the south end of Trail Drive, you’ll see five homes under construction. It is literally happening now! House by house, our ag lands will disappear unless we do something different.
Morgan Hill is doing something different and innovative. One way to guarantee that these lands remain ag is to remove their development rights by recording a permanent ag easement on the deeds. Land owners will do this—for a price.
The city will assure that any ag land developed in or around Morgan Hill preserves an equal amount of designated ag land in the area southeast of the city. It can do this by supplementing payments from an open space account funded by developers who compete for housing allocations in the city. Housing development in the city assists in preserving ag lands in the surrounding county.
We are also working with landowners on other innovative approaches to compensating them for ag easements.
Morgan Hill has a great reputation for providing high quality recreation facilities. Another creative way to fund ag preservation is to annex a small portion of the area (less than 180 acres) near the Tenant-101 interchange to enhance its family and youth-oriented recreation, sports and leisure offerings. Morgan Hill can leverage its reputation by expanding its active recreation facilities.
This envisioned development will pay ag preservation fees, so it will assist in preserving ag in the surrounding county.
Another planned use for the southeast area is a new Catholic high school on land owned by the church near the Tenant-101 interchange. It will be a tremendous South County asset, and its development will also help fund ag preservation.
Morgan Hill’s plans do not add any housing to these areas. None.
Consistent with the widely accepted Santa Clara Food and Farmlands Resolution, Morgan Hill is working diligently to insure that small-scale ag remains viable in our sphere of influence. We are seeking the services of a third-party administrator to oversee easements and explore creative ways to provide ag infrastructure to small-scale farmers.
To make ag preservation a reality, Morgan Hill is working closely with our Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) to gain approval to annex the land for recreation and the Catholic high school. A hearing is scheduled Feb. 3. It is imperative for LAFCo to approve our application, as it proactively and responsibly preserves viable ag while also providing quality community-serving facilities.
Steve Tate is the mayor of Morgan Hill. The Feb. 3 LAFCO meeting will take place at the county’s board meeting chambers, 70 West Hedding Street, San Jose.
