The Loma Prietan
February 2002
Coyote Valley Update
The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter and the Santa Clara Valley Audubon
Society have filed a Notice of Appeal of Judge Leslie Nichols' decision on the case against the City of San Jose and the Coyote Valley Research Park developers (including Cisco Systems) under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
This follows Santa Cruz County's decision in December 2001 to also file an appeal. The Sierra Club believes that the judge's decision in favor of the City of San Jose was misguided—especially on the issue of growth-inducing impacts.
Interestingly enough, since Cisco Systems has scaled back their expansion plans into Coyote Valley, the developers are scrounging for other large companies to fill the void. A "Build to Suit" sign is visible on the north Coyote Valley property—calling into question whether any development permits should be issued by San Jose.
"If the plans to build are in flux, then the permits should be put on hold," said Dan Kalb, Loma Prieta Chapter Director. "We have asked the (San Jose) Planning Department to refrain from issuing permits for the CVRP site until all design, occupancy, and use issues have been resolved and finalized."