The Loma Prietan
September/October 2004
Loma Prieta Chapter Opposes Initiatives in Cupertino
by Irvin Dawid, Chair of the Sustainable
Land Use Committee
On August 3 the Sierra Club Loma Prieta
Chapter Executive Committee voted unanimously
to oppose three pro-sprawl initiatives
in Cupertino sponsored by the Concerned
Citizens of Cupertino. Their initiatives,
found on their website
(www.cupertino.cc)
seek to limit building
heights to 36 feet, density to 15 homes to
the acre and require minimum setbacks of
35 feet in most areas of Cupertino. The
Club views these initiatives as a detriment
to the Club's efforts to promote smart
growth, infill development, the creation of
vibrant, walkable and pedestrian-friendly
communities, the protection of open space,
and the construction of affordable homes
as outlined in its Growth Management
Policy
(www.sierraclubcalifornia.org/policies/growth.shtml).
These initiatives would discourage environmentally
friendly development and increase
sprawl pressure on our remaining
open space areas.
• The setback requirement would invoke
strip-mall type land use planning and discourage
a walkable community by promoting
parking lots in the front of retail outlets.
This requirement would prohibit construction
of popular downtown-style areas
similar to those in Willow Glen, Palo Alto,
and Los Altos.
• The height requirement would limit the
efficient use of land and discourage density
near transit by disallowing almost any development
above two stories.
• The density requirement would prohibit
the construction of most multifamily
housing such as apartments, town homes
and condominiums as well as affordable
housing, which are typically more than 15
homes to the acre.
• The initiatives exempt single family development
up to fourplexes and exempt a
small commercial corridor; however, these
exemptions are insufficient to mitigate large
problems these proposals will create.
Prior to approving this position, the
Chapter sought input from members as requested
in a previous newsletter article, contacted
the group proposing the initiatives
as well as city officials, and reviewed the issue
in the sustainable land use, conservation,
and executive committees.
The Sustainable Land Use committee
held its April meeting in Cupertino at the
Cupertino Community Services (CCS) center
to attract community members interested
in land use issues, posting the meeting,
as always, on the Chapter website.
Representative from the Concerned Citizens
of Cupertino attended the July Conservation
and August Executive Committee
meetings, ensuring that voting members
heard from all parties. In an unusual show
of solidarity, at all three committee levels
(Sustainable Land Use, Conservation, and
Executive), the votes were unanimous to
oppose these overly restrictive initiatives.
The Sierra Club encourages its members
to oppose these initiatives by declining to
sign petitions in their support and by voting
against them if they reach an upcoming
ballot.