**See Updates below**
CARRD has written a letter to various agencies (Santa Clara VTA Board Members, LAFCO Board Members, Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors) and the City of Gilroy leaders regarding the Gilroy station alternatives.
Our letter on this issue and supporting documents area available here.
At the VTA board meeting held on March 3rd, 2011, the board approved the programming of $150,000 in Local Program Reserve (LPR) funds for the City of Gilroy High Speed Train Station Comparative Visioning Project to analyze two completely unique station locations and alignments.
Per VTA’s staff report: “One station alternative is in a small city downtown core location with a mature roadway network, existing transportation services and built infrastructure. The other station alternative is in a rural agricultural area outside the city limits with no road network, infrastructure or supporting transit services.”
The alternative described by the Authority as the “East Gilroy Station” lies within an area known as the “Gilroy Ag Preserve” that is protected by an existing 20 year inter-jurisdictional agreement between LAFCO, the City of Gilroy and the County Board of Supervisors prohibiting development.
CARRD is requesting that the agencies review their policies and procedures and to work together to determine the viability of station alternatives for Gilroy.
For more information about the history of the Gilroy Ag Preserve see the following:
Greenbelt Alliance – http://greenbelt.org/resources/press/releases/2_2_02release_camp_gilroy660.html
Story from Gilroy Dispatch: Farmland fight in the making
Sierra Club – Loma Prieta Chapter discussing the importance of the Ag preserve
*UPDATE: March 18, 2011 LAFCO sends letter to City of Gilroy along with a copy of its policies.
*UPDATE: March 10, 2011 Committee for Green Foothills formally opposes East 101 station location.
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