By Clarence Cromwell
Making way for a nine-home development on the 5.1-acre Nelson Gardens property, the Saratoga City Council decided to rescind the no-build contract on the property--again--and change general plan and zoning designations.
Opponents asked the council not to cancel the Williamson Act land preservation contract, saying the land didn't meet criteria for cancellation because the nine houses could be built on three other nearby parcels. Under the Williamson Act, the council had to find that the project could not be built elsewhere before releasing the land from the contract.
The council considered the properties unavailable because their owners plan developments already and won't sell them.
Friends of Nelson Gardens President Ann Waltonsmith said the council was ignoring the intent of the Williamson Act, which she said should be used to preserve large undeveloped parcels like the Nelson Gardens property that are surrounded by development.
"There is no need for more new housing in Saratoga," Waltonsmith added.
Mayor Paul Jacobs addressed the group's past requests to turn the land into a public park. "I think the real issue is what should the future of this property be," Jacobs said. "We don't have the public funds to buy the property."
Jacobs said maintaining the Williamson Act contract would amount to "holding someone hostage with the idea that we might someday have the money to buy their property. We could require that the owner wait four more years, but at that time, there's no way we can stop the development. What purpose would it serve?"
Jacobs said the property is also unsuitable for a park because it is surrounded by homes. He said nearby neighbors usually resist park improvements, fearing increased crowds and traffic.
Waltonsmith hinted that the Friends may have to take their case back to court.
The land preservation contract was an agreement between Frank Nelson and the city, signed in 1971. A previous council first revoked the contract in November 1994. A month before, the Community Foundation of Santa Clara County had agreed to pay the city about $72,000 per lot to release the parcel from the contract and approve its subdivision map.
The council reinstated it Dec. 20, 1995 to settle a lawsuit filed against the city by the Friends of Nelson Gardens, who favor using the land as a park where schoolchildren would learn about agriculture. The suit accused the city of improperly handling the cancellation.
The decision to allow development involved three council votes.
The first vote accepted the environmental-impact report on the project. A second vote approved the general plan change from outdoor recreational to residential use and cancellation of the Williamson Act contract The third made a zoning change from agricultural to residential.
Resolutions pertaining to the general plan amendment and land contract cancellation require an additional council vote for formal adoption, expected to occur at the council's Feb. 21 meeting.
The Planning Commission approved the general plan amendment, zoning changes and the subdivision map at its Jan. 24 meeting.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, February 14, 1996.
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