The Willow Glen Resident

Residents set goals for 2010

Silicon Valley forums solicit public opinion

By Pam Marino

Open space and a good environment, with lots of affordable housing. A transportation system that links all of Silicon Valley in a clean, efficient way.

Good schools for each and every child, with lots of high-paying jobs when they graduate. Excellent health care for all.

These were some of the goals set at a series of 10 Bay Area forums over the last month that focused on what the valley should be like in the year 2010. During the forums, no one was supposed to think about how to make their lofty goals into a reality.

"At this point in the process we are visioning," said Becky Morgan, CEO of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network. Joint Venture sponsored the events to find out residents' goals for the future. Forum sites included south and east San Jose, Cupertino, Sunnyvale and Morgan Hill.

The Silicon Valley 2010 project actually got started last September, when Joint Venture, a nonprofit organization focused on improving the region's economic vitality and quality of life, gathered 27 community leaders into a "Vision Leadership Team."

Audiences, after setting some of their own goals, got to vote on the leadership team's goals in the four areas of economy, environment, society and stewardship.

At the May 12 meeting, held at De Anza College, the 103 audience members used electronic key pads that instantly recorded information from the audience and produced bar graphs on a screen. Audience members could see that their top economic goals were sharing success throughout the community, that all people have access to jobs with advancement potential, and that lower-income people be able to live here.

The number one environmental goal of the audience was improving air and water quality and conserving resources. The number two goal was "developing well-designed, affordable housing options."

All people having access to high-quality health care was the group's top choice in the society category, followed by "people feel safe in their homes and neighborhoods," and "all students gain the skills, knowledge and good citizenship qualities to succeed in the global economy."

And under stewardship, the audience said "local communities and regional authorities coordinate their transportation and land use planning for the benefit of everyone" was most important.

Of the audience's own goals, developed and voted on in small groups, maintaining quality of life, ensuring clean air, water and open space, having an efficient transportation system and a healthy economy, were declared most important. Having high-quality affordable housing for everyone and a world class education system followed closely behind.

Joint Venture's Morgan said the organization will compile all the information from the forums and other research into a report, due out this September. The group will use that report to gauge the valley's progress in meeting the goals over the next 12 years.

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