SJ discards protections for ground- dwelling owl

Owls smarter than we are, will adapt, quips vice mayor

By Chantal Lamers

It was the owls versus the developers at the San Jose City Council meeting on May 16. The developers won.

Before council members voted 8-3 to toss out a plan to protect the last of San Jose's burrowing owl population, developers urged the council to throw out the plan while environmentalists made pleas on behalf of the disappearing bird. But council members preferred to address other issues, such as housing shortages and traffic jams.

Vice Mayor Frank Fiscalini said the plan was unfair to developers, who would be charged an additional $5,000 per acre. The money would fund an owl habitat. Fiscalini said he believes the owls are smarter than humans and that, in the long run, the owls will adapt.

Environmentalists argue that, in the long run, the 40 to 50 pairs of burrowing owls in San Jose may not survive unless they are adequately protected.

Mayor Ron Gonzales agreed with Fiscalini. Whether owls could be affected by development should be decided on a case-by-case basis, Gonzales said. He also said he couldn't support the plan because there was no guarantee it would be successful. Gonzales doesn't believe developers should pay extra fees that would be passed on to buyers. Gonzales said he's seen families disqualified to buy homes based on a mere $300.

Cindy Chavez, Margie Matthews and Linda Le Zotte were the only council members who refused to scrap the owl protection plan.

"I don't think a hundred dollars, three hundred bucks is going to destroy anyone's ability to buy a home," Le Zotte said. Le Zotte, a six-year veteran of the planning commission, said owl protection has a record of being unsuccessful on a case-by-case basis.

Matthews said she couldn't vote to throw the plan out because council has been promising a solution for years. She doesn't have a problem charging developers $5,000 per acre--especially while new homes in Alviso are selling for $400,000, she said.

Right now, city staff studies each case individually. But environmentalists and wildlife biologists claimed the process hasn't been successful. In April 1998, council members asked the planning commission to develop the Burrowing Owl Habitat Conservation Strategy and Implementation plan.

Staffers recommended that city-owned and other public property be used for the owl habitat; that the $5,000-per-acre fee be used to create and maintain the habitat; that the city take responsibility for the habitat; and, if the plan is not successful, that the program's funds be donated to support owl habitats elsewhere in the state.

The owl isn't an endangered species. It is listed as a "species of special concern." Planning commission staff reported that if the owl were to become a listed species, state and federal government agencies could force local developers to provide more costly, more in-depth environmental analyses.

The owls largely populate grassy areas in north and south San Jose. The birds nest in holes dug by ground squirrels. But development in those regions has assisted in the birds' decline, environmentalists argued at the meeting.

Roy Christman, a San Jose State University professor, argued that burrowing owl habitats benefit and protect all species and humans around the land. He urged the council to protect the birds before it's too late.

Around the Glen

DeCinzo: Frank Fiscalini and burrowing owls

West Valley College hosts annual fashion show

Sports Briefs

High school sports scores