4-21-14 MidPen PresentationRoom to Breathe
Los Gatos City Council
April 21, 2014
INTRO ON THE DISTRICT (SLIDE 1)
Good afternoon. My name is Pete Siemens and I am on the board of directors of Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District and represent Los Gatos. I’d like to thank you for the opportunity
to address you today so I can let you know about the District, our recent vision plan process, and our upcoming bond measure, Measure AA.
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Formed in 1972 by local visionaries, the District’s Mission is: “To acquire a regional greenbelt of open space land in perpetuity, protect and restore the natural environment, and
provide opportunities for ecologically sensitive public enjoyment and education.”
The District, usually called “MidPen”, was originally formed in Santa Clara County in 1972. It now includes 26 preserves totaling 62,000 acres in San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz
Counties. The land we manage for the public extends from San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean and defines the western skyline as viewed from the Peninsula and Silicon Valley. It
is open to the public 365 days per year, free of charge.
We serve 715,000 residents in 17 cities and are supported primarily through local property taxes. Policy is set by a seven member elected Board of Directors. We have 120 employees and
500 volunteers who provide an additional 18,000 hours of service annually.
We budget and execute projects consistent with a disciplined, sustainable 30 year prospective financial model. (If asked, our annual budget is around 42 million).
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26 Preserves
62,000 acres
225 miles of trails
Midpen has long term partnerships with all of the cities in our service area. We partner on acquisition of parcels and key connecting trails… and long-term environmental education programs
for tens of thousands of children in the region. We have an active school program where over one hundred school children visited Daniels Nature Center as part of their curriculum program.
St. Joseph’s Hill, one of the District’s most popular preserves, continues to be the location of many of our docent-led hikes and is popular with local residents and dog-walkers. Adjacent
Kennedy-Limekiln area of Sierra Azul offers miles of trails for hiking and biking all the way to Almaden Quicksilver County Park.
In 2004, Los Gatos supported the District’s boundary expansion to the ocean in San Mateo County, which allowing us to protect a world class landscape and support the production of local
sustainable food. As a result, to date we have protected nearly 10,000 acres of rural lands on the San Mateo Coast.
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Vision Plan :
Imagine the Future of Open Space
Over 2,000 public participants provided input for our future focus. Their priorities are:
Improve and Expand Public Access
Protect Natural Open Spaces and Scenic Beauty
Save Redwood Forests
Preserve Agriculture on San Mateo Coast
Provide Clean Water and Air
Create Healthy Habitat
Identified 54 major projects
For first 40 years, we placed heavy emphasis on land preservation. It was important that we protect land as it became available, for once it was gone, it was gone forever.
Over the past two years, the Board has developed a strategic plan that equally focused on the other two legs of our mission of environmental restoration and public access.
At the beginning of 2013 we began a public process to develop the vision of the district for the next 40 years. We began a very comprehensive public engagement process to really understand
what the public wanted for their open space lands.
Staff developed a community advisory committee of experts, community leaders, user groups, and neighbors. We talked to over 2,000 members of public through in person interviews, an interactive
website, at 5 public workshops.
We heard loud and clear that the public wants more access, to protect local redwood forests and bayland areas, continue preserving open space land recognizing that these lands provide
clean air and water, and to restore and care for lands to create healthy habitat for wildlife and preserve biodiversity.
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From those meetings, we developed a slate of 54 high priority project areas throughout the entire District. We then took the top 25 project areas as determined through this public process,
and costed those out for a total of $300 million. You’ll see those projects highlighted in the handout you have.
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Highlights for Los Gatos
18: Saratoga to the Sea Trail
19: El Sereno dog trails and connections
20: Safe wildlife corridors across Hwy 17 and new Ridge Trail crossing
21: Open Bear Creek Redwoods
22-25: New public access, interpretive projects and Mt. Umunhum Trail
Projects to highlight near Los Gatos include
18 – Connect trails including Saratoga-to-Sea Trail AND Skyline-to-Sea-Trail. Protect wildlife corridor near highway 9
19 – At El Sereno – open trails to on-leash dogs, Connect El Sereno to Skyline, Sanborn County Park & Lexington Reservoir
20 – Provide a safe wildlife corridor across Hwy 17 and establish Bay Area Ridge Trail crossing.
21 – Open Bear Creek Redwoods for hiking and equestrians. Restore & Protect habitats; upgrade stables; repair roads and trails; provide interpretive services, rehabilitate Alma College
site by public or private partners
22-25 – Open large areas of Sierra Azul including Cathedral Oaks, Mt. Umunhum, Rancho de Guadalupe and Loma Prieta. These projects also include habitat restoration to protect rare plants
and grasslands, including protecting steelhead habitat. We also will be adding additional family activities and partnering to develop family camping.
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Measure AA-
Access, Preservation and Restoration Bond
General Obligation Bond – approximately 30 years
Rate – Not to exceed $3.18 per year per $100,000 assessed value
Total $300 million
Funds for capital improvements and land acquisition
Accountability – public oversight committee
PROPOSED BOND MEASURE
With that, the board voted on February 26 to move forward with a bond measure, Measure AA, to help fund these projects so that they could be completed starting immediately and continuing
over the next 20 – 30 years.
The board voted to place a $300M General Obligation Bond on the June 3 ballot. We wanted to make this affordable, the tax rate will start out at about $1 per $100,000 assessed value
per year (or $5 per year for a home assessed at $500,000) and, over the course of time, would not exceed $3.18 per $100,000 of assessed property value. (For example, the maximum increase
on a home assessed at $500,000 would be a little under $16 per year).
Bonds would be sold over a 20-30 year time period and could only be used on capital projects such as land acquisition, improving access such as trails and parking areas, and on restoration
projects. (If asked, the breakdown is roughly 50% of total funds on acquisition, 30% on access, 20% on restoration).
You may not know that District has functioned on its original property tax increment for 41 years and this would be the first time we would return to the voters… and, as you know, the
2/3 majority required for passage is a high bar.
The ballot measure would include specific requirements for citizen oversight and annual reporting of the money we collect and spend.
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For more information about open space, visit:
www.openspace.org
330 Distel Circle
Los Altos, CA, 94022
(650) 691-1200
Thank you and I welcome any questions.
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