Willow Glen
Neighborhood Association
P. O. Box 7706,
San Jose CA 95150
408/294-WGNA
www.WGNA.net
August 20, 2009
To: Envision 2040 Taskforce
Re: Limiting San Jose Park Space; Changing the City’s requirement
from 3.5 acres to 1.5 acres per 1000 residents
Dear: Co-Chairs, City staff and community members,
Position:
Willow Glen Neighborhood Association (WGNA) cannot support the City
Administration’s recommendation to change San Jose’s standing park space requirements
from 3.5 acres to 1.5 acres per 1000 residents; (a 57% reduction).
Background and Discussion:
Quoting the San Jose Greenprint 2009, "The Willow Glen planning area is a densely
developed area west of downtown San Jose and current population is 75,937. By 2020
Willow Glen will have a population of 82,750".
"In the past eight years, only 0.4 of an acre of developed parkland was added to this
planning area, there are ten areas of Willow Glen under-served within a 1/3 mile radius".
We respect the Envision 2040 Commission vision of San Jose becoming a "World Class
City" and fully support you in your endeavor.
"World Class Cities” put a heavy emphasis on Parkland development. Every park user
knows the benefits of green space, especially in urban environments, but the benefits of
our parks, trails and green spaces extend far beyond users-daily they touch the lives of
every person who lives and works in the community, and making our city and
neighborhoods more attractive places to live and work-the benefits of parks are endless-to
individuals, our communities, the economy and environment.
Broadly defined, parks provide a diverse and quantifiable range of benefits that
immeasurably improve our quality of life. At the community level parks play a special
role. They have something to offer everyone from young children and teens, to families,
adults and the elderly. Their presence can also be a cohesive force in building a sense of
community. They are more than places to recreate and relate to nature. Parks can also
offer a multitude of opportunities to engage in arts and music. A park can be a
community focal point, a symbol of its vitality and World Class character, adding to its
overall health, well being, and quality of life.
A healthy, vital World Class community speaks to quality of life (QOL); and QOL
attracts JOBS.
Green spaces and parks are becoming increasingly important as more and more people
inhabit the urban area of Willow Glen and our downtown San Jose neighborhoods.
San Jose, like many other cities, has neglected its green spaces and chronically under
funded them. As a result, there are not enough parks to serve our growing population, and
those we do have are deteriorating.
Residents and many of our City leaders have realized that parks are not civic frills, but
urban necessities. With our growing urban population comes a growing need for
communal spaces. Keep in mind, too, that many of our new urban residents in San Jose
live in mid and high-rise condos so small they barely have room to breathe. As a result,
they look to our city to provide many of the features house-owners take for granted.
Jean Dresden read into the record on July 27, 2009 how large cities throughout the
country have planned for, protected and developed park space per 1000 residents in ratios
significantly greater than San Jose has today. To compete as a Great City, San Jose must
build on what it has; not slash it for convenience or an easier goal to meet.
Public school grounds and paved trails do have a place in our community and any World
Class city. But school grounds and paved bike trails are not where residents of our new
urban village will eat, drink, sit outside, meet friends and let toddlers play or nap in the
shade.
Conclusion:
WGNA strongly urges the Envision 2040 Taskforce to protect and hold to the City
standard of 3.5 acres of park for every 1,000 residents if we are to become the "World
Class City" of 2040 envisioned by this taskforce.
Richard Zappelli
Chair; Planning and land Use Committee
Board Secretary
Willow Glen Neighborhood association
cc: Honorable Mayor
Councilmembers
Joseph Horwedel, Director PBCE
Albert Balagso, Director of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services
Office of the City Clerk, San Jose, CA cityclerk@sanjoseca.gov