The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter endorsed the San Benito County Measure A (Empower Voters to Make Land Use Decisions) that was approved by the county’s voters, 55% yes vs. 45% no. Going forward, changes to General Plan land use designations for land designated as Agriculture, Rural, and Rangeland will require a vote of the people.
The Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter supports the local organizations in San Benito County in their ongoing efforts to preserve the rural, agricultural character of the County in the face of increasing sprawl development. San Benito County contains a variety of biologically important habitats, including aquatic habitats, grasslands, wetlands, and oak woodlands that need to be protected. These habitats provide high conservation value for the preservation of protected, rare, threatened, and endangered wildlife species, such as the California condor, San Joaquin kit fox, mountain lion, and steelhead trout.
This successful Initiative is not designed to halt all growth but simply puts key decisions about land use and growth in the hands of voters. There is still plenty of opportunity for economic growth in existing growth areas adjacent to the cities of Hollister and San Juan Batista.