Residents along Coyote Creek call for Valley Water & City of San Jose leaders to work together on Coyote Creek blockages & debris
A group of neighbors and friends have discovered several major dangerous wood blockages that have been allowed to build up in Coyote Creek. However, because of different property owners (sometimes the City of San Jose, sometimes Valley Water, sometimes private individuals, etc) – as well as differing opinions about whether the blockages constitute a flood threat and who is responsible for flood control — none of the parties are willing to take responsibility for clearing these blockages.
On October 13, the City Council & Valley Water Board will hold a rare joint meeting. This is an opportunity for residents to ask these agencies to establish a clear understanding of ownership and responsibility and develop a plan of action with a timeline.
The residents' petition, below:
Concerned neighbors in Naglee Park, Olinder, Brookwood & Roosevelt neighborhoods strongly urge the City of San Jose & Valley Water leaders to quickly agree on Coyote Creek ownership/responsibility conflicts such that large wood blockages and debris removal projects can be organized and executed.
With the projected El Niño winter having higher than normal rains, the possibility of flooding is real. No one wants a repeat of the 2017 floods.
We ask these leadership/ownership responsibility issues be addressed:
San Jose owns most of the Coyote between Tully and Montague. However, Valley Water owns the flood control & risk mitigation responsibility. This complexity in ownership and responsibility leads to disagreements regarding responsibility and causes delays to implementing critical creek maintenance / flood protection work.
Definition of creek ownership boundaries may not be the same between VW & SJ. SJ believes ownership is defined by the center of the creek (which is typical). VW believes that ownership of the creek bank stops at the water or “hinge” of the creek. There should be a consistent definition applied to the creek.
We request the public be informed/included in your detailed plan, including increased cooperation measures between Valley Water and the City of San Jose. This communication and increased cooperation should include emergency blockage mitigations, emergency preparations and new creek maintenance agreements (with blockage & debris mitigations) moving forward.
The Coyote Creek has major risks which must be mitigated:
Imminent safety issue: Blockages will break loose during a major atmospheric river event and cause major havoc downstream (domino effect),
Unhealthy to people & animals:The contamination & inorganic trash trapped in the creek within and around the wood blockage is unhealthy & unsafe to San Jose residents and wildlife as well as San Francisco Bay.
Potential violations to Federal Clean Water Act: Environmental degradation causing Federal Clean Water Act concerns.
The section of Coyote Creek from William Street to I-280 contains at least 9 major wood blockages with debris. Additionally, the wood blockages in Coyote Creek from Tully Road to Montague Expressway should be considered in their entirety due to the above mentioned domino effect.
We urge the City of San Jose and Valley Water to work together to improve and preserve the health of the Coyote Creek riparian ecosystem. This creek is habitat to threatened species and species of concern; debris and pollution threaten their continued survival.
The invasive shot hole borer is now thriving in trees along the creek. Invasive plant species are pushing out native plants, for instance ivy is choking out native plants and trees. 40 and more years ago residents played and fished in the creek – it was an integral part of residents’ lives. This habitat deserves better as the creek must become healthy enough for Steelhead and Chinook to spawn and clean enough for children to play in the Coyote again.
Read the whole thing here.
Follow Opportunity Now on Twitter @svopportunity
We prize letters from our thoughtful readers. Typed on a Smith Corona. Written in longhand on fine stationery. Scribbled on a napkin. Hey, even composed on email. Feel free to send your comments to us at opportunitynowsv@gmail.com or (snail mail) 1590 Calaveras Ave., SJ, CA 95126. Remember to be thoughtful and polite. We will post letters on an irregular basis on the main Opp Now site.