On November 14, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors took a major step forward in dealing with urban blight when they unanimously approved my proposal for a review and update of the County’s zoning and land use ordinances.
Santa Clara County contains multiple pockets of unincorporated land that is surrounded by incorporated cities and is indistinguishable from those cities. Two of the largest pockets are the Burbank and Cambrian areas in my district. Both are surrounded by San Jose.
Unfortunately, existing County ordinances largely focus on dealing with rural issues. As an example, there is no specific County ordinance that defines what constitutes urban property blight. It is time to change that by updating the ordinances to reflect the urban reality of many of our unincorporated pockets.
The County has significantly expanded its Code Enforcement Unit over the past few years. Now we need to give that unit the proper authority and guidance so we can make all of our unincorporated areas inviting, livable spaces for our residents and businesses.