Morgan Hill - The seemingly never-ending process of securing a 55-acre parcel of land just north of Morgan Hill has finally ended.
Tuesday evening, Gavilan College signed off on the purchase of 37 acres of land in the Coyote Valley region at the price of $19.2 million. The remaining 18 acres was donated to the college by John Sobrato, a Silicon Valley developer.
Gavilan President Steve Kinsella said he's elated that this part of the process has finally been ironed out, paving the way for the college's future northend campus.
"Now it means that we can move to the next phase," he said.
Planners want to convert Coyote Valley, located by the IBM headquarters southwest of Bailey Avenue and Santa Teresa Boulevard, into a densely populated community of 80,000 residents. For Gavilan College, a campus north of its Gilroy campus will address the future development and help serve the northern population, Kinsella said.
A large chunk of the students the college loses head to colleges north of Gilroy, including Foothill College in Los Altos, De Anza College in Cupertino and West Valley-Mission in Saratoga.
"They'll go north but they won't come south," Kinsella said. "We just can't get them to turn their cars around."
The Coyote Valley campus has been a long time coming and the process has been riddled with false starts. Nearly a year ago, Kinsella thought it was a done deal but the intricate tax issues that pop up when land is donated further delayed the purchase.
The application for the facility is already at the state. The college will finish up some environmental requirements and move closer toward the completion of the new campus.
"At least now we've got the green light to proceed with all those things," Kinsella said.
The Gavilan College Board of Trustees will ratify the agreement at an upcoming meeting.
Heather Bremner covers education for The Dispatch. She can be reached at hbremner@gilroydispatch.com.
Heather Bremner Heather Bremner is a staff writer. She can be reached at hbremner@gilroydispatch.com.
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