One of San Jose’s last open spaces was at risk of shrinking due to a large new power project aimed at keeping the city’s energy reliable.
That changed after the California Public Utilities Commission approved a plan supporters describe as a rare win-win for the community.
The decision preserves open space in South San Jose’s Coyote Valley while allowing construction of critical energy infrastructure designed to support the city’s growing power needs.
The Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority teamed up with PG&E and other utilities to find a solution.
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“It is one of our last spaces that we can preserve to make sure that we have access to open space, we have wildlife crossings, that were able to continue to grow food here in this valley,” Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority District Director Kathy Sutherland said. “The fact that we were able to make this a win- win for everybody is so encouraging.”
The location of the new high voltage converter station is just as important as what it will provide.
Originally, this new energy project was set to go where new wildlife crossings are planned for the open space.
Instead, it’s sliding just up Monterey Road to PG&E’s Metcalf substation.
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“By using our existing infrastructure, we’re avoiding new impacts to the land around us and speeding up the project timeline at the same time,” PG&E VP of Major Projects Craig Degenfelder said.
The power grid works as a network.
The converter station is designed to strengthen the power grid, which functions as a connected network across the city. Once completed, it will help move large amounts of electricity from South San Jose to other areas.
“This project is capable of bringing enough power to power 750,000 new homes,” LS Power Grid California Sr. VP of Energy Infrastructure Casey Carroll said. “And without it, it risks reliability of the grid starting in the next couple of years.”
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San Jose City Councilmember David Cohen said the agreement shows reliable energy development and environmental protection can move forward together.
“These are important buffer lands for flooding and they’re important open space,” Cohen said. “It’s an important, ecosystem, wildlife corridor. And so for all those reasons, we should be focused on making sure these lands stay intact while we also improve our energy infrastructure and our economic development.”
Construction is expected to start this year, with the goal of bringing the new power infrastructure online by 2028.
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