Patterson Irrigator

 A letter to the editor from John Paiva.

EDITOR,
Lured by the promise of rural living and low-cost housing, we moved to Patterson in 1987. Since then, we have seen the town more than triple in size. Those first few subdivisions were built over some of the richest farmland in America in the same manner that new housing developments and business parks inevitably will.  

Many of us, having arrived in Patterson, would like nothing more than to see growth curtailed. Yet we read of projections that we might someday see more than 150,000 people living in Patterson, all of them on rich farmland.

That said, I learned from attending the Aug. 15 informational meeting that the plan for West Park takes a new look at what development might mean for the West Side.  

Instead of growing an ever-larger bedroom community, West Park has the potential to bring good-paying jobs to our area. That’s good for the economy and the environment. If more folks living in our community worked nearby, we might see not only less pollution from commuter traffic, but also families that can spend more time together.

As a teacher in this community, I would love to give parents the hope that their children might be able to find profitable employment without moving far away. As an environmentalist, I believe one sure way to diminish our dependence on fossil fuels is to bring jobs closer to the community. Rail solutions for freight also make sense. Creating economies of scale by consolidating processing at the shipping point might mean that the valley’s agricultural products might find new markets domestically and internationally.  

As I drive down Highway 33 to Newman each day, I can honestly say that I can’t imagine all that rich farmland turning into an industrial parkway.  Farming has always been such an integral part of what life is about on the West Side. On the other hand, this “inland port” may actually help secure more markets for farm products, while offering our children a chance for employment.

In my mind, continued housing growth in the valley without a sufficient job base is a far greater waste of precious resources.

— John Paiva, Patterson

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