Calero, San Jose

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Calero
Calero Reservoir, dam at upper right corner. (5721536696).jpg
Aerial view of Calero, with Calero Lake in the center.
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Calero
Coordinates: 37°11′32″N121°47′24″W / 37.192261°N 121.790063°W / 37.192261; -121.790063 Coordinates: 37°11′32″N121°47′24″W / 37.192261°N 121.790063°W / 37.192261; -121.790063
Country United States
State California
County Santa Clara
ZIP code
95123, 95136
Area code(s) 408

Calero, also known as Calero Lake and occasionally as South Almaden Valley, [1] is a rural neighborhood in the Almaden Valley district of San Jose, California. Located in South San Jose, Calero is notably home to Calero County Park, which surrounds Calero Lake.

Contents

History

During the era of Mexican California, the area of modern-day Calero was originally part of Rancho San Vicente, granted in 1842 to José de los Reyes Berreyesa, of the prominent Berryessa family of California, by Governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. [2] Rancho San Vicente remained in continuous operation as a grazing ranch until 2009, when the Peninsula Open Space Trust purchased the site and transformed it into the Rancho San Vicente Open Space Preserve (now integrated with Calero County Park). [2]

Calero Reservoir was formed in 1935, when a dam was built across the Arroyo Calero. [3]

In 1968, Calero County Park was established around Calero Reservoir. [2]

Geography

Ranger patrol on Calero Lake. Ranger Patrol Boat docked on the Calero Reservoir.jpg
Ranger patrol on Calero Lake.

Calero is a neighborhood within the larger Almaden Valley district of San Jose, California. It makes up the southwestern-most portion of South San Jose, located east of the Sierra Azul, north of the city of Morgan Hill, and west of Coyote Valley.

Though it is part of Almaden, Calero forms a separate planning district from the Almaden planning district, as Calero is rural in its entirety, unlike almost any other area in San Jose. [4] The neighborhood has long rallied against development and the San Jose city planning department actively discourages development in Calero. [5] [6]

Economy

Calero is largely a rural residential neighborhood, [1] but there are numerous working ranches in the area, such as the Californio Cattle Company. Many of the businesses in the area relate to outdoor recreation, most notably the numerous horse stables. [7]

Parks

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References

  1. 1 2 City of San José - Vision 2040
  2. 1 2 3 County of Santa Clara - Calero County Park Trails Master Plan Program Development Report
  3. "Santa Clara Valley Water District: Calero Dam and Reservoir". Archived from the original on 2017-06-20. Retrieved 2017-07-03. Calero Reservoir provides water directly to drinking water treatment plants, which treat and test it for safety. The district then distributes the water to water retailers to sell to the county’s 1.8 million residents. Calero also captures and stores winter runoff to recharge groundwater basins, helps store water from the nearby Almaden Reservoir watershed and accepts imported water.
  4. City of San José - Planning Areas Map
  5. Mercury News - Op Ed: Calero’s Neighbors Will Be Most Affeted
  6. City of San José - Development Activity Highlights and Five-Year Forecast (2022-2026)
  7. LifeStorage - Moving to San Jose