Council members said the petition was in violation of state election laws in many ways, including misleading voters. The petition's promise that a successful referendum would "prevent the huge Cisco development, on the farmlands of Coyote Valley" was one such misleading statement because the petition really only reduced the size of the campus by approximately 5%, the Council found.

The Council's decision, in defense of its unanimous approval of its largest employer's project back in October, was foretold by city attorney Rick Doyle's determination last week that the "administrative" changes that the petition would have generated should not be subject to a referendum and was therefore invalid. The attorneys for People for Livable and Affordable Neighborhoods, the opposition group that wrote the petition and gathered the signatures, are denying any errors and vowing to litigate over Tuesday's decision. Then again, if it had gone the other way, deep-pocketed Cisco had threatened to litigate the matter.

The decision means Cisco can begin construction this year--unless the courts ultimately take over and issue an injunction while the issues are sorted out. The petition referendum is aimed at overturning the City Council's amendments to the 15-year-old master plan for north Coyote Valley, a semi-rural area it has been grooming for light industrial uses. In addition to PLAN, those opposed to north Coyote Valley's transformation into a high-tech center include the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments and the city of Salinas, which have sued Cisco and the city to stop the project. They contend the project will take away valuable open space and drive up the cost of housing.

Cisco, in an attempt to quell concerns and reassure the community of its commitment, already has agreed to set aside about 300 acres of open space, kick in $3 million for open-space preservation and help the Greenbelt Alliance raise $96 million more for the acquisition of more public lands in the area. The pledges helped Cisco gather more than 110,000 signatures in support of the project, according to a Cisco spokesperson.

Cisco, founded in 1984 and now San Jose's largest employer, occupies more than 40 office buildings in the city. The company once threatened to take its project elsewhere but has since decided to stay, keeping it in close proximity to several universities and schools that foster a high-tech curriculum.