Willow Glen Resident

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COUNCIL SKIPS EFFORT TO LIMIT FAST FOOD NEAR S.J. SCHOOLS

By Stephen Baxter

A proposal to ban new fast-food restaurants near schools was diverted from San Jose City Council consideration at a meeting on Aug. 20, leaving a new collaboration between city and school leaders to make a recommendation.

At a Rules Committee meeting Aug. 20, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and other city leaders said the ban likely would not address children's choices of unhealthy foods and they worried it would stall economic development.

Councilman Forrest Williams disagreed, saying the measure was about "changing the environment so our children would have a healthier future."

The issue was referred to the Schools/City Collaborative, a new group that pairs school district superintendents with city officials to tackle shared problems in monthly meetings.

Councilman Pete Constant said parents should shoulder more responsibility for what their children eat, and he added that he has struggled with his weight.

"I'm fat, I know I'm fat, but my children aren't," Constant said. "It lies with the parents ... I think there's no doubt that obesity is a problem, and I'm part of it," he said.

The proposal's most ardent supporter, Councilwoman Nora Campos, did not attend the Rules Committee meeting. She had just given birth to a son, Jack Elonso Campos Struthers.