Saying that Silicon Valley residents seeking cheaper housing are bringing too much traffic and sprawl, activists in San Benito County, the rural county touching Santa Clara County’s southern edges, have qualified a measure for the November ballot that could dramatically put the brakes on new development there.

The measure, if approved by a majority of San Benito County residents, would ban most new development on land zoned for farming and ranching in the county unless it is approved by voters.

County supervisors allowed developers to cut down our orchards and build subdivisions to house Silicon Valley workers,” the November ballot measure says. “For many years, inadequate road impact fees allowed our roads to deteriorate. Our schools are overcrowded and residents feel that the supervisors have not required developers to do enough to support our schools. A majority of San Benito residents live in areas with less than three acres of parks or open space for every 1,000 residents. Many residents now realize that our supervisors’ cumulative land use decisions are negatively impacting our quality of life. Our peaceful, rural lifestyle is disappearing.”