SAN JOSE >> Following a backlash from neighbors, city workers are recommending that San Jose back down from a proposal to build tiny homes for homeless residents on a controversial piece of land across the street from an elementary school — the latest indication of the daunting difficulties in combating homelessness.

As part of its goal to build more much-needed shelter for the city’s growing homeless population, the San Jose City Council voted this summer to move forward with tiny homes on Noble Avenue near the Penitencia Creek Trail that winds between the Dr. Robert Gross Ponds. But the city employees tasked with vetting the project now want council members to reconsider. Citing “additional associated challenges” with the Noble Avenue site, Deputy City Manager Omar Passons said the location is not feasible.

That doesn’t mean the project is officially dead — at least not yet. City employees are expected to formally recommend killing it at or before the Nov. 29 City Council meeting, at which point council members will decide whether to follow that recommendation. Still, Passons’ findings are likely to elicit applause from neighbors who objected to the plan.

“Staff reviewed in detail additional historical documentation that involve parcels that make up the Noble site in council district 4,” Passons wrote in a memo to Mayor Sam Liccardo and the City Council earlier this month. “After review of these documents, the city administration, in consultation with the city attorney’s office, has come to the conclusion that the additional associated challenges associated with this site make the Noble Avenue site no longer a timely or viable option.”

That’s because what happens on the property is governed by a joint-use agreement between Santa Clara County, San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley Water District, said Carolina Camarena, spokeswoman for the city manager’s office. Trying to build tiny homes there would kick off a bureaucratic process that could take years, she said. Instead, her office is looking into alternative sites.

The City Council voted 8-2 in June to proceed with six tiny home sites — expanding two existing projects, building two new communities during the 2022-2023 fiscal year, and starting work on another two new sites in the future. Noble Avenue was among the projects slated for development this year. The site would have had capacity for 100 beds.

San Jose, which has more than 6,700 homeless residents, is leaning heavily on tiny homes as a strategy to mitigate its worsening homelessness crisis. The small dwellings provide a temporary shelter where homeless people can recover from the trauma of the streets, get back on their feet and search for permanent housing. The city has roughly 300 tiny homes at five sites up and running so far — three of which include private bathrooms in each unit — and has another in the works near the Guadalupe River Park. The city set a goal this year of building 400 new tiny homes.

But finding sites for tiny homes often is a challenge, as it’s common for nearby residents to oppose having homeless services in their neighborhood. Opposition against the Noble site seemed to gain particular traction. In August, Councilmember David Cohen, who voted against the project, asked the city to put the project on hold and consider other sites. The Noble site is dedicated parkland, and it’s important to preserve it as a space accessible to the public, he said.

Nearly 3,500 people have signed a Change.org petition titled “Say NO to the homeless tiny homes on Noble Ave,” citing the need to preserve the “safety and peace of our children.” The site is across the street from Noble Elementary School.