City to Spend $2.2 Million on Golf Nets!

Let’s get this straight: The City of San Jose is spending $2.2 million to install posts and netting at the city owned Los Lagos Golf Course to prevent errant golf balls from damaging people and property.  According to press reports, the city has paid $22,300 in claims over the past six years. 

Solving San Jose’s Budget Mess

We keep hearing that San Jose has a “structural” budget deficit problem, but seemingly little is being done to fix the problem at its core.  The City of San Jose spends more than it takes in.  But is this deficiency due to insufficient revenues, or is it the product of misplaced priorities and poor spending choices?  How can cities find new ways to raise money in these challenging economic times?

An Open Letter To Google’s Executives

Dear Google Executive Team:

Why doesn’t Google come to San Jose? The city is making plans to expand its convention center, and the 17-story Sobrato Building is up for sale again (you know, that beautiful, cobalt-blue building that sparkles in the sun).

The Puck Stops Here

The Sharks’ season ended a little over a week ago in a thrilling playoff game that was decided in the fourth overtime period.  The Sharks were picked by many experts to get to the Stanley Cup Finals.  Some had the Sharks winning the whole thing.

The Bucks Should Stop Here

Last week in an opinion piece for the Mercury News, Councilmember Nancy Pyle and Silicon Valley Chamber President Pat Dando called for the residents of San Jose to make a concerted effort to “Buy in San Jose.” By encouraging San Joseans to shop within their city’s limits, more tax receipts would go to help offset the city’s growing budget deficit.

More “Facts” and “Figures” on the Soccer Stadium Deal

On page one of the “Fiscal and Economic Impact Major League Soccer Stadium Proposal Report” we read:

The City of San Jose is currently reviewing a request by the Oakland Athletics to develop a Major League Soccer Stadium for the San Jose Earthquakes as part of a new mixed-use development at the Airport West site. It is anticipated that the Stadium will be owned by the City and leased to the Oakland Athletics.  While this arrangement will not generate property tax revenue to the City’s General Fund, the lessee will be required to pay possessory interest tax to the City.

QUESTION:  Why are the Oakland A’s involved here?

Last week, the Mercury News reported that San Jose city officials and a team of developers had come to an agreement on a $132 million deal that “sets the stage for a major league soccer stadium near the airport as early as 2010.”  The Mercury News article failed to address a number of important questions surrounding the project.

San Jose’s Code of Conduct and the Constitution

Attached to every San Jose City Council agenda is a “Code of Conduct” for public meetings. The council wants to foster an atmosphere of “fairness, courtesy, and respect for differing points of view.”  But are these suggestions/requirements Constitutional?

San Jose Finishes Third Behind SF and Oakland

The SF Chronicle recently published a compilation of facts and figures relative to the Bay Area’s three largest cities.  The simple data provides a picture of where we are, and perhaps, where we are going

San Jose Convention Center Hosts Google Developer Day

Google held its annual Developer Day at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center last week and I attended the event. (I’m involved with a project that’s being pitched to the Google Foundation.)  I can attest to the fact that the City of San Jose did itself proud last week.

Budget Figures Tell the Tale

Ah, it’s springtime in San Jose.  The sun is out, the birds are chirping, and the roses at the Rose Garden are…well, never mind.

It’s also budget season, and the preliminary budget numbers coming from the San Jose city government are not exactly encouraging.  The sources for the information that follows are:  The City Manager’s Budget Message, The 2007-2008 Proposed Operating Budget, and the city’s transportation department. Read ‘em and weep:

Are the People of San Jose Ready to Change the
Rules?

The “Golden Rule” in politics is simple: “He (or she)who has the gold, makes the rules.”  San Jose’s gold does not belong to its people. And the people certainly don’t make the rules.

To Whom Do The City’s Entitlements Belong?

Last week, I argued that providing for the construction of a new stadium through the use of city entitlements is a course of action that should be approved by a vote of the people.  If the city council can facilitate a deal that generates $80-90 million to fund a stadium, why can’t they do a similar deal to fix the city’s streets and parks?  The City of San Jose has a street resurfacing backlog list of some 300 miles.  How many miles do you suppose will be taken off that list this year given the city’s $16 million budget deficit?

Soccer Stadium Should Be Put to a Vote

On March 9th, the SF Chronicle reported that developer Lew Wolff is moving closer to a deal with the city and San Jose State that would bring a new soccer/football stadium to San Jose.

Welcome to “Mission Green,” San Jose’s Neighborhood of the Future

Last week, I put forth the idea for a Google or Yahoo “Search and Discover Museum” to be developed at the old Martin Luther King Library property on W. San Carlos.  Before such an exciting project (or any other project) could be built there, space would have to be found for the 150 or more city employees who currently hold their offices there.

How About a “Search and Discover Museum”

Several months ago, the San Jose Business Journal reported that a plan to move the San Jose Art Museum to the old Martin Luther King Library building on W. San Carlos St. had fallen through.  What if the city were to entertain bids for a major developer and a major Silicon Valley corporation to work together to build a “Search and Discover Museum” that would serve as a hall for world class exhibitions and a permanent home for a West Coast annex of the Smithsonian Institute?