It seems that on this week of a great man’s birthday, we should remember the wonderful quote that reminds us that “the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy.” It is particularly pertinent to our situation now in San Jose.
This can be the best of times here; it succeeds a bad era—the worst of times. But, it is paramount that the new administration of Mayor Chuck Reed keeps its eye on the ball. This means, first and foremost, restoring the positive feelings that people have traditionally had for local government. Our new mayor has to constantly remind people—primarily inside City Hall—that they strayed very far from that traditional feeling of confidence and high regard that our citizens held our leaders in for many years that allowed the city to achieve some major goals. It will not be easy, but the right person was chosen to get the job done.
Once that is accomplished and continued on a day-to-day basis, for that is the only way it can succeed, the city must take care of the little things. Pools must be opened. Parks must be maintained. Community centers have to remain staffed and full of life, whether under public or non-profit management. Police response time must be reduced. The business climate—specifically toward the little contractor or homeowner that comes into contact with City Hall—must be improved. This is a heady list; yet, it is a list that can and must be addressed. The benchmarks of success are quite obvious to the new mayor.
The litany for things to be improved can only be addressed if the budget is brought into line. All else flows from another simple document that carries so much importance: the General Plan. The land use element of the General Plan has for too long been subject to the whims of a development community—with its ever-decreasing numbers but ever-increasing amounts of campaign cash—that must be put in its proper place. This place will guarantee the developers fair treatment, but not special treatment. Our budget in the city is directly, and often negatively, affected by cavalier decisions in this realm. That will stop, I believe. Then we can get back on the road to creating the special types of amenities that all great cities have: museums, parks, and sports facilities that make the experience of urban life just a bit more wonderful. It is within our grasp and, as Emerson noted, a man’s reach must exceed his grasp.
In San Jose, all is possible. It may not be heaven, but it is a very special place.
Tom—As Clinton famously noted, “depends on what your definition of “is” is”. Doubtless, San Jose could definitely be a terrific city. But it IS a big suburb. Parks, pools, sports, etc.—but you left out SHOPPING. Big omission. And the budget is just part of what needs fixing. How about IMAGINATION??? (E.g., San Jose has no Golden Gate Park, just a pit that runs through suburbs and downtown.) If Chuck can build a real downtown they will come, and make of it a city. As for user friendly bureaucracy, there is no appeal process for arbitrary and capricious behavior by city employees, including the City Manager, nor is any contemplated in Chuck’s reforms. I’ve suggested an ombudsman to Chuck, Pete and Sam, but they seem not interested, and I can’t imagine why. Still, the City’s customer service has got to be better sometime soon. I just hope I see it, or even better, experience it. George Green
George Green, you nailed it. There is NO imagination, no creativity, every project that might be daring or different gets watered down, no neon signage allowed downtown, every step of the way every attempt to do something unique or interesting gets watered down to pedestrian and boring, just the way the suburbanites like things.
As friends in LA have stated, if San Jose is the 10th largest US city, it’s way past time to start acting like it.
George Green – You’re right… the greater downtown area is in need of parks and other amenities, but if we want people to come downtown to live and if we that area to become self-sustaining, we need a commitment to something a little more fundamental. Ask any real estate agent in the area what moves people across town and what creates the sort of value that allows people to justify investing in the area. They will answer in one word: SCHOOLS.
The city should get serious about education and provide the supplemental educational resources (tutoring, ESL classes, test prep, etc) to get parents more involved, help the kids with their studies and get the scores up. This is the only way the city can remain competitive among the other area municipalities and reduce the amount of RDA money needed to prop-up the downtown area. Turning the schools around would fundamentally change the economics of the downtown area and hey… we’d have a bunch of smart kids. Seems like a BIG part of the puzzle to me and one that isn’t really part of the city’s current redevelopment/economic plan.
Schools and education are very important. They are also NOT a basic city service. The city should do what it is supposed to
do—provide basic city services. The education system should do what it is supposed to do—provide a good education to every student.
Barry – Couldn’t agree more that the education system *should* handle the issue of school performance, but most likely it won’t make great strides. And if it does, by it’s nature, the benefits will apply broadley and will not create any andvantage for San Jose or downtown.
There are many things the city does, including redevelopment, that are not basic services and I’m not saying the city should assume responibility for, or in an way encroach on, the education system’s turf. But I think there’s an opportunity to parter with the schools in the same spirit the city partnered on the MLK library or the way it might partner to bring a new sports stadium to SJSU.
Making resources available to the school system is not the same as providing an education and it’s something the city should consider. It’s the closest thing there will ever be to a silver bullet when it comes to attracting people, developing community and building value in the city.
Dear San Jose:
The Village Blacksmith (#1) said it perfectly, “Our new era will not be easy but it will be fair and just.”
I don’t think that Chuck Reed can walk on water, but I believe that he’s a very strong swimmer. One of the things that I learned while working as volunteer on Chuck’s campaign is that the man is exceptionally bright. But the problems San Jose faces cannot be solved by intellect alone. The citizens of San Jose must get involved, there’s a lot of heavy lifting to be done. If people think that they can just sit back and expect the new mayor to do everything, they’re crazy. We’ve got to take responsibility for our own government. We all need to be a part of the solution and participate. (You can start by attending the neighborhood forum taking place this Saturday).
Pete Campbell
And that neighborhood forum would be where, Pete #7?
Chuck needs a better press secretary. He made a big deal of the “let’s all vote on what we want for a City Manager” campaign, and said there would be several fora. I read the Murky News daily, I listen to various radio stations, I read this blog. I just found out four of the fora on that subject have been held already and they were in some cases very sparsely attended. Why? Because only the really connected knew when and where they were taking place. Local radio & TV stations all donate PSA’s. Chuck needs to get someone on board who knows how to utilize the media to publicize things.
This, our new Era, will not be easy but it will be fair and just. That, I trust!
The Village Black Smith
San Jose has 11 on line city calendars and Sunshine Reform Task Force recommended a single city master calendar which should be up in a month or so
Mayor’s Upcoming Events
City of San José Budget Priority Setting Session
City Manager Recruitment Meetings
http://www.sanjoseca.gov/mayor/news/events.asp
City Home Page – The Police in San José, A Community Forum
http://www.sanjoseca.gov/index.asp
City Clerks City Council Agenda
http://www.sanjoseca.gov/clerk/agenda.asp
City Calendar
http://www.sanjoseca.gov/clerk/Calendar.pdf
You get the idea – hopefully sooner rather than later we will see a San Jose single master city calendar
It’s so nice to see everyone talking about positive things for the city instead of corruption, sleaze and illegal activities. That’s a great new start. Speaking of those old things why don’t we get rid of the inabler, the city attroney, who helped create this city of corruption with his looking the other way and finding ways to help out the Gonzo crew.
Ed,
What about RSS feeds for city notices, events, meetings, council newsletters, etc…?
A master calendar is nice but requires me to visit the city’s web site on a regular basis. With the RSS feed, I can digest more information quickly using Google Reader.
The Mercury News is doing its part. I haven’t seen such a glowing review of a Mayor since you were in office.
Even though I disagree with many of the Reed Reforms—mostly on Constitutional and efficacy grounds. Some are just downright silly. I do agree that the restoration of trust, on a global level, is a high priority.
To the degree Chuck is able to shed more light on the decision making process and provice disclosure for all, he should be applauded.
Speaking of Mayor Chuck Reed, it seems he is the subject of Mr. Robinson’s latest rant.
http://rant.sv411.com
Rich,
Read your rant against Reed but it did not provide any details about the reforms you disagree with.
Could you give us all a list of the reforms you do not like?
Steve – RSS is a great idea. It’s easy to implement and it would help the city distrubute information without having to maintain email lists. I’ve been chatting that idea up to a few people in the city and it would be great if more people made that suggestion directly to the folks at city hall.
Tom-i couldn’t resist commenting this time-could be my first and last. Those “little things” you wrote of are most important and some would say “necessities” to residents. I look forward to the City implementing, improving, and delivering superb “little ( BIG ) things”. If that happens, it will turn our City into the best example of what can be done by government. Happy New Year!