The new minimum wage law, Measure D, will take effect March 11, 2013. Many business owners I have spoken with plan to cover the increase in payroll costs by raising prices, reducing the hours of current employees and, in some case, simply eliminating positions altogether. But there is another option.

Santa Clara County, inextricably defined by its immigrant population, has long been touted as one of the best places for foreign-born to become successful, engaged members of society. So, as the country tackles comprehensive immigration reform for the first time in decades, the county has a lot to add to the national conversation. The county Board of Supervisors will discuss this topic and others at Tuesday’s meeting.

Tomorrow is a big day for District 6. After 13 years of waiting—the past three of which were spent staring down a fully-functional yet sadly dormant shell—we finally get to see the Bascom Library and Community Center open all of its doors to the public. For residents of Blackford, Buena Vista, Burbank, Del Monte, Shasta/Hanchett Park, Sherman Oaks, and Winchester, the 2pm ribbon cutting at 1000 South Bascom Ave. will be the culmination of a protracted struggle with City Hall, and the district’s own councilmember.

After nearly four years of waiting for the MLB to approve the Oakland A’s potential move to San Jose, the office of baseball commissioner Bud Selig has finally provided guidelines for the A’s to follow, according to a LA Times report.

The U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) sent letters Tuesday to the nation’s largest 25 metro areas, inviting city officials to submit a bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics. A day later, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed shot down any idea of San Jose hosting future Olympic games in an email city staff this week.

Xavier De La Torre, superintendent for the Santa Clara County Office of Education, has agreed to give back nearly $100,000 of his salary over the rest of his contract to help pay down the interest and principal of a housing relocation loan he received last year. The manner in which he announced the giveback, however, was a little curious.

ABV News’ sixth issue hit digital news racks Monday, this time with a little less sensationalism and a little more transparency. Robert Braunstein, high school sportscaster and defeated District 10 City Council candidate, now signs his name at the end of the newsletter, which includes news links and a brief editorial.

The neighborhood park is often taken for granted as part of the everyday American urban and suburban landscape. The primary value of our parks is economic, but there are also very important health benefits to citizens of all age groups.

First came a ban on smoking in public places; now local lawmakers are targeting a particular style of cigarettes. Seeing that menthol smokes are so popular with youngsters, especially minorities, several city officials want to support a Food and Drug Administration resolution that proposes banning the sale of menthol cigarettes. The motion brought by councilmembers Kansen Chu, Ash Kalra and Xavier Campos goes before the Rules and Open Government Committee Wednesday.

Someone asked me last week if there are underreported stories about public education in the Bay Area. Absolutely there are. People and ideas are converging in Silicon Valley, and they have the potential to alter the landscape of schools and learning.

Before Don Rocha became a San Jose councilman, the District 9 rep did a little modeling on the side. We assumed those days were done. We were wrong.

Call it a preemptive strike but Ken Yeager deserves a little credit for trying to get something while knowing he’d probably get nothing. Last week, the president of the county Board of Supervisors sent a letter to San Jose Mayor, Vice Mayor Madison Nguyen and the City Council proposing a deal on how to continue funding the Santa Clara Healthy Kids Program. There’s just one problem. San Jose is broke and has no interest in giving another dime now that the county got Measure A passed.

San Jose’s police union leadership says it wants what’s best for its members. But how many members will be left if the Police Officer Association keeps on hosting other departments’ recruiters in its headquarters? In an ad in Sunday’s Mercury News, the Austin Police Department announced it was hosting two recruiting sessions in San Jose. After stopping by The National Hispanic University on Tuesday morning, the Texans moseyed over to the POA shop to hold court for three afternoon hours.

The city of San Jose may cut small businesses a few more breaks under a tax amnesty that sunsets this spring before doubling down on enforcement. The deal—if moved on to the City Council’s March 5 meeting by the Rules and Open Government Committee on Wednesday—allows businesses to pay what’s past due through March 29 and, in exchange, the city will forgive any interest and penalties. Another item going before the Rules committee Wednesday is Councilmember Xavier Campos’ proposal to add Guadalajara, Mexico to San Jose’s Sister City program.

President Obama’s State of the Union address will reportedly focus on growing the economy and jobs while shrinking the deficit. There are several ways these goals can be achieved, but in the long term the goal of growing the middle class must include strengthening publicly funded education.

San Jose released its annual list of city salaries late last week, reminding us once again where the bulk of the municipal budget goes. Like most municipalities, payroll accounts for the city’s single highest expense. San Jose shelled out $596 million, or 62 percent of this fiscal year’s budget, on payroll for its 5,500 employees. This year, retired Sgt. John M. Seaman topped the list, receiving total compensation in the amount of $308,345.