Rants & Raves

4 Comments

  1. Here that rustle of half eaten cans of chilli?  That is the sound of the anti stadium forces in Santa Clara climbing out of the political trash heap they have been sleeping in for a few months.

    Today’s Mercury News article outlines some economic hurdles that have been put in the way of developing a stadium proposal in Santa Clara.

    They will be overcome.

    1) The financing proposal for this stadium shows the LOWEST expectation of public partnership of any proposal developed in the NFL in decades.  Instead of praise and confidence, the 49ers have been subjected to the anonymous doubters whose alternative to the use of redevelopment money was to construct a building that would stay empty for decades.

    2) Santa Clara still has millions of dollars in redevelopment and other capital investment funds, including ownership of over 12,000 acres of land in Northern California that could be developed and leased for a lot of industrial projects, including green technology.

    3)  Perhaps developing a deal now is the best course.  It would mean thousands of construction and service jobs for the local economies to plan for the area.

    4)  Developing a stadium in this area would create a center of gravity for investment and corporate relations that would benefit Santa Clara and San Jose.

    The major stadiums of the last century were all built during hard economic times.  They are still functioning quite well.

  2. Takin’ it to the Streets, #1

    I’ve been trying to leave the car at home over the last 3 months, in an effort to discover the non-auto street grid of my ‘hood. One of my best discoveries has been Monroe Street on a bike.  While a car trip on Monroe is disrupted by the Valley Fair detour and the 280 dead-end, on a bike those obstacles are a blessing as they reduce traffic and let you use the groovy spiral 280 pedestrian overpass.

    In any case, Monroe on a bike effectively links the overlooked Franklin Mall in DT Sta Clara (home of the area’s best barber shops and dive bars, not to mention great japanese restaurants), Valley Snare, and (on the other side of 280) Maryjane Harmon Park and up-and-coming DT Campbell (home od the holdy Orchard Valley Coffeehouse). The ride has a bike lane most of the way, or cruises through quiet residential hoods.  You could never do the trip in a car, but on a bike you experience a pre-fwy streetscape that’s historic, modern, and direct all at once.

    Think Global, Bike Local.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *