San Jose Inside

Rich Robinson looks back the good, the bad and the ugly of Super Bowl weekend in New Orleans. While the game didn’t go as hoped for San Francisco 49ers fans, the ambience and the food didn’t disappoint. But one local historical attraction glazes over the most shameful period in our nation’s history.

More than a million people in and around San Jose could soon see a large increase in the price of water if a private utility that controls service for 80 percent of the city gets its way. The San Jose Water Company wants to raise rates by 44 percent over the next three years, bringing the average monthly water bill from $67 to $96 when the final increases go into effect, and overall revenue to more than $47 million. But what exactly do residents get in return? Far more than they need, according to a report by the Division of Ratepayer Advocates.

Those sounds in the background are rumblings that the District Attorney’s Office and Fair Political Practices Commission will conclude their separate investigations into county Supervisor George Shirakawa’s spendy ways sometime in the second half of this month. That could be why one of his longtime closest allies, Cindy Chavez, has been voicing her interests in the not yet vacant supervisor’s job.

San Jose Parks Foundation, as I mentioned in my first column, was born out of an enlightened look into the future. Funding for parks and trails has been cut to the bone and sometimes worse. Urban and suburban parks are essential economic factors in every municipality. They often are invisible in the economic picture that most of us have.

County school board officials broke open meeting laws by coming to a decision on school boundaries through emails instead of a public discussion, according to one angry parent. Andrea Szabo is once again calling out the county Board of Education, alleging it broke the Brown Act in its email correspondence regarding a school district exemption. Other matters going before the board Tuesday night include a proposed study that would consider realigning the county’s 31 districts and new technological tools for students.

San Jose needs to grow up more than out, according to city leaders who want to extend high-rise developer incentives another few years. Other items going before the Rules and Open Government Committee on Wednesday include budgeting, lowering traffic fees and a potential name change for the San Jose/Santa Clara Water Pollution Control Plant.

A new study from the Brookings Institution places the metro area of San Jose, Sunnyvale, and Santa Clara as No. 1 in patent filings per capita in America. Certainly, the distinction is reflected in the fabric of our economy and the high price of housing. It would follow somewhat logically that this honor must also demonstrate the effectiveness and innovation in our public schools, especially in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education. Unfortunately, this is not the case in most schools, districts and classrooms in Silicon Valley.

The Mayor’s Gang Prevention Task Force held its fifth annual community summit Saturday, and more than a hundred San Jose residents were in attendance. For me, much of the information presented at the meeting served as an unfortunate reminder of the havoc gangs create in our communities.

San Jose’s casinos increasingly require more police attention, according to an annual audit of the two permitted card rooms going before the City Council. Other items on the agenda include an update on Measure B litigation and an audit of Team San Jose.

Ken Yeager, president of the county Board of Supervisors, laid out a broad plan at his State of the County address earlier this week, listing healthcare, gun violence and the environment among his top priorities. Noticeably, Supervisor George Shirakawa wasn’t one of them.

A curious coupling of councilmembers issued a 4:59pm memo last Friday recommending the City Council adopt what sounds at first like a reasonable idea. Unfortunately, the path to bad policy is often paved with reasonable ideas.

Rich Robinson examines the organizational structure and attitude of his beloved San Francisco 49ers, just days before they take on the Baltimore Ravens in the Super Bowl. Robinson will be in New Orleans for the game.

Last November, a few hundred people donned their best suits and gowns and converged on San Jose’s historic Hayes Mansion to toast some of the East Side’s most accomplished alumni. The stars that night, honored in the East Side Union High School District Education Foundation’s Hall of Fame fundraiser, consisted of a 10-person class led by Khaled Hosseini, a 1984 graduate of Independence High School and author of The Kite Runner. But on Nov. 15, 2011, the IRS revoked the foundation’s nonprofit status. And yet almost no one outside of its board—including donors—knew about its lost certification when it threw a fundraiser a year later.

Nobody likes to lose an election, but it seems Robert Braunstein—TV sports host and vanquished candidate in San Jose’s District 10 City Council race—has yet to call it quits. Braunstein is behind a south San Jose newsletter that is directing residents to local stories while also taking shots at his former campaign opponent, Johnny Khamis.

Since this is my first column for San Jose Inside, I’ll begin by framing my current endeavor, the San Jose Parks Foundation. Some of you may know of my past, as San Jose Rep Founder, San Jose Arts Roundtable Co-Founder and the After School All-Stars Founding Executive Director.