The topic of bumping and staff reductions takes center stage at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, the first of 2013. Other items on the agenda include loaded questions for police chief candidates, the city manager’s upcoming trip to Las Vegas, Curb Cafés, a dog park group getting its due and city property sales, one of which could benefit a local charter school group.
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San Jose Inside Purchases SanJoseRevealed.com
San Jose Inside today purchased the abandoned domain of the shuttered political blog San Jose Revealed. Internet users browsing to sanjoserevealed.com will now be directed to the San Jose Inside article revealing that the anonymous hit site was operated by former South Bay Labor Council political director Philip Bump.
Council to Discuss IPA Pay, Nguyen Reappointment as Vice Mayor
In its last meeting of 2012, the City Council on Tuesday will discuss issues varying from lease agreements and property sales to pay increases for the independent police auditor and council/board appointments for 2013.
Shadow Group Requests All Emails Between City, Mercury News Editorial Board
Fly isn’t the only one captivated by the professional diaries of Mercury News opinion editor Barbara Marshman. Two weeks after Metro revealed that Marshman made a quid pro quo offer of “lavish praise” to Water District candidate Barbara Keegan in exchange for her removal from the race, a shadow group called Political Record Strategies (PRS) made a request for all electronic communications between city of San Jose officials and Marshman, as well as the rest of the paper’s editorial board.
Chavez Steps down as Labor Council’s CEO, Remains with Working Partnerships
Cindy Chavez is out as CEO of the South Bay Labor Council. End of an era? Not quite. Chavez, who joined the SBLC in 2009 after an unsuccessful mayoral run and two terms on the San Jose City Council, will continue in the role of executive director of Working Partnerships, the think tank that helped organize the successful Measure D campaign and shares a building with SBLC.
Time for San Jose to Grow Up
It is high time San Jose joined the big leagues and moved to a strong-mayor form of government. The recent response by City Manager Debra Figone to Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio’s public suggestion on who should be the police chief is simply another example of the bush-league government system that regulates elected officials to second-class status.
City Follows up Plastic Bag Ban by Considering EPS Ban, Again
San Jose’s Transportation and Environmental Committee approved a proposal Monday to have the City Council consider banning expanded polystyrene (EPS) takeout boxes in all restaurants. This is, more or less, the same proposal the city considered last year before turning down a $100,000 offer to study the issue more.
Hawkins Leaving City Clerk’s Office
City Clerk Dennis Hawkins bids San Jose adieu in less than three weeks. According to a press release sent out by Mayor Chuck Reed’s office, Hawkins informed the City Council on Tuesday that his final day will be Dec. 15, after which he will take a position with Santa Clara County. Hawkins will join the county as as administrative services manager for the county counsel, the release states.
Herrera Retains Council Seat
In polarized San Jose, where unionistas have been battling pension reformers, both camps racked up victories and defeats, and neither was fully vanquished. As of early Wednesday morning, with two-thirds of the precincts in District 8 reporting results, Councilmember Rose Herrera was gliding to a ten-point triumph over Jimmy Nguyen.
Council Election Night Preview, Review
The day you’ve all been waiting for is almost here. No, not Election Day. We’re talking about the day after tomorrow, when people can put partisan politics to bed and go back to calling each other $%&#! at the dinner table based solely on the content of one’s character. For now, here’s en election night preview of the two City Council races.
Changing of the Guard at City Hall
A changing of the guard took place this week at San Jose’s City Hall—literally. San Jose police officer Ted Trujillo was sent back to patrol after overseeing City Hall security the last eight years. His duties included watching the backs of Mayor Chuck Reed for six years and former Mayor Ron Gonzales for two, in addition to making sure any threats to the civic concrete jungle were addressed. To send Trujillo out in style, a virtual who’s who of city officials gathered at Mosaic Restaurant and Lounge last week.
Herrera, Nguyen Council Race Gets Uglier
And to think there’s still six more days of crazy before District 8 voters go to the polls. The expensive race between Rose Herrera, Evergreen’s City Council incumbent, and Jimmy Nguyen has had it share of distractions, but now come conflicting allegations over Herrera’s husband attempting to put Nguyen’s campaign signs in a park trash can late Monday night.
City Council Meetings at Night Would Allow Greater Civic Participation
If you are like the majority of San Jose residents, you probably work during the day and/or are involved in a child’s education at school/home. Your ability to attend a daytime San Jose City Council meeting is limited. For this reason, holding council meetings in the evenings for all issues, not just land use items, would increase public awareness and involvement.
Story of the Week: District 8 City Council Race Approaches $1 Million in Spending
Thursday marked the last filing deadline for campaign disclosure forms and independent committee expenditures before the Nov. 6 election. This means the next 11 days will feature a flurry of campaign spending, the details of which won’t be known until after people go to the polls. One thing that can be said for certain, though, is that the District 8 City Council race between Rose Herrera and Jimmy Nguyen is costing major money. How much? More than $700,000 so far, and it could approach $1 million by the time the election is held.
PTSD Forum at City Hall Wednesday Night
A free community forum on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), sponsored by the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Association of Santa Clara Valley and Councilmember Kansen Chu, will take place at 6:30pm Wednesday at City Hall.
How the Council Set Its Priorities
The San Jose City Council met last week to discuss and prioritize certain ordinances the city should pursue in the coming year. Creating an ordinance requires staff time from the department that the ordinance will affect and, as always, time from the City Attorney’s office. In many cases, outreach for ordinances must be done to garner resident and stakeholder input which takes time and staff facilitating the public meetings.
