After royally screwing up the Environmental Innovation Center (EIC) project, the city’s trying to clean up the mess by hiring a financially stable contractor. The City Council will consider a takeover agreement with Liberty Mutual Insurance Company when it meets Tuesday. Other items on the agenda include a project to house homeless people, new developments at the airport and a review of local cities’ disability retirement programs.
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Study Session to Focus on Tax Measures, Police Department
City officials will hold a study session Tuesday on how to restore public services lost in the past decade of budget cuts, namely by considering a couple tax increases for the 2014 ballot. Police pay and staffing is a top priority, according to several memos.
Councilman Ash Kalra Wants to Ban Soda, Other Sugary Drinks at City Spaces, Events
In a move New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg might appreciate, Councilman Ash Kalra wants to ban sugary drinks from all city-owned buildings and city-sponsored events. Other items on the Rules and Open Government Committee agenda include a potential raise in the airport’s noise curfew fines and David Wall alleging that the Environmental Innovation Center fiasco was a ponzi scheme.
City Council Expected to Pass EPS Ban
After months of outreach trying to get restaurants used to the idea, the city’s moving ahead with its ban on Styrofoam-style take-out containers, a uniquely problematic type of litter because of the way expanded polystyrene (EPS) breaks apart and infiltrates the region’s waterways. On Tuesday, the City Council will discuss the controversial ban slated to go into effect Jan. 1. Other items on Tuesday’s agenda include a jobs development program with Work2Future and a service agreement with the San Jose Downtown Association.
August Observations: Jazz Fest, Developers and the Life Expectancy of the Gold Club
News slows down in the summertime, so San Jose Inside columnist Rich Robinson takes note of some of the bigger and more under the radar stories of August.
Questions for Cindy
Judge Arthur Weisbrodt asked about corruption, dishonesty and backroom deals in a candidate’s debate two weeks ago. Oddly, he posed the question to Teresa Alvarado for not “taking on Cindy Chavez aggressively,” rather than ask Chavez directly. Debates with timed answers are too superficial to probe questions about complex financial relationships. So with one newspaper with its head in the sand, the other unable to get answers and an election opponent who avoided confrontation, the public has remained in the dark. Here are just a few of the questions that should have been asked.
How I Allocated District 6’s HP Grant Money
Each fiscal year, San Jose’s councilmembers are allocated $20,000 in “HP grants” that can be utilized to provide grants to cultural, educational or recreational groups. These funds are allocated solely at the discretion of the elected official. My allocations, listed in this column, represent my personal priorities and values not only as an elected official, but also as a proud citizen of San Jose.
Key Voting Bloc Trending Toward Solar
A new survey recently commissioned by the William C. Velasquez Institute (WCVI) and supported by Californians Against Utilities Stopping Solar Energy (CAUSE) reveals some striking trends in key voting demographics in California and nationwide.
Endorsement: Teresa Alvarado for Supervisor
The District 2 county supervisor’s race is one of the most important in this region’s history. Two-thirds of the county budget—about $3 billion annually—goes to compensation and retirement benefits. Virtually all of the public employee union contracts are up for negotiation in the next two years, and there’s an unfunded $1.7 billion liability for retiree health care. The election will determine whether those issues are tackled by a board majority firmly in the pocket of the South Bay Labor Council—or one that might be a little more independent. For this and many other reasons, Metro and San Jose Inside endorse Teresa Alvarado for county supervisor.
Attorneys Union Meeting Reveals ‘Deep Division’ on Admin Leave, Union Leadership
The Government Attorneys Association (GAA) held a special meeting Friday, and sources tells San Jose Inside that if the county attorneys agreed upon anything, it’s that a “deep division” exists amongst the membership. The big question is how can this be resolved when the union’s leadership continues to focus on scoring fleeting political points.
San Jose State Lecturer Accused of Sexual Battery No Longer with School
San Jose State University no longer employs a lecturer accused of sexual battery by a student, according to SJSU President Mohammad Qayoumi.
Councilman Chu Takes on Late Night Big Rigs at Rules Committee
When the sun goes down, big-rig truck drivers parallel park on Baytech Drive in the Alviso neighborhood so they can rest for the night. It’s not illegal, but it is annoying, says City Councilman Kansen Chu. Other items going before the Rules and Open Government Committee on Wednesday include Vice Mayor Madison Nguyen fighting for the public’s right to take photos in public spaces and potential raises for City Manager Debra Figone and City Attorney Rich Doyle.
Council to Discuss Taxes for Affordable Housing, Medical Marijuana
A proposal for a new construction fee to rake in more money for affordable housing has sharply divided the City Council. Vice Mayor and 2014 mayoral candidate Madison Nguyen and Councilman Don Rocha say San Jose desperately needs another funding source for low-income housing since the state-ordered end of Redevelopment Agencies (RDA). But councilmen Pete Constant and Johnny Khamis strongly disagree. Other issues at Tuesday’s City Council meeting include a public hearing to raise the medical marijuana tax and a fight over a recycling facility near the San Jose Flea Market.
Wag the Dog: How to Change the Conversation from Dirty Politics to Sex
County prosecutor Chuck Gillingham Jr., son of the former county sheriff, called a press conference Wednesday to accuse Metro of being an accomplice to prostitution and underage sex trafficking. Gillingham said he was acting in an unofficial capacity as a concerned citizen. But it seems something much greater is at play.
Family Health Fiasco: King Broke Law by Asking Campos for Endorsement
The Santa Clara Family Health Foundation was created to help raise money to pay for poor children’s health insurance premiums. In recent years, however, the tax-exempt organization has also acted as a political entity, helping the South Bay Labor Council and Working Partnerships USA fund local tax measures through year-round planning and coordination. While there are some allowances for tax-exempt organizations to get involved in issue campaigns, nonprofits and public agencies cannot play a role in individual candidate campaigns. Kathleen King, executive director of the Health Foundation, has not always followed this rule.
Family Health Fiasco: Cindy Chavez Wanted to Sue Metro
County supervisor candidate and labor organizer Cindy Chavez has not always been the biggest fan of San Jose Inside and Metro‘s coverage of local politics. In fact, she was so perturbed by a report in March about the political activities of the Santa Clara Family Health Foundation, on which she was previously a board member, that she suggested a lawsuit.
