February 17, 2005

State of the City address

Mayor Gonzales vows to bring major league baseball to
San Jose and help city become stem-cell research center

By Sheila Sanchez
Staff Writer

San Jose’s top civil servant gave his seventh annual state of the city report Feb. 9 Gonzales announced his desire to bring major league baseball to San Jose and to help the city become the home of the new stem-cell research center program created by the passage of Proposition 71 last November.

San Jose City Clerk Lee Price swears in re-elected council members, from left, Forrest Williams, Chuck Reed, Ken Yeager and Dave Cortese, and newly elected councilwoman Nancy Pyle before San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales gave his annual State of the City address Feb. 9. Photo by Sheila Sanchez

A healthier looking Ron Gonzales was under the spotlight last Wednesday evening at the newly restored California Theater, where he noted that there are 15 cities smaller than San Jose that have a major league baseball team and that it’s time for the city to play ball as it may become the 10th largest in the country when the U.S. Census Bureau announces this summer its new population figures showing the capital of Silicon Valley has taken Detroit’s No. 10 spot.

“With the support of the City Council and the grassroots enthusiasm of Baseball San Jose, this proposal will put us in contention for a team of our own, right here in our downtown,” Gonzales said to cheers and applause from the more than 1,200 people gathered at the theatre to hear his speech.

Accompanied by nine members of the San Jose City Council on the theater’s stage, Gonzales also promised to make the city the world’s leader in bioscience innovation announcing the Milken Institute has rated San Jose as one of the top four bioscience cities in the country to conduct its stem-cell research program.

“When California voters approved $3 billion to invest in stem-cell research, they approved a vision for life-saving discoveries. We’re the natural home for this amazing new venture. We have the best record of innovation and the best scientific and business brainpower, that will help this research discover medical breakthroughs,” he said.

The mayor also promised to bring BART service to the South Bay, indicating two governors and the Legislature have supported BART funding in the state budget and that Congress continues to provide funding to keep the project moving forward.

“I’m disappointed by those who would derail BART, because they’re only thinking about what seems possible in today’s difficult economy. That’s like canceling your Fourth of July picnic because it’s raining in December,” he added.

Gonzales also pledged to help the city’s struggling 19 school districts by creating a citywide education foundation to better advocate for students and teachers in Sacramento and Washington.

New District 10 City Councilmember Nancy Pyle poses after the State of the City address with former student Mohammed Chaudry.

Gonzales, who last year was unable to finish the speech after suffering a mild stroke, perspired a little and took some sips of water during the speech, but he seemed happy and energized most of the evening. After the speech he signed autographs, posed for photographers and mingled with the crowd as they ate cookies and other desserts in the theater’s main lobby.

San Jose Vice Mayor Cindy Chavez introduced him to the audience. Chavez noted that she and the mayor wore color-coordinated outfits. Gonzales’ pink and blue striped tie matched Chavez’s pink blouse and blue skirt. The mayor joked that he had chosen the pink to accentuate their clothing. The San Jose Fire Choir serenaded the audience with a beautiful rendition of the national anthem.

“I’ve known Ron for a very long time,” Chavez said. “I’ve known him in many roles, as a boss, sometimes he still thinks he is, and as a leader and as a friend.” The comment elicited laughter from the audience.

Chavez, who represents District 3 on the Council, added that Gonzales has always had high expectations from public servants. “He pays close attention to the little things and the big things. Many of you have probably seen Ron in your neighborhoods picking up trash or working on the weekend at graffiti abatement or litter pick up.”

She praised the mayor for saving money to spare cuts and not have to lay off employees. “That kind of leadership is very rare,” she said.

Against the backdrop of a huge projector screen, Gonzales also vowed to crack down on red-light violators by installing new equipment at 50 high-risk intersections and building 10,000 affordable homes during the next two years for 25,000 people.

His optimistic speech, however, was prefaced with his admission that the past year has been the most challenging due to the persistent local recession, which will mean painful budget choices about how to meet the needs of the community.

“The problems associated with our new City Hall, and the ethical failures by people we trusted, have embarrassed and damaged us,” he said, alluding to the bungled Cisco Systems $8 million technology contract and the Jan. 18 resignation of former San Jose Councilman Terry Gregory after being charged by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office with 11 misdemeanor counts of using his political office for personal gain, failing to report expensive gifts and a $5,000 loan from a friend.

Taking back the audience to 1999, Gonzales reviewed the city’s biggest accomplishments during his administration, including passage by voters of $600 million in bonds to renovate old parks, libraries, fire stations and community centers. The city now has more than 500 new neighborhood construction projects. He also boasted the Strong Neighborhoods Initiative, an ambitious program that pumped more than $34 million this year into needy communities; voter approval of Measure A by 70 percent in 2000 to fix traffic congestion, the Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport renovation and expansion project and maintaining the city’s status as one of the safest in the country.

Gonzales also announced that despite the economic slowdown, the city has been successful in keeping major employers like Adobe, eBay, and BEA Systems. “We’re helping small neighborhood businesses, supporting entrepreneurs and attracting new business—and now, national retailers are knocking on our door,” he said.

He also touted the city’s efforts to give 500 teachers working at 150 schools and educating 15,000 students assistance to purchase their first homes and announced the city will continue to expand its network of Smart Start early childhood education center that have already helped more than 3,000 children enter kindergarten ready to learn.

Despite the progress, the city still has a gap, he said, adding that 4,000 children need high quality preschool. “My dream is that some day soon, there will be high quality preschool for every child in San Jose,” he said.

To accomplish this task, Gonzales said the city will work with organizations like First Five, United Way, Head Start, the Santa Clara County Office of Education, school districts and child care providers to cut the gap in half by creating 2,000 new high quality preschool spaces during the next five years.

The mayor then spoke about the city’s efforts to revitalize the downtown by leasing space to more than 50 new restaurants and businesses and restoring historic landmarks like the Hotel Montgomery and the San Jose and California theaters. Since 1999, the mayor said the city has built 3,000 new downtown homes.

“Great downtowns, like great cities, are never done,” he said. “We can do more to bring energy, people and pride to our downtown.”

He then promoted the upcoming summer events eBay Live! and San Jose Grand Prix. Both promise to bring thousands of visitors downtown. The latter will turn the streets near the HP Pavilion into a 1.4-mile racetrack that’s expected to attract 100,000 people and generate $24 million for the city.

Members of the San Jose Fire Choir sang the national anthem before the invocation during the 2005 State of the City address Feb. 9 at the California Theater in downtown. Photo by Sheila Sanchez

Reacting to his speech, District 5 San Jose City Councilwoman Nora Campos was happy to hear all of Gonzales’s goals and plans for the future. She specifically thanked the mayor for wanting to bring major league baseball to the city. “We’re a big city and we need to start having the things that are important and that attract people here,” she said.

Newly elected District 10 Councilwoman Nancy Pyle called the mayor’s address upbeat and necessary during tough economic times. “It’s always good during any down economy to find ways to bring the economy up and keep people employed,” she said. “A baseball team here will bring a lot of unity to our community. It will be a real boost to our economy.”

Pyle, a former educator, said Gonzales’s plan to create an education foundation was music to her ears. She said the idea would help strengthen the economy as companies look at the state of education before relocating to the Bay Area.

District 8 San Jose Councilman and mayoral contender David Cortese said he was happy to hear the mayor talk about baseball. As founder of the Baseball San Jose organization, Cortese said, “We’ve been waiting for a while for the mayor to make a strong statement about it and he sure did tonight. He’s working on the details of what the proposal should look like. We haven’t seen it yet, but he knows how to those things and I’m sure he’ll put something real thoughtful together and that will just help us and give us a lot of momentum.”

Cortese also liked the mayor’s idea of creating an education foundation to help the city’s districts have more unity. “If it becomes something that brings the school districts together and that’s collaborative, it will be outstanding. If it’s something that throws money at the problem, it won’t be,” he said.

The evening’s most poignant moment was, perhaps, when Buddhist monk Madawala Seelawimala offered a prayer before San Jose City Clerk Lee Price swore in Pyle and the other four re-elected council members.

Seelawimala spoke about the Southeast Asia earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country of Sri Lanka.

“It was very shocking for all of us and thousands of people died in a matter of minutes,” he said thanking the audience and those who have helped with relief efforts in the Bay Area. “One thing I learned (from the tragedy) was the little differences between the human race. There’s been ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka and all those people died together holding each other’s hands. There’s no difference.”

He prayed that Gonzales and council members could reach beyond their differences and take care of each other and their constituents. He also blessed them with good health, wisdom and efficiency to bring prosperity and happiness to San Jose residents.

Following the invocation, city officials presented the Good Neighbor Recognition Awards and the Pride of San Jose Awards in the form of a video clip honoring different residents and organizations in each of the city’s 10 districts for their distinguished public service.