February 28, 2008

Mayor, Nguyen back off citywide election

By Carol Rosen
Editor

On Friday, Feb. 22, Mayor Chuck Reed and Councilmember Madison Nguyen threw some water on the fire surrounding the controversial name of a Vietnamese shopping area on Story Road between Senter Road and Highway 101.

The two sent out a memo asking that the Nov. 20 naming of the retail area be rescinded and to let the community decide on a name that’s supported by a majority of business and property owners.

This follows nearly four months of controversy over the naming of the shopping area and costly early February proposals to put the measure on a citywide ballot. It is also hoped that the measure will end loud protests and a hunger strike posed by those against the name Saigon Business District.

As the Times has reported, on Nov. 20, the City Council voted 8-3 to name the predominantly Vietnamese mile-long shopping area Saigon Business District.

While many in San Jose would consider the matter a vote for residents in District 7, the mayor and Nguyen earlier this month suggested putting the issue on the ballot for the entire city in June or November. That action would have cost the city $577,000 for the June ballot and had to happen before March 7. The cost to put it on the November ballot would have been $214,000.

Besides rescinding the Saigon Business District name, the Reed/Nguyen memo recommended the council should “adopt a resolution recognizing the Story Road retail area as a Vietnamese retail destination area.”

Most important, it directed city staff to draft a council policy outlining a process to officially name areas and districts of San Jose. The council, according to the recommendation, would “take no further action on naming the area until…the community has joined together and reached consensus on a name that has the support of a majority of the business and property owners in the area, and then completes” the naming process described above.

The group protests, which have occurred outside City Hall before and during council meetings as well as at the Convention Center during the State of the City, were local news.

In mid-February, the protests were further fueled when District 2 Councilmember Forrest Williams indicated that over the summer Nguyen had asked for and received his support in the vote. Nguyen lined up four other votes prior to the November session. Under the state’s Brown Act it is illegal for a majority of office holders to discuss issues outside of public meetings.

However, Williams later explained that the incident never included a meeting and was a “brief exchange in passing that I supported her quest for a business district in her council district.”

City Attorney Rick Doyle looked into the situation and while he could not find a violation to the Brown Act, said that Williams’ comments suggested that a violation might have occurred. Even though both council members maintain they did not discuss the matter prior to the vote, Doyle said the conversation appeared to be “informal water cooler chat,” there is a “perception of a Brown Act violation” that needs to be cleared up. He suggested the council overturn the previous vote and reschedule another vote.

In their memo, Reed and Nguyen said, “the designation and naming of the Story Road retail area has been divisive and difficult and the argument over the name has been harmful, disruptive and counterproductive for our city and its residents. It is time now for the council to step back from the issue and allow time for the rifts and divisions in the community to be repaired. The lack of a clear process for designating such areas resulted in much of the confusion and problems surrounding this issue. Moving forward, we hope that having a clear process in place will prevent a repeat of this controversy in this or other communities in San Jose.”