End "business as usual" at City Hall
By Mayor Ron Gonzales
Special to the Times

The prolonged recession continues to take its toll on jobs and families, especially in Silicon Valley. Currently the unemployment rate in San Jose is nearly 10 percent, which represents nearly 50,000 people actively looking for work. Over the last three years, Silicon Valley has lost approximately 200,000 jobs, which is more than the rest of California combined.

These statistics are more than numbers; they represent thousands of families who are at serious risk of falling into real financial trouble or are already there. That's why I asked the City Council to hold an unusual and intense series of study sessions in August to hear straight talk and creative approaches than can make San Jose a better city in which to do business and create jobs.

Loud and clear, we heard from businesses and community leaders that we have to end business as usual at San Jose City Hall. The city must become more responsive and flexible to help businesses that actually bring jobs to our community.

We heard that we must reduce red tape that causes delays and increases costs for businesses, which in turn discourages job creation. We must end uncertainty that gets in the way of achieving this goal. We must do everything within our powers to help businesses to create prosperity for our entire community.

We have to make sure we both keep jobs in our city and attract new jobs, because it's jobs that pay for our teachers, our police officers, and our parks and libraries. Government must think in ways it never has before, because City Hall must be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

Based on all we heard at our recent study sessions, I swiftly recommended to the City Council a comprehensive package of specific measures that will help us get families back to work in San José. You can see my proposal in detail at my website, www.sjmayor.org. Among my many recommendations are:

? Specific steps to reduce regulations that only serve to increase red tape, paperwork and delay. We shouldn't add to the burden of doing business here by adding costs and uncertainties caused by new regulations. We also must make sure San Jose remains competitive with other cities and other regions, since businesses always will look for cities that want them to succeed.
? Development projects that already clearly conform to the city's policies for land use and zoning, and have had full public participation, should be approved without the need for further micromanaging by the City Council. This could eliminate months of potential delays, allow construction to begin faster, and help create or retain thousands of jobs.
? Fee and tax relief for businesses also would provide greater incentives for businesses to invest in San Jose and create jobs. I've recommended extending current exemptions for business tenant improvements, reducing certain construction fees for emerging growth industries, and cutting permit processing and infrastructure fees for small businesses.
? Finally, City Hall must speak with one clear voice about economic development, and businesses must have one clear path to get the services they need from us. We can achieve this goal by bringing all our business support services together to create a unified and customer-friendly approach by our city staff.

It's time for bold actions for us to help get our economy moving and add jobs for the benefit of our residents and employers. My proposals are aimed to make the City of San Jose a better partner for our businesses so that together we can foster success for our residents. I'm counting on the City Council to join me with a real sense of urgency so that we can get our families back to work as soon as possible.