January 9, 2009

District 8 Report

2009: A new beginning

By Councilmember Rose Herrera
Special to the Times

San Jose is a great city to live and work and I am proud to represent you on the City Council. I am committed to staying connected with the residents and businesses of Evergreen. That is why I will be continuing former Vice-Mayor Dave Cortese’s tradition of having a column in the Evergreen Times. The Times has been a cornerstone in Evergreen for over twenty-five years and continues to be one of the premiere local papers in the Bay Area. I appreciate the opportunity this column will provide to share my thoughts and keep you informed about issues that are facing our city and community.

While running for office, I made a pledge to help make District 8 and San Jose a better place to live and work. I give my thanks to the thousands of supporters who believed in my message. I am committed to protecting and improving the quality of life for our community.

The quality of life issues for Evergreen are similar to those across San Jose. We must ensure that we have the necessary resources to provide essential services to our neighborhoods, especially police and fire. We need to grow our economic base by targeting scarce economic development dollars towards leveraging job growth for quality high-paying jobs. Lastly, we must use the opportunity of President-elect Obama’s stimulus package to start important transportation projects.

With headlines across the country flashing words like ‘recession’ and ‘downturn’ it is no wonder the doom and gloom is spreading from coast to coast. But I can assure you, my colleagues and I in City Hall firmly believe that Silicon Valley and San Jose will not only weather the storm, but emerge stronger than ever. San Jose is the capitol of the Silicon Valley region and the center for innovation. We are positioned to be one of the first areas in the country to recover from the downturn and get the economy going.

By targeting our economic development dollars towards job growth, the City is positioning itself to support our large and small employers. I will be monitoring all budget decisions related to economic development with the priority for quality job growth. In addition, I will advocate for investment in clean technology and helping encourage companies to start and stay in San Jose. As part of this emphasis, I will be looking for opportunities to bring the jobs to Evergreen as well. This means working with all stakeholders to ensure San Jose is an attractive place to live and work.

The new administration in Washington is hoping to jumpstart the economy by providing several economic stimulus bills to create jobs and spending. San Jose already has an action plan in place and is lobbying heavily in Washington to make sure we get a fair share of funds to create jobs for our residents and improve our quality of life. Should stimulus money become available for San Jose, we should target for the immediate construction of our highest priority projects, specifically the interchanges at 101/Yerba Buena/Tully and Capitol Expressway, along with construction of light rail to Eastridge. These are construction-ready projects which will put people immediately back to work, while correcting serious transportation deficiencies that currently exist in Evergreen.

Growing our sales tax base is also important. A simple way to make a difference is to shop locally. By supporting neighborhood businesses we are able to keep healthy, vibrant neighborhood centers and support the backbone of our economy. Shopping locally also benefits the environment, by reducing our carbon footprint and keeping cars off the already crowded roads.

While the city is being challenged to do more with less, it is important that all of us rise to the challenge and help out in our community. I would encourage every resident of District 8 to the extent that they can, to take a few hours out of the week to make a difference. Residents can get involved by organizing a neighborhood cleanup, working with the city staff to combat graffiti or volunteering at your local school or library. One program which is currently looking for volunteers is the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA). VITA focuses on helping low-income, disabled, elderly and limited English speaking persons receive free income tax assistance. To volunteer please call Lydia Arzate at 408-817-6835, or visit the website: http://www.vita-volunteers.org/index.htm . In coming articles I will continue to highlight other volunteer opportunities.

I am truly honored and excited by this opportunity to serve the residents of our district. If there is any way that I or my staff can be of help to you, please do not hesitate to contact us at (408) 535-4908 or send me an email: rose.herrera@sanjoseca.gov.

You’re invited
The city of San Jose requests the pleasure of your company at the inaugural festivities of Rose Herrera on Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 11:30 a.m. at the San Jose City Hall Rotunda. Please RSVP by January 12 to Bushra Rasheed at (408) 535-4908.