Political news, Local politics and government news reporting in Santa Clara and Sunnyvale.
Stadium Long-Term Financing Deal Inked The long-term Santa Clara stadium financing plan proposed in early May was finalized at the June 12 Council meeting. The plan replaces the variable rate $450 million Stadium Authority construction loans with 25-year fixed-rate bonds and a variable rate bank loan to cover outstanding invoices for seat licenses. In five … Read more
Santa Clara Cultural and International Commissions Merge Last week the City Council agreed to combine the Cultural Advisory Commission and the International Exchange Commission into a single, new Santa Clara Cultural Commission. The International Commission has not had a quorum for several months, and thus, been unable to meet. Many of the two commissions activities … Read more
High school students who participated in the Student Advisory Council on April 28th at Harker School got to tell everyone that they saw Congressman Mike Honda practicing his Zumba dance moves. At the afternoon conference, hosted by the congressman, students gave presentations and facilitated activities to demonstrate their knowledge and thoughts surrounding the theme, “Eat … Read more
It didn’t draw as big an audience as Joe Montana’s star appearance at a City Council meeting last year, but last week’s Council meeting could be a momentous one in city history. The Council unanimously approved an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) with Related Companies to develop a proposal for a 220-acre mixed use development on … Read more
Free outdoor Wi-Fi became a reality for the City of Santa Clara last week, with citywide access launched by Silicon Valley Power (SVP) as part of its SVP MeterConnect program. Santa Clara was the first city in the country to provide free outdoor Wi-Fi access for an entire community as part of an advanced electric … Read more
About a month ago, Santa Clara County cities registered their dissatisfaction with the county’s conduct on RDA oversight boards in a detailed five-page letter to the County Board of Supervisors – who have so far avoided publicly acknowledging the controversy. The Supervisors’ response to cities’ plea for support and fairness was three paragraphs that could … Read more
After Obama won the election last November, there was a lot of talk in polito-sphere about the campaign’s “ground game.” What made that “ground game” so effective was that it was already in place long before the campaign started – as Romney’s team discovered to their regret. That team is still in place today – … Read more
It’s not only local government and development insiders who are dismayed by the county money grab unleashed by the clawback provisions of the RDA dissolution law passed by the state legislature last year. The county’s denial of $62 million in Santa Clara’s affordable housing obligations drew a sharp response from Bill Wilson Center (www.billwilsoncenter.org) Executive … Read more
Last month was notable for several milestones that advance Santa Clara’s 2010 General Plan for affordable and walk-able new housing in Santa Clara, while also advancing long-term improvement for the El Camino Real. Leasing has started for 40 new “affordable” studio and one-bedroom apartments at Presidio El Camino. The project isn’t just about adding housing … Read more
Last week the Santa Clara City Council took time out from the challenges of governing, to honor three outgoing Council Members: Will Kennedy, Jamie McLeod and Kevin Moore. All three were first elected in 2004 and re-elected in 2008. Recognizing that serving on the City Council requires not just the work of the Council Members … Read more