Santa Clarans could decide whether to have their police chief and city clerk remain elected or turn over their appointment to the City Council. At its meeting Tuesday night, the Council opted to put an item on a future agenda to discuss a ballot measure that would eliminate the clerk and police chief as political … Read more
A new and unregistered political committee calling itself Save Our Santa Clara aims to recall three city council members elected in 2020: two Asian Americans and Santa Clara’s second openly gay council member. The purported recall effort comes after $6 million in a losing court battle and another half a million in ballot measures to … Read more
Allegations of chicanery regarding a planning commissioner’s residence caused the Council to ax him from that position. At its first meeting in a month, the Council removed Ron Patrick from the Planning Commission mere months after appointing him. Councilmember Anthony Becker previously raised the topic and spearheaded a campaign to discuss the issue at a … Read more
The 49ers’ proposed settlement following five years of contentious litigation with Santa Clara would net the City $3.3 million immediately and about $1 million a year in reduced Santa Clara Stadium Authority (SCSA) legal expenses. It would also bring down the curtain on a four-year-old breach-of-contract lawsuit by the 49ers over stadium management [2019 49ers … Read more
Mayor Lisa Gillmor may have many shortcomings, but one of them isn’t a lack of imagination. Unable to get the City’s actual voters behind her agenda, she and her allies have invented a whole new class of voters in Santa Clara elections — voters who don’t live here. It’s a bold move that would earn … Read more
The Santa Clara City Council discussed two tax measures for the November ballot, agreed to fund an assessment of its Loyalton Ranch property and approved objective design standards for City developments at the July 5, 2022 meeting. “Fair share” was the phrase of the night at the Santa Clara City Council meeting when the Council … Read more
Former City Attorney Brian Doyle made another appearance before the City Council on June 21. The Santa Clara resident asked the Council to place an item on a future agenda to ask Council Members Karen Hardy and Raj Chahal for an explanation regarding questions of non-compliance with FPPC law and regulations, the City of Santa … Read more
After much back and forth, repeated deferrals and fact finding, the Santa Clara City Council has finally opted to sell Loyalton Ranch. The assessment of the property — located just outside Reno — values it at $4.7 million. However, Mayor Lisa Gillmor has repeatedly challenged whether selling the property is the right course, saying the … Read more
During the June 7 City Council meeting, the Santa Clara City Council approved an amendment to the General Plan to create a new housing designation, “very high residential.” Council members also voted to sell Loyalton Ranch and declined to place a petition by resident and former City Attorney Brian Doyle on a future agenda. The … Read more
Last week the 49ers celebrated Levi’s Stadium’s first concert, Coldplay, 1001 days after the last concert in 2019 and 10 years to the month after Mayor Lisa Gillmor and 49ers co-owner Jed York drove the first shovels into the Santa Clara ground that would become Levi’s Stadium. If that wasn’t auspicious enough, May was also … Read more