Oliverio for Supervisor 2018

Independent - Transparent - Fiscally Responsible

Over the Hills and Through the Woods

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Open space is a very important quality-of-life issue. With so much development happening everywhere, we need to remember to include open space in our plans. I attended two outdoor events this week that reminded me about how important open space is, especially where there are trees. Both of the events were located in pristine areas.

It isn’t mandatory that I attend all events, but in these two cases I am glad I went. I was invited to attend “Best in the West,” which was the sixteenth annual SWAT Team competition held at the Sheriff’s firearms range south of Metcalf Power station in Coyote Valley. SWAT Teams from all over California competed in sniper exercises, the jungle course, and shotgun competitions among others. The event was hosted by Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith. This area is beautiful, with rolling hillsides, trees, etc.  It is the area that I am thankful that former Mayor Susan Hammer set aside for the urban growth boundary.

I went to support the San Jose police SWAT team called MERGE. They did quite well. As we know, our SWAT team is not utilized on a daily basis (which is a good thing) but is called out for more life threatening crises, like a hostage situation. Watching the SWAT team in action gave me much admiration for the training that our San Jose Police officers do on a continual basis. I fully enjoyed seeing them in action and appreciate their service to our city.

The second event that I attended was the San Jose Water Company’s fifth annual Leadership BBQ.  It was an evening event located in the Los Gatos Mountains off Bear Creek Road and Black Road. The San Jose Water Company owns several acres of land by the Sierra Azul Open Space in the Los Gatos Creek watershed. I felt like I was in Switzerland with the lush greenery and beautiful lake. Unfortunately, San Jose Water Company has discussed the idea of logging 1,002 acres of trees in the watershed to make way for a “future property owner.” I am not sure what the status of this issue is now, but I couldn’t imagine allowing for such a large amount of the trees to be cut. It is a picture-perfect venue that could not be recreated, even if one tried.

These events reminded me of how important it is to preserve and promote our open spaces in order to maintain our quality of life.

Try It Before You Buy It

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Large organizations often wrestle with enterprise software implementations. They are often promised big returns, quick implementations, user friendly programs and then—the real “kicker”—that costs will not exceed a certain given price.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The VTA spent $30 million on finance software and currently is in the process of spending another $3 million for an upgrade which does not include hardware.  The City of San Jose purchased software for the call center and billing system at a cost of $2 million with another $11 million for implementation services, almost $1 million for hardware and another $1.9 million for implementation services this past August. Get a calculator: the total price tag is just short of $16 million.

What can we learn from our millions of dollars in expenditures?  Or, do we want to learn anything?  Or, do we feel more comfortable in justifying costs, since it appears no one is paying much attention anyway?

I understand that technology is not free.  However, I do think that the city can save money when purchasing IT and, further, should stop spending the millions it has so far and take into consideration other forms of technology that could achieve the same goals for less money.

I am a fan of pilot programs.  Pilot programs allow a new “system” to run its course for a specified time to see if the item in question (in this case, new software) will provide the promised benefits.  “Pilots” are done in the private sector all the time.  One would not buy a car without doing a test drive first, so why should San Jose spend millions of dollars on software or consultants before we make sure the services will work as promised.

When it comes to a proposed technology pilot, I would recommend that we choose 2-3 vendors to run use cases. This way we have actual experience to judge what each vendor does well and what it does not do well. Even if we chose to do a pilot with one vendor, I think we would be better prepared to know what to ask for from other vendors. This process may take a little longer; however, it allows the city to make an informed decision based on actual use rather than hypothetical power point slides.  If the vendor does not want to do a pilot program, then that is a telling sign and I would recommend that they be dropped from the list.

Currently, the city purchases software which, in this case, equates to the city taking on the responsibility of handling total costs of ownership like IT-burdened labor rates, software bugs, patches and upgrades. In addition to the software, we also take care of the servers by configuring, maintaining, and backing up the servers where the software resides.  Servers are expensive in the start-up and ongoing costs. In my opinion, maintaining servers are also a burden because they use a tremendous amount of energy which creates greenhouse gases and, in addition, we need a special facility to store the servers that is temperature controlled.

Personally, I believe we should outsource enterprise software at City Hall and subscribe to software via the web as a service. Software as a service would relieve us of the maintenance costs, hardware costs and energy-hogging servers. Plus, if the software service does not work as promised, the cost to switch is minimal. Millions of Americans log into financial software via a web browser every day to manage their finances without having any software or servers at their home or work.

I am aware that change takes little steps.  I just hope that San Jose begins to take those little steps that will save us money and make us more environmentally friendly.  Millions overspent on software that does not deliver as promised means less for parks, streets and public safety.

Grocery Store Economics

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Grocery stores are an important element of our neighborhoods. They remind me of libraries and parks: a place that is usually open and serves everyone. Some of my fondest memories of childhood include grocery stores—whether it was cooling down on a hot day in the freezer section or spending my paper route money on snacks. Of course, those were the days when one dollar could get a kid four candy bars (which led to my 38-inch waist in elementary school!).

Unfortunately, it appears that many of the neighborhoods in San Jose are having problems getting grocery stores to locate within their environs. From Willow Glen to Berryessa, from Sherman Oaks to downtown, residents have few or no choices. A trend that I am fearful of is that grocery stores are often replaced by drug or discount stores that do not have a produce section or meat department that shoppers tend to depend on.

The grocery industry is being challenged on a macroeconomic level and stores are closing all over the United States. Just last week, Lunardi’s in Evergreen closed its doors, leaving the community at a loss. In the case of Lunardi’s, unlike Safeway, they are a small regional player, but they still must operate under the same challenging business model. Grocery stores have low single-digit profits overall as they are distributors of products grown or manufactured by someone else. Margins are low in the distribution business, plus there are all of the other usual business costs like rent, utilities (24/7 freezers for example), labor and growing medical costs, etc. Higher margins exist on alcohol and value added services like a deli or bakery. Such value added services allow a grocery store like Zanotto’s to stay open.

As we know, former “grocery giants” like Alpha Beta, Albertsons, Lucky’s etc. have fallen to the new “big box” stores like Costco and Wal-Mart—with their discount prices and sophisticated supply chains—or to “specialty” stores like Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods, with their unique products. Therefore, traditional grocers are being squeezed by both ends of the market with little room to move.

When I was a child, my parents would shop at the local grocery store. 90 percent of the family food budget was spent at a traditional grocery store. My parents did not have the many choices that we have today. However, now my father, a retired teacher, shops all over. He may visit Whole Foods, Safeway, Trader Joe’s, Mi Rancho and, of course, La Villa within just one week. Nowadays, the family food budget is split among various retail choices, thus compounding the problem of the traditional grocery store.

This leads me to ask: What can we do to promote our local grocery stores so that they stay open? How do we locate them in our neighborhoods? Certainly cities can control zoning and the permit process. Here in San Jose, we have used Redevelopment monies for Trader Joe’s at the Market Center, Whole Foods on The Alameda and Zanotto’s downtown.

One thing we all can do today is support our local grocery stores and shop in San Jose.

Where a Park? How Big a Park?

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At the August 28 city council evening meeting, the council spent over two hours deliberating on where to put the park that is part of the Irvine Development in North San Jose. This item was continued from the August 14 meeting where the council discussed it at length until 1 a.m.

There were two possible park locations discussed. One option was to locate the five acre turnkey park at a central location so that future residents could enjoy the park. The other option was to move the park to the eastern side of the parcel. This location would not suit the majority of residents and the future communities that will eventually live there.

The residents currently living in the existing high-density development want the park to be at the eastern side so it will serve as a buffer to the new development. That may make one pause and think about this option, however. There are a few problems that I found against having the park on the eastern side. One is that the city and community would lose 50 parking spaces resulting in more on-street parking, which I know would lead to problems down the road. Also, a five acre park is for everyone to enjoy, not just those who live adjacent to the park.

Another problem with the eastern side is that this location would not be able to accommodate as many organized playing fields for children or adults. Not allowing room for children to play team sports is not a good use of a five acre park. Again, we must make sure that San Jose’s larger parks are utilized to their fullest potential.

I voted to keep the park in the location that the developer and planning/park staff recommended: the central location. One reason I support this recommendation is that this location would allow for residents to view the park at all times, thus allowing for the potential to prevent vandalism or other suspicious activity at the park.

Keeping the park at its current location also allows the Guadalupe Creek Trail and the Los Gatos Creek Trail to link together there. In addition, at the central location, this five acre park has the potential to be a seven acre park, which will allow all residents of San Jose to utilize it, much like the historic Rose Garden Municipal Park and Alum Rock Park. Moving the park would cap it at five acres.

I find it disingenuous that residents who are living in a high-density development are against others having the opportunity to live in a high-density development.  As a resident and an elected official, I want housing to be available for all people, and the amenities that accompany housing to be available to all as well.

As I continue to mention (whenever I get the chance), I support smart urban development and growth within San Jose’s boundaries, not more sprawl. North San Jose is and can continue to be a very thoughtful, well-planned community with large parks, light rail, commercial, industrial, housing and jobs. This type of development is what San Jose needs. In addition, it is important to remember that this specific development will not be occupied until spring/summer 2011.

What Do Santa Clara County and the City of San Jose Have in Common? Their Residents

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On Thursday, August 23, 2007, the elected officials of the City of San Jose and Santa Clara County met to talk about five top priorities that affect the city and county. City and county staff attended, including San Jose City Manager Debra Figone and County Executive Pete Kutras.

It’s no secret that the relationship between the county and the city has been less than stellar. For example, a few years ago San Jose sued the county over the county’s attempt to build a concert hall at the fairgrounds. The city sued because they wanted to build a concert hall downtown.  Guess what? Both entities lost and the talk of a concert hall has been put to rest for now.

Residents of District 6 have shared that the sparring between the two governments is foolish.  Suing someone only to lose over $20 million like the city did to the county is not in the best interests of the community.  So, in an attempt to move beyond the courtroom, both entities have moved to City Hall and County Chambers to begin the process of rebuilding their relationship—a relationship that is more open, harmonious and collaborative for the sake of our future.

The city and county both have elected officials that genuinely care about their constituencies; however, both are suffering from structural deficits, pension liabilities and a growing need of services from their respective populations. Both know that they will not be able to deliver the same services in the same way for much longer. Therefore, they both understand the need to find commonalities on issues that we share a mutual interest in so that we can best serve the residents.

Below are the five priorities that were discussed at the meeting and one other important issue.

Former City Hall
The county is interested in purchasing old City Hall. The city is interested in getting the most monetary or other type of value from City Hall. Some feel that City Hall is an historic building and should not be knocked down, but preserved.

Fairgrounds
A Request for Proposal (RFP) has been circulated for the possible development of the 136 acre site. Some of the other options that have been discussed include commercial, parkland dedication, a possible new site for the fire training center and organized play for soccer, softball, etc. and an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

Coyote EIR
The county (and I share the view) has concerns with the traffic impact, limited parks and development next to creeks known as the Riparian Corridor. I have recommended and will continue to recommend that we stop “planning” for Coyote Valley and thus not develop. I agree with the county that the impact to our current infrastructure will be detrimental. In addition, the City of San Jose has had some of its best planners working on Coyote Valley instead of on other land use issues that are important to the city.

Annexation
There is agreement between the county, city and state at this time to move forward in trying to annex various pockets of property that are currently surrounded by the city.  Many District 6 residents, as well as others throughout the city, support annexation.

Pandemic Flu/Emergencies
Discussion also included the need for collaboration between the city and county regarding emergency preparedness. This will most likely be an ongoing issue with updates, etc.

Willow Glen Spur Trail
Although the Willow Glen Spur Trail was not included as one of the top priorities, it is an important subject. The Willow Glen Spur Trail is a former rail line owned by Union Pacific Railroad which runs through Districts 3, 6, and 7. The development of this trail will connect the Los Gatos Creek Trail to the Coyote Creek Trail. The railroad company is not in the business of creating walkable, livable communities like the city and county are; therefore, it has been difficult to acquire land for this trail in a timely manner. However, from my conversations with my colleagues, there is support to keep this future trail alive and to move forward with its completion.  I can speak for myself when I say that I will not support any zoning change to the former rail property that would block the future trail.

I am optimistic that the city and county can maximize their assets for a win-win situation that benefits both governments and, most importantly, its residents.

What do you think the city should do with old City Hall?  What do you think the county should do with the fairgrounds?

At Children’s Musical Theater, Everyone Gets a Chance.

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I was invited to attend the musical “Leader of the Pack” performed by the local Children’s Musical Theater (CMT) in the San Jose Civic Auditorium. Over the past year, I have attended a few of CMT’s productions. What specifically caught my eye during “Leader of the Pack” was a young girl who performed in a wheelchair. At first I thought the wheelchair might be part of the story, but I soon realized that she was a cast member who was disabled. She still participated with limited body movement and singing.

I was intrigued with her performance. She wore different costumes, depending on the scene, like the other actors in the play. I was thinking to myself about how gracious CMT was by giving this girl the opportunity to be included with the rest of the cast. I later found out that CMT actually casts every single child who auditions, regardless of level of talent or ability to pay.

CMT is the nation’s largest musical theater. It is fiscally sound and produces outstanding performances. In a year where many nonprofits are struggling or have used funds illegally, CMT sets a positive example for others to follow. CMT gives youth an opportunity to channel their artistic energy, which contributes to raising children’s self esteem. The children in CMT are ethnically and socio-economically diverse. CMT allows artistic talent to blossom and many of CMT’s alumni go on to perform at college and even start theatrical careers in New York and Chicago and in film.
In addition, many of the children who perform for CMT are from San Jose’s neighboring cities like Cupertino, Los Gatos and Saratoga. Since CMT shows are held in the heart of San Jose, they bring families and suburbanites downtown, providing economic benefits to restaurants.

I usually attend performances at the Rep, San Jose Stage and City Lights—not children’s theaters.  However, since taking office, I have attended children’s theater at Willow Glen Children’s Theater (at Willow Glen Middle School) and San Jose Children’s Musical Theater (at Kirk Community Center) in addition to the CMT. The performances are fun and, more importantly, they give youth an opportunity to color their pallet.