Morning News Round-Up -- 2.8.10: When the Saints...

If you didn't check Watch Dog after you read the Morning News Round-Up on Friday, you missed late-breaking stuff about Mayor Ron Dellums being "in the know" about when Major League Baseball would hear back from the Task Force looking into the Oakland A's Bay Area stadium options... We posted it after we read the East Bay Express, then San Jose Inside did.

This is interesting, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and City Manager Deb Figone are on a different page when it comes to changing the make up of the pension boards in the City of San Jose. It is interesting because Reed and Figone are often on the same page when it comes to such things... Figone wants all the folks on the board to be independent, financial experts appointed by the City Council -- Reed has cut a deal that isn't as strong, but will still get more experts, but fewer Council appointments, on the pension boards. Pension board/ taxpayer watch dogs seem displeased...

Perhaps a winning lotto ticket could help make up some of San Jose's pension losses... a $20 million ticket was sold at 7-11 on Bascom Avenue. Check your numbers: 19, 29, 36, 41, 20...

Dolores Carr in the news... again. This time, the judge that she has instructed her prosecutors to boycott has a key case in front of her right now and isn't letting the case go. Sorry District Attorney Carr...

Also in the news is the SJPD, well, one detective in particular. This will affect Dolores Carr's office too. A detective in the Sexual Assaults Investigations Unit may face charges for allegedly filing false police reports that led to some cases being dismissed, although is seems that no one was falsely charged because the shoddy police work. Of course, after the fact of this coming to light, Police Chief Rob Davis is looking into auditing detectives more closely... sound familiar?

Speaking of internal government controversies, here's another one: Silicon Valley Power, the utility that provides electricity to Santa Clara, was forced by Cal-OSHA to shut down one of the City's three power plants. The story also highlights some other internal issues going on at Silicon Valley Power... No word yet if Mission City Lantern can trace this closure back to the anti-49ers crowd, but we'll wait and see.

In an unrelated story, 5 folks died at a Connecticut power plant after a big explosion.

When we think about the 49ers stadium plans in Santa Clara, we've generally only been talking about Santa Clara. But the Sunnyvale City Council wanted some 49er love as well -- and Lisa Lang of the 49ers gave them some. Perhaps San Jose is interested in the economic/ traffic impact of the 49er's stadium?

Scott Herhold at the Merc is doing some reporting this week, apparently. He fills us in on a story developing in the County Building where Assessor Larry Stone is actively trying to stop former Sunnyvale Councilmember John Howe's appointment to an Assessment Appeals Board at the County. Supervisor George Shirakawa has nominated John Howe and Larry Stone thinks that Howe is not only unqualified, but wrote a nasty letter to tell everyone about it. Herhold got wind of the story and wrote about is as a reporter, not a columnist, this weekend...

Herhold also wrote a column this weekend, continuing a push for openness from the San Jose Police Department, specifically about 911 tapes. Herhold notes that the entire Toyota accelerator recall stems, in large part, from a released 911 tape. Oh, and the Police Chief Rob Davis was out of town when Herhold called for a quote. Perhaps he is looking for a place to retire too, because Herhold also noted that Davis "...is widely believed to be a short-timer..."

Internal Affairs in the Merc let Sheriff Laurie Smith know why she should be careful whom she writes letters of recommendation for... her opponent in her re-election bid is using a Smith-written recommendation as a campaign promotional piece. Oops.

Morning News Round-Up -- 1.27.10: Joe Friday Wednesday...

We never came back for a post yesterday, apologies to everyone... we'll include some stories from yesterday, just in case you missed them...

The story about the toddler who lost his life because of a tree that crashed into the parked truck in San Jose took an interesting turn into yesterday's paper. Of course this is a huge tragedy, but yesterday's story shed light onto the City of San Jose's budget cuts over the past few years that has meant trees in front of houses (but in the public right-of-way) are now homeowners' responsibility... expect neighbors to show up at the next round of budget discussions talking about trees. Trees, police officers (and pensions), firefighers (and pensions), public employees (and pensions), library hours, parks, community centers -- the budget discussions will not be particularly fun this year.

And...

There is already a response from the City about trees in today's paper in the form of an "aggressive public awareness campaign"...

And...

The Merc Editorial Board chimes in and says San Jose's tree law make sense... which is perhaps the last popular position of the day.

Sheriff Laurie Smith is in a much better re-election position than the other County law enforcement officer (DA Dolores Carr) this year, but that doesn't mean she is getting a free re-election pass... there are three folks lining up to challenge Smith. The Merc singles out one candidate, retired SJPD Captain Richard Calderon, as a candidate that "...has issues of his own..." (Rich Robinson, clip that sentence from the story for your "op research" file...)

And if it is Wednesday (or any day, for that matter), Dolores Carr will be in the paper. Today she is there defending her boycott of a local judge. Using a double negative (sort of) she wrote to the Merc via email and said that boycotting a judge is "not unheard of"... Maybe, there are some legal experts in the story that have a different opinion. Until tomorrow's story about Dolores Carr...

San Jose's Club Wet is back open... but the Police Chief's ability to close down clubs in the future is about to be curbed by the City Council. Stemming from a lawsuit Club Wet brought against the City last year, the City (and club owners) have reworked the ordinance, started talking to each other, and apparently the clubs aren't the brawl-magnets they once were... for now. Anyway, club owners and the City (but perhaps not the Police Chief) seem happier than they were late last fall. That doesn't mean Watch Dog will be rolling into Club Wet anytime soon, but maybe...

Mayor Reed and Councilmembers Sam Liccardo and Rose Herrera proposed a job-spurring package this week to be heard in a few weeks that would encourage businesses to stay and grow or relocate to San Jose. Watch Dog doesn't know if it will help, but it probably can't hurt... Liccardo wrote about it this week on San Jose Inside.

Santa Clara County is the new Belmont? If a measure gets traction to ban smoking in apartment buildings, the County will join Belmont... it is one of the ideas Board of Supervisors President Ken Yeager is proposing. He also gave his State of the County yesterday and it was nice to see all of you there... it was perhaps the most political crowd ever at a State of the County with all the candidates and glad-handing. Is the County Building sexy again?

The 49er's vote in June in Santa Clara is even closer than it was. The Santa Clara Council voted on a procedural measure to move it forward. But the quote in this Merc story is a gem, from Councilmember Jamie Matthews: "Ultimately, the people will decide, and they are smarter than all of us..." ...Especially smarter than the Santa Clara City Council... just kidding. Perhaps the "no on stadium" folks can use that quote against Matthews in a Gavin-esque manner...

Protect San Jose gives us the (Just the) "Facts About Cannabis Use"... which was not written by Sgt. Joe Friday (or Chief Davis), but it might as well have been... Damn hippies!

Monday's gun-point gas station robbery in north Gilroy was caught on tape... Don't expect this video to appear on one of those late-night "America's Scariest Videos" anytime soon. The whole thing went down in a pretty orderly and mellow way actually. They were probably stealing money for pot...

Morning News Round-Up -- 5.6.09: Shading sunshine in San Jose...

Yawn, Watch Dog hopes this is the end of the Swine Flu updates. Yesterday was the last day of the Swine Flu vacation, today schools are open and expecting your kids at their desks. Santa Clara County Health Officer Marty Fenstersheib made the bold decision shortly after the Centers for Disease Control backed off rigid closing requirements. “This novel virus looks exactly like the seasonal flu...” except for the school closures and mass-hysteria... (or Mask Hysteria.)

On to the fun stuff -- yesterday's San Jose City Council meeting...

There’s a new gig up for grabs, again. The San Jose City Council agreed to reopen the hiring process for the Independent Police Auditor and keep the original applicants in the mix. Yep, that’s right, Chris Constantin has a second shot at being the guy to review his brother's (and his brother's brothers-in-blue) work. But this isn't the most interesting part of the City Council meeting yesterday... this is:

Mayor Chuck Reed was a little testy, trying hard to get colleagues to tell all of the closed door session discussion when the chose Constantin, who apparently wasn't Mayor Reed's first choice. Remember, Councilmember Nora Campos was spinning the tale that she didn't know about Constantin's police-relations when she voted to make him the new IPA. The Mayor (apparently) knows that Campos is not telling the truth -- and so do some Councilmembers. The Mayor tried, unsuccessfully, to get the Council to release the notes from the Closed Session meeting where Constantin was approved. But the majority on the City Council said, unbelievably, that they would like to decide in private whether to keep the private conversation private. (That sentence makes sense, read it again...) So much for sunshine...

San Jose Revealed weighs in on the new/old IPA hunt (Reed screwed up) and the Earthquakes land deal (the City lost money). Revealed also shares opinions on the Mayor’s biennial Ethics Review Memo.

San Jose Inside’s Fly dishes the news that members of the Elections Commission are hinting that Councilmember Nora Campos was the source of the anonymous complaint against Tom McEnery. Campos’ Chief of Staff Ryan Ford heard the hints and suggested the Elections Commission go ahead, try to find out saying, “we had nothing to do with that.” City Clerk Lee Price says the Commission doesn’t have the authority to investigate. Perhaps evidence would point to the (blo)sphere of influence between Campos and San Jose Revealed and the complaint...

GOOOOOAAAAAALLLLLL! Is expected to be heard in San Jose. Tuesday the City Council unanimously approved sale of land to Earthquakes/A’s owner Lew Wolff to build a soccer stadium, a hotel, and some retail shops. Soccer Silicon Valley president Don Gagliardi expressed his inner soccer joy saying “...this is the culmination of five years of effort...”

Home value tracking site Zillow.com provided the news that the plunging housing market has slowed, a little. Wet blanket Santa Clara Assessor Larry Stone offered his thoughts that the home value losses were greater than the $57 billion estimated by Zillow.com. “I was surprised it was so low, there has been a serious erosion of equity,” said party pooper Stone.

Vahid Hosseini was a respected shopkeeper in a tough neighborhood with occasional gang violence. The Willow Market was the place where neighbors could cash their paychecks and get groceries. Police Chief Rob Davis announced Tuesday Alejandro Mendoza has been arrested for last years murder of Hosseini. Chief Davis said “the investigation is still ongoing – literally – as we speak,” and asked anyone with information call 408-277-5283.

Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors President Liz Kniss is expecting unprecedented federal support and says without it “our financial boat would barely be afloat.” The President (Kniss) is referring to federal stimulus dollars coming from D.C. to provide support for some of the County’s mental health, alcohol/drug abuse programs, and those gentle Nightingales who poked a needle in your Swine Fluish arm. Not helped by the federal bucks will be seniors, the disabled, and unemployed families – all of whom can expect continued budget cuts. (While Kniss is making her case in the newspaper, Supervisors in San Mateo County were actually testifying on Capitol Hill...)

Lest we forget, yesterday was an Election Day in some parts of the County. Voters in the Moreland and Cupertino Union School Districts agreed to help schools and passed their parcel tax measures, in spite of the gloomy economy.

It was a geeks paradise where San Jose’s Harker Academy eighth-grader Sierra Lincoln proved herself the geekiest of all. Lincoln took three awards in all and won top awards for programming and robot skills at the international VEX Robotics championship competition in Omaha, Nebraska. Geek on, sister.

Saratoga wants more of those fed dollars and is fighting for more than the $851,580 street paving dollars guaranteed. Saratoga is hoping to move City offices completely off the electric grid and is banking on federal green bucks to help make that happen.

Monte Sereno’s City Council had the unenviable chore of voting itself a salary during the worst economic disaster in decades. Councilmember Marshall Anstandig vows to return the salary or donate it to charity. Monte Serenan Lon Allen wants the Council to delay the vote a month in order to mail a postcard to everyone in town letting them know about the $300/month proposal. Estimated cost of mailing postcards: $3,600.

Morgan Hill’s Chamber of Commerce decided to move the popular Friday Night Music Series out of the street and into the amphitheatre – against the wishes of downtown merchants who see revenue disappearing into the amphitheatre along with the music. As of press time it was not known how many Chamber members voted for the move.

The Santa Clara Valley Water District meets to vote on a proposal to raise South County water rates. Great Oaks attorney Tim Guster called the rate raising process “flawed” and plans to attend the Wednesday night meeting to say so.

Morning News Round-Up -- 4.6.09: Fake Quotes Edition...

The Merc. was on a tear this weekend over accusations of racial profiling. (Perhaps reporters and editors are listening to the Drunk Task Force even though the folks that launched the Task Force aren't):

• A comparison between the approach of San Jose’s former (beloved) Police Chief William Lansdowne and current (not so beloved) Police Chief Rob Davis. Davis says it’s like comparing “apples and oranges” and an unfair to compare San Diego to San Jose. Davis didn't continue to say, "To compare someone who was loved and someone who isn't, isn't fair..."
  
• Up next, the Barrera family was pulled from their home and put face down in the yard before Police realized they were at the wrong house. (Big oops.) As if the story wasn't enough, the Merc. enters the digital age and has a (controversial) video posted that includes interviews with the Barrera’s and others unhappy with SJPD.
• A weekend expose on the huge number of arrests for disorderly conduct and similar "crimes". Guess what? Latinos get arrested more than anyone else.
• The Merc’s Editorial Board wants Mayor Chuck Reed and City Manager Debra Figone to demand an explanation on the large numbers arrested for disorderly conduct and similar "crimes".

In other law enforcement news: Sheriff Laurie Smith cut off access to expensive psychotropic drugs for inmates in order to save money and get folks off of drugs. Apparently some inmates pretend to be schizophrenic to get high. Spokesperson Joy Alexiou says there are other drugs that do the job but won’t cost as much. (Perhaps meth?) Sheriff Smith did not say, "If the San Jose Police Department would stop bringing us all these people that don't really belong here, we'd really appreciate it."

Tuesday is a big day for San Jose's Major League hopes. In chambers for both the County Supervisors and San Jose City Council the words “Play Ball!” will ring out. The Supervisors and Council call the Giants territorial rights nothing more than the creation of “indentured servants” of the South Bay. Not everyone agrees, Giants Executive Vice President Larry Baer says Santa Clara County is “the heart of our business.” What he didn't say was, "and the heart of business is for sale to the A's if the price is right..."

The Merc’s Internal Affairs brings us up to date on the continuing political drama around Silicon Valley -- even though some of it you know because you read Watch Dog...

• The Manuel Herrera-Xavier Campos battle for San Jose’s City Council District 5 seat is lining up. The X Man (Shirakawa staffer/Nora Campos' brother Xavier Campos) tells us that he is “seriously considering” a run at the seat. Really? Watch Dog is shocked! Shocked! (Except we wrote about on March 20th.)
  
• In the Alum Rock School District, former/current Superintendent Norma Martinez quit last year but is still pulling down the big bucks, draining much needed dollars from a cash-strapped School District, and making the District look horrible...
• GOP rivals for the Governor’s office flew together out of San Jose, which is pretty funny. But that story that both campaigns wanted everyone to know about (which Internal Affairs didn't mention) was that the two m/billionaires were both flying Southwest and the candidates want everyone to know that they are "of the people." Steve and Meg, good work -- we believe it. Whitman was not heard saying, "I like this brand new airline...Southwest."

San Jose Councilmember Sam Liccardo’s bad decision to take Sharks tickets might not be turn out so badly. The tickets weren’t as expensive as Liccardo thought so there’s (apparently) no violation of State rules. (Watch Dog spies have let us know that the 18th floor of City Hall is scrambling to figure out who else may have taken tickets but not reported them. Remember, Liccardo actually reported the tickets...) One spy did not say, "Everyone accepts tickets, Sam is the only one silly enough to even report it..." (Actually, someone did say that...)

San Jose Revealed amps up the angst over the Liccardo mishap but sets their aims at City Attorney Rick Doyle with a rather long tirade.

Mr. Roadshow’s Gary Richards handed the reins over to Mrs. Roadshow so he could head out for a little baseball. The Mrs. gets the chance to dish on the Mr.’s driving habits.

The community member of the Merc's Editorial Board is changing over. Teresa Alvarado is out and Michelle Lew is in. Lew is the President of Asian Americans for Community Involvement.

Vasona Park was the site of the Iranian community’s annual NoRouz celebration. San Jose Planning Commissioner/Festival organizer Matt Kamkar hopes the crowd of over 20,000 will work together to raise $100 million for a community center in San Jose. Not great timing for that fundraising effort -- but at least the weather was good.

Here’s where you can go to be a part of government in action this week:

• The County Board of Supervisors will hear Supervisor Dave Cortese’s request for more details on the lock-up of a 10 year old boy and his 11, 12 year old siblings. (Oh, and a request to have Major League Baseball let San Jose out of San Francisco's grip...)
• The San Jose City Council will also discuss Major League Baseball and a downtown San Jose stadium...and sidewalk cafes, surplus land, and fee increases for tree removal.
• Monte Sereno’s City Council (they have a City Council?) will consider pay for City Council members. Good timing for that discussion...
• The San Jose Elections Commission will consider the complaint against former Mayor/Lobbyist Tom McEnery, discuss procedures for anonymous complaints, and campaign finance and limits to contributions.
  

And in our School Districts...

• The Franklin-McKinley School District hosts a workshop to figure out how to chop $2 million out of the budget, including increasing class sizes.
• The Los Altos School District discusses removing money from programs to feed the general fund.
• The Alum Rock Union School District will consider formation of multiple committees and consider a supplemental retirement plan for teachers. Wouldn't it be great if the District had a Superintendent to guide this discussion?
• The Cupertino Union School District also considers moving money from programs to keep the general fund afloat.
• East Side Union High School District Trustees will consider approval of a charter for Downtown College Prep, lockers, and an agreement with the teachers union.