Morning News Round-Up -- 5.28.10: Drive safe...

This is a Friday before a long weekend, so you must, must, must read the newspaper tomorrow. Late today is a great time to release horrible news if you are a government agency, elected official, corporation, or candidate. So, Watch Dog will be watching, but you should be too...

The Mercury News is taking its news tips from Matier and Ross apparently. They get into how much money the 49ers are spending in Santa Clara. Of course it is going to "shatter local spending records" -- the most important thing folks in Santa Clara have voted on the past was if RJD2 deserved a second term as City Clerk...

Campaign filings are in other races too... In the past few months Jeff Rosen has been a fundraising machine while Dolores Carr has not. Chuck Reed raised a lot of money, his opponents did not. Madison Nguyen raised a ton and two of her opponents put a bunch of their own money ($50k and $80k) into their own campaigns... what does all this mean? Expect the airwaves (television and radio) and your mailboxes to be full in the week and a half...

The Merc finally came around to support the Alum Rock Union Elementary School District parcel tax: Measure I. The third editorial is the charm, apparently...

Robert Cortese, cousin of famous Supervisor Dave, has a true political flare. He has made it into the Metro's Fly more than almost anyone else. This time wanting to unban fireworks and supporting same sex marriage because of George Takei a.k.a. Sulu.

San Jose Family Camp isn't getting spared, but some San Jose pools might be... On the bright side of things, the pools are much closer than Yosemite.

Tesla is spending $42 million for the NUMMI plant. Which Watch Dog put together in a simple formula:

$42,000,000 for NUMMI/$100,000 per car = 420 cars for a manufacturing plant...

Not too shabby. Of course, when you are Tesla and you've only sold 900 cars total, 420 is pretty expensive...

In a story that may get overlooked today, but will have lasting implications, Caltrain got an important "waiver" from the Federal government to move forward with electrification. Yes, it sounds boring, but it seems really important.

What's old is new again at San Jose State. Former San Jose State President Don Kassing is coming back to lead State in an interim capacity next year while the school looks (again) for a new President... Welcome back Don...

The (alleged) Palo Alto/ Santa Clara kidnapper-rapist has been caught. DA Carr, do you think you can get this entire trial done before election day? It might help. Here's some more advice: Make sure all the forensic evidence gets tested before you decide to not pursue the case...

A "hit list" on a bathroom wall at Willow Glen Middle School early in the week and an Airsoft gun at Gunn High School. Ironic, we know... Don't take your guns to town... or to Gunn...

Here's something juicy, maybe. It looks like the Palo Alto Downtown Business and Professional Association kicked out its President and Executive Director. Why? Well, it seems Sherry Bijan never had a "deep interest" in doing big events in downtown Palo Alto... Of course, nobody in Palo Alto is interested in having people from outside Palo Alto come to downtown Palo Alto either, so perhaps Sherry Bijan was doing a perfect job...

Morning News Round-Up -- 5.10.10: Sports, then politics...

Sporting news first...

The Sharks are moving on to the Western Conference Finals. For those of you who know nothing about hockey, that means they are 8 wins away from hoisting the Cup... but a tough 8 wins.

And Dallas Braden, the Oakland A's newest arm pitched the 19th perfect game in MLB history... hopefully Mr. Braden will still be in the green and gold when the open in San Jose...

The Chronicle goes deep into the details about the 49er's campaign in Santa Clara...

It is May 10, which means ballots will actually go out to voters today... and the news reflects that timing...

Thanks to a South County Watch Dog, we actually looked at the political endorsements in the Gilroy Dispatch this weekend. They endorsed Teresa Alvarado for County Supervisor, which is important. But the hit mailers that was undoubtedly written this weekend and will be mailed this week will be full of this quote about Alvarado's opponent, Forrest Williams:

There is one candidate who is the poster perfect person for what Santa Clara County absolutely does not need. Forrest Williams panders to public employee unions, takes their money and is happy to do their bidding. A vote for him is a long-term sentence for financial disaster and assures an acrimonious battle at the county level as tough economic choices are made.

All evidence points to the fact that (incumbent, barely being challenged) Pete Constant is doing some opposition research on the folks running against him. We learn this from Sunday's Internal Affairs column in the Merc. It seems his two opponents have both been arrested, and Pete Constant knew enough about it to call on of his opponent's arrests a "wet reckless" which means challenger David Clancy was drinking when he got pulled over his car. We wonder where a former police officer could learn those things about his opponent... hmmm... Thinking about it further, however, Wet Reckless would be a good description of the old Club Wet nightclub downtown too...

Jeff Rosen went north and south for a pair endorsements for District Attorney, the Gilroy Dispatch and the Palo Alto Weekly get on the Rosen Train...

We thought Scott Herhold was done with writing about the District Attorney... but apparently not. He continues his anti-Dolores Carr effort, this time, mostly about how funny it is that she has two PR people on staff, while at the same time cut the cold-case unit. He goes into specifics about how having 2 PR people on board is actually the opposite of transparency, the reasoning Carr gives for having PR people in the first place. (Kathleen, feel free to defend Dolores Carr below...)

Three school bond measures get the Merc Editorial nod... A, E, and G...

Now, onto Morgan Hill, Arizona, and Tea Parties...

Arizona used to be so quaint... with the lack of Daylight Savings time and all. Now it is the hotbed of regressive anti-immigration policies... and the City of San Jose isn't going to stand idly by, they are going to ban travel and official city business with the Sun Devil state.

Scott Herhold chimes in on the Morgan Hill t-shirt flap. (He's been very busy...) He doesn't think the kids that were wearing the shirt are right... but he doesn't think they should have been kicked out of school either... We also learn that he "...loathes the simple dictums of the tea party movement..." Perhaps he should look into which local elected officials have been to the local Tea Party rallies...

And of course, the obligatory Tea Party rally happened in Morgan Hill over the weekend as Watch Dog predicted:

Also from Internal Affairs, we learn that former Alum Rock Union Superintendent, who got fired, is now going to be the Superintendent at the Greenfield Union School District. She was appointed by the State Board of Education... Internal Affairs filed this in the "what were they thinking" file...

That wasn't the only Alum Rock School District-related news thought, they might push a mandatory parent volunteer effort... good luck with that.

Remember the stranded singers from Mountain View who spent a week in Paris because of the volcano? Well, they are holding a benefit concert to pay down the debt from baguettes, onion soup, and cigarettes...

Speaking of Paris... is it a Gran Boulevard? Or is it El Camino Real...

Watch Dog got a chuckle from this little bit on the Merc website on Sunday evening... check out the really, really important "California News"...

Morning News Round-Up -- 5.3.10: Grade the Mayor!

Sharks win again. Now they are up 2-0 against the Hockey Town Red Wings... As Sharks history proves, this is when it gets exciting.

The Merc's John Woolfolk talked to "friends, foes" about San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed's grade for his first year... Woolfolk talked to Chavez (who apparently IS still talking to the paper) who said bad things, Terry Christensen who said pretty good things, Raj Jayadev who said bad things, some average voter-types who said pretty good things, and Supervisor (and loser to Reed in 2006) Dave Cortese who said, "What he promised is what he delivered..." which reads to Watch Dog like a back-handed compliment, considering Cindy Chavez has often criticized Reed for promising very little...

The story about the SJPD beating of Phuong Ho took another turn we learned on Friday. Mr. Ho, the Vietnamese national San Jose State student filed a federal lawsuit against the San Jose Police officers, alleging that the Police violated his civil rights by using excessive force... $6 million is being sought. Mr. Webby's importance to the Mercury News continues...

Say it ain't so... the head of the San Jose Police Officers Association thinks that cuts and layoffs to the SJPD would hurt morale and public safety... Right, because having officers sued in federal court and on the front page of the paper is good for morale...

2,600 undeveloped acres near the water treatment (sewage) plant would be perfect for... sports! According to a lengthy, and no doubt boring, public meeting this weekend...

If it's Sunday (and it was yesterday) it is Internal Affairs day in the Mercury News. And in the midst of a campaign season, the "tips" must be flying fast and furious to the Merc reporters who contribute to IA... this week's stuff:

• Steve Poizner was on the New York Times Best Seller list with his anti-Mount Pleasant book... or was he,
• Carly Fiorina has some ex-husbands,
• Facebook or not to (mention) Facebook, that is the question for Chris Kelly, and Kamala Harris, and
• The Golden Spiggot gets criticized again... again... again...

Speaking of politics...

The Merc gives a run-down of the Supervisorial candidates running in District 1 to replace one of the two pro-fast food County Supervisors...

Speaking of speaking of politics...

The Merc has an editorial that actually questions a parcel tax at a local school district (Alum Rock) for their exclusion of charter school in their parcel tax... This is not the Ed Board's normal reaction to parcel taxes, as we've mentioned before, from April 16th's Watch Dog

Shocking! The Mercury News says vote "yes" on the school district parcel tax elections on the (mail-in) ballot this May...

Continuing on politics...

Scott Herhold and the Merc Editorial Board agree on Proposition 16. More importantly for sports fans, Herhold gets the Rosie Ruiz analogy wrong. If memory serves from Watch Dog's marathoning, Rosie "ran" and "won" the Boston Marathon, not New York... "How can we trust anything he writes when he get such simple things wrong," Cindy Chavez (probably) said as she read the paper yesterday...

Morning News Round-Up – 10.14.09: Dirty magazines in a fire station? Watch Dog is shocked...

San Jose City Attorney Rick Doyle told the City Council they should settle (outside a courtroom) the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by fire engineer Julie LeBlanc. Doyle said the $200,000 settlement was “…a good settlement...” and sent props to LeBlanc for her courage in ferreting out the hard-core porn, including the “illest men’s magazine ever.”

San Jose walked off with California’s “highest and most prestigious environmental award” when they took the GEELA home from Los Angeles. Mayor Chuck Reed was “delighted” San Jose received recognition for keeping (recyclable) garbage out of the landfill.

Between depressed home values and fewer kids in school the Alum Rock School District talks school closure. Superintendent Jose Manzo looks at the shutdown of 2 elementary schools and a middle school due to the “financial dilemma.” Perhaps this is a fall-out from their previous "Superintendent dilemma..."

Mountain View’s City Attorney gig will soon be open as 16 year veteran Michael Martello heads into the sunset (possibly) to write a tome on conflict-of-interest. A subject Martello is familiar with having faced the music for possible conflicts during his affair with Foothill Disposal General Manager/Chamber of Commerce Board President Pamela Read.

A 2 year Mayor? Mountain View is thinking up ways to make the ceremonial rotation seat more inviting. Last years (1 year) Mayor Tom Means said the influential position means “you do get invited to things… oversee functions… set the agenda on a lot of things.”

Assemblymember Joe Coto did a happy dance Sunday night when the Governator put Santa Clara Valley Water District board reforms into state law. Reforms endorsed by the board allowed Coto to (seemingly) join forces with San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed as a Sunshine distributor.

Morgan Hill Unified School District Board of Trustees President Don Moody feels “pretty darn good” about their choice for a replacement Superintendent but isn’t dishing on the name.

Medical marijuana for Gilroy and Los Gatos has to wait until lawsuits meander through the courts or another 90 days. Deputy District Attorney Steve Lowney told the Gilroy City Council to avoid the same over-the-counter problems seen in Los Angeles. Los Gatos Councilmembers are waiting for the League of California cities to provide direction. Dude...

Gilroy survived the first storm of the season with fewer power outages and lots of flooding. Morgan Hill residents headed to church to avoid flooded roads. The biggest storm in nearly 50 years took its toll dumping over 2 inches of rain in San Jose while water district Chairman Sig Sanchez said “this is a great start!”

According to the Merc’s Sal Pizarro there’s a lotta life in the annual Day of the Dead celebrations. “Five Minutes of Heaven” is on tap with San Jose’s Irish Sister city and kids get good dish with Seedfolks.

San Jose Insider/Santa Clara County Board of Education Trustee Joseph DiSalvo sends props to this years (first female) winner of the Nobel prize in Economics Elinor Olstrom before moving on to talk about last years winner, the joys of small schools and Rigor, Relevance and Relationships at San Jose's Downtown College Prep.

Morning News Round-Up -- 9.21.09: A South Bay Stadium... or two... or three...

Stadium news from around the South Bay...

Paul Krutko, San Jose Chief economic dude, says a (nearly) 8 decade old stadium is the youngest outdoor stadium the “Capital of Silicon Valley” has to offer. Earthquakes/A’s owner Lew Wolff is hoping to change that with a sparkly new Euro style stadium – if he can round up the bucks.

A Santa Clara Citizens Review Committee is in for the coin toss and supports amending Santa Clara’s City Charter to allow the 49ers to hire a football-centric design team. But, only if the Guvernator doesn’t sign State Senator Elaine Alquist's bill by October 11.

San Jose talks plastic bags this week while the Merc’s Patty Fisher reports it was a non-event when Palo Alto went plastic-free. San Jose’s hang-up is the cost of an Environmental Impact Report while Fisher sings the praises of the reusable bag.

With a single school and a mere 566 students you would think the Luther Burbank School District would keep itself below the radar. But you would wrong. A recent Civil Grand Jury report accused District Trustees of conflicts of interest, secrecy, intimidation, questionable spending, and election malfeasance. This week, the Luther Burbank Board was supposed to respond... but they got a 5-week extension. Watch Dog guesses that it is sort of like getting a few extra weeks to do your homework... Brand new Superintendent-Principal Becki Cohn-Vargas likens fixing problems to “…rebuilding a train while it’s going 100 m.p.h.” Yes, but if the train is about to run off the tracks, perhaps slowing it down to fix it would be a really good idea...

Speaking of trains... Those annoying Caltrain whistles will begin relocation to the underside of the train, making nearby (sleeping) residents very happy.

Mountain View is considering the PRT (personal rapid transit) as the dream commute alternative for Google/NASA/Moffett. Unfortunately, jet-packs may never happen.

San Jose’s City Council gears up for a rehash of the City Executive home loan discussion this week. Redevelopment Agency Director Harry Mavrogenes benefited from the practice when he moved inside FROM San Jose TO San Jose.

And while we are on housing...

The Silicon Valley housing market is “…picking itself up from the bottom” according to the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal. San Jose Councilmember Sam Liccardo said the City will kick in another $2.7 million to help first time homebuyers get into the condo, or house, of their dreams.

From the Merc’s Internal Affairs…

• A report from California’s Fair Political Practices Commission reports that our local folks in Sacramento spent as much time on the fundraising circuit as they did making laws... perhaps they are sticking to what they are best at...
• Palo Alto State Senator Joe Simitian could be paying more attention to Assemblymember Ira Ruskin’s replacement that you’d think – he’s planning an Assembly redux in 2012.
• San Jose Councilmember Rose Herrera is hearing from opposing sides on proposals for a new library.

San Jose Inside channels Kermit the Frog, or maybe the Jolly Green Giant, to send props to San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed for pitching the green dream.

Mission City Lantern enjoyed the Santa Clara Art & Wine Festival until arriving in the “Free Speech” area to find anti-49ers fans. Mission City also posts (un)love notes to Justin Schall, Philip Bump, Bill Bailey, and Brian Darby... again.

Local lawmakers in action, for your Watch Dog pleasure, thanks to the Merc's crack staff…

• Santa Clara County’s Committee on Children, Seniors & Families tries to lessen disproportionate impacts of child welfare on African-Americans and Latinos.
• Alum Rock School District holds a team-building session on governance... that sounds like a barrel of laughs...
• Cupertino Union School District studies special education and state test scores...
• Palo Alto Unified School District looks at a parcel tax and the budget...
• San Jose Unified School District looks at approving Gann appropriations limits for 2009-2010.
• Santa Clara Unified School District considers adding students, growing Haman Elementary, and a possible new lease.
• The Franklin-McKinley School District sends props to schools for API/AYP successes.

Morning News Round-Up -- 8.10.09: A day without Dolores Carr...

A day without Dolores Carr news is like a San Jose day without (politically damaged and ethically challenged) sunshine...

Gilroy Councilmember Craig Gartman’s wrangling with opponents over Gilroy’s Memorial Day Parade financial records has landed him in the sights of District Attorney Dolores Carr.

The District Attorney hoped to take the nearly $2 million contract away from FACES to create a “more efficient” victim support agency. It looks like the Supervisors don’t agree with Carr’s “baffling” argument... this year.

The Merc’s Scott Herhold says that even though the District Attorney’s “series of blunders” has “wounded” her, it’s doubtful a serious opponent will challenge her re-election. That doesn't stop Herhold from dishing about who might be on the anti-Carr list: Deputy DA/former Mayoral candidate David Pandori, Deputy DA/former La Raza President Chris Arriola, San Jose Councilmember Sam Liccardo, and Deputy DA Jeff Rosen.

To other news...

It looks like there may be 10 contestants for Palo Alto’s 5 City Council seats. Sole incumbent Larry Klein no doubt hopes he’ll be heard through the fray. Further south, Mark Santoro, elected to replace Patrick Kwok in 2008, isn’t waiting until his term is up in 2009 and has tossed his hat in the ring for one of Cupertino’s open seats.

Ted Scarlett lost in his bid to replace Forest Williams as a San Jose Councilmember, then he fouled up on campaign disclosures. More than a year later he faces fines for poor reporting…

Santa Clara County’s juvenile “boot camp” is now a homey ranch that Barry Krisberg, President of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, hopes will no longer be a “conveyor belt to prison.”

The Merc’s Internal Affairs had some fun last week rounding up these juicy bits…

• Someone at San Jose City Hall reads Watch Dog… Deputy Finance Director Walter Rossmann announced fired Independent Police Auditor Barbara Attard’s underwater condo is up for rent.
• San Jose City Council’s do-over vote for a library landed winners and losers, apparently. Managing to straddle the fence Mayor Chuck Reed and Councilmember Rose Herrera with a little success and a little flop.
• District Attorney Dolores Carr reports hubby John’s only problem was security consultant for Vahid Hosseini’s family. Meanwhile, Judge Kenneth Shapero ordered Carr’s office to handover hundreds of page of paperwork to the defense. This story isn't going away... for proof, see the top three stories of today's Round-Up.
• Those fun-filled Jerry Springer Town Hall meetings taking place across the nation as Congressmembers return home won’t be seen in Silicon Valley. Congressmembers Mike Honda and Zoe Lofgren are holding telephone Town Halls and Eshoo will be at a high-speed rail meeting.

The Merc Editorial Board has joined the Tooth Fairy in support of fluoridating San Jose’s water. Senator Dianne Feinstein is also the focus of an Editorial Board commentary as they ask her to help Congressmembers Mike Honda and Zoe Lofgren turn Mount Um into the Mount Tam of the South.

Happy Hollow Park wasn’t so happy Sunday night when a kid was shot, he’s in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

San Jose Insider Pete Campbell treads into dangerous territory comparing San Jose’s much beloved Cesar Chavez to (Pete Constant's friends) the Minutemen of Southern California.

For your governmental readership enjoyment…

• Sunnyvale City Council talks gas shutoff – for appliances, seriously.
• San Jose City Council considers adding sunshine to campaign finance and hears from the (neutered) Independent Police Auditor.
• San Jose’s Elections Commission ponders anonymous complaints, instant runoff voting, and (the above-mentioned) Ted Scarlett’s pesky filing problems.
• Santa Clara’s Parks and Recreation Commission review’s inventory and amenities at Brachler Park.
• The Mountain View-Los Altos School District looks at a school bond next June.
• The Los Gatos Union School District retreats to review goals and strategize.
• Beleagured/tiny Luther Burbank School District considers (again) their response to grand jury reports and ponders the budget.
• Santa Clara County Office of Education Trustees look at adding Federal Stimulus bucks to the budget.
• Alum Rock Union School District looks at after school programs along with speech and language.
• The Campbell Union School District considers studying a general obligation bond and gets an update to the State budget.

Morning News Round-Up -- 5.1.09: "Size does matter..." according to Mayor Reed

Trying to catch up with Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio's use of inappropriate, sexual references in public, San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed declared, “Size does matter” discussing San Jose's population (finally) hitting 1 million residents. (Rumors that Mayor Reed blushed and giggled after uttering the double entendre are unconfirmed...)

Swine Flu update: Four more Silicon Valley schools shut their doors for flu days. While Watch Dog is ready to ditch the Swine Flu mania it is nice to see all the kids wandering aimlessly, in public, with school doors shuttered.

San Jose City Manager Debra Figone put the budget axe to the grindstone. The result, no one is going to be happy. San Jose, trying to close a $77.5 million deficit, is losing nearly 150 people, closing libraries half the week, ditching the mounted police, and closing parks on slow days.

Fire Marshal David Schoonover isn’t a fan of San Jose restaurants’ tents and won’t be a welcome guest for garlic fries and Amber Ale. Visits from Schoonover to the Poor House Bistro, Gordon Biersch, and Smoke Tiki Lounge landed restaurant owners in hot water for their tents. Downtown Councilmember Sam Liccardo is hopeful the businesses and the Fire Marshal will work it out without costing businesses big bucks.

Former Mayor/lobbyist Tom McEnery hoisted a celebratory beer and danced a jig in the tent-free O’Flaherty’s when San Jose Elections Commissioners dismissed the anonymous complaint. Elections Commission Chairman Fred de Funiak was pissed saying the “commission was used,” to go after McEnery. Big guns Supervisor Dave Cortese and Silicon Valley Leadership Group CEO Carl Guardino showed up to tell the Commission not to accept anonymous complaints. Way to use the Rolodex, Tom. Yesterday, San Jose Revealed posted a scathing challenge to the Merc’s Editors to actually read the report...

Speaking of Dave Cortese... Supervisor Cortese hopes to prevent little kids from landing in the pokey and Silicon Valley from having the youngest child ever locked up.

Silicon Valley hookers will be happy to hear the news, Dean Rish from San Ramon was busted for robbing women in the world’s oldest profession. Public safety officials working with the District Attorney’s office used the internet to find hookers with information about the East Bay robber before busting him.

Alum Rock Union School District Trustees have renegotiated outgoing Superintendent Norma Martinez’ severance package. Gone (finally) are the half million in cash and monthly benefits over $1,500. Martinez’ revised deal of less than $200,000 and half the benefits will allow the District to “move forward” according to Board President Gustavo Gonzalez.

Earlier in the week we wrote about a development in Palo Alto that got shot down by the City's Planning and Transportation Committee... well, the developers had this to say: "This project has been in the works for five years, and this is the kind of dysfunctional process that drives business and tax revenue out of Palo Alto..." How do you really feel?

A grumpy Saratoga Planning Commission approved plans to expand the Inn at Saratoga but let owner Kwan Lee know they were pissed about his refusal to roll in improved handicap access. Commissioner Linda Rodgers said she was disappointed while Commissioner Mary-Lynne Bernald symbolically voted ‘no.’

Sunnyvale’s City Council is declaring Sunnyvale will be a safe place for bicycles and pedestrians at the same time and street parking will have to be sacrificed for the bicycle when needed. That’s putting the green vision where it counts…

Also insisting on going green… Saratoga Mayor Chuck Page is visiting each of his restaurants to ask they ditch the Styrofoam voluntarily. We understand that the American Chemistry Council is trying to track down Mayor Page...

Saratoga’s City Council has been working with Civica Software since November to update the website and settled on the new design this week. Mayor Chuck Page asked the background be white for easy reading while Councilmember Howard Miller said simply “it might be good to find out how to simplify this design to have less words and less clutter,” Miller continued with "one of the problems with websites for infrequent users ... is that they can get lost if there's too much going on." Apparently, this conversation about web-design is what constitutes hard-hitting news coverage in Saratoga...

The Merc’s Sal Pizarro can be found tonight ambling through San Jose’s SoFA district celebrating First Friday with music, art, and a little shopping. Pizarro also dishes former Mayor Ron Gonzales pouring a little red at a Silicon Valley Capital Club fundraiser and former Councilmember/Supervisorial wannabe Forrest Williams has declared himself green from his name to his business cards.

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.

Morning News Round-Up -- 3.16.09: Great chefs are within SF's territorial rights?

Lew Wolff sent a big raspberry to Oakland on Friday saying thanks for the memories but it’s time for the A’s to hit the road. (Baseball San Jose's blog channeled Sarah Palin's "thanks, but no thanks"...) The move was predicted by former San Jose Insider Jude Barry four years ago. It looks like Barry may have been more prescient than he knew. Inside's Eric Johnson gleefully quotes sports experts Gary Radnich and Bruce Jenkins agreeing with Barry. The Chronicle's Matier & Ross fill us in on who’s fighting to keep the A’s where they are…some heavy hitters. Watch Dog hopes that Senators Boxer and Feinstein remember that folks in Santa Clara County voted for them too (oh yeah, and funded their campaigns...)...

The Merc’s Sal Pizzaro had a yummy task as Iron Chef America hit Silicon Valley. Los Gatos’ Manresa chef (and Michelin 2-star chef) David Kinch whirled around Kitchen Stadium with cabbage as his secret ingredient. In the end, it was Kinch over renowned chef Bobby Flay. The viewing party at Manresa cheered. It is unclear if Senators Boxer and Feinstein think that good chefs are actually within the territorial rights of San Francisco...

Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Jay Boyarsky (former candidate for Judge) thinks a surge in anti-gay hate crimes is related to the passage of Proposition 8 -- increased visibility translates to increased “gay-bashing.” No doubt worried straight, white men might feel left out, Boyarsky added "We're not playing political favorites. Certainly, we've had Christian victims of hate crimes."

Speaking of the DA's office. Santa Clara County DA Dolores Carr has to be wondering why she wanted the job of top prosecutor. A national report released by the Innocence Project accuses the DA’s office of improperly investigating crime lab errors. Hoping to make the case that the fox can guard the hen house, DA spin-meister Nick Muyo says it is not true that they can’t properly investigate themselves.

NASA has asked the Navy to pay for re-skinning Hangar One. In exchange, NASA offered to clean up the toxic soup left behind by the Navy. To sweeten the pot for neighbors, NASA announced Friday a collaboration with the Foothill-De Anza Community College District to provide a $1 billion research facility focusing on renewable-energy and resource-conservation. Foothill-De Anza Chancellor Martha Kanter is giddy about the possibilities...

El Camino Hospital officials are starting to dish on their plans to expand services at their new Los Gatos home (the hospital formerly known as Community). Silicon Valley men will be happy to hear a fancy machine that turns kidney stones to dust is in the works. The League of Women Voters has joined forces with El Camino Hospital execs to host a forum at the end of the month.

The Merc’s Internal Affairs is dishing on the goodies our elected take home from their loyal (lobbyist) fans. Senators Elaine Alquist and Joe Simitian enjoyed a spa retreat in Lodi...(hopefully not at the same time). Senator Simitian reported his wife’s business brought in a healthy chunk of change. Assemblymember Joe Coto went to a charity ball courtesy of Verizon and got an unhealthy supply of liquor thanks to Diageo...he must have been preparing for St. Patrick's Day. (Coto should be careful if he plans to drink that stuff in San Jose...)

Prospective candidates hoping to replace San Jose’s Pete Constant should call the San Jose Police Officers Association. They are not happy that one of their own has “turned a deaf ear” to them.

His friends call him the Don Quixote of San Jose’s Clock Tower, but Naglee Park resident John Mitchell is determined to see his 30 year obsession brought to a happy conclusion. The tower, built in 1892, stopped working in 1906 when that pesky earthquake toppled the tower. (How very Back to the Future...) Mitchell calls it the heartbeat of San Jose. It is unclear if the clock tower would need to 1.21 gigawatts to get going again...

There’s more than green beer on tap this week. Plan on a busy Council/Board week around the Valley...

• San Jose’s City Council will hear the Mayor’s budget message. (You’ll need lots of green beer for this one...)
• Cupertino’s Fremont Union High School District goes over their financials and meets with students...no doubt to ready them for the grim news ahead.
• The Alum Rock Union School District will consider a teachers' contract, talk about closing Pala Middle School, and revisit their policies on small schools (probably hoping to make them much bigger)...
• Palo Alto Unified School District discusses budgets for remodeling, contracts, high school master plans, and staff reductions.
  

Speaking of Palo Alto...

You could sort of see this coming if you read this and this...but the community-wide, Palo Alto broadband project may be quickly dying. Palo Alto has no money and the company that was going to do the project, Axia Netmedia Corporation, doesn't really want any part of it anymore either...

You'll remember last-week's perfectly timed study by Stanford showing that its hospital expansion projects would bring in $18 million to the City of Palo Alto coffers. The timing was perfect because Stanford and Palo Alto had a meeting about the impacts/benefits of Stanford's development this week. Now, Palo Alto would like to see more of the "community benefits" that Stanford could/should/will do in order to get Palo Alto to stand back from its adversarial position...

Morning News Round-Up -- 2.20.09: The budget, something (else) for Kevin Skelly to talk about...

For local school Districts the State budget approval was a mixed blessing. A sigh of relief it was over, followed by cursing when the severity of budget cuts looming in front of them was understood. Karen Fuqua with San Jose Unified said they will begin notifying nearly 400 teachers and all administrators that they might not have a job next year. Even though the budget is getting cut in education, on the bright side of things, Palo Alto Unified's Superintendent has something else to talk about other than this bone-headed stuff he said...the Merc. Editorial Board sees a silver-lining, which is a bit ironic since their silver lining (open primaries) was put there by a guy they took to task yesterday...

San Jose Revealed had some fun with San Jose Inside/Metro’s Fly story about the Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins/Cindy Chavez sightings. In a series of blurbs Revealed fills us in that the Chamber is hiring a policy wonk and paints Councilmember Nora Campos as a Knight in shining armor.

Mission City Lantern wasn’t so pleased with San Jose/Santa Maria Senator Abel Maldonado calling Abel a dimwitted extortionist. Tell us how you really feel, James.

Embattled San Jose Councilmember Madison Nguyen has raised over $250,000 to fight the recall battle while her opponents have raised less than half that. The recall proponents report having roughly $10,000 more in the bank than Nguyen’s camp with less than 2 weeks left before election day. Nguyen’s supporters are in full force, even Mayor Chuck Reed was pounding the pavement over the weekend.

Morgan Hill’s Police Department must have been following Watch Dog’s coverage of skyrocketing drunk arrests in San Jose. Not wanting to be left out they released a report that their drunk arrests doubled in the past 2 years. Chief Bruce Cumming says having more police resources have helped increase tossing the tipsy in the hoosegow. "Our officers are more assertive about (public drunkenness) than perhaps they were three or four years ago," said Cumming. San Jose Police Chief did not say, "See, everyone hates drunk people..."

Gilroy taxpayers alerted the School District that they weren’t being taxed. (What?) Yep, taxes that have appeared on annual bills for 35 years went missing, causing the District to scramble to figure out how to pay a $5.3 million bond payment due later this year. "We don't know what happened. We're still working through that. All we know is that the tax didn't make it to the taxpayers, but the why and the how - we're not there yet," Deputy Superintendent of Business Services Enrique Palacios said. In the meantime, watch dog Tom Newton is pissed the district met behind closed doors when the problem became known.

The Morgan Hill Times is pleased to announce a move to a bilingual web presence. Si desea leer el periódico en español, haga clic aquí. Watch Dog is (not) next, unfortunately...

The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office has asked for another delay in the trial of Armando Suazo Ochoa, who last year decided to run over two men with whom he’d been fighting. The DA’s office is still waiting for the Coroner’s report, nearly 4 months since the second victim died. (Wise guy, Ben Field did not say, "Who needs a Coroner's report to go to trial?...")

Homeowners, if you get a letter from Los Angeles Company Property Tax Reassessment – don’t fall for it. So says Santa Clara County Assessor Larry Stone who calls the letters “outrageous.”

It is perhaps one of the saddest stories of the year. Vanessa Geronimo started fearing school when she was only in kindergarten, she was often crying from the brutal teasing of classmates. In third grade she was skipping 20% of her classes, by the time she got to 7th grade she went to school 2 or 3 days a year. The Alum Rock School District tried everything, to no avail. Vanessa’s parents Jayvee Geronimo and Carol Reynoso will serve jail time for contributing to her delinquency. Deputy District Attorney Lois Baer said, "It's tragic. But she's essentially a fifth-grade dropout, and the parents haven't followed through at all.''

San Jose Inside has a new guest columnist, Steve Borkenhagen, of the very yummy Eulipia, posts a plea of support for the proposed public market (a.k.a. McEnery-ville). Borkenhagen is apparently a fan of McEnery’s as well as the Pike Place Market (Seattle) and Chelsea Market (New York).

Morning News Round-Up -- 2.9.09: A quarter, a dime, and four pennies...

San Jose is gearing up for a contentious battle with downtown nightclub owners. The City wants club owners to help pay for Police services in downtown, at roughly 39 cents/patron. Club owners, unsurprisingly, are complaining the request is “nonsensical” in the words of Dave Powell, owner of three downtown establishments. Councilmember Sam Liccardo believes a compromise is achievable and says, "We'd like to see a model which is more consistent with community Policing as it's understood: an officer walking the street engaging people in a friendly manner."

The Merc’s Editorial Board also weighs in and lets us know that part of the problem is a stubborn Police Chief Rob Davis and says the current proposal doesn’t address the problem – pointing to Austin, Texas as a good model and calling for smaller clubs. You can see the proposed charges to your favorite drinking hole on page 17 here.

Watch Dog will get back to this story, but the City of San Jose is considering a ban on plastic bags. That is mildly interesting. Plastic's lobbyist is wildly interesting. It seems Manny Diaz (finally) saw The Graduate:



The Merc's Internal Affairs has been prowling through local Legislator compliance and fundraising filings… Among the news:

• New Assemblymember Paul Fong has started to campaign for re-election – less than 3 months in office. (Is he scared this guy is going to run against him again?)
  
• Assemblymember Ira Ruskin is running to replace termed out Senator Joe Simitian. (Watch Dog San Mateo has some insights into who wants to replace Ruskin...)
  
• Assemblymember Joe Coto wants termed out Senator Elaine Alquist's seat. (Perhaps this guy can give Coto some (bad) advice...)

Alum Rock Board of Trustees is back in the news…They yanked the golden parachute away from resigned/fired Superintendent Norma Martinez, with an entertaining side effect – the former Super is now Super again. Board President Gustavo Gonzalez said the golden parachute was worth more than a half-million dollars, but facing pissed off teachers and community members the Board decided to reverse themselves. Is this the most disfunctional School District in the City, the State, or the World? Your call...

The Merc’s Editorial Board echoes support for the preservation of regional open space – adding that the smartest green initiative is open land. In a report from the Bay Area Open Space Council, Association of Bay Area Governments, and The Greenbelt Alliance, the recommendation is for parks to be available within 10 minutes of every home in the Valley of Heart’s Delight.

Calling it a “win-win-win” San Jose’s Department of Transportation head Jim Helmer, is excited San Jose is getting rid of the yellow streetlights and replacing them with LED lights that cut energy costs, are easily programmed, and won’t alter colors or confuse drivers. If the Mayor gets the Federal dollars he hopes for the project, it will be completed sooner – if not, look for 2022 as the date when the last of the lights are converted.

Bruce Davis, head of Arts Council Silicon Valley, is happy with the new President and says, "The President is a smart guy. He gets it. …he sees [the arts] as part of the whole economy and the whole cultural aspect of the United States' identity in the world. It's important to him." Although the proposed arts funding is less than one-tenth of 1% of the stimulus package, Lisa Mallette with San Jose’s City Lights Company says “There’s no way to go but up.” With an estimated 700% return for every dollar invested in the arts it sounds like everyone should be buying their own puppies playing poker painting.

On tap around the Valley this week…

• The Board of Supervisors will hear from Acting County Executive Gary Graves on the budget (looks grim) and year-end projections for the general fund (looks grimmer).
• In addition to having someone else pay for Police, the San Jose City Council will look at changing funding to the arts and letting parking scofflaws pay more for the privilege of breaking the rules.
• In Sunnyvale they’re talking about signs.
• Mountain View’s City Council reviews a youth program.
• The Santa Clara Water District will hear from staff about the water supply (looks grim) and what to do if the drought continues (looks grimmer).
• Alum Rock is back in session still talking lawyers – will they hire Trustee Esau Herrera’s old firm?
• The Los Altos School District will review proposed reductions and hear about a parent survey.
• Campbell is talking employee contracts.
• Cupertino’s School District will consider a parcel tax, good luck with that. During the Great Recession?

Apple’s Other Steve (Wozniak) will show off his twinkle toes in this season’s Dancing with the Stars.

Morning News Round-Up – 1.22.09: Bigots, Beignets, and BART...

The County’s lawyers are in trouble – again. (District Attorney Dolores Carr must keep a bottle of the good stuff ready for when the Merc. calls.) This time, Peter Waite has the dubious honor of being the first prosecutor to get spanked by the State Bar in 20 years. He pissed them off when he hid testimony in a murder trial. Oops. Waite said, "I've always agreed it was a screw-up and a mistake, and that the case would be done differently than nine years ago.'' DA Carr kept mum. The DA’s office is also awaiting results in Deputy DA Ben Fields prosecution. More recently, Carr’s office fessed up they withheld interviews of sexual assault victims and kept the doors of justice closed while investigating a police cover-up. Not so Law and Order-y, is it...

The Merc.’s Editorial board gives props to the Alum Rock Union Elementary School Board of Trustees. The Board has granted a 5 year extension to KIPP Heartwood Academy, a charter school with results. In the past, with golden parachute Superintendent Norma Martinez, charter schools were under attack. In a signal that children are more important than politics, Interim Superintendent Jose Manzo supported KIPP. Watch Dog note to Merc. Editors: her last name is not Rodriguez, unless you’ve heard about a recent name change that we missed.

In case Mountain View bigots haven’t heard – this is a "post racial" world. Mayor Margaret Abe-Koga, Mountain View’s first Asian-American female Mayor received a disturbing email, students lives were threatened, and a school sign was vandalized. Chamber CEO/Mesa de la Communidad Oscar Garcia has teamed up with failed City Council candidate/Human Rights Commissioner Alicia Crank to create “Not in Our Town,” to combat an increase in local hate crimes.

It isn’t bad enough that Steve Jobs is (maybe) fighting for his life, now the SEC is investigating when and how much Jobs and other high-ranking Apple folks knew about Jobs' health. Apparently the SEC is now on the ball -- as opposed to this...

Los Altans are celebrating now, they get to keep their precious, non-degradable/free plastic bags for groceries. The Los Altos City Council rejected joining a regional effort to charge impoverished Los Altos residents 25 cents per bag. Perhaps the local fashionistas were worried about losing the raw materials for creative/recycled ball gowns.

The Merc.’s Scott Herhold dedicates his space to the grieving family of Quy Tran, killed at a dangerous intersection by a hit-and-run driver over the weekend. Tran’s son Hung has generously (incredibly) said her killer is a good person and, “I think all his life, he'll live in suffering." This is not the first accident at Senter Road and Independence Drive, Herhold reports several seniors have been hit here where there is no crosswalk or traffic signal. No doubt San Jose’s Department of Transportation removed the crosswalk to make life safer for someone – clearly not pedestrians. Not the first time DOT has goofed, remember little Breanna Eck, DOT also thought a lack of crosswalks in her neighborhood was a good idea.

San Jose Revealed received a "tipster’s fax" with questions about McEnery's Peralta Action Plan. The "fax" asked if the 3% loan and the $400,000 developer fees being paid by McEnery is normal and/or appropriate. There’s also a rumor that Revealed was blocked from some/all City Hall computers. Perhaps Councilmember Pete Constant and Larry Pegram are to blame...

Metro/San Jose Inside’s news sleuth Erin Sherbert weighs in on San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed’s chances of getting Obama dollars (for BART and green-tech) because of his complete lack of support during the Prez’s race. (At least his lack of support for the guy who won...) In a break from Reed, Mayoral senior staff Jeff Janssen doesn’t share the Mayor’s optimism. If Obama dollars land in San Jose it’s more likely due to hard work by DiFi, Boxer, Lofgren and Honda – who all voted for and worked for Obama. Sherbert's story also gives a timeline of when the Mayor will be in D.C. -- the first trip is slated for late February/early March. Really? Because Watch Dog heard something about an economic recovery plan that will be done by Presidents' Day Congressional recess. Plus, these guys were in D.C. schmoozing this week while our Mayor was not...

Gilroy may not be getting Garlic Ta-ta’s but they do have beignets coming thanks to restaurateur/blues fan Dan Craig. Local developer Gary Walton will be opening a tapas and wine bar nearby. Craig said he wants a place for “mature” guests, “You know, a respectable place where you can see live music." He didn’t say “there’s no room for ta-ta’s near my beignets.” Watch Dog note to Chris Bone, you need to visit the Big Easy – it’s not “benet.”

Morning News Round-Up – 1.8.09: The Blogosphere of Influence Battle

San Jose’s City Attorney, Rick Doyle, made an offhand comment last year that has erupted into a battle royale yesterday. Doyle said Councilmembers (Nora Campos) who wanted to review private legal documents created in his office for downtown's Peralta Plan (McEnery Plan) would need their colleagues’ approval. Using this (mis)information yesterday, San Jose’s Rules Committee told her to take a hike with her request to make those documents public. It turns out Doyle goofed. Campos does have a right to review those documents after all. Which is not nearly as interesting as the battle raging between San Jose Revealed and San Jose Inside about who 'won' and who 'lost' in yesterday's Rules Committee/Elections Commission/Reed-McEnery-Campos dust-up. (Since McEnery's project is getting $6 million, it is safe to say he thinks he won...) Watch Dog points out that (seemingly) Campos got the idea to push on this issue from reading Revealed. See Watch Dog's "blogosphere of influence"...

The Alum Rock School District quietly talked with East Side Union about a plan to swap Pala Middle School for East Side's Adult Ed. Independence. When news first leaked Alum Rock Trustee Gustavo Gonzalez expressed concern about a growing need for schools that could make existing crowding problems worse. In today’s news, Board President Gonzalez seems to switch gears, saying “We have to look at the whole District and how we are running all our schools. We have some work to do to shore up our budget.” Watch Dogs can join the now public fun tonight at the Alum Rock Board meeting -- and if you've never been to an Alum Rock Board meeting, you should go...

Ash Kalra, San Jose’s newest Councilmember, faces some trouble in his District from Day 1. His old alma mater, Oak Grove High (part of the East Side Union High School District), has been the site of two teen stabbings recently. This week a 12 year old was arrested for armed robbery after he and a friend attacked a 16 year old and stole a cell phone. Last year a 16 year old girl stabbed a student in a gang-related incident. Have fun Councilmember Kalra...

San Jose is (supposedly) a mecca for electric cars… Mayor Chuck Reed unveiled the City’s first public "Smartlet"charging stations for electric cars. While you can now park and charge your Tesla car at the Fourth Street garage, it is the parking of the Tesla company in San Jose that is in real danger.

Greg Larson took over as Los Gatos Town Manager last year, not knowing the economic disaster that loomed internationally. This week, Larson reported Los Gatos is sitting on a $3.7 million reserve with $4.4 million in revenue stabilization reserve. In something of a small world story, Larson started his career in San Jose and was (then Mayor) Tom McEnery’s Budget and Policy Director before a series of moves including San Jose (again), Sacramento, Arizona, and Santa Cruz before landing in Los Gatos. Oh yeah, he also famously served with his famous buddy as Stanford's student body co-president...

Saratogans still have time to apply for openings on the Planning and Heritage Preservation Commission (a.k.a. the NIMBY Commission of Saratoga...) Applications are due today as City Hall is closed Friday with the new “9/80” schedule.

Use of City facilities in Cupertino may soon be free if you’re a non-profit or promoting cultural ties. Councilmember Gilbert Wong worries about the loss of revenue, "I think that with the economic times not doing so well...You're just going to open up a huge can of worms."

Los Gatos pooches have a new/old hangout with the reopening of the elegantly named Los Gatos Creek County Dog Park. The park previously sported real turf which was torn up and turned to mud causing pooch people to stay away. (Watch Dog suspects pooches would have loved the mud but the good folks of The Town don't like dirty dogs in their homes...) The recent renovations to do away with the mud cost the County nearly $227,000, the original park ran $325,000.

Alum Rock Adults Behaving Badly...

Trouble was brewing in Alum Rock long before election day 2008.

Watch Dog has been following the latest drama that looks an awful lot like bickering children in a first grade class. Add to the ongoing turmoil, money desperately needed for education is given to lawyers and departing district staff, well over a million dollars in the past 7 years. Here are some background items that may be helpful as you hear about the latest controversies...

• Recently (re)elected Trustee Esau Herrera, is back after a stormy relationship with the district and fellow Trustees in the 1990’s when he accused a colleague of trying to run him over.

• Before the most recent Superintendent bilked the District, the two previous Superintendents started the trend...fired Superintendent Joe Carrillo took home $225,000 in 2001 and Alfonso Anaya received at least nine months pay to when he was asked to leave in 2004. Pretty good for a chronically cash-strapped District.
  

• New Trustee Dolores Marquez, a former Alum Rock employee, has a legal order which prevents her from going on school grounds during work hours. Now, she is fighting a District lawsuit to prevent her from keeping her seat. But don't worry about Marquez...when the opportunity presented itself last week to vote on firing the District legal team pursuing the lawsuit against her, Marquez did not recuse herself saying, “I do have the right to sit here.” An interesting opening move by Marquez...
  

• Over the course of the last school year the District paid over $500,000 in legal fees, by comparison, the Evergreen School District with the same number of students, spent $193,400.

• Recently paid-off Superintendent Norma Martinez has had a rocky relationship with PACT (People Acting in Community Together) over the “small schools” since she started in 2006. PACT wants the schools to continue. Martinez – wasn’t their biggest fan and clashed with the non-profit and small-school supporters. But the struggle over the small schools started before Martinez became Superintendent. In spite of their success, the funding for the schools was a source of contention. The small schools wanted autonomy over their budgets and the District wanted control -- presumably to pay for more lawyers and for Superintendents' golden parachutes...
  

• Alum Rock’s bevy of high priced legal eagles recommended giving Superintendent Martinez a farewell gift of $300,000 and insurance benefits of over $500,000. Sounding like King Henry VI (Shakespeare), Herrera (a lawyer) declared first "Let's discharge all lawyers..." Trustee Gustavo Gonzalez wants to start fresh while Trustee Patricia Potter wants to keep the current team in place.

As much fun as it is to watch grown adults behave like children, the District, the parents, and the kids need the Alum Rock Trustees, Superintendent, and staff to step up to the plate and work together – like adults.

We’ll keep watching, and hope you do as well, if you sniff out interesting news send it to Watch Dog.

Morning News Round-Up – 12.08.08

San Jose is in a budgetary bind. No question about that. So with that in mind, they are about to answer some pressing questions:

• Will San Jose approve a proposal for affordable housing to be part of developments across the city?
• Will the City say yes to a new $5 million/McEnery-backed development proposal?
• Will the Redevelopment Agency’s budget be approved while cutting neighborhood funding?

Tomorrow's San Jose City Council meeting will answer some of these questions...

Across town on Tuesday, the County Board of Supervisors will ponder the decision they made in 2003 to close the sobering station a.k.a. Drunk Tank. Following Mayor Chuck Reed/Nora Campos’s lead, maybe they’ll form a task force. Watch Dog predicts more finger pointing and less action.

Soon-to-be termed out Supervisor Don Gage was a no-show at the annual Los Gatos parade this weekend. With 2 more years to serve as a Supervisor it seems a tad early to call him a lame duck. None of the replacement hopefuls bothered to show up at the parade either.

Cupertino’s School Board will consider placing a parcel tax on the June ballot tonight.

‘Boots’ Del Biaggio’s (see These Boots were Made for Prison) victims will give the U.S. Attorney’s their perspective today in San Francisco. Former U.S. Attorney Charles Stevens said the sentencing for the $100 million in fraud takes sentencing “off the charts.” Stevens said it was more likely ‘Boots’ would serve a little over 10 years. The Merc set up a page dedicated to the ‘Boots’ saga for you to follow.

San Jose, after having been the safest big city for 6 years, has dropped now to 4th place. Bobby Lopez, President of the San Jose Police Officers Association, says there was only enough manpower to investigate 13% of the robberies which took place. (Perhaps the Chief put attention here as opposed to robbery investigation.) Mayor Reed says he is committed to getting back to number one because, "We like the bragging rights of being one of the safest big cities.” And here Watch Dog thought it was all about safety not bragging...How safe do you feel in San Jose? The Merc wants to know.

The Alum Rock Neighborhood Coalition meets tonight to discuss the Norma Martinez bailout package from the Alum Rock School District, whereby she will leave her position and get paid a handsome sum. New Trustees Esau Herrera and Dolores Marquez have joined with Trustee Gustavo Gonzalez to call for a review of the $300,000 severance package this week. In an ironic twist, the three Trustees who want the review are in violation of California open meeting rules. Trustee Herrera, an attorney, noted that if rules were not followed on the original bail out, then those actions would be voided –- of course, he meant the other Trustees who might have violated open meeting laws.

After bouncing Councilmember Nora Campos from the Mayor’s Gang Prevention Task Force, Mayor Chuck Reed has put his on-again, off-again challenger/Vice Mayor Possibility back.

The Merc’s Internal Affairs continues the Sam Liccardo for Mayor chant after reviewing Mayor Reed’s new committee assignments. (No mention of Pete Constant, which must make him angry...) Meanwhile, Los Angeles political blog PolitickerCA.com is floating Liccardo’s name as a possibility for the rumored maybe-soon-to-be-vacant Congressional seat held by Mike Honda. Liccardo is in good company as PolitickerCA also lists Mayor Reed, State Senator Joe Simitian, Sally Lieber, and former Vice Mayor Cindy Chavez. Most would need to move into Honda's District. A real question though, Chuck Reed as a Democratic nominee for Congress? Watch Dog doubts it...especially after his Guiliani-loving Presidential no show.

San Jose’s Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio wonders if his colleagues are playing ostrich and ignoring his ideas for fixing the budget deficit.

San Jose Revealed toots it’s horn as source to breaking stories (but don't talk about the conflicts of interest with Shirakawa's staff picks) while wondering how the Merc. will manage to outsource local news reporting to India. Did Molina move to start running the Indian bureau of the Merc?

In Morgan Hill 14 city employees will likely lose their jobs -– City Manager Ed Tewes says the new Morgan Hill organization, “is going to be smaller, but an excellent one.”

Trees at Live Oak High School disappeared over Thanksgiving weekend –- District officials know the trees were diseased and in the way of the schools solar project -– but they don’t know how many disappeared. District spokesman Dan Ehrler said all removed trees will be replaced either with rosebushes or healthy trees. It makes the school's name ironic...no?

Perhaps Gilroy could use Chuck Reed's Gang Prevention Task Force –- with more than 750 gang members and 1,300 parolees in this small town Police Chief Denise Turner says, "I think it's important to unite, as gang members unite, and for a strong front against crime. We really do want to prevent violence in our community."

Add to the gang issue, Gilroy’s financial profile has weakened, the housing market looks bleak, development is off, foreclosures are high –- no surprise that their bond rating has been downgraded from A+ to A.

The Los Gatos Observer reports newcomer to the Los Gatos City Council, Steve Rice, came in 6 votes ahead of incumbent Barbara Spector. (Barbara Spector, let's re-elect her...) Both are to be sworn in at tonight's special meeting.