"[Y]eah, it's looking like that may not happen in November," Councilman Will Kennedy said.We've spent over a year of blood, sweat, tears (not to mention big bucks) on this project. Over $1 Million in consultants, unknown hours of City Staff time on analysis, and almost weekly Closed Session meetings chaired by Senior Staff -- all while other RDA projects are effectively put on hold.
Questions Santa Clara residents should now be asking themselves and their City Government are:
- How much more money & valuable (albeit unaccounted for) staff time can we afford to put into this project?
- What good is the SF 49ers' promise to cover construction cost-overruns only through 2013, when the multi-year project won't break ground until after 2010?
- How much longer can we NOT fund RDA projects vital to the city's well-being because $136 Million is being held hostage by the increasingly unlikely prospect of negotiating a n acceptable deal with the SF 49ers.
To illustrate the point, look at just one highly visible RDA project: the long-awaited Northside Library.
The city has reserved $17.7 Million in the RDA budget for the Northside Branch Library. But an additional $3.365 Million is needed for LEED certification and the expanded Community Room. Despite the City's stated commitment to this project, they have made it clear that until all funds are identified, there will be no library in the Northside.
And what is competing for a library to enrich the education and lives of our Northside neighbors?
$136 Million reserved to subsidize the SF 49ers stadium.
I wish the SF 49ers good luck with their other prospects -- San Francisco, Brisbane, maybe even LA. Because Santa Clara voters are too smart to trade in our infrastructure and mortgage our hard-earned future for the profit of an out-of-state corporation.
2 comments:
. . . and speaking of "backing the wrong horse", we must waken up and rid ourselves of city council members who keep pursuing childish dreams and neglecting necessary public agenda.
It's time to take heed of the greater public's recent collective disposal of Cassarta's State Assembly dreams . . . replaceing him along with the rest of his ilk from the city council.
I admit I didn't pay a whole lot of attention to the last council election, but if bringing the 49ers to Santa Clara would have be a talking point for the current mayor and other current council members, I'm sure my interest would have been much greater
If the 49ers had been a major issue before the election and the current crew of council people elected, then their imperious decision to make the citizen vote non-binding would be a bit less galling.
How is it that this whole business seemingly came out of no where?
I'm in agreement that there be no subsidy and the 49ers MUST own any stadium--no public authority to operate it.
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