Dear Neighbor,

If everything is a priority, that means nothing is. 

When I took office three years ago, we had 40+ priorities on the Council’s priority setting chart. We tried to be everything to everyone. We spread our limited tax dollars and our city staff way too thinly. 

I ran to focus us on the basics: ending unsheltered homelessness, making sure our families are safe, building housing for the next generation, creating a clean and beautiful city, and bringing in the revenue that will allow us to expand other core city services we can’t afford to expand today, such as library hours and park maintenance. 

We focus on these issues because you’ve told us to—and I like to think we’re becoming better listeners here in San José. Far too often, you see elected officials focusing on the loudest voices or fixating on their own pet projects, instead of thinking about the greater good and the long term. 

But in San José, we’re focused on results, not rhetoric. And our 2025 outcomes speak for themselves: 

The Safest Big City in the Nation (Public Safety)

• Only city in the nation with a 100% homicide solve rate for nearly four consecutive years.
• Traffic fatalities down 25% year-over-year (35 deaths vs. 47 this time last year).
• Homicides down 14% in 2025 compared to 2024 (25 vs. 29) and amongst the lowest in the nation.
• 90% of 911 calls answered within 15 seconds.
• 798 illegal firearms taken off the streets through September 2025.
• 15% reduction in school incidents through the Safe School Campus Initiative; 30 schools served by gang-prevention BEST Program.
• Nearly three-quarters of neighbors rated San José a safe place to live. 

A City Where No One Lives Outdoors

• Unsheltered homelessness down nearly 25% from the 2020 homeless census—before this year’s shelter expansion.
• 1,119 new interim housing placements opened, the largest single-year expansion on the West Coast.
• 89% utilization across interim housing and temporary programs as of June 2025, and a Council commitment to achieve 95% utilization at any given time.
• 1,238 San José families prevented from becoming homeless thanks to one-time rental assistance paired with case management that helps 90% of households not return for additional support.
• Columbus Park cleared: all 370 people offered housing, 70 days of outreach, 254 individuals accepted shelter with services, park now ready for revitalization plan.
• 12,000,000 pounds of encampment debris removed and 22.7 miles of waterways cleared citywide.
• Lived-in vehicles reduced 19% (1,057 → 859) between Fall 2024 and Spring 2025; City opened the largest Safe Parking site in the region to move people off streets and into services.

A City People Want to Invest In

• New PG&E agreement that secured $2.4 billion in PG&E investment in our local grid to make San José the most investment-ready city in California.
• Largest data center & advanced manufacturing project in the Bay Area approved on unused land next to wastewater treatment plan, which will create up to 6,000 jobs and add $30M annually in tax revenue for city services.
• Downtown foot traffic up 11.6% year-over-year, with 10.8% growth at night.
• $3.7 billion total tourism impact, supporting 23,108 jobs citywide.
• NVIDIA’s “GTC” AI conference brought 25,000+ visitors, pushing hotel occupancy to 98% citywide and 99.3% Downtown, generating funds for arts and culture organizations.

A Clean and Beautiful City

• 498 community clean-up events collected over 19,000 bags of trash in 11 months.
• 2,400,000 pounds of debris removed through 155 BeautifySJ Dumpster Days.
• 18% reduction in graffiti citywide, following two budget cycles prioritizing blight enforcement and multiple high-profile arrests.
• 110% increase in trail usage along the Guadalupe River within new no-encampment zone from HWY 280 to HWY 101, with wildlife such as salmon returning to local creeks.
• 7 large-scale Guadalupe River projects and 9 community art installations completed.

A City People Can Afford

• First California city to allow ADUs to be sold separately, expanding homeownership options.
• Ministerial Approval cut housing approval timelines on land already zoned for housing from 24 months to 8 months, unlocking stalled projects.
• Over 2,000 housing units broke ground after zero multi-family market-rate starts the year prior thanks to impact fees reform.
• 14,091 entitled housing units in the Downtown pipeline, with 278 currently under construction.
• Building permits pulled on projects totalling 822 affordable housing units

A City of the Future

• “AI for All” launched — the nation’s first citywide, free AI literacy portal for the public, developed in partnership with Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and the Bay Area Council.
• Bus routes optimized nearly citywide to reduce commutes for working people, reducing route travel times by over 20% on average.
• GovAI Coalition grew to 900+ government agencies, positioning San José as the national leader for implementation of AI to improve city service delivery.
• 80 city employees trained in AI & data, who have documented 10-20% efficiency gains, savings in consulting costs, and enabling employees to pivot quickly to bring in millions in grant dollars.
• Launched nation’s first municipal AI incentive program to attract and support early-stage AI startups in San José.

It was hard for me to narrow down the results I wanted to share with you—but that’s a good problem to have! If you ever want to take a look for yourself, many of these metrics are tracked via public dashboards that we’ve been relaunching over the past couple months. 

As you all know, over the next few months, we’ll be diving deep into tough conversations about next year’s budget AND hosting hundreds of thousands for 2026 events, concerts and the big games. 

There is a lot to be proud of. And a lot more work to do. But none of it would be possible without all of you. 

As we head into the Holidays, I want to sincerely thank you—for being engaged residents, for advocating for better, and for giving your time in service to this city.

Sincerely yours,

Mayor Matt

Avatar: Fire and Ash in IMAX

December 26th at 5:30 PM

The Tech Interactive, 201 S Market St, San Jose, CA 95113

Take the leap. Dive into Pandora. Experience Avatar: Fire and Ash in IMAX at The Tech Interactive. Every ticket you purchase supports STEAM education programs that spark imagination for learners across our community. Grab your tickets here.

San Jose Sharks vs. Minnesota Wild

December 31th at 1:00 PM

SAP Center, 525 W Santa Clara St, San Jose, CA 95113

Spend New Year's Eve at The Tank, and cheer on the San Jose Sharks as they face off against the Minnesota Wild! Bring your friends, show your Sharks pride, and enjoy an action-packed game. Get your tickets here.

NYE Bar Crawl

December 31th at 1:00 PM

Downtown San Jose

Crawl til the ball falls, and join Barcrawlerz on a San Jose takeover this NYE! This bar crawl features the best drink specials and bars in town. Find more information here.

The Neil Diamond Musical: A Beautiful Noise

Until January 4th

Center for the Performing Arts, 255 S Almaden Blvd, San Jose, CA 95113

Created in collaboration with Neil Diamond himself, A Beautiful Noise is the uplifting true story of how a kid from Brooklyn became a chart-busting, show-stopping American rock icon. Find more information, and purchase your tickets here.

Bringing Joy at PAL

I was proud to join Shoe Palace and San José PAL for their 13th Annual Christmas Party. We honored the spirit of the holidays with a shoe giveaway, holiday photos, Christmas food, and more! Thank you to Police Chief Joseph, District Attorney Rosen, and all our external partners who came together to make a magical evening for families and friends in San José.

A Safe Haven

On Black Friday this year, someone opened fire in our mall. 100,000 people came through Valley Fair that day. And thankfully, all 100,000 eventually made it home. 

A couple dozen of those people were kept safe by Irene and Martin Garcia, who opened their home, invited their fellow residents inside, and showed us what humanity looks like in the midst of chaos. 

Earlier this week, we recognized them at Council. We thanked them for opening their door, making so many people feel calm and safe in such a terrible moment and exemplifying what it means to be a good neighbor. 

It would have been so easy to turn off the lights and lock the door that day when thousands began running through the neighborhood. But they chose differently. They chose to help. And for that, we are eternally grateful. 

In a moment when it’s so easy to feel divided, we need more people like Irene and Martin who bring us together. They have reminded us how to care for each other.

Stand Against Hate

From Bondi Beach to Branham High right here in San José, it’s clear that we can never rest in the fight against ignorance, division and hatred. I want to wish our Jewish brothers and sisters a very Happy Hanukkah and assure you that we are committed to a San José free from antisemitism and all forms of hate. Each of us must face—and ensure our children—face history and commit ourselves to the values that undergird American society, starting with liberty, equality, and the fundamental right to live without fear. Thank you to Branham Principal Silbergeld for tackling this incident head on at Branham, Chief Joseph and SJPD officers for visiting our Jewish schools and places of worship this week, and to the many neighbors who joined me and other elected officials in speaking out against this unacceptable action.

Last Clean-Up of 2025!

Way to wrap up the year with a big old bow! Thank you to the 100+ volunteers who joined us for tree planting along the Guadalupe River last week. With 46 Service Saturdays in 2025, our city is greener and more beautiful thanks to you. Happy holidays — we'll see you at our next clean-up in 2026! RSVP at bit.ly/cleansj