Dear Neighbor,

Innovation is what our region is known for and what we do better than any place in the world. So, it’s just common sense that our spirit of innovation should extend to city government. 

And when civic innovation meets willing partners — anything is possible. This week, we announced a first-of-its-kind project that by the end of this year will house 72 homeless neighbors in interim housing, and eventually provide 500 units for people with varying economic backgrounds. 

Currently known as the Pacific Motor Inn, this new downtown development will leverage private developer dollars with state funds in a mixed-income project for the first time in California. Historically, the State’s Homekey funds have been used exclusively by local governments and nonprofit partners to build interim and supportive housing for homeless individuals with all subsidies coming from taxpayers. 

For this project, we were able to engage a private developer to deliver on the supportive housing component of the project using the state grant AND add both market rate and affordable housing into the future private development. This hybrid, or public-private approach will maximize the impact of this precious downtown parcel by creating more housing overall and reducing the burden on taxpayers for providing affordable housing. 

In the meantime, before the future project breaks ground, the motel will be converted into interim housing to immediately help 72 individuals move out of encampments and indoors where they will be connected to supportive services, such as job training and mental health treatment.

This is a win-win for our city, thanks to an innovative partnership with Westbank, a well-known private developer, People Assisting The Homeless (PATH), a nonprofit that operates our Evans Lane Quick Build Community for homeless families, and the City of San Jose.



If successful, the Pacific Motor Inn redevelopment could become a model for cities across the state that are working to build housing and reduce homelessness in more responsible and cost-effective ways. My team and I will be working closely with the partners on this project and hope to see more partnerships between government, nonprofits, and the private sector as we fight to end unsheltered homelessness with the limited resources at our disposal.

Today, in San Jose, 4,500 people still live in unmanaged, dangerous conditions on our streets — it's going to take all of us working together quickly and efficiently to make sure everyone has a safe place to call home in our city. Stay tuned as we share updates on this project in the year ahead. 

Sincerely,

Mayor Matt

San Jose is focused on the basics — and nothing is more basic than creating a safer city. In 2023, we had the lowest homicide rate of any big city in the Bay Area by far. Huge thank you to our hardworking SJPD detectives who solved 100% of our homicide cases in 2021-22, and who are on track to do the same in 2023.

We have a long way to go to make our city safe for everyone and speed up our emergency response times. In the coming year my budget will focus on leveraging technology and investing in officer recruitment and retention so that when you are in danger, you don’t have to worry about how long it will take for help to come. 

A big part of why San Jose is the safest city in the Bay Area is Chief Anthony Mata, who announced his retirement this week after spending the last 28 years of his life protecting our city. Safety is built on mutual respect and trust between law enforcement and the community — and during his time with SJPD, Chief Mata won the trust of the community he protected and the respect of the force he led. 

He has strived to build a more transparent and accountable police department, work I know will be carried on by whoever follows in his footsteps. To recruit our next Chief, City Manager Jennifer Maguire will put out the call internally within our department and across the nation to find the best person possible to fill Chief Mata’s shoes. 

A detailed staff memorandum will be released in the coming weeks providing more details about the recruitment process and how the community can make sure their voice is heard in the search. City Manager Maguire will then bring forward her selected candidate to be confirmed by the City Council. 

This week, we celebrated the grand opening of Villas on 4th Street — a new development providing permanent homes to 94 formerly homeless seniors. 

My family and I had the opportunity to get to know some of the seniors living at the Villas just before Thanksgiving, when we came by to help serve a holiday meal. And every single resident said the same thing — Villas on 4th gave them a second chance. No one should be spending their twilight years on the streets, and thanks to PATH, the neighbors living here won’t have to. 

This is part of the array of solutions that will help us end street homelessness. It’s important to celebrate these accomplishments, but we can’t let up. This is a crisis, and the need is urgent: 4,500 people are still living in unmanaged, dangerous conditions on our streets. We need to build alternatives — from interim and affordable housing to treatment centers — faster and at a larger scale for the good of the entire community.  

Photo Credit: George Avalos/Bay Area News Group

This week, San Jose’s newest residential skyscraper reached new heights with the placement of the final beam. I want to thank Suffolk Construction, Berkeley Cement Inc., and the hundreds of construction workers who made The Fay a reality. 

This welcome addition to our skyline is just the latest reminder of downtown’s rebound. Come next year, hundreds of new residents will call The Fay home. They’ll shop, dine and breathe more life back into our city center.

But we can’t stop here. We all know we have vacant storefronts, and people have been slow to return to the office after the pandemic. The good news? San Jose is resilient — thanks to you. San Jose has the highest downtown foot traffic rebound of any California city. Retail sales recently eclipsed pre-pandemic levels. And what’s driving this momentum in our downtown is greater residential density — exemplified by The Fay — and an active arts, culture and events scene that offers residents and visitors alike unique and compelling experiences. 

Together, I’m confident we can do even more to make our downtown Silicon Valley’s downtown. 

MLK Day of Service Planting with Our City Forest

Monday, January 15th at 8:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Kelley Park, 748 Story Rd, San Jose, CA 95112

Join me tomorrow (Monday) to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at Our City Forest’s annual Day of Service Planting. Volunteers will plant trees, beautify Kelley Park, and help create a cleaner, greener city! Learn more and register here. 

San Jose Sharks vs. Anaheim Ducks

Saturday, January 20th at 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM

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

Enter the Shark Tank and cheer on the San Jose Sharks against the Anaheim Ducks! Purchase tickets here. 

Emprendete with Office of Economic Development

Saturday, January 20th at 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Mexican Heritage Plaza, 1700 Alum Rock Avenue, San Jose, CA 95116

Join the Office of Economic Development for their first entrepreneurship event completely in Spanish! Connect with over 200 entrepreneurs and organizations supporting small businesses, learn from local business experts, and more. Register here: https://yacanexcommunity.org/Emprendete/  

Asiste a este gran evento diseñado para emprendedores como tú; conoce a más de 200 empresarios y organizaciones que apoyan a las pequeñas empresas en San José. Acércate a los expertos en negocios para obtener valiosas sugerencias y entérate de las nuevas leyes comerciales vigentes en 2024. No lo pienses más. Registrate ya: https://yacanexcommunity.org/Emprendete/ 

E-Waste Recycling Event with The Trash Punx

Saturday, February 3rd at 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Seven Trees Community Center, 3590 Cas Drive, San Jose, CA 95111

Stop by the Seven Trees Community Center and toss your unwanted junk! You can bring anything you have cluttering your home or garage as long as it isn’t hazardous or flammable, including old TVs, computers, printers, and more. To RSVP and read the full list of accepted and prohibited items, click here.

New year, new clean city! We started 2024 off on the right foot a couple of weeks ago with another double header clean-up, joined by Councilmember Doan, San Jose Vietnamese Running Club, and dozens of incredible neighbors who resolved to be a part of the solution this year. Together, we're building a cleaner, brighter San Jose. Help keep the momentum going: http://bit.ly/cleansj

A clean-up a day keeps the blight away! That’s why we spend Saturday mornings picking up trash, abating graffiti, clearing illegal dumping, and beautifying our city. Yesterday morning, we joined forces with the Melody Serenade Neighborhood Association to connect with neighbors and remove litter from their neighborhood. Join us and be part of the change we want to see in San Jose: http://bit.ly/cleansj 

We’ve made a lot of progress this past year — and we have a long way to go to create the safe, clean city we all want to live in. Learn about what we accomplished in 2023 here.