How San Jose would spend the November bond money
If San Jose voters approve a pair of bond measures in November, millions of dollars would be spent on repaving pockmarked streets, protecting homes from devastating floods like the Coyote Creek disaster of 2017, and helping low-income residents find housing.
Initially vague on how the more than $1 billion in bonds would be spent, the council this week unanimously approved a plan outlining where the money would go.
Some $300 million of a $650 million public safety, disaster preparedness and infrastructure bond measure would go toward repaving streets in bad shape.
Overall, the city has a $1.4 billion infrastructure backlog that is increasing by about $112 million annually.
To figure out the best way to spend the money, “we took a hard look at the infrastructure backlog list,” Matt Cano, the director of public works, said at Tuesday’s council meeting.
About $175 million would be spent on upgrading or repairing police, fire and emergency operations facilities, while $25 million would be earmarked for clean water projects. Another $20 million would go toward repairing bridges vulnerable to damage or collapse in an earthquake and $20 million would be spent on replacing streetlights with LED lighting. Some $13 million would be used to upgrade community centers so they could be used as emergency shelters.
The bond would also direct $50 million toward flood protection in Coyote Valley, which could include using bond money to purchase land in the area, and another $35 million toward other flood prevention projects.
“I see this as an opportunity to leverage a relatively modest amount compared to what folks are spending on flood protection these days to get a whole lot of benefit in terms of safety,” Mayor Sam Liccardo said.
The council also approved a proposal from Councilman Johnny Khamis to study possible spending tied to Coyote Valley before any funds are distributed.
“We must do our due diligence,” Khamis said, adding that he wants to make sure the city understands any job and tax implications before it takes action.
Much of the proposed spending the council approved is not legally binding and Councilman Don Rocha expressed some concern that the proposal didn’t go into much detail.
“I appreciate what we’re doing in more of a clear sense for the voters,” Rocha said, “but it’s not any clearer in terms of that street by them, or that bridge by them, or that project by them.”
But Liccardo hit back at that notion, pointing out that some of the plan is, indeed, binding, like the $300 million set aside for roads outlined explicitly in the ballot measure. Liccardo argued that some flexibility will benefit future councils who may use the money to address issues that haven’t yet arisen.
“We know things are going to change,” Liccardo said. “What we wanted to do was allocate dollar amounts to categories that would help us understand and help voters understand what they’re voting for.”
If voters back the measure, the project list would be finalized in early 2019.
The council also approved a plan outlining how the city would spend a $450 affordable housing bond measure. Broadly the money could go toward buying land, building new housing and fixing up existing housing.
At least $150 million would go toward helping extremely low-income people, like the homeless or those earning minimum wage. Some $75-$100 million would be earmarked for what officials have dubbed people in the “missing middle,” such as teachers. The rest would go toward supporting people somewhere between the previous two markers, like construction workers or nurses.
The housing bond measure could be a heavy lift, because just a couple of years ago voters in Santa Clara County approved Measure A, a $950 bond measure to address the area’s homelessness crisis.
Councilman Khamis, who was the only council member to oppose the proposed spending plan for the new affordable housing bond measure, pointed out that not a single one of the more than 4,000 units the county promised to build with Measure A funds are ready for occupancy.
But 10 projects using Measure A money have been approved and the first development is set to be completed this year. And while Measure A funding is meant to be used to house homeless people, the measure on San Jose’s ballot this year is much broader and would help the city work toward its goal of building 10,000 affordable units over the next several years.
“This is a very important measure both because we know we need more resources and because of the type of resources,” Liccardo said. “Measure A is very focused for a reason — that’s important — but that means a lot of folks aren’t going to be served.”