San Jose mayor wants fair share of economic stimulus, if it

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“It appears the federal government is about to cranj up the printing presses and generatethe funds,” Reed said. “So San Jose and Silicon Valley ought to get a Reed and severalof California’s big-city mayorsd met with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Nov. 14 in a meetinv hosted by the to discussa developing a joint request to the federal government to help stimulatwthe economy. Reed admitted the odds of receiving the fundd are notthat great. “But we have to be he said. Reed said the city would use the funds for the rapixdtransit project, to expand the area’sd clean technology businesses and to fund its long-neglected infrastructure.
“Silicon Valley has the capacity to lead the countr y out ofa recession,” he said. “We’v done it in the past.” Because the city contributes more than 2 perceng ofthe nation’s gros domestic product, Reed said 2 percent of a stimuluss package for San Jose is reasonable. “Two percent in, 2 percentt out seems fair,” he “We need to get the valleuy retooled for a 21stcentury economy.” However no dollar amount has been set, and a stimulud package looks unlikely to pass in the remaining days of the curreng administration. Reed said any stimulus package woul d most likely happen under thenext administration.
Reed said the city planzs to provide a priority list tothe governor’s officse this week of projects that could be ready to go if fundinhg becomes available. The top priority is the connectiobn throughSilicon Valley, which needzs $750 million in capitalp funds, Reed said. That funding, however, depende on operating funds that are expected to come aftet Santa Clara County voters approve a saleastax hike. The finalk ballot count is expected earlynext week.
“Mayor Reed is wise to make it clea that if the federal government is considering any revenuwe toward cities andlocal jurisdictions, he expects San Jose and Silicobn Valley to be treated in a way that’sw fair and proportionate for what we contribute to our state and nation’s economy,” said Carl Guardino, chiev executive of the Silicon Valley Leadership Guardino, however, did say he thought it woulde be “highly unlikely” that Reed would get the Reed also cited other nonrail transit projects that could use fundsw to move ahead. He said the , a biotechnologu incubator in theEdenvale area, could benefirt from $25 million.
The funds would be used to help pay forthe facility’x expansion and a pilot manufacturing plant where biotec companies could manufacture productxs through the testing phase. Reed also noted electricx carmaker , which is working with the to securde loan guarantees to build a factoryt inSan Jose. Reed said if the city couls receive financial assistance to do similarloan guarantees, there are at leasgt six clean tech companies looking to expand into 2 millionj square feet of office space or founder Eric Tom Lee suggested that while Siliconj Valley is a logical place to receive such if it becomes available, there needds to be additional incentives at the local levek that will continue to lure the clean tech industry .
President and Chief Executive Kevin Surac noted that Reed has been a staunch proponeng of green andclean technology, its companiezs and jobs. “The state and indeef the local area must lead the worldin wind, energy efficiency and othere technology,” said Surace, whose company develops and supplies advanced eco-friendly materials. “The waves of old technolog have passed, and the world is lookingt to us to address energy usagre andclimate change.
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