A Message from Mayor Matt

• Prioritize community safety
• Optimize homelessness services and reduce costs
• Enhance neighborhood cleanliness enforcement
• Accelerate housing approvals with accountability

• March Budget Message
• homelessness service provider agreements
• SAP Center modernization
• housing permitting process reforms

• Public hearing on March 17
• Cinequest 2026 film festival
• Women’s Heritage Day on March 7
• BayFC Home Opener on March 14

I’ll get straight to the point: we have a difficult budget deficit to resolve this year, and the road ahead won’t be easy. Dear Neighbor, I’ll get straight to the point: we’re facing a difficult budget deficit this year. Costs, particularly the City’s cost of labor, are currently going up faster than tax revenues. This requires us to dig into each department, streamline how we operate, drop non-essential programs, defer some capital projects, and in some cases, make tradeoffs that are more painful. But this is what governing effectively and responsibly requires. With a projected $56 million shortfall to resolve in the coming fiscal year, we must exercise restraint and stay squarely focused on our priorities: increasing community safety, reducing unsheltered homelessness, cleaning up our neighborhoods, building more housing, and growing our economy. The good news? By focusing City Hall in recent years we’re in a position to protect our progress in key areas of responsibility while keeping down costs elsewhere. My budget message will protect the critical services we all rely on each day and outline some small new programs that we believe will have a big impact. Ultimately, we will work with our City Manager to put forward a proposed budget that reinforces the relentless focus that has led to better outcomes for all of us over the past few years. On homelessness, we made it our top priority to bring people indoors — and we built the capacity to do it. We expanded interim housing, converted motels, opened safe parking and safe sleeping sites. We built more placements than any other city on the West Coast. Now, it’s time to optimize the system we’ve built. We can negotiate to lower operating costs systemwide by standardizing our agreements with service providers. We also have a new partnership in place with the County that will start to improve services in our interim system while reducing operating costs. Finally, we are making investments to ensure people spend less time in our shelter system by reconnecting them with loved ones or graduating them to permanent housing faster. On neighborhood cleanliness, residents consistently tell us they want a city they feel proud of. And we've made progress on that front — last year resident satisfaction in the City's trash and litter pick-up services went up 13% . To continue our progress, we’ll focus on tracking illegal dumping and graffiti in hotspot areas and strengthen enforcement. We’ll also improve programs like Free Junk Pickup, so residents are more inclined to use it. On safety, we reclaimed our title as the safest big city in the nation last year. But safety is not a box to check. It is something we build on every day. By adopting new AI-powered tools, we can reduce administrative burdens on our dispatchers and other staff, freeing up time for higher-impact work. By modernizing emergency response, we can ensure our 911 resources and our emergency rooms are focused on true emergencies. Innovation should help us work smarter, not just spend more. On economic growth, we are seeing real momentum. Major events are drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors Downtown and supporting our small businesses. By modernizing the SAP Center and organizing our venues into a coordinated Sports and Entertainment District, we can turn big moments into long-term opportunities — attracting investment, driving foot traffic year-round, and making Downtown a premier regional destination. Moreover, San José is poised to attract new investment in manufacturing and data center solutions that will generate the growing tax base we need to expand city services in the coming years. And on housing, we must hold ourselves accountable for results. A number of departments touch the development process, increasing complexity and slowing down approvals. We can change this. Accountable leadership, a public permitting dashboard, and established timelines for approval will send a message that San José is ready to build. If projects meet our zoning and building requirements, they should move forward quickly. Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll be finalizing our budget message and I’ll keep you updated on how we’re planning to do more with less with focused execution, smarter investments, and efficiency gains. Following the release of my March Budget Message, we will hold a public hearing on March 17 where you can make your voice heard and urge the Council to stay focused on the priorities that matter most. Sign Up Here! If you can spare the time to speak out, I would be honored to stand with you. And if you’re ready to join me in advocating for focus and accountability, sign up for more information about how to have a seat at the table for this year’s budget discussion. Sincerely, Mayor Matt Nearly five months ago, I visited the Foxdale neighborhood to hear from residents who are active in their neighborhood association. They didn’t ask for anything extravagant. They asked for the basics: better lighting so families could feel safe walking at night, improvements to a soccer field that is one of the only opportunities for their kids to stay active, and a neighborhood that reflects the pride they already feel in their community. Last month, we delivered. Alongside the San José Police Department, the San José Earthquakes, Councilmember Peter Ortiz, The Trashpunx, our Parks & Rec Department, and four-time MLB All-Star and San Francisco Giant Hunter Pence, we worked shoulder to shoulder with residents to deliver on their vision. We installed brighter lighting, added new benches and bleachers to their soccer field, and painted a new mural that reflects the spirit of Foxdale. When we improve lighting, we improve safety. When we invest in public spaces, we strengthen pride. When we create places for kids to play, we create opportunity. That’s what community-driven public safety looks like. That’s what partnership looks like. And that’s what San José looks like at its best. For decades, Cinequest has put San José on the global map as a creative capital where innovation and artistry thrive. Experience 143 World and U.S. premieres and 420 artists from 44 countries at Cinequest 2026, with screenings, premieres, and celebrations in San José and Mountain View. Join the excitement and be part of a festival that brings our community together through film and creativity. Get the full lineup and tickets below. Check out Cinequest! Women’s Heritage Day Saturday, March 7th History Park Join History Park on Saturday, March 7th in celebrating their fourth annual Women's Heritage Day Event! Don't miss this festive, family-friendly community gathering as they honor the achievements and contributions of women throughout Santa Clara Valley's history. Get all the details here. BayFC Home Opener vs. Denver Summit FC Saturday, March 14th at 3:30 PM PayPal Park There’s nothing quite like the intensity of the first home match of the year at PayPal Park. Help BayFC start their season off strong with the home field advantage. Find more information here. CERT 5K Family Run Saturday, March 28th at 8:00 AM Almaden Lake Park Join Councilmember George Casey and District 10 Neighborhood CERT to learn about caring for your family and neighbors in emergencies, and run for fun! Attendance is free, find more information here. Stars on Ice Sunday, May 17th at 4:00 PM SAP Center Get ready to celebrate America’s skating superstars! Fresh off record-breaking World and National championship performances and bound for Olympic glory, the 2026 Stars on Ice tour brings the thrill of the Games to fans nationwide. Don’t miss out on the chance to catch Alysa Liu, Ilia Malinin, and other skating stars — grab your tickets here. Commending Sharkie The best Shark in the world is not found in any ocean or aquarium, but right here in San José! Last week at City Council, we honored Sharkie for all he’s given to our city — here’s to many more years of mischief and momentum! Beautifying Lone Bluff Thank you to Orlana, the Lone Bluff Senter Neighborhood Association, our designer, Alex, and all of our volunteers for beautifying this corner of the Lone Bluff neighborhood in San José! Don’t miss out, join us as we take over Downtown West this Saturday, sign up here. Visit our Website! 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