TO: CITY COUNCIL FROM: Councilmember Sylvia Arenas District 8 SUBJECT: SEE BELOW DATE: April 19, 2022 Approved Date 4/19/2022 _____ SUBJECT: CITY ROADMAP - DIGITAL EQUITY: ACTIONS RELATED TO THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS FOR THE MT. PLEASANT AND SILVER CREEK COMMUNITY WIFI INFRASTRUCTURE, JAMES LICK TECH REFRESH, AND DIGITAL INCLUSION PROGRAM RECOMMENDATION 1) Accept staff report and recommendations. 2) Direct the City Manager to remove or expedite administrative hurdles between award and construction to move the timeframe of construction up as much as possible – ideally into 2022 – to allow use in Mt. Pleasant and Silver Creek High Schools during the second semester of the upcoming school year. 3) Direct the City Manager to coordinate with East Side Union High School District and partner elementary districts, and provide a verbal report to the Neighborhood Services and Education (NSE) Committee on an annual basis with a robust outreach strategy to ensure families are aware of these new deployments. BACKGROUND I would like to thank the City Manager and staff members across departments, particularly in the Library and Public Works Departments for their outstanding work. They have turned a vision of our community leaders into a reality which will fundamentally change the lives of many thousands of families – and children, in particular. I would also like to thank our amazing school district partners. This program is a partnership between the City of San José and East Side Union High School District (ESUHSD). If not for the district and their board having the vision to create their tech bond – and the vision of their residents in passing it – this action today, simply would not be possible. That is especially clear as the school sites we vote on today – Mt. Pleasant and Silver Creek High Schools – are being paid for by the School District, not the City of San José.
COUNCIL AGENDA: 4/19/2022 FILE: ITEM: 22-512 2.10
CITY COUNCIL April 19, 2020 Subject: City Roadmap - Digital Equity: Actions Related to the Construction Contracts for the Mt. Pleasant and Silver Creek Community WiFi Infrastructure, James Lick Tech Refresh, and Digital Inclusion Program Page 2 Last – I want to thank the school board members who first brought this urgent need to the Council at the beginning of the pandemic. Their efforts, led by Board of Trustees Vice President Lorena Chavez, galvanized our Council, our community, and our City Administration into action. Their leadership also brought elementary school districts to the table as financial contributors to the program, making even more possible. As we move forward today – we are authorizing the City Administration to move forward quickly with the final contracts for Mt. Pleasant and Silver Creek High Schools – by delegating Council’s authority to the City Manager. I strongly support that action, as it will shave significant time off the schedule to get these two critical sites into construction. But I am also asking today that the City Administration meet the Council half-way. We will delegate our authority to move these projects faster, but we also are counting on the Administration to clear a quicker path through the tangles of bureaucratic paperwork between when the contract is awarded and when construction can begin. Because every day counts for our students. I am asking the administration to not close up shop on this critical project once these sites are approved and go into construction. We have quickly gone from 1 site, to 2 and 3 – and will soon be going to 6 sites, and then 8. With this in mind, it is vital that the Council continue to collaborate with the administration on robust outreach to families about this free service. Combined with the Digital Inclusion grant programs, there is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It’s vital that we match the effort that we put into building this system with an outreach plan that is up to this next part of the challenge. And it is equally vital that Council, the Administration, and our ESUHSD partners continue to collaborate on where the most critical gaps in service remain. Because there are very clear gaps in service – particularly evident in the service areas for Independence, Yerba Buena, Silver Creek, and Mt. Pleasant High Schools. It’s time to start having these initial conversations, that can form the basis for a Phase 2 for East Side Access.