Letters from the Public - 2 of 7 — San Jose City Council, June 8, 2026

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Susan Kossow,
San Jose resident and California native

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Sincerely,
Janice Zelaya, Council 3

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My husband and I have used this invaluable resource to research many areas of San José, including our own home's history. As researchers, we know that this work is ongoing—it is never truly done, as new information is constantly being discovered.

Closing this public resource to save just 0.6% of the overall City Library budget would be a devastating and short-sighted decision. As San José prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2027, cutting the very department that houses our city's, history is illogical.

I ask you to protect the California Room, preserve public access to our shared history, and demonstrate that San José values its cultural heritage and civic memory.

If you cannot support this request, please explain to me your justification for eliminating it.

Sincerely,
Elizabeth & Gregory Winslow

disengage from learning. In the era of AI, social media, and smartphones, physical archives make a world of difference. I take students to the California Room to conduct local history projects that use real physical materials they can touch with their hands—they can explore newspaper clippings, aerial photography, giant and ancient sanborn maps, city plans, city directories and books by local authors.

The bolder students will even learn how to use the microfilm records. Anyone who has done research in a physical archive understands that working in an archive provides a certain amount of serendipity and discovery that you just can’t replicate by plugging in search terms in digital collection online. It’s the moments of spontaneous discovery that makes the California Room such a great tool for engaging students who might otherwise show no interest in history.

Keeping this room open to students is also a great long term investment for the city. I have students who come from all over San Jose and nearby areas, but in exploring the California room, they build a deep connection with the city itself, a connection that makes them feel proud of where they live, and a pride that makes them eager to reinvest in their own city, whether that means time volunteering, or financial investment later down the road.

Lastly, I worry about what closure of the California Room would mean for remembering our own past.

Eliminating this resource doesn’t just disable access temporarily, it eliminates it forever because we lose the institutional knowledge that makes places like the California room usable in the first place. The staff and curators of the California Room have institutional knowledge that makes them invaluable guides for an invaluable archive. They know the city and these archives like the back of their hands. Without them the California Room might technically survive as a dusty collection of records used by the occasional historian, but it wouldn’t be a place where normal people directly interact with their own past.

For $388,000 a year San José maintains a resource that connects thousands of students and residents to the city's own history. That is not where I would look to cut. The California Room is not an expendable item in a budget line — it is a public institution that connects San José residents to their own story. I urge the council to protect it to keep this resource available for future San Joseans.

Thank you for the time and consideration,
Skyler Anderson

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. of these groups in meaningful ways. Facility upkeep and on-site presence - Today, Arcadia has staff on site who are accountable for the condition of the fields, the playground, the bathrooms, and the surrounding landscaped areas. Under the proposed model, maintenance would be handled by a park maintenance district responsible for multiple parks across the city. While those teams do important work, a shared district model means Arcadia would be one of many facilities competing for attention rather than having a dedicated team whose primary focus is this facility. Users should expect that response times to issues, including field conditions, restroom maintenance, and equipment problems, may be slower than they are today. City- managed leagues - The on-site coordination and programming staff who currently run Arcadia's city- managed leagues would be eliminated under this proposal. That includes the adult slow pitch softball league, which currently costs $900 per team for a season of 10 guaranteed games. Without a city-run option, teams would need to turn to private leagues, where comparable programs currently charge approximately $1,100 per team for 6 guaranteed games. That is a significant difference in both cost and value, and there is no guarantee a private league would have access to Arcadia's fields under the new reservation model. It is also worth considering that the private league filling this void may not be a reliable long-term alternative. The local adult slow pitch league has changed hands three times in the past decade, a sign that operating a sustainable program in this market is harder than it looks. Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season. Reservations and scheduling - Moving to the Citywide Sports Program reservation system means scheduling would be managed centrally, alongside all other parks and fields across San Jose. Users who currently benefit from on-site coordination and direct communication with facility staff may find the process less responsive. Centralized systems, while efficient at scale, can increase the risk of scheduling conflicts and make it harder to resolve issues quickly when they arise. Field time allocation - With on-site programming staff no longer overseeing Arcadia's calendar, there may be less active management of how field time is distributed across user groups. Today, that oversight helps balance access between youth, senior, recreational, and competitive programs. Without it, field time could shift based on demand and revenue rather than community balance, and groups with less organizational capacity may find it harder to secure consistent access. Concessions - The proposal notes that current concessions are part of the "full onsite operations model" being eliminated. It is not clear whether concession services would continue under the new model, be offered less frequently, or be discontinued. Users and families who rely on that amenity, particularly during full-day tournaments and youth events, should be aware this is uncertain.

Arcadia is one of the finest publicly operated sports facilities in San Jose. These concerns are not about the staff who would take on responsibilities under the new model. They are about what is structurally possible when a dedicated facility team is replaced by a shared, citywide system. Arcadia Ballpark works. The fields are well-maintained, the leagues are affordable and in demand, and the on-site team delivers a level of service that is rare in a city park system. The proposed changes would dismantle that model to achieve savings that amount to a fraction of a percent of the overall parks budget. We ask the Mayor and City Council to reject this proposal and preserve Arcadia's current operating model in its entirety — its staff, its leagues, its concessions, and its on-site management. What exists today took years to build and will not be easily rebuilt once it is gone. Thank you for your time and public service. Michelle (softball player and league participant)

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As primary historian on the City's own Historic Context Statement, I was given the privilege to give back what I learned.

For the last 40 years, with the help of the California Room librarians and its resources, I, my associates in Archives & Architecture, and our company founder, the late Historian Glory Anne Laffey, have created the documentation for over one hundred San Jose landmark designations, and have helped the City Council survey and designate most of its historic areas and landmark districts.

The current proposal is not well thought out and should be brought back for refinement that will continue physical access for the researchers and students of local history who have and will continue to benefit from the irreplaceable value the California Room has provided since its establishment 120 years ago.

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Sincerely,
Peggy Carlson-Bowen
District 9

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Sincerely,
Ligia Oliveira , North San Jose

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Sincerely,
Sandy Flores, Council District 5
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not duplicated by any other library anywhere.

The California Room aligns with Envision 2040 general plan goal for the library “Enrich lives by fostering life long learning and providing every member of the San Jose community access to a vast array of ideas and information.” The California serves students and community members curious about this place they now call home, as well as genealogists, scholars, authors, park department planners researching persons nominated for park naming, city employees studying very large aerials, Redevelopment agency material and city reports lost in the move to the current City Hall, and consultants doing work for individuals and developers. The City hired consultants to use the California room materials to research complex thorny topics such as the pattern of suburban development and its relation to systemic and institutional racism.

The principal author highlighted his use of books and pamphlets that are ONLY in the California Room and in no other archive.

The California Room collections are aligned with the Envision 2040 General Plan goal “Support San Jose State University libraries, educational mission in expanding the base of knowledge through research and scholarship.” The California Room, the Sourasseau Society and the SJSU special collections share vaults and have been known to collaborate on specific collection acquisition so that the separate collections complement rather than replicate one another. The California Room provides services to all San Jose State university students as well as providing opportunities for SJSU student librarian and archivists to intern or volunteer at their retro tech facility.

The California Room staff helps novice researchers to learn how to find materials. Because the staff is familiar with the collection they can find the picture or the document —even when it has not been fully catalogued nor digitized.

Providing a remote paging service by clerks who are unfamiliar with the collection would be inadequate and thwart usage of the resource—especially among beginners and youth. Without coaching, the collection is overwhelming and for many people the complex searching techniques needed to use digital files is beyond them without one to one coaching. Less than ten percent of the collection is digitized. Of the remainder, much is fragile or bulky and could not be served by a clerk bringing materials remotely— the materials would remain inaccessible. Some items such as microfilm of early San Jose 1850s-1860s newspapers and microfiche of early building permits that exist nowhere else are too rare or require specialized equipment incompatible with a paging/retrieval system. Some of the early “card catalog” entries in the online catalogue have little more than the title and author and under this closure scheme users would need to request many more books in order to decide whether each book serves their need in contrast to merely looking quickly while standing among the open stacks. The paging scheme scheme is a great waste of everyone’s time.

The California Room maintains a database containing 62,000 entries that serves as a combined name and business index to many of the key books about San Jose. Prepared by volunteers donating hundreds of hours, it speeds researchers’ work. In a move that appears to foreshadow the closure of the California Room, the database was removed from the library’s website last fall and is now ONLY available in the California room. Users who expressed concern at that time were promised access in the California Room.

Under this plan, it appears access to this unique and valuable finding aid would cease.

The California Room staff has established a culture of helpfulness among patrons—creating a community of learners. For example, after the Loma Prieta earthquake, a professional certified historian took the time from his research tasks to explain to me the intricate historical interweaving of the Guadalupe River sloughs that explained why plaster cracked severely and chimneys fell in some neighborhoods and not others. He showed me how I could trace the river on rare maps in the collection.

Subsequently I have continued this spirit of sharing with many users. Two weeks ago, I helped a Stanford University senior to focus his senior research thesis topic and brainstorm the resources he needed from the California Room so he could write about his city—San Jose—and his community’s immigrant experience in the 1970s. Stanford’s librarians and archives couldn’t help him. If the California room closes, he will have to write about some other city and explore someone else’s immigrant heritage.

Over the years, I used the California Room materials to write chapters in three books and I did the preliminary research for multiple homes so that community members could decide whether to hire professionals to pursue historic nominations. I coached two senior citizens who wanted to write their own books about San Jose. Both could not have pursued their life long dream without the California Room.

Through the years, I used the California Room to collect information for five additional topics including a history of San Jose’s parks and their names. As I work towards finishing these book projects, the last materials I need are in the California Room and they are not digitized. If the California Room closes, these projects will come to an end and will never be completed. With no California room librarian there would be no one to receive a donation of my fully digitized and indexed archives and first edition books. All to the dump.

Most concerning for the future, the budget document suggests there is no plan to ever re-open until after space considerations are resolved —hinting at a future general obligation bond and the implementation of the library’s new facilities master plan. The City Librarian calls the master plan “aspirational” making the future of the California Room more tenuous.

Yes, the California Room was closed in the past due to budget cuts—and many rare items walked out the door. When the room was re-opened, the staff librarian found books stacked on tables, shelves in disarray, and maps stuffed into incorrect drawers. Can’t we learn this lesson from the past? Closing the archive irreparably damages it.

History doesn’t stop. With no librarian, the collections stop, creating a gap that will be difficult to fill. The community of learners stops. Students are told by the closed and locked door—history is unimportant and even more damaging, “your history is unimportant.”
Come see the display by the California Room opening this week. It will celebrate the history of comics from the earliest newspapers to San Jose’s own Underground Ethnic, and Contemporary movements.

Come learn about the culture of our city—the soul of our City—while you can. It could go away June 30 without your help.
“Library As Soul of the City” served as the theme of the new library facilities improvement plan. The California Room and its staff keep track of the City’s soul and culture and how its community changes, evolves and becomes in this moment. Only when a community knows and acknowledges where it has been, it can know where to head next.

Please fund the California Room
—Jean Dresden

For most of my adult life about 10 years I have only known driving as the primary way to get around.

Recently, however, my family and I have experienced a different and better way to enjoy the city: safely riding through our streets, noticing the small things, and even making quick grocery runs in a more connected and enjoyable way. Experiences like Viva CalleSJ highlight how valuable this kind of access to public space can be in everyday life, not just during special events.

I also want to share personally that I am not a perfect person. In the past, I struggled with habits like road rage while driving. Learning how to slow down and enjoy a safe bike ride instead has genuinely changed my perspective.

I tend to keep to myself, but this event has helped me become more outgoing and connected. I’ve had the chance to meet so many of my fellow San José residents as well as visitors from across the Bay Area.

These are memories I will always cherish.

Rather than considering reductions or limiting these kinds of programs to save a small percentage of the city’s budget, I believe we should be expanding them. If anything, we should be looking at doubling the number of events from three to six, not proposing cuts that reduce opportunities for residents to experience their city in this way.

Events like Viva CalleSJ help showcase the best of San José. Local businesses receive increased foot traffic, families are able to enjoy public spaces safely, and residents who may not normally explore other neighborhoods get a chance to experience more of the city. It also promotes healthier lifestyles and alternative transportation while reducing traffic and pollution during the event.

I hope the City Council will continue supporting Viva CalleSJ and consider expanding opportunities for similar community-centered events in the future.

Thank you for your time and for your service to the residents of San José.

Sincerely,
David A
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Martha Wallace, Sunnyvale
Genealogy - So many ancestors...so little time!

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Sincerely,
Pamela Schulz, resident of District 6 in San Jose

I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

The September 2025 Viva CalleSJ drew over 150,000 people. A study by the Mineta Transportation Institute at San Jose State found the economic impact of that single event was $4.7 million. Nearly 80% of attendees discovered a local business they hadn't visited before, and 78.5% planned to spend money along the route that day. That kind of neighborhood activation is genuinely hard to replicate through other means.

The community numbers are just as striking. 93% of participants said the event increased their sense of belonging in San Jose. 84% said they talked to someone they otherwise wouldn't have. These aren't abstractions. This is a program that makes people feel like they live somewhere worth caring about.

Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.

There's also a cost-of-living dimension worth naming directly. San Jose sits inside one of the wealthiest metro areas in the world, and yet a large share of its residents are priced out of most of what that implies. Going out as a family costs money a lot of households don't have. Viva Calle is one of the only large, free events where kids can move around safely and families can spend a full day together without spending anything. That gap between what Silicon Valley projects and what many San Jose families can actually afford is exactly why this program matters.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you,
Kabir Budwal
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to offer specialized, dedicated service to the public. To echo what others have certainly said: reducing the room's hours may be an option, but eliminating staff and severely restricting access should not be on the table.

As an officer of the SJSU History Club and active voice in collaborations with the SJSU History Department, I have helped build a relationship with the California Room that enriches students' firsthand experience with history. Our students regularly utilize the rare resources in the California Room for their research and tour the collection to learn about career opportunities connecting the public with history, all made possible via the specialized assistance of the room's librarians. Just last month, at my invitation, a California Room librarian (and SJSU alum) even spoke at the Northern California Regional Phi Alpha Theta Conference on a panel about history careers.

Looking to the future, the SJSU History Department is excited to bring back its Public History courses starting next Fall, which will provide critical support for students seeking careers that preserve and share history for the next generation. The California Room is one of our go-to connections in making this coursework possible, especially because of its location in our shared library and its experienced staff. The California Room is an invaluable resource to SJSU's History Department, Anthropology Department, and to other members of the SJSU community learning the necessary skills of working with primary sources and archival collections, as well as developing their information literacy and public communication skills. As a bridge between the academic and the public, the California Room is irreplaceable, as are its librarians.

Despite its small physical and financial footprint, the California Room's rich collection and dedicated service also draw thousands of non-student visitors every year, from both the immediate community and beyond San José. In doing my own research there, I have shared the space with a diverse public -- from locals discovering the history of their home to out-of-state researchers digging into some particularity of Santa Clara Valley's past that they can't find anywhere else. The California Room staff always go above and beyond to serve, including with the Retro Tech media digitization program and their public talks and exhibits. Community members who may not otherwise visit the collection have the opportunity to digitize their home media for free, preserving their personal histories and creating connections in a compassionate community space. The talks and exhibits hosted by the California Room also make our community history engaging and accessible, often focusing on underrepresented groups. Again, none of this would be possible without dedicated librarians.

Closing this invaluable public resource to save just 0.6% of the overall City Library budget would be a devastating and short-sighted decision, especially as San José prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2027. I'm sure that the city budget is stretched, and that the money could be used elsewhere, but the California Room is a unique and treasured resource that should not be subject to closure. Having worked with various historical groups in the Bay Area, including other library history centers, I know that funding is hard to come by and, once cut, incredibly difficult to regain. Without the specialized knowledge of a dedicated librarian, much of the history in the collection will effectively be lost.

I ask you to protect the California Room, preserve public access to our shared history, and demonstrate that San José values its cultural heritage and civic memory. It is never the right time to limit community access to history, nor to leave it stewardless. In light of current trends attacking history at the federal level, now is an especially dangerous time to do so. Please seriously consider maintaining funding for the California Room in the 2026-2027 budget.

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Thank you!
Sincerely,
Alona Kostka
District 3, 95112

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Thank you for your time.

Austin Walton

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I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

Viva Parks matters for a different reason. It was designed specifically for neighborhoods with the fewest resources, using the Healthy Place Index to target where free wellness programming is needed most. Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time,
Devin Wilder,

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The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident
Lih Chiang

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Sincerely,
Matthew Clifford
District 4

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The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Through VivaCalle, my family has experienced San Jose in a different and wonderful way. We have biked in the rain, walked in the heat and really enjoyed ourselves. The first time I took my youngest out in the trailer was in the rain during ViveCalle. While I am sure he doesn't remember it, I still recall enjoying the ride and stopping at local eateries for drinks and snacks.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

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Sincerely,
Devin Gardner
San Jose, District 6

I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

Seth Barberee, District 1
A Concerned San Jose Resident
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Professionals including myself and my colleagues regularly access these materials and rely on the expertise of the staff to meet local, state, and federal compliance regulations. Losing access will undoubtedly raise costs associated with the research we are required by law to complete.

This is a wholly unnecessary burden on the San José taxpayers. I ask you to protect the California Room, preserve public access to our shared history, and demonstrate that San José values its cultural heritage and civic memory.

Thank you for your time,
Jennifer Pennell

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. different reason. It was designed specifically for neighborhoods with the fewest resources, using the Healthy Place Index to target where free wellness programming is needed most. Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives. There's also a cost-of-living dimension worth naming directly. San Jose sits inside one of the wealthiest metro areas in the world, and yet a large share of its residents are priced out of most of what that implies. Going out as a family costs money a lot of households don't have. Viva Calle is one of the only large, free events where kids can move around safely and families can spend a full day together without spending anything. That gap between what Silicon Valley projects and what many San Jose families can actually afford is exactly why this program matters. The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it. Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events. Thank you for your time.

Janett Peace
Note: I copied this email as I felt it was well written and I completely agree with the points made. Surely there are other areas you can make cuts as I am aware the budget is tight. Please look at free family events cuts as a very last resort.

describes as a "full onsite operations model with dedicated reservation and programming, concessions, and maintenance staff" to a facility where reservations are managed through the Citywide Sports Program field reservation system and maintenance is incorporated into a park maintenance district.

Arcadia serves a wide and diverse community, including youth baseball, senior softball, adult recreational leagues, and competitive fastpitch programs. The proposed changes could affect all of these groups in meaningful ways.

Facility upkeep and on-site presence - Today, Arcadia has staff on site who are accountable for the condition of the fields, the playground, the bathrooms, and the surrounding landscaped areas. Under the proposed model, maintenance would be handled by a park maintenance district responsible for multiple parks across the city. While those teams do important work, a shared district model means Arcadia would be one of many facilities competing for attention rather than having a dedicated team whose primary focus is this facility. Users should expect that response times to issues, including field conditions, restroom maintenance, and equipment problems, may be slower than they are today.

City-managed leagues - The on-site coordination and programming staff who currently run Arcadia's city-managed leagues would be eliminated under this proposal. That includes the adult slow pitch softball league, which currently costs $900 per team for a season of 10 guaranteed games. Without a city-run option, teams would need to turn to private leagues, where comparable programs currently charge approximately $1,100 per team for 6 guaranteed games. That is a significant difference in both cost and value, and there is no guarantee a private league would have access to Arcadia's fields under the new reservation model. It is also worth considering that the private league filling this void may not be a reliable long-term alternative. The local adult slow pitch league has changed hands three times in the past decade, a sign that operating a sustainable program in this market is harder than it looks.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Reservations and scheduling - Moving to the Citywide Sports Program reservation system means scheduling would be managed centrally, alongside all other parks and fields across San Jose. Users who currently benefit from on-site coordination and direct communication with facility staff may find the process less responsive. Centralized systems, while efficient at scale, can increase the risk of scheduling conflicts and make it harder to resolve issues quickly when they arise.

Without it, field time could shift based on demand and revenue rather than community balance, and groups with less organizational capacity may find it harder to secure consistent access.

Concessions - The proposal notes that current concessions are part of the "full onsite operations model" being eliminated. It is not clear whether concession services would continue under the new model, be offered less frequently, or be discontinued. Users and families who rely on that amenity, particularly during full-day tournaments and youth events, should be aware this is uncertain.

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Arcadia Ballpark works. The fields are well-maintained, the leagues are affordable and in demand, and the on-site team delivers a level of service that is rare in a city park system. The proposed changes would dismantle that model to achieve savings that amount to a fraction of a percent of the overall parks budget. We ask the Mayor and City Council to reject this proposal and preserve Arcadia's current operating model in its entirety — its staff, its leagues, its concessions, and its on-site management.

What exists today took years to build and will not be easily rebuilt once it is gone.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter

I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

The proposal (Parks Maintenance Redistricting, Citywide Sports Programming, and Lease Management) in the FY27 Proposed Budget would transition Arcadia from what the City itself describes as a "full onsite operations model with dedicated reservation and programming, concessions, and maintenance staff" to a facility where reservations are managed through the Citywide Sports Program field reservation system and maintenance is incorporated into a park maintenance district.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Field time allocation - With on-site programming staff no longer overseeing Arcadia's calendar, there may be less active management of how field time is distributed across user groups. Today, that oversight helps balance access between youth, senior, recreational, and competitive programs. Without it, field time could shift based on demand and revenue rather than community balance, and groups with less organizational capacity may find it harder to secure consistent access.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter
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I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

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We ask the Mayor and City Council to reject this proposal and preserve Arcadia's current operating model in its entirety — its staff, its leagues, its concessions, and its on-site management. What exists today took years to build and will not be easily rebuilt once it is gone. Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Without it, field time could shift based on demand and revenue rather than community balance, and groups with less organizational capacity may find it harder to secure consistent access.

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What exists today took years to build and will not be easily rebuilt once it is gone.

Thank you for your time and public service.

Christina Schonberg
A Concerned Arcadia Supporter

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Without it, field time could shift based on demand and revenue rather than community balance, and groups with less organizational capacity may find it harder to secure consistent access.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

What exists today took years to build and will not be easily rebuilt once it is gone.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter

I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter
Naomi Rojas
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I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter
~ Amber Del Monte
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter,
Delia Castro
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter
X.Garcia
Sent from my iPhone
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

Emalie McGinnis
A Concerned San Jose Resident

I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Thank you for your time and public service.

Shannon Hoffman
A Concerned Arcadia Supporter
Sent from my iPhone
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. public access to our shared history, and demonstrate that San José values its cultural heritage and civic memory.

Sincerely,
Mike Lara, District 7

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The California Room tabled at our February event, serving as a portal to connect our community to the city's rich history. But that wasn't all. Sofia Mendoza herself would have been proud to see Timeless Art Collective and the California Room with computer station for anyone to fill out an application for a library card and preview library card designs.

In April, the California Room supported us again by providing a space for Timeless Art Collective to be interviewed with Eastside Magazine. We learned then that the California Room will keep a copy of every Eastside Magazine issue in the archives to preserve voices from our community.

The California Room recognizes the importance of recording the history of underrepresented communities like ours. They have started a Timeless Art Collective file, containing community projects and media appearances. This is the start of our collection, documenting our history of community work in the City of San Jose.

The decision to close the California Room is to deny us our history. Even worse... To deny San Jose their own history.

Forever San Jose,
Timeless Art Collective

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2027. I ask you to protect the California Room, preserve public access to our shared history, and demonstrate that San José values its cultural heritage and civic memory.

Sincerely,
Rachel Moreno, District 7

non-circulating collections for trustworthy, primary-source information about San José’s past and present.

The Room’s dedicated staff do important work that cannot be replaced by just storing materials or offering limited, by-appointment access.

Curate, organize, and preserve rare and fragile materials so they remain accessible to future generations, including maps, photographs, scrapbooks, oral histories, and audiovisual records.

Support classroom instruction, student research projects, and university collaborations, including San José State University researchers who rely on the Room’s collections for theses, dissertations, and public history projects.

Assist property owners, architects, and planners in documenting historic buildings, neighborhoods, and cultural landscapes—work that is indispensable for thoughtful planning, preservation, and equitable development.

Partner with community initiatives, such as “East Side Dreams: Untold Stories of East San José,” which use the California Room’s resources to surface marginalized voices and histories in traditional narratives.

San José will celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2027, and the need for accurate, accessible local history will only grow. The California Room is exactly the kind of civic resource that helps residents share that history responsibly, from Indigenous communities and Mexican and Spanish California, through the Gold Rush, railroads, the 1906 and 1989 earthquakes, waves of migration, and the Valley’s transformation into a global technology center. Limiting public access to the place that preserves this story sends the wrong message—that San José does not value its own cultural heritage or the people who built it.

The proposed cuts would save about $388,000 each year, which is only 0.6% of the library budget and an even smaller part of the total city budget. This would be done by cutting the California Room’s librarian and support jobs and closing direct public access. That small savings would mean losing a key research resource that supports K–12 and university education, family and local history, heritage tourism, preservation planning, and many creative and scholarly projects. If staff expertise is lost and collections are no longer accessible, it will be very hard and much more expensive to rebuild that capacity later.

While cities across the country are investing in archives, memory projects, and public history to support civic engagement and inclusion, San José should not go the other way. The California Room shows how a public library can preserve diverse local stories, support equity focused projects, and help people feel more connected to their city. Protecting this Room—its space, collections, and especially its professional staff—would show that San José values its history and is committed to future generations.

I respectfully ask you to:

Reject any budget proposals that eliminate the California Room’s dedicated staff or close its doors to the public.

Explicitly maintain and, where possible, strengthen funding for the Room’s operations, preservation activities, and community programming.

Publicly affirm the California Room’s role as San José’s primary public gateway to its own history, especially as the city approaches its 250th anniversary.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

San José residents deserve ongoing, open, and fair access to their shared history. Please support a budget that keeps the California Room open and shows that our city values its stories, neighborhoods, and the people who shaped them.
___________________
Kevin H. Souza, MS
Associate Dean for Medical Education, UC San Francisco (Retired) Scholar and biographer of architect William Alexander Levy

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Without it, field time could shift based on demand and revenue rather than community balance, and groups with less organizational capacity may find it harder to secure consistent access.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

What exists today took years to build and will not be easily rebuilt once it is gone.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter

I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

I love the sense of community this event fosters, purchase food, clothing, and accessories from the locals on the Calle, and felt a sense of joy that is so rare during these scary times we live in.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident
Sent from my iPhone
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

Sincerely,
Petra Marar, PLA

I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

These fields provide a space for so many to get outside, play ball and enjoy! The fields are beautiful and well run- please keep that way by not changing the current operating model!!! Thank you for your time and public service.

Julie Mills
A Concerned Arcadia Supporter
Sent from my iPhone :)
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.

Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident
-Rick
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

Best regards,
Hannah Lutke
District 4

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

I also ask that the City Clerk include this message in the public comment record for the Neighborhood Services Budget Study Session.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Thank you for your time and public service.

A Concerned Arcadia Supporter
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

It's these types of events that really make San Jose feel like a community. i've lived here my entire life of 38 years and the city is so large, it often feels like we are lost and in our own worlds. Please, I urge you to consider keeping the Viva Calle events, do not cut it because of the budget, the community is too important.

Thank you,
Dennis Tran

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident
--
- Christine Trinh
:o)

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose ResidentDear Mayor Mahan, City Manager Maguire, Members of the City

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. money along the route that day. That kind of neighborhood activation is genuinely hard to replicate through other means.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

This does not represent the views of fellow Parks Commissioners or the Commission, and represents my views as a resident of the City of San José.

Sports Program field reservation system and maintenance is incorporated into a park maintenance district.

Players who lose access to the city league may find themselves with an option that is not only more expensive and shorter in duration, but potentially uncertain from season to season.

Without it, field time could shift based on demand and revenue rather than community balance, and groups with less organizational capacity may find it harder to secure consistent access.

Arcadia Ballpark works. The fields are well-maintained, the leagues are affordable and in demand, and This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. the on-site team delivers a level of service that is rare in a city park system. The proposed changes would dismantle that model to achieve savings that amount to a fraction of a percent of the overall parks budget. We ask the Mayor and City Council to reject this proposal and preserve Arcadia's current operating model in its entirety — its staff, its leagues, its concessions, and its on-site management.

What exists today took years to build and will not be easily rebuilt once it is gone.

Thank you for your time and public service.

An Arcadia User and Supporter
This does not represent the views of fellow Parks Commissioners or the Commission, and represents my views as a resident of the City of San José.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. collection of books, photographs, maps, archives, and historical records explored by thousands of students, educators, researchers, and community members every year.

Closing this invaluable public resource to save just o.6% of the overall City Library budget would be a devastating and short-sighted decision, especially as San José prepares to celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2027.

I ask you to protect the California Room, preserve public access to our shared history, and demonstrate that San José values its cultural heritage and civic memory.

Closing libraries is a total right-wing, Trump move. It is not becoming of a Democratic city in a blue state. We are not phillistines. Save the library.

Sincerely,
Chris VerPlanck
Sent with
Proton Mail secure email.

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.

The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.

Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.

Thank you for your time.

A Concerned San Jose Resident

This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. researchers, and anyone who wants to better understand our city’s history.

Sincerely,
William Tang

San Jose City CouncilJune 8, 2026

San Jose City Council
June 8, 2026