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A Fresh Start In The New Year

“As we begin the new year, I’m excited to announce some changes to my office staff. It has always been important to me to hire residents of my district whenever possible, in order to better represent the interests of our community."

Please welcome our new Chief of Staff Lam Nguyen, Policy Director Jaria Jaug, and District Director Marlee Smith.

Lam Nguyen, a resident of District 4 for most of his life, has been promoted to Chief of Staff. He joined my staff shortly after I was elected and has held a number of critical roles in my office. He brings experience and leadership having come from the State Senate and serving under Senator Jim Beall. His roots in District 4 give him a practical perspective and a unique understanding of the challenges faced by those in our community.

Jaria is a current Berryessa School Board Member and has also been serving the community as a Field Representative for Assemblymember Alex Lee. Her institutional knowledge at the State level and her continuing commitment to serve her community will make her an invaluable asset.

Marlee is returning to City Hall and has spent many years in various council offices. In between stints at City Hall, Marlee was a policy analyst for the Silicon Valley Leadership Group where she focused on housing and transportation policy and worked on a number of local political campaigns. Marlee brings with her an intimate knowledge of District 4 as well as an institutional familiarity with City staff and processes. 

The residents of District 4 will continue to be served by Hugo Jimenez, Community Outreach Director; Mara Privitt, Operations Manager, Eric Osborne, Communications Manager, and Tim Orozco, Community Engagement Coordinator. I'm excited to have this entire team with me as I continue to serve you.­­­­

Strong storm systems are set to continue battering the Bay Area for most of January. Forecasters say tomorrow (Friday, Jan 6th) might be the only dry day we have for a couple of weeks, so let's take that opportunity to get ready for what may be even more severe weather.

The City of San Jose has built a webpage where they're collecting everything storm related, from updates on road and park closures to information on safety and resources.

Follow links below for more resources:

Valley Water Creek Monitoring Map

Emergency Alert Sign Ups

Sandbag Distribution Sites

Road Closure Updates

PG&E Power Outage Map

Report Flooding / Blocked Drains

Alum Rock Park remains closed to the public due to dangerous conditions near trails and waterways, and possible rock/mud slides. You can find more information about this closure here.

In Memoriam

Barinder S. Ahluwalia, a longtime Berryessa resident, passed away on December 20, 2022 at the age of 86. Barinder immigrated to the United States from India in 1988, found a job with Santa Clara County and then retired in 2007. After his retirement, he dedicated his life to public service and was passionate about improving the quality of life for his community in District 4.

Read More...

D4 Seeking Applicants

The Planning Commission serves as an advisory body to the San Jose City Council. The Commission makes recommendations to the Council on the adoption or amendment of the General Plan, redevelopment, land use, zoning and more. 

We are seeking applicants to fill the seat left vacant by the passing of Barinder Ahluwalia.

View Info on Planning Commission

Partners in Reading offers FREE one-to-one tutoring, ESL tutoring, small group instruction, computer lessons, classes, workshops, family programs and more! Orientation is January 18th. More information can be found here.

Councilmember Cohen to host first Office Hours and Meet ‘n’ Greet of 2023.

Wednesday, Jan. 18 from 6-7 p.m. at Elan Villages, 345 Village Center Drive.

We've got a goal of planting 1,000 trees in our first term. We've partnered with Our City Forest to hold tree planting events at schools, parks, and at private properties.

If you'd like to volunteer to help plant trees or you want to see if your property is eligible to receive a free tree, please contact our office via email - district4@sanjoseca.gov

Local businesses have a new opportunity to reinvigorate their business, save money, and support community-wide energy conservation efforts through a new program from San José Clean Energy, the local clean electricity provider operated by the City of San José.

The San José Energy Efficient Business Program has unlocked several rebates to San José business owners for qualifying HVAC, refrigeration, or water heating projects. These rebates, totaling up to 80–90% off the project cost, will make renovations to your small business more affordable and kickstarting these upgrades so much easier! All business customers with an active San José Clean Energy account are invited to participate. 

Want to see if your project qualifies for the rebates above? Learn more or find a participating contractor at SanJoseCleanEnergy.org/Business.

Monday - Friday 7:00 am - 4:00 pm at Berryessa Union School District, 1376 Piedmont Road. For more information email success@campusclini.org or call 855-286-2577.

Omicron specific booster shots are available for everyone who has had the two initial vaccinations. Reservations can be found at sccfreevax.org.