February 1, 2007

New Storefront Community Center will open in Spring 2007
for residents of the Hoffman Via Monte SNI

San Jose City Councilmember Nancy Pyle has announced that the Hoffman Via Monte neighborhood center will open in the spring of 2007. During the Jan. 9 council meeting the City Council approved the Redevelopment Agency’s plan to enter into a lease of the storefront property located at 1180 Blossom Hill Road.

Pyle stated, “My primary goal during the negotiations over the past few weeks was to support the wishes of the individuals who will use this center. The residents of Hoffman Via Monte have an immediate need for a safe gathering place within their community and brought the suggestion of a storefront lease to city staff. This lease will allow them to begin offering programs for the children of the neighborhood and save money for a permanent community center in the future.”

With a soft opening in February and a grand opening planned for spring, this storefront is slated to provide immediate relief to an ongoing issue, which has been in planning stages for over six years. The concept of a temporary storefront neighborhood center was brought to city staff by neighborhood leaders in the Hoffman/Via Monte community, the same residents who will be making use of the new facility for various meetings and community programming.

As this new storefront location was approved, city staff also advised the City Council to terminate the existing ground lease with the Almaden Hills United Methodist Church. While a community center had been planned on this property prior to Pyle’s first term, adequate funding was never set aside in the city’s capital budget for the proposed facility.

Only $650,000 was set aside to build the project in October 2004. When sent out to bid only one contractor bid on the project, stating that $1.4 million dollars would be necessary for a small modified modular unit. The decision to terminate the current lease does not prevent the city and the Hoffman Via Monte community from entering into a lease of the church property in the future. Terminating the lease only limits the city’s liability for injuries incurred on the property while the Hoffman Via Monte NAC decides what type of community center they would like to build. If the city does not terminate the lease, the city will be liable for injuries incurred in the dilapidated facility known as the ARC, which currently stands on the ground lease property. The liability risk on that property is so substantial that the city would have to carry insurance on the property in case of a lawsuit. With the city’s lack of adequate funding and the neighborhood’s request to explore other options, the renewal of the current lease would only stand to dissipate money for the SNI and serve as a potential liability for the city of San Jose.

For these reasons, Pyle is in support of the recommendation to terminate the ground lease for the time being. By taking this step, the Hoffman Via Monte NAC will retain $650,000 in the capital budget. It would have cost another $281,353 for a 20-year land lease to build the modular community center and $26,000 to demolish the ARC. The Hoffman Via Monte NAC will determine how to spend the money saved by terminating the ground lease for the modular center.

The NAC may decide to save the money in order to build a larger community center in the future or choose to re-appropriate the money to other community projects. The new lease on the nearby storefront will provide the NAC’s leadership with an opportunity to evaluate programs and costs under current budget conditions, thereby fostering the potential for dialogue and creative new solutions.

“When I look at the choices we had to make, I think the main factor in this decision came down to the needs and desires of the community. I would rather avoid the potentially reckless expenditure of 1.4 million dollars on what amounts to a small portable building and instead allow the community to gain an immediate area for community activities as well as the opportunity to explore more appealing options in the future,” states Pyle.

The Hoffman Via Monte Neighborhood Action Coalition (NAC) Community Center Committee will work with the city to create a programming plan for the new center and is planning to hold its first meeting on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. All residents of the SNI are invited to attend and provide input for this exciting new facility.

For more information call (408) 535-4910 or e-mail Stephanie Holm at Stephanie.holm@sanjoseca.gov.