Spring Break
San Jose officials to release report on stadium
Kyle Hansen
Issue date: 4/12/07 Section: News
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San Jose State University students and San Jose residents should have a better idea next Monday what it will take to get a new stadium built to replace the aging Spartan Stadium.
The city council's Rules and Open Government Committee yesterday approved a proposal by Mayor Chuck Reed that asks the city staff to release a report to the public Monday for consideration in the next committee meeting.
The report comes in response to a request by the San Jose Mercury News for the release of documents submitted to the city by developer Lew Wolff.
The committee decided not to release the requested documents, but asked the city staff to compile a report that will inform the public on what the city has done so far in preparations for the new stadium.
Mayor Reed and the other members of the city council on the committee expressed concern that releasing the document could harm the negotiations and future projects in the city.
"While my initial inclination is to just release the documents, because I like that," Reed said, "I am convinced that there are instances where if you set that kind of a precedent we would make it impossible for some other kinds of transactions to go forward."
Councilman Sam Liccardo agreed that the documents should not be released, but said that it is important to keep the public informed in land-use decisions.
"We don't want to be releasing specific terms and we don't want to get into issue that will put in a disadvantage with regard to our competitors," Liccardo said. "But it seems to me that as much as I believe we shouldn't be releasing documents in the middle of negotiations, or even before negotiations have started which appears to be the case here, we're involved in making significant land use decisions that have profound effect upon communities… ."
Wolff, who is also the owner of the Oakland Athletics, has been in talks with Mayor Reed and university President Don Kassing about building a new stadium on the field just east of the existing Spartan Stadium. The proposed stadium would house the SJSU football team as well as a Major League Soccer team to be named the Earthquakes.
The city council's Rules and Open Government Committee yesterday approved a proposal by Mayor Chuck Reed that asks the city staff to release a report to the public Monday for consideration in the next committee meeting.
The report comes in response to a request by the San Jose Mercury News for the release of documents submitted to the city by developer Lew Wolff.
The committee decided not to release the requested documents, but asked the city staff to compile a report that will inform the public on what the city has done so far in preparations for the new stadium.
Mayor Reed and the other members of the city council on the committee expressed concern that releasing the document could harm the negotiations and future projects in the city.
"While my initial inclination is to just release the documents, because I like that," Reed said, "I am convinced that there are instances where if you set that kind of a precedent we would make it impossible for some other kinds of transactions to go forward."
Councilman Sam Liccardo agreed that the documents should not be released, but said that it is important to keep the public informed in land-use decisions.
"We don't want to be releasing specific terms and we don't want to get into issue that will put in a disadvantage with regard to our competitors," Liccardo said. "But it seems to me that as much as I believe we shouldn't be releasing documents in the middle of negotiations, or even before negotiations have started which appears to be the case here, we're involved in making significant land use decisions that have profound effect upon communities… ."
Wolff, who is also the owner of the Oakland Athletics, has been in talks with Mayor Reed and university President Don Kassing about building a new stadium on the field just east of the existing Spartan Stadium. The proposed stadium would house the SJSU football team as well as a Major League Soccer team to be named the Earthquakes.
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