On the Record: San Jose District 3 Special Election candidate Matthew Quevedo

If elected, what actions and policies will you prioritize in your first 100 days in office?

I will focus first on my Four Cornerstones of Common Sense; First, working to end the era of street homelessness, starting with adopting the Responsibility to Shelter plan. I am the only candidate in the race for City Council who supports this common-sense proposal to require people to come indoors when shelter is available. I will work to both hire more police so every neighborhood is safe and focus on the proven, and cost effective, crime fighting strategies like working to keep young people in school and out of gangs. I will focus on building more housing downtown. And I will fight to make San Jose the most small business friendly city in America so we can create jobs, opportunity, and more vibrant neighborhoods.

How should San Jose close its budget shortfall and generate new revenue for city services?

I’m glad to see that the deficit is lower than the initial projection of $60 million, but we’re still facing a deficit, which means we’ll need to make some tough decisions and trade-offs. The city of San Jose has five focus areas – increasing community safety, reducing unsheltered homelessness, cleaning up our neighborhoods, building more housing, and growing our economy. By reallocating Measure E, we can maintain focus on these areas, close the budget shortfall, avoid any potential future lay-offs, and ensure the EIHs site we launched comes to fruition. We need to be mindful that next year we are expecting an additional on-going deficit of $57 million which will require us to make fiscally sound choices now to avoid any potential harm in the coming years. Of course the best way to grow our revenue is to grow our economy – and that will be my daily focus. 

Name three specific things you’ll do to address the lack of affordable housing in San Jose.

As a champion for 2018’s Proposition 1 and 2, San Jose’s Measure V (which led to Measure E), and other housing efforts, I have fought for policies and causes to help alleviate the housing crisis. I would do the following as an elected official:

Increase the Supply of Affordable Housing

• Streamline Permitting: Reduce bureaucratic delays and fees that slow down the construction of affordable units.
• Work in partnership with San Jose State, the city, and others to put 10,000 more housing units downtown.
• Public-Private Partnerships: Work with nonprofit organizations and private developers to build mixed-income housing that includes a guaranteed portion of units at below-market rates.

Protect Tenants and Prevent Displacement

• We must focus our anti-homeless efforts more on preventing homelessness, and that includes targeted use of rent subsidies..
• Build more housing where it makes sense, like downtown. 

Preserve Existing Housing and Support Homeownership

• Housing Rehabilitation Programs: Provide low-interest loans or grants to help homeowners, especially seniors and low-income families, maintain and repair homes. As I did when I worked at Rebuilding Together Silicon Valley. 
• Foreclosure Prevention: Expand counseling and financial assistance to homeowners at risk of losing their property.
• First-Time Homebuyer Assistance: Work with organizations like the Housing Trust to offer down payment help or favorable loan terms to low- and moderate-income families to encourage long-term stability in the community.

What is your plan to make downtown San Jose more economically vibrant?

First we need to make every neighborhood in San Jose, including downtown, safe and clean. That is the absolute first step. Then I will work to implement the partnerships we need to bring 10,000 more homes downtown, which will make the entire area more vibrant.  District 3, which includes downtown, is already the premier destination for events and entertainment in San Jose. I will focus on enhancing its vibrancy by bringing more events, arts, and cultural activities to our downtown, making it a place where community and creativity come together. Last weekend, we had one of the most successful outside events directly in front of City Hall. I think it’s key to partnering with different organizations and individuals who have the passion and skill to make downtown vibrant. Along with events and entertainment, we need to invest and cut the red tape for our small business owners. I will focus on all of our commercial corridors and support making every commercial corridor a no camping zone, working to set up more business improvement districts, hiring homeless people to clean streets, and making sure we enforce our laws against dumping and blight.

How would you tackle the homelessness and mental health crises the city faces?

The biggest issue facing the City Council in the next year is homelessness. The complex challenge is twofold: first, we must humanely and safely house over 5,000 people who live on the streets on any given night; second, we must hold both our government and unhoused neighbors accountable – to create shelter faster and to accept the available shelter that is being offered.

To address this, I will take the following steps:

• Build enough safe, decent shelter for everyone and require that people use it.
• Focus on prevention, which is far cheaper than re-housing.
• Demand accountability: service providers must deliver results, and homeless individuals must be good neighbors, accept housing, treatment, and job opportunities.
• Enforce a “Fair Share Plan” so every district, city, and county does its part.

What steps would you take to improve public safety in San Jose?