Write a letter to the VTA Board! It's easy, just copy & paste the email addresses below, and send the letter below!
You can either cut & paste the letter below, or even better, write your own version. The more unique your message is the more attention it will get by elected officials!!
Email Addresses:
mayoremail@sanjoseca.gov
District1@sanjoseca.gov
District2@sanjoseca.gov
District3@sanjoseca.gov
District4@sanjoseca.gov
District5@sanjoseca.gov
District6@sanjoseca.gov
District7@sanjoseca.gov
District8@sanjoseca.gov
District9@sanjoseca.gov
District10@sanjoseca.gov
teresa.oneillSC@gmail.com
Cindy.Chavez@bos.sccgov.org
John.McAlister@mountainview.gov
rrennie@losgatosca.gov
larry.carr@morganhill.ca.gov
rtran@ci.milpitas.ca.gov
dave.cortese@bos.sccgov.org
[Make your own subject line]
Dear VTA & San Jose City Countil,
In 2018, the VTA requested a general plan amendment to rezone the area on the north east corner of Lelong and West Alma Ave from PQP to UR (Urban Residential). That request (GP18-005) has since been put on hold. I am requesting the San Jose City Council and VTA put that plan back into motion and take amendment in the November general plan meeting.
The nearby D3 Washington Community is suffering. Our community has a household median income of $47k (according to 2017 census data for our census tract). Just West of freeway 87, the nearby D6 Willow Glen census tract has a median household income of $115k. These represent two neighboring census tracts with a 250% household income difference.
The problem is that the cost of living in the census tracts are relatively similar. This is causing an intense poverty crisis in the Washington/Tamien community.
Google coming downtown is already making things worse.
We need to act NOW on affordable housing. VTA has already shown that they are open to the idea of a 100% affordable housing unit on the west side of the Tamien train station. Our community has rallied around the development on the East side of Tamien, a development that is already in motion at the planning department (PDC18-025).
Now it’s time to do a 100% affordable housing with hundreds of units on VTA land. This aligns with San Jose’s mission as well as the VTA goal of >30% affordable units in their TOD developments.
Let’s not wait! Even if we started today, the project would struggle to finish before Google moves in. THIS PROJECT NEEDS TO START IMMEDIATELY!
Kind regards,
[your name]
It's crazy -- there over 100 affordable housing units in the downtown 95110 zip code for people who make $100k/year, and ZERO for people who make $30k/year! Let's fix this!!!
Download the map & infographic here!