In a fast-paced “State of the City for 2007” report to a Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce luncheon audience, Mayor Jennifer Hosterman said the city has numerous public improvements under way or planned that will add to the city’s “remarkable quality of life” and continue to attract new residents and businesses to the community.
Coupling photos and videos on a screen beside her, Hosterman identified both recent accomplishments and future plans that she said will affect every sector of the city.
These included:
*Callippe Preserve Golf Course–Opened in November 2005, the course has already been ranked as the sixth best public access course in California by Golf Week Magazine, ranked 13th in the nation as the best new golf course priced under $50 by Golf Magazine and ranked the ninth best new golf course under $75 in the nation by Golf Digest.
*Open space–A new development plan called Oak Grove has reduced the number of homes to be built in the southeast hills to 51–or half of what once was planned–with the developers giving nearly 500 acres in open space free of charge to the city, including putting in trails and equestrian pathways.
*Traffic–With a new West Dublin/Pleasanton BART station scheduled to open in 2009 and $1.8 billion available for Northern California in voter-approved bonds, improvements are forecast on Interstate 580 and State Route 84 that could reduce traffic congestion around Pleasanton and cut-through traffic by out-of-town commuters on city streets.
*Staples Ranch–This undeveloped and unincorporated 124-acre site at the corner of I-580 and the El Charro Road interchange are being planned to accommodate a 800-unit retirement and assisted living development, a six-dealer auto mall, and possibly a San Jose Sharks-affiliated ice rink.
*Bernal Community Park–A city concern since the 1930s when San Francisco bought this 510-acre site for its abundant underground water sources, Pleasanton now has 318 acres dedicated for public uses. Three baseball fields are being constructed there, but the rest could take years and millions of dollars to develop.
*Firehouse Arts Center–Planned as part of an expansion and restoration of the old firehouse on Railroad Avenue, the city has committed $8 million toward this $12 million to $14 million project and is working with the Cultural Arts Foundation and other groups to secure corporate and individual donations to complete the funding campaign.
*Alviso Adobe Community Park–Recognizing the historic and cultural value of this proposed park, located just off Foothill Road, Hosterman said she and Councilwoman Cheryl Cook-Kallio recently met with Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and Congressman Jerry McNerney in Washington to seek funding assistance to restore this 160-year-old adobe as part of a unique historic and culture center. The project would give Pleasanton a chance to learn more about its heritage.
Hosterman’s presentation to a sold-out luncheon crowd digressed from her previous “State of the City” reports in that it offered no financial commentary. Although the city has a record-high $150-million total operating budget and the third highest property tax and sales tax revenues in Alameda County, Hosterman focused on “vision and partnerships,” not money. Among the projects she identified as city priorities, she gave no estimates on how the municipal government could pay for them. She said, however, that continued business growth and a prosperous downtown are keys to the city’s continued and future success.
“The Tri-Valley continues to grow, experiencing an 8.3 percent increase just from 2000 to 2005,” Hosterman said. “During that time Pleasanton growth was 5.9 percent, bringing in almost 3,800 residents. Compare that to the 2.4 percent in the greater Bay Area.”
Focusing on the city’s economic health and vitality, she shared more numbers.
“As of 2005, there were more than 59,000 jobs in Pleasanton,” she said. Almost 50 percent of those jobs were in technology and business services which incorporates information, administrative and support, management of companies and enterprises; professional, scientific and technical services, finance and insurance, and other services, she said.
Although most of Pleasanton’s jobs occur in larger companies with 76 or more employees, and which represent 57 percent of the total number of jobs in the city), Hosterman said small businesses are playing an increasingly prominent role in the local economy.
“Many of these small, rapidly growing firms are involved in ‘knowledge’ economy activities, such as producing biomedical research, software and communications technology,” she said. “These types of entrepreneurial, innovative companies are considered the linchpin to economic sustainability, and create a strong foundation for Pleasanton’s economy.”
To illustrate, Hosterman cited figures showing that almost 85 percent of Pleasanton companies have 25 or less employees, and almost half have fewer than five employees.
“In fact, one-third of the business licenses issued for in-town companies are granted to home-based businesses,” she said. “Supporting and assisting small, start-up companies is going to have to be a focus for the city, the Chamber and other business organizations over the coming years. Our efforts will include increased access to high-speed broadband services or flexible land use permitting.”
Another sign of economic progress, Hosterman said, were figures showing the office vacancy rate has fallen to under 10 percent, reporting in at 9.9 percent this year, down from 11.1 percent a year ago.
“That’s excellent news as the Pleasanton office market encompasses just over 12-million square feet of commercial space, representing almost one-half of the total inventory in the Tri-Valley,” Hosterman said. “And Pleasanton is home to three Fortune 500 companies: Safeway, Oracle and Ross Stores.”
“But we’re not going to sit around and rest on our numbers,” she added. “We’re going to keep working to ensure that Pleasanton maintains its competitive business climate.”
On the city’s downtown commercial district, Hosterman said:
“We have a strong local economy in large part due to Hacienda Business Park and Stoneridge Shopping Center. But our historic downtown consists mainly of mom and pop businesses, and we have to do everything we can to keep them. It’s a challenge.
“So this is my opportunity to make a small commercial for downtown and to urge you to go downtown not to just to look around, but to pull out your wallet and buy something. That’s the way we are going to be able to continue to keep our lovely downtown.
“If we don’t support those businesses, we are going to look like Walnut Creek someday I fear.”
Hosterman said it is also increasingly important to safeguard our environment, including our natural resources, to ensure water quality and availability and to provide policy for an energy efficient community.
“I hope this year to provide a new Commission on Energy and the Environment to tackle these issues,” she said.
In the meantime, Pleasanton is partnering with Livermore and Spectrum Energy, Inc., to develop a community-wide solar development program. Community meetings for both commercial and residential stakeholders are expected to be scheduled shortly.
“All people want the same for their families,” Hosterman concluded. “We are no different in Pleasanton. Good paying jobs, the opportunity to own a home, high quality education, a community which embraces the arts and our history, maintaining a healthy community, committed to protecting our diversity as well as our natural resources, and providing for a sustainable future, economically, environmentally, and socially, for our children. We are, no doubt, lucky people. Beyond our luck, we work hard, through partnerships with one another, to provide the very best place to live and work and play possible.”
“Good vision and partnerships bring good results,” she said.
