Find out what’s happening in Milpitas by reading the City Manager’s Weekly Report, a summary report of updates related to City projects, new businesses, construction updates, special events and more! You may also download a printable PDF of the latest Weekly Report.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Water and Sewer Open Community Engagement
Staff continues to outreach to the community to provide critical information on the water and sewer services and the need for the proposed rate changes. This week, two meetings were held – Wednesday, January 23 at the SJECCD Extension Campus and on Thursday, January 24 at the Community Center Auditorium. Staff will be meeting with Pioneer Mobile Home Park next Wednesday, January 30. The City’s website www.milpitas.gov/watersewer2018 continues to updated on a daily basis with information, including a list of frequently asked questions.
2018 Holiday Shopping Recap
The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) reported that sales for the 2018 national holiday season saw an increase of 5.1 percent over last year’s holiday sales. It cited the Mastercard SpendingPulse report, which found consumers spent $850 billion during this year’s holiday shopping season, the strongest growth in the last six years. ICSC also reported its annual holiday shopping consumer behavior survey for 2018. The key takeaways from the survey are listed below.
- 70% of adults went to a mall or shopping center this holiday season;
- 93% of holiday shoppers spent with retailers with a physical presence;
- Over half (54%) of holiday shoppers said when buying online from a retailer it was important for that company to also have a physical presence;
- The top three sources of gift purchases were discount department stores like Target and Walmart (71%), traditional department stores (40%) and dollar/variety stores (24%);
- The ability to see and touch items was the top reason for shopping in-store (52%), followed by the ability to get items immediately (48%), better prices and promotions (37%), and avoiding shipping costs (35%);
- The majority (86%) of click-and-collect shoppers bought another item while picking up their item in the store, and Millennials bought additional items more often than any other age group;
- Total expenditure in physical stores (44%) almost doubled that of the total expenditure through Amazon (24%).
Hoya Corporate Visit
City Manager Edmonds-Mares, Deputy City Manager McHarris, Director of Building and Housing Sharon Goei, Planning Director Ned Thomas and other staff visited Hoya Corporation on Thursday, January 24. Hoya is a Japanese manufacturing company of optical products with 36,000 employees in more than 30 countries and regions. Their Milpitas office is located on McCarthy Boulevard and houses approximately 30 employees. Hoya is one Milpitas’ top 25 sales tax revenue generators.
CITYWIDE SPECIAL EVENTS
Lunar New Year
This years’ Lunar New Year event was held on Saturday, January 19, 2019 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Milpitas Community Center and Civic Center areas. This year the event celebrated the Year of the Pig! The celebration included traditional Chinese music performed by the Fire Bird Youth Orchestra, the traditional Lion and Dragon dances, and Vietnamese live vocalists. There was also be a fun kid’s craft area provided by the Mandarin Language and Cultural Center. In addition to all of the great entertainment, there was also food provided by Sheng Kee Bakery. The evening concluded with a fantastic firecracker display. This was a great evening celebrating the Asian-American community and approximately 1,000 people were in attendance!
Black History Month
To honor Black History month, the City of Milpitas will be celebrate and remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy with a youth poetry contest. This year’s contest theme is “#Unity”. The writers may relate this theme to themselves or others in their family, school, neighborhood, or the world. There will be certificates for first, second and third place in pre-determined age categories. Awards will be given at the City Council meeting on February 19, 2019.
PUBLIC SAFETY
Principle Policing Training
The Milpitas Police Department hosted two Principled Policing Training days, January 23rd and January 24th, with a total of 18 officers at the training. The objective of the course was to unpack the concept of procedural justice and how it strengthens the relationship of trust between police and communities, and to present the concept of implicit bias. The most important aspects of procedural justice are giving people the opportunity to tell their side of the story, remaining neutral in decision-making and behavior, treating people with respect, and explaining actions in a way that communicates caring for people’s concerns so as to demonstrate trustworthiness. This course teaches policing approaches that emphasize respect, listening, neutrality, and trust (Procedural Justice) while also addressing the common implicit biases that can be barriers to these approaches (Implicit Bias). Law Enforcement can improve trust and relationships between law enforcement agencies and their communities by using these principles to evaluate their policies, procedures and training with their departments. In addition, developing an understanding of these two concepts will enable law enforcement to improve safety and well-being for the public and law enforcement officers alike.
Evacuation Simulation at Spangler Elementary
On January 23, Milpitas Police attended an evacuation simulation at Spangler Elementary. The school district requested a member of the Milpitas Police Department attend the practice evacuation scenario to assist with implementation of the incident command process during an emergency at the school. The practice evacuation was for an earthquake scenario and Officer Speckenheuer #254 provided various suggestions on how to implement the incident command system to better streamline the command process during an emergency situation.
Six New Recruit Firefighters Welcomed this Week
The City of Milpitas is proud to be holding its first Fire Academy in 12 years and the first regional academy with the City of Mountain View. This innovative joint fire academy is being hosted at Fire Station One and Milpitas has welcomed six Recruit Firefighters. The Recruits will participate in a 20-week academy, which will include all facets of firefighting training from fire suppression, emergency medical care, technical rescue, auto extrication, wildland firefighting, hazardous materials response, fire prevention, and fire vehicle operations. On Thursday, January 24, the Fire Department hosted a family night where the recruits and their families were officially welcomed into the organization.
Residential Structural Fire on Menferd Street
The Milpitas Fire Department responded to a residential structure fire in the 400 block of Manferd St. in Milpitas at 9:28 a.m. on January 21st. Responding Milpitas Fire apparatus included Engine 88, Engine 87, Engine 86, Truck 86, USAR 86, and Battalion 86. As units were responding, heavy smoke and fire conditions were noted in area of the reported fire. Additional resources were then requested to supplement rescue efforts and fire suppression. Fremont Fire Battalion 5 responded with Milpitas Engine 89, Fremont Engine 61, and Fremont Truck 57. Fremont Engine 57 was also requested and assigned support functions. San Jose Fire Engine 23 assisted with Milpitas coverage. The City of Milpitas would like to extend our thanks to the supporting agencies that assisted with this incident, including the Fremont Fire Department, San Jose Fire Department, Santa Clara County EMS, and the Santa Clara County Fire Associates Support Team.
BUILDING PERMITS AND OCCUPANCY
Building permits were issued to the following:
- Toll Brothers, Inc., for the construction of two, 3-story buildings consisting of 13 units out of a 59-townhome residential development located at 1980 Tarob Ct., at an estimated construction cost of $3.9M.
- Tico Construction Company Inc., for tenant improvements at the vacant building in preparation for future tenant move-in located at 1621 Barber Ln, at an estimated construction cost of $225,000.
CONSTRUCTION UPDATE
Bay Rock Storage, 4 new storage buildings located at 985 Montague Expressway: All four storage buildings are finaled and are now open for business.
RECREATION AND COMMUNITY SERVICES
Senior Center Shuttle Service
Starting February 1, 2019, the Senior Center will be offering free shuttle service to the Senior Center (and back home again) to members who live within the Milpitas City limits. The service aims to assist those Milpitas community members who do not have transportation options available to them and would like to participate in Senior Center activities and services. The service will be available on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from approximately 8:30am to 2:30pm (a bit later on Wednesday’s for Bingo).
Upcoming Senior Center Activities
Monday, January 27: Monday Afternoon Movie, 1:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 2: Bingo Marathon, 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., (doors open at 8:30a.m.)
Sunday, February 3: Big Game Party (football), 2:45 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
MEMORANDA/INFORMATION COMMUNICATED TO COUNCIL
| INFORMATION SENT | METHOD/DATE |
| Press Release: Structure Fire 400 Block Manferd Street | Vie email, 1/21/19 |
| Info Memo: BART Extension Update | Via email, 1/22/19 |
| Press Release: Text to 9-1-1 | Via email, 1/24/19 |
| Info Memo: Great Mall Ford Plant Display | Via email, 1/25/19 |
