GILROY
– Roland Velasco says Gilroy is better off now than it was four
years ago, before he held a City Council seat. But he doesn’t think
the city is as good as it can be.
GILROY – Roland Velasco says Gilroy is better off now than it was four years ago, before he held a City Council seat. But he doesn’t think the city is as good as it can be.
For that reason, Velasco wants his native town to give him another four years to continue with his vision for Gilroy that begins with public safety.
“What I’ve done over the last four years is what the public has been screaming for, which is increase public safety,” Velasco said. “I am making it my number-one priority.”
And, the 37-year-old single dad says his record backs that up.
“Four years ago we did not have a paramedic service; today we have a citywide paramedic service.We are getting ready to move into our third fire station. Four years ago we couldn’t say that,” said Velasco, who sits on the Gilroy Gang Task Force.
Velasco for the most part defends the city’s current amount of spending on police and fire services. And, he wants voters and candidates to know that level is not 80 percent of the $35.6 million general fund as many contend, roughly $28.5 million. Rather, it is 80 percent of each tax dollar generated in Gilroy, roughly $27.8 million.
“Eighty percent is a lot, but we have little control over revenue sources coming in. We can’t control property taxes, we can’t control sales taxes, so we have to rely on our tax base,” Velasco said. “We can do things to try to keep that cost down. We just need to be responsible and have fiscal discipline.”
Velasco also noted a rise in worker’s compensation and retirement benefits added to the cost of police and fire service.
As far as the proposed and overbudget police station is concerned, Velasco says he will look at the project cost by cost. If costs can be justified, he said he would support a $20 million design. The budget called for a $19 million design, estimates came in initially at $26 million.
If public safety is the heart of city services, Velasco says, “then parks are the city’s soul.”
Here Velasco points to the past four years of City Council action as another positive step forward. Three new parks have been designed and are ready to open next spring. And, there is a plan to link the city’s proposed sports park to Bonfante Gardens by way of trails.
Velasco was born in Gilroy and attended local schools. After graduating from Gilroy High School, he entered the U.S. Army and served as an intelligence analyst.
Velasco currently works as a policy analyst to Santa Clara County Supervisor Don Gage. He formerly was a youth counselor and supervisor at Rebekah Children’s Services.
As a Gilroy youth himself, Velasco vividly recalls the downtown Bonanza Day parade – the kick off to an agriculture-themed town faire held annually decades ago. It was a time when downtown businesses flourished, buildings were occupied and foot traffic was frequent.
So what went wrong?
“To a certain extent, the times are just changing,” Velasco said.
The change has a lot to do with the success of strip malls and the “big box” retail business model. Velasco says he is already looking into using the sales tax from those venues downtown.
“We’re really good in these times of cutback management at prioritizing what projects are important to us. What we need to do is become better at directing that money into downtown. Let’s pick a project we want to focus on,” Velasco said.
Velasco is not shy about his feelings on using economic incentives to lure businesses to Gilroy. He calls them a successful tool in generating sales tax dollars and bringing more than 150 industrial jobs to Gilroy in recent years.
Velasco also said he would support zoning changes that make it easier for companies to develop in Gilroy.
The incumbent Councilman isn’t ready to pave over all of Gilroy. He said he will consider letting Gilroy join the Open Space Authority. The authority charges municipalities to preserve and maintain open space, habitat areas and public recreation lands within Santa Clara County. Some of the money paid into the authority comes back to cities to use for projects like park construction.
The city of Gilroy is the only community in Santa Clara County that doesn’t belong to such an agency.
“On Nov. 2, 1993, 58 percent of Gilroy voters said no. I can’t just disregard that,” Velasco said. “But I will remain open-minded.”
