Bob O'Keefe for Santa Clara City Council District 5

Thank you Mayor Lisa Gillmor and Police Chief Nikolai, I will do my best to keep #santaclaratogether!

Finally, clarification from the City Attorney’s Office on the subject of Suds Jain’s need for recusal from the downtown precise plan. I would like to thank Suds... for sending me a copy of this letter earlier today. Upon receipt of this letter Suds posted on numerous Facebook pages that he was now free to vote on the downtown plan. He posted a small snippet of this letter that would lead a reader to believe that the City Attorney’s Office had given him permission to vote on the downtown plan, when in fact nothing can be further from the truth, one might call his posting deceptive. I have attached a copy of the full letter along with Government Code section 18703 which clearly states that a government official must recuse themselves from any decision that would have a material affect on their property. There is an exemption in the law if the officials residence is within 1000 ft of the item to be voted on and 15% or more of the residential properties in the city are also within that 1000ft buffer zone. In Suds case his residence is 920ft from the edge of the downtown plan and within the 1000 ft buffer zone but only 2.5% of the city’s residential properties are within buffer zone, woefully short of the required 15% for the exemption. This is clearly explained in the letter furnished to Suds and in fact states that the 14.7% or the updated 16.4% number of residences in district 5 is irrelevant. 18703 G.C. also defines that the rules apply to the government officials Jurisdiction in Santa Clara a Planning Commissioner and or a City Council Members jurisdiction is city wide irregardless if they were appointed, elected at large or by district. Suds statement that he can vote on the downtown plan is factually incorrect. By Law Suds must recuse himself from the downtown plan both as a planning commisioner and if elected as a council member. I do not get any joy out of this decision, but as I have stated on numerous occasions District 5 has been to long without representation on our downtown due to the need of previous council members need of recusal. We must elect a council member that can engage and vote on all issues in district 5 including our downtown. I am the only district 5 candidate that can vote on downtown. See more

Great read in today's (10/28/2020), Letters to the Editor in the Mercury News!!!

Santa Clara Firefighters Candidate Endorsements. Hello, I’m Anthony Pascoal. I am a Santa Clara District 6 resident, firefighter, and I am President of your Santa Clara Firefighters, International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) Local 1171. I usually shy away from politics, but some recent events have made it so I cannot stay quiet any longer. When the reputation of the Santa Clara Firefighters is questioned in the way it has been publicly, it must be addressed....Continue reading

A good read in today's San Jose Spotlight. https://sanjosespotlight.com/bob-okeefe-counts-on-roots-in/

COMING SOON TO YOUR FRONT DOOR DISTRICT 5!!! Kicking off my second round of door hangers. One week to go and a lot of work still needs to be done. I'm not going to be walking across that finish line, I'm not going to be running across that finish line. I AM GOING TO BE SPRINTING ACROSS THAT FINISH LINE!!! Join me, vote Bob O'Keefe for City Council District 5!!!

Santa Clara is not for sale!!! https://youtu.be/9yTN063hi0I

While much of the conversation during this campaign season has been revolving around topics such as; the new downtown, city budget, recovery from Covid-19, and Levi's stadium, one of my top priorities is maintaining safe family (single house keeping units) oriented neighborhoods through proper zoning enforcement. Not allowing high density developments or boarding house type dwellings to encroach into R-1 residential zones, thus protecting these areas for future generations.

Thank you Mayor Gillmor and Police Chief Nikolai for your confidence and support. https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/10/25/opinion-santa-clara/

Thirty five years ago as a newly appointed officer of the California Highway Patrol, I swore an oath to serve, protect and defend the citizens' of the State of California. I believe that I have kept that pledge. I am ready to renew that pledge and faithfully serve you as a member of the Santa Clara City Council. I would be honored by your vote.

False, Inaccurate and Irresponsible reporting by Carolyn Schuk and the Weekly/Silicon Valley Voice. Please see my comments attached to the article. https://www.svvoice.com/2020s-harvest-of-campaign-finance-/

The Next meeting of the Neighborhood University Relations Committee (NURC) is scheduled Monday October 26, 6pm to 7:30 pm. The meeting will be held virtually over Zoom, click the link below for agenda and log in information. One agenda item listed is an update to the University 5 year Master Plan, which could have significant impact to the Downtown Specific Plan and other neighborhood impact issues. https://www.santaclaraca.gov/Home/ShowDocument

For far to long we have lacked a champion for a downtown on city council due to conflict of interests that required council members to recuse from all participation and votes. We cannot go down that same rabbit hole again! I am the only District 5 candidate that can legally vote on our new downtown and all Santa Clara University issues. I would be honored by your vote on or by November 3rd.