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Downtown Safety Task Force

Perception Committee January, 2003

Executive Summary

Task force charge: Improve the public perception that Downtown San Jose is safe.

Members: Del Borgsdorf, Bill Lansdowne, Gail Chandler, Elizabeth Mattson, Sue Cam, Steve Cohen, Tim Wilson, Scott Knies, Ann Hurst.

Objective: Change the public perception so that people perceive Downtown San Jose as a safe place. Suggested benchmark: Improve the Downtown Safety response in the City Manager survey by 20 points.

Summary of issues: This perception is not unique to San Jose. Urban areas typically are considered unsafe by outsiders, as city-life observer William Whyte noted in his book, "The City." Yet, various factors here reinforce the negative perception, including environmental conditions (such as neglected and/or boarded-up buildings) and assertive on-street police presence (especially during nightclub closing times). At the same time, there's no counter-measure in place. Specifically, we lack a consistent public relations message celebrating how safe San Jose is.

II. Recommendations

In order to change the negative perception, we first must deal with the realities that reinforce it. We need to be strategic, and we need to be creative. Even in this challenging economic time, we can take important steps toward solution.

First, we must:

Clarify the vision of what a safe downtown looks like. Then we must develop a strategic plan including a communications and marketing initiative -- for bringing the vision to reality. Along the way, we must build on current efforts to make Downtown inviting. We can:
Light up the dark stretches.
Commit to cleanliness.
Instill a welcoming/ can-do, customer orientation with all city employees.
Implement aids to make the city easy for outsiders to navigate, including improving signs.
Celebrate, leverage and market the city's attributes, especially its diversity.
Encourage playfulness on our streetscapes, and encourage excellent public art.
Coordinate our marketing to reinforce the message that Downtown is a safe and desirable destination.

Marketing Strategy Proposal

Goal: To establish a public perception that Downtown San Jose is a safe and desirable place to be.

Primary target: Residents of the Greater San Jose area outside the Downtown core.

Secondary target: Out-of-towners, including prospective visitors, businesses and residents.

Conundrum: San Jose is the 11th largest city in the United States and the largest city in the area, which is known internationally as Silicon Valley. Renowned for its leadership in technology and innovations, this valley has been a magnet for immigrants from around the world who have come here in pursuit of the American dream. Many have found it. Indeed, the demographics of this area are among the most desirable in the nation. The populace is well educated and relatively well off. Unlike most other urban areas, San Jose holds few pockets of poverty. Our very diverse population is tolerant and peaceable, and crime rates are extraordinarily low. And yet, the city center itself betrays few hints of the area's richness. Indeed, the downtown core not only does not draw visitors to its streets, but rather intimidates them from coming. Studies show that people outside the Downtown area believe the city core is unsafe, and therefore, not a place to go.

This document offers reasons for the negative perception, as well as strategies for change.

I. The Disconnect: Our Opportunity

Given our assets, this should be a thriving metropolis. As we enter the 21st century, we in San Jose face a tremendous opportunity. We can choose to leverage our assets to build San Jose's identity and self-image.

But first, we must face the truth: Perception IS reality, even if unsupported by the facts. Today's pervasive perception of Downtown will not change until conditions that contribute to the perception change. If we want people to come Downtown, we must give them a reason. And they must leave satisfied.

We must develop a strategy that begins with understanding what the perceptions are, why they exist, what the reality is, and how we address the reality. Then, and only then, can we build a smart communications strategy that delivers a credible message: that Downtown is a desirable destination.

And then we need to share the message far and wide -- and extend the welcome. Our opportunity lies before us: To create a new city for the new century, one that prizes and celebrates diversity, innovation and excellence.
Many initiatives to improve Downtown already are in process, and some will take time to implement. Some recommendations are in Section IV of this report. But first, let's look at what shapes the current perceptions as well as the reality.

II. Why outsiders consider Downtown unsafe and undesirable

Conditions shape perceptions, and aesthetically, Downtown can offer a grim visage. Consider:

Key streets, especially main thoroughfares, lack the sparkle of thriving business, leaving a feeling of neglect and despair. Many other-than-new buildings tend to look shabby, dirty, not cared for. A number of vacant buildings hold remnants of former occupancy, and simply look abandoned.

Streets and sidewalks lack vitality -- the buzz and bustle associated with city life. The Downtown population is relatively small, and the number of street people feels high, disproportionate to the overall population.

Iron bars and grates cover many storefronts; temporary fences and other construction barriers surround a fair number of properties.

Sidewalks on many key streets are dirty.

At night, Downtown has many dark stretches -- a perception compounded by the number of vacant storefronts and buildings, limited street lighting, and "pedestrian -unfriendly" areas (because of construction).

Undesirable behaviors, including open drug dealing, especially along Second Street between St. James Park and the Fountain Alley transit stop, discourage visitors.

There's a lack of "critical mass" or downtown magnet. Unless one has a particular destination, there's nothing to pull and keep visitors in the city core. (While there are some wonderful venues -- e.g., Circle of the Palms Plaza, The Tech Museum and Plaza de Cesar Chavez Park -- and excellent restaurants, it's hard to do more than dine out or attend occasional movies or performance events Downtown.) There's no opportunity for a shopping adventure -- even a mini one. There are few "convenience services" (such as ticket windows, office supply stories, electronics purveyors, gift shops or simple hosiery or notions departments) for convenient errand running.

Except during major events, the weekends -- especially Sundays -- lack energy.

There's a perception of heavy police/ hassle, especially around nightclubs' closing time.

The city offers few venues for enjoyable hanging out, and limited opportunities for streetscape fun and/or people watching.

The Downtown core holds few opportunities for living-the-good-life experiences or feathering-the-nest fantasies.

There is a dearth of classy public art or outstanding architecture.

City core offers a limited sense of welcoming -- not many public spaces offer a feel-good, welcoming ambience. The freeway entrances into Downtown, especially from Interstate 280, make a less than attractive impression.

San Jose offers little to identify or celebrate its rich history, or even to point out to visitors what's important.

The city doesn't celebrate itself. It's even hard to find good souvenirs.

III. The Reality: San Jose has tremendous assets.

Among them:

The demographics of the SMSA are a marketer's dream. Its residents are among the most educated in the country, and we have relatively few pockets of poverty. Overall, this area ranks well above average in income and per capita spending.

This is the 11th largest city in the nation, located in the heart of Silicon Valley, an area known internationally for innovation and entrepreneurism. Indeed, tomorrow is being developed here, right in our backyard. A significant number of the leaders of this entrepreneurial, innovative sector live in our SMSA.

San Jose is the home city of choice for an extraordinarily diverse and multicultural populace. People from around the world -- Mexico, Vietnam, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Sudan and Laos, Portugal and Italy, Japan and India, to name a few -- have chosen to make this their home, for it is here that many foresee their opportunity to seek The Good Life.

A minority-majority community, individually and collectively we take pride in our diversity. As a society, we practice tolerance, and our crime rates are the lowest in the nation for a city of our size. Statistics show that this is one of the safest cities in the country.

The weather is fabulous, with mild temperatures and generally pleasant humidity levels year-round. Indeed, our climate is more livable than most other places in the world. For the most part, we are free of extreme conditions common in other places such as heavy fog, ice, freezing conditions, heat, miserable humidity levels, tornadoes, hurricanes. This is, after all, the Valley of Heart's Delight -- nature's paradise. All of which suggests we can -- and should -- be celebrating the great outdoors and encouraging outdoor venues and activities.

There is a solid corps of business people who have chosen to locate their businesses Downtown, and who have been conscientious in their commitment over the years.

Regionally, Downtown is the center of arts and cultural events for the South Bay Area.

There is a vibrant core of newcomers, who have settled in San Jose and who are pinning their energies, hopes and talents on helping the Downtown evolve into a livable, exuberant place.

Members of the Downtown business community have a history of forming alliances and coalitions to work together.

Our Downtown-based NHL franchise has hosted sell-out games since opening here nine years ago. More than 17,000 people attend every game. (These people obviously are not put off by negative perceptions of Downtown.)

The city is accessible and easy to walk.

The city has a rich history, deeply rooted in its Spanish origins, and important from the beginning in California's climb to statehood.

There's a vibrant emerging multicultural arts scene with pockets of strength and increasing community support.
Young adults and young families respond in healthy numbers to outdoor events Downtown. It's a young audience, highly desirable to marketers big and small.

Initiatives to improve the Downtown are already underway, among them, adding more parking and housing for all income levels.

IV. Suggestions for remedy. What shall we do now?

In a nutshell: We must address the real problem, deal with the reality, and then identify solutions that can be implemented in the short-, mid-, and long-term. Some possibilities to consider:

It is dark. Lighten the darkness.

It is drab and dirty. Commit to clean streets, clean sidewalks.

Seriously look (via good survey instrument) at how the city is perceived by residents, business people and prospective business people. Make a citywide commitment to be friendly, helpful and solutions-oriented. Instill a can-do approach as a core value of the work place. (Ratchet up to hardball only as circumstances require.)
Provide good customer service skills for all city employees.

Unburden city processes. Establish policies that are professional and prudent. Proactively seek to eliminate paperwork and bureaucratic hurdles. Empower employees to make decisions that carry weight. Raise the bar on hiring decisions to ensure highest professional standards in specialty areas.

Find ways to help visitors enjoy the city. Consider attractive gateways and/ or welcoming signs at key points of arrival, including freeway entrances and the airport. Develop good signs; consider a self-guided tour of Guadalupe River Park and downtown historic landmarks with smartly written and designed brochures to guide and explain the treasures --historical and otherwise -- along the way.

Explore meaningful ways to invite prospective businesses to do business here, and find ways -- through loan programs and more -- to encourage and enable success. Also, demonstrate a commitment -- through loans and smart construction mitigation measures, for example -- to the businesses already here. Seize opportunities to develop new models, which other municipalities can follow.

Proactively find ways for the city to reflect and celebrate the best of San Jose. For example: San Jose has great places for families, near-perfect weather, and rich outdoors life. It's vibrantly multicultural, has a long history of practicing tolerance, and values and rewards excellence, innovation, ambition and success. Capitalize on these and build new programs and events around them.

Identify ways to celebrate our diversity. Establish a central place for people to see and sample the wares, arts and cultures that comprise our city. Explore possibilities offered by a multicultural market place to enable small businesses to thrive downtown.

This is a vibrant, innovative place. Let that show through -- with humor and grace. Let's leverage the talents of the vibrant arts community, and put it on display. For example, we can build on the success of Phantom Galleries, which daily turns heads of Downtown pedestrians through its eclectic exhibitions in vacant store windows. Let's proactively join forces with our arts and cultural communities, and enable our city to wear a lively and inviting public face. We can accomplish this through smart applications of public art and encouragement of public opportunities for our cultures to be reflected in our streetscapes.

Borrow lessons from Seattle and other cities that have found effective ways for excellent art to set a tone -- and a lively ambience -- for the city. Encourage playfulness in our streetscapes. If we must fence construction sites, let's find ways to make the sites visually playful and inviting, not just sore thumbs. (Again, the BART project offers a great challenge -- and opportunity --to turn a noisy nuisance and eyesore into an opportunity for cutting-edge public art.)

Consider increasing horse, foot and bicycle patrol units. Also, consider establishing casually dressed "community ambassadors" as an outward and visible sign that the city cares about ensuring those who come here have a safe and enjoyable time. Various representatives would provide on the street "concierge" services and safety assistance.

V. Conclusion

We must find ways -- symbolic and real -- to reinforce the message we wish to create. If our message is that San Jose is a safe and welcoming place, we need to reinforce that -- in word and in deeds -- on every level within our reach.

Next we must decide what we want San Jose's Downtown to be, and then set priorities and a timetable to ensure the vision becomes reality. The good news is that much of the work is already in progress.

With a shared vision and commitment on a fast track, we will be in a position to develop a credible marketing and communications strategy. Rather than simply singing praises about Downtown's safety (a message that carries limited drawing power), we should change the conversation. We need to be able to focus on the city's vibrancy and livability, which includes such important characteristics as safety, tolerance and peacefulness.

Even in this difficult and challenging economic time, we can implement meaningful change without spending big dollars. Indeed, addressing the perceived concerns can be a critical investment, which will pay significant dividends. By removing safety concerns as an obstacle, it will be easier to attract audiences for Downtown activities and events, which will have a positive effect on city revenues.

It is important to recognize that concerns about safety in an urban core are natural and universal, often held by people who have never set foot Downtown. Our opportunity lies in changing the dynamic. We must address the physical realities that shape the perception. And then we must focus our marketing strategy on the unique characteristics and many assets that define our Downtown core and reflect on the entire city of San Jose.