San José's beloved open-streets program is facing significant cuts in the proposed city budget. Your voice can change this.
⚠️ Budget hearing: Monday, May 11 at 9:30 AM
What's proposed
What's On the Table
3→2
Viva CalleSJ open-streets events per year (down from 3)
75→50
Viva Parks events per year (a 33% reduction)
$301,984
Total proposed ongoing savings from these cuts
0.018%
That's what $301,984 is as a share of the $1.72B proposed General Fund — less than two hundredths of a percent
Total ongoing cut: $301,984 — listed as item #13 in the Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services Department's FY 2026–27 proposed budget changes.
150K+
Participants at Sept. 2025 Viva CalleSJ alone
$4.7M
Estimated economic impact of a single Viva CalleSJ event (MTI/SJSU)
93%
Of attendees reported increased sense of community belonging
80%
Of participants discover new local businesses along the route
78.5%
Of attendees planned to spend avg. $53.67 at local businesses
85%
Reported feeling safe at a park during Placemaking activations
Why it matters
Why These Cuts Are Harmful
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Equity cuts hit hardest. Viva Parks specifically targets underserved neighborhoods using the Healthy Place Index. Removing 25 events strips free health, wellness, and community resources from the communities that need them most.
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Community connection is rare — and fragile. 93% of attendees report increased belonging and 84% meet people they otherwise wouldn't. Fewer events mean fewer chances to build the social fabric of this city.
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The economic return is extraordinary. Independent SJSU/Mineta Transportation Institute research puts a single Viva CalleSJ event at $4.7M in economic impact. Cutting an event doesn't just affect attendees — it affects local businesses, vendors, and surrounding districts.
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Families have almost no affordable alternatives. With rising costs of living, Viva Calle is one of the last free, large-scale family events left in San José. Car-free streets for biking, skating, and play are genuinely rare here — this program is irreplaceable.
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Small businesses lose a critical discovery engine. 80% of participants find new shops and restaurants along the route. Fewer open-streets events means fewer spontaneous discoveries — and less foot traffic for neighborhood businesses still recovering from pandemic losses.
📣 Neighborhood Services Budget Meeting
The City of San José is holding a budget study session where these cuts will be reviewed. Your attendance — or your email — can make a real difference.
📅 Monday, May 11, 2026
🕤 Starts at 9:30 AM
🏛️ San José City Hall
Can't attend in person? Sending an email is just as meaningful — elected officials track constituent contact carefully.
Take action
Send an Email — It Only Takes 2 Minutes
Your email goes directly to the Mayor, City Manager, City Clerk, all 10 Council Districts, and the Parks & Recreation Commission. Below is a ready-to-send message — or personalize it to share your own Viva Calle story.
💡 Personalization matters. The most effective emails are ones that share a real memory. Did your kid ride their bike down a car-free street for the first time? Did you discover a restaurant you now love? A single personal sentence makes your email stand out from form letters.
ToMayor Mahan, City Manager, City Clerk, Districts 1–10
CCParks & Recreation Commission Liaison
SubjectPlease Oppose Proposed Cuts to Viva CalleSJ and Viva Parks (FY 2026–27)
Dear Mayor Mahan, City Manager Maguire, Members of the City Council, and the Parks and Recreation Commission,
I'm writing as a San Jose resident to ask you to oppose the proposed cuts to Viva CalleSJ and Viva Parks in the FY 2026-27 budget. The proposal, listed as Item 13 in the Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services Department budget, would reduce Viva CalleSJ from three annual events to two and cut Viva Parks from 75 events down to 50.
I understand this budget cycle is difficult. But I'd ask you to consider what these programs actually do before reducing them.
The September 2025 Viva CalleSJ drew over 150,000 people. A study by the Mineta Transportation Institute at San Jose State found the economic impact of that single event was $4.7 million. Nearly 80% of attendees discovered a local business they hadn't visited before, and 78.5% planned to spend money along the route that day. That kind of neighborhood activation is genuinely hard to replicate through other means.
The community numbers are just as striking. 93% of participants said the event increased their sense of belonging in San Jose. 84% said they talked to someone they otherwise wouldn't have. These aren't abstractions. This is a program that makes people feel like they live somewhere worth caring about.
Viva Parks matters for a different reason. It was designed specifically for neighborhoods with the fewest resources, using the Healthy Place Index to target where free wellness programming is needed most. Cutting 25 events doesn't distribute the loss evenly. It falls hardest on people who don't have alternatives.
There's also a cost-of-living dimension worth naming directly. San Jose sits inside one of the wealthiest metro areas in the world, and yet a large share of its residents are priced out of most of what that implies. Going out as a family costs money a lot of households don't have. Viva Calle is one of the only large, free events where kids can move around safely and families can spend a full day together without spending anything. That gap between what Silicon Valley projects and what many San Jose families can actually afford is exactly why this program matters.
The total savings from these cuts is $301,984. In the context of a $1.72 billion General Fund, that is less than two hundredths of one percent. I'd respectfully ask whether that tradeoff is worth it.
Please protect full funding for Viva CalleSJ at three annual events and Viva Parks at 75 events.
Thank you for your time.
A Concerned San Jose Resident
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