Item 8.b. PDC17-051 From: Ana Lopez [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 9:40 AM To: PlanningSupportStaff <[email protected]>; Jones, Chappie <[email protected]>; Jimenez, Sergio <[email protected]>; Peralez, Raul <[email protected]>; Cohen, David <[email protected]>; Carrasco, Magdalena <[email protected]>; Davis, Dev <[email protected]>; Esparza, Maya <[email protected]>; Arenas, Sylvia <[email protected]>; Foley, Pam <[email protected]>; Mahan, Matt <[email protected]>; Liccardo, Sam <[email protected]>; Planning Commission 1 <[email protected]>; Planning Commission 3 <[email protected]>; Planning Commission 4 <[email protected]>; Planning Commission 5 <[email protected]>; Planning Commission 6 <[email protected]>; Planning Commission 7 <[email protected]>; Planning Commission 2 <[email protected]>; Gomez, Charla <[email protected]>; Keyon, David <[email protected]> Subject: March 24 Planning Commission - San Jose Flea Market Item [External Email] I really hope any future plans incorporate flea market vendors. Sent from my iPhone This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. Item 8.b. PDC17-051 From: Franchesca Flores <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 12:14 PM To: Gomez, Charla <[email protected]> Subject: Berryessa Flea Market- GENTRIFIED [External Email] Hello Charla Gomez, My name is Franchesca Flores, I am a San Jose Native, who has been around longer than Google and all these big tech companies that decided to take over the rich history of San Jose, CA. It has come to my attention that the Berryessa Flea Market established in 1960, is being taken over by new development and gentrification. The Berryessa Flea Market has been a place where families of all backgrounds come to spend time with their families, shop, and support small local businesses of San Jose, which has been a tradition for many years. How do you feel about this? How do you feel knowing you will be taking this away from a community you vouched to stick up for? How does it feel to take away a San Jose tradition in exchange for luxury apartments and plazas? Don't we already have enough of those? They're classist and boring! I am a scholar from two renowned colleges, and my end goal is to come back to San Jose to preserve San Jose's rich history and protect it against developers and planners like you and your team. If you care about San Jose, its community, and history, you too would fight with the community to preserve the Berryessa Flea Market, a tradition since 1960. I look forward to hearing back from you. Best, Franchesca Flores Item 8.b. PDC17-051 From: Kat <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 12:54 PM To: Gomez, Charla <[email protected]> Subject: Market park project [External Email] Hello Ms. Gomez, I am reaching out regarding the recently publicized decision to transform the San Jose Flea Market into apartments and a new strip mall by the new Berryessa Bart station. The San Jose Flea market has been a place of connection that immigrants and people of color who occupy surrounding areas hold close. It has given many opportunities for undocumented families to run their businesses, provide for their families (and the overall economy), as well as embracing cultural values and goods. Your project is taking jobs away from so many families who are already struggling, the only people benefiting are those who are already well off. Nobody needs this development to happen. In fact, hundreds are needing it to NOT happen. Please reconsider. There has been so much gentrification of San Jose that the community is being stripped of its history and diversity, and innocent civilians are paying the price. Katerina Bajaj Item 8.b. PDC17-051 From: Audrey Nguyen <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 2:04 PM To: Gomez, Charla <[email protected]> Subject: Berryessa Flea Market [External Email] Hi Charla Gomez! I understand that you are the specific project manager of the development happening where the Berryessa flea market is. Although "urban villages" seems like a good idea for fostering new communities, it is aiding in gentrification. This blatant disregard for the community we already have here is astounding. Many people rely on this market to make their living, and trading it for "luxury apartments" will both take away their source of income as well as raise rates of homelessness. In addition to this, many people in the community greatly enjoy and hold close memories of the Berryessa flea market. To take this away would be an immense mistake, for both enjoyers and vendors. Please consider the community. Stay safe, Audrey Nguyen Item 8.b. PDC17-051 From: Alicia Prieto <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 2:07 PM To: Keyon, David <[email protected]> Subject: Outrages [External Email] My grandparents sold at this flea market!! I don’t believe you people have the right to go and develop more fucken apartments. Leave the flea market alone. It’s one of the best attractions we have in San Jose. I still go there and if you take away these peoples only choice of income you will be displacing and even making more people homeless. We don’t want or need more apartment complexes what we need is people to thrive and be able to make there own incomes. There’s lots of land still and even tho you greedy people don’t give our people a chance to live even after taking our land you still wanna destroy us. We are here to stay and nothing not even history can change that. Sent from my iPhone Item 8.b. PDC17-051 From: Bridgett L-C <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 2:45 PM To: Gomez, Charla <[email protected]> Subject: La Pulga, a historical SJ location [External Email] Hello my name is Bridgett, You do not know me but I was born in Alexandria brothers here in San Jose when it was here. I have grown up in our Mexican community and have seen gentrification rip away our safe places and culture just to make room for all the rich and primarily white folk who already had spaces here. I would invite friends downtown and my white friends were all too scared but now they’re partying in the exact same downtown they were too racist to go to as children. La Pulga has been around long before I was born, my mother actually received her first job in the Flea market when she first came to America. When I was three I was there with my single mother selling my toys to be able to afford rent. When I was 15 I got my first job there. The flea market has historically meant so much to the Mexican and Asian community. This is where immigrants get their first job, where they learn English for the first time, this is where families trying to get by have been stationed at for years sometimes even decades. Thousands will be impacted by the destruction of La Pulga. The “luxury” homes you will build will contribute nothing to the communities here in San Jose. People who live here can already not afford those same-template, “luxury” building already here. You will end up taking a whole communities livelihood and homes just to make space for rich people who will not even want to by these houses since the fun communities have moved away again. You’re destroying history in order to make room for people who will go after those communities you’ve moved again once we’ve finally settled again. You’re housing will destroy more than you will build. La raza no se muere, aqui vamos estar. Sincerely, One of the people who you are taking their culture from Item 8.b. PDC17-051 From: Richa Nanavati <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2021 1:49 PM To: Gomez, Charla <[email protected]> Cc: Keyon, David <[email protected]> Subject: Berryessa Urban Village /Southside Rezoning Environmental Docs and Economic Impact [External Email] Hello, I'm a resident of San Jose and just learned about the Berryessa Urban Village and associated rezoning project that would impact the Flea Market existing on the site. I am an early-career environmental planner by profession, but I am messaging you today as a life-long resident of San Jose and a concerned and saddened community member. As I understand it, the EIR claimed there would be a "less than significant" effect of "physically dividing" an established community. As a consultant, I can wrap my head around the bare bones justification offered for this conclusion, however, as a resident and community member, it reads like a half-truth and bad-faith dismissal of the extremely disruptive impacts of the project to the existing social and economic fabric of the community who lives and works in the Plan area, and to those who rely on the flea market CEQA wise, perhaps you are in the clear. However, it is clearly inaccurate and disingenuous to claim or give the impression that the rollout of this project would not result in any forms of displacement, or would not disrupt families and vendors that utilize the Flea Market. Has the city done anything to study the economic and social impacts of relocating or closing down the flea market? How will residents and vendors depending on the existing commercial activities continue to get their needs met? Drive to another location? Who will this development harm? Who is it benefitting at the expense of others? Has the City attempted to answer these questions and disclose the impacts? The EIR addendum for the project claims the Urban Village plan would create a "vibrant urban character," but that ignores the fact that one already exists.