ABOUT SERGIO

Sergio was raised in East San José by his single mother, who was his biggest inspiration. She instilled in him the values of hard work, resiliency, and a passion for helping others. Thanks to his mother's support, he was the first in his family to attend college and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from San José State University.

Prior to being elected, Sergio worked in the justice system as an Investigator for the Santa Clara County Public Defender’s Office. He spent many years speaking in communities throughout San José and fighting to ensure justice was provided for every resident.

San José has afforded Sergio an opportunity to raise a family, earn an education, and build a career. As a San José City Councilmember proudly representing District 2 since December 2016, he seeks to help ensure that every resident is afforded these same opportunities.

SERGIO’S MISSION

Sergio’s 100,000 constituents in South San José include those in the socioeconomically diverse neighborhoods and areas of: Oak Grove, Vista Park, Martial Cottle Park, Hayes, Edenvale, Great Oaks, Coyote Creek, Hellyer-Christopher, Blossom Valley, Silver Leaf, Basking Ridge, Rue Ferrari, Palmia, and more.

During his tenure, Sergio has been a champion of preserving/protecting/producing affordable housing, homeless solutions, tenant protections, traffic safety measures, land preservation, increased public safety, and beautification efforts to not only clean up blight but to increase and improve access to urban open spaces – all to make San Jose an equitable, safe, and thriving community for all. 

In addition to his policy priorities, Sergio has led a dedicated and resilient team that embodies his mission of creating a strong sense of community. The District 2 team has worked continuously to engage and empower community members through neighborhood groups, meetings, town halls, events, projects, and meaningful dialogue with City leaders.  

SERGIO’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Sergio currently serves on the following local and regional Boards and Committees in 2023:

• Public Safety, Finance, & Strategy Support - Chair
• Rules & Open Government Committee - Member
• ABAG – Executive Board
• Caltrain Local Policy Makers Group
• Housing and Community Development Commission - Liaison
• Planning Commission - Liaison
• Santa Clara County Cities Association
• Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency Implementation Board 
• Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency Implementation Board - VTA Representative
• Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority Board 
• SJ/SC Clean Water Financing Authority

Sergio is not afraid to ask questions, be challenged, be innovative, or be the first to do things. These are some of his policies and initiatives that have made the biggest impact in San José:  

Policies - Housing

• Championed and integrated three EIHCs (Emergency Interim Housing Communities) in District 2 by working with LifeMoves, City departments, private donors, the County and State, and surrounding neighborhoods

• Established and implemented CAC (Community Advisory Committee) meetings for each EIHC to focus on project goals and successful community integration of the site development

• Welcomed and advocated for new diverse housing solutions to District 2: SOAR (Services, Outreach, Assistance and Resources Program), permanent supportive housing, Safe Parking sites, Overnight Warming Locations, Evacuee Transition Facilities,

• Supported permanent supportive housing (Blossom Valley Senior Apartments) in District 2 that includes 147 units, services, a community room, and Catholic Charities office space

• Supported additional interim housing solutions proposed across other areas of San Jose such as: storage lockers, sanctioned encampments, and navigation centers 

• Led the fight for Just Cause in San Jose in 2017 which resulted in the successful passing of the Tenant Protection Ordinance and update of the Apartment Rent Ordinance

• Led the successful passing of a Mobilehome General Plan designation to provide stability to mobile home park residents and add greater protection for all parks from redevelopment, which will provide nearly 35,000 San Joséans with peace of mind.

Policies - Public Safety & Traffic Safety

• Prioritized and initiated the opening of the City’s Southern Police Substation (for its intended purpose of offering public police services and deploying officers) by tenaciously requesting resources and funding at all opportunities to fully build out the site

• Collaborated with City staff to secure a new site in District 2 to relocate the Police Academy Training Center, which is an important step to opening the Substation 

• Secured funding for sideshow mitigation at Branham Ln & Monterey Rd, which included traffic control devices to deter sideshow activities and illegal racing

• Secured funding and implemented traffic safety improvements at Monterey Road and Valleyhaven Way following a tragic fatality. 

• Secured $ hundreds of thousands for traffic calming and traffic safety improvements throughout south San Jose.

• Successfully advocated for an update to Council Policy 5-6 (Traffic Calming Policy for Residential Neighborhoods) to make it easier for residential neighborhoods to qualify for traffic calming.

Policies - Blight

• Spearheaded work on a Memorandum of Understanding with Union Pacific so that the City could gain regular quarterly access for litter clean-ups, abatements, and graffiti removal along railroad tracks

• Elevated attention to blight and litter clean-ups along our freeways, highways, railroads, and waterways by the designation of $3 million in resources approved by our City

• Secured more than $500,000 from the City’s budget to kick off community beautification programs such as partnerships with Downtown Streets Team and Trash Punx

• Worked with Code Enforcement to improve or City’s shopping cart ordinance to prevent carts from littering our streets

Policies - Environment

• Preserved Coyote Valley to achieve key city objectives, including the preservation of open space and wildlife habitat, flood and groundwater protection, agriculture, climate change resilience, and passive recreation. 

• Initiated land use and economic development study for the east side of the Monterey Corridor in Coyote Valley

• Allocated $100,000 to support a feasibility study and modifications for Monterey Rd. Wildlife Corridor Safety Improvements

Policies - Neighborhoods

• Equity Fund

• Advocated for Hazard Pay for grocery store workers

• Wage Theft Ordinance 

• Proposed to ensure that our elections strengthen the voice of San José residents by prohibiting foreign-influenced corporations from spending money on San José elections through Campaign Finance Reform 

• Led effort to fill two Council vacancies by appointment, saving the City millions of $$ in avoiding the need for two special elections.

• Oversaw more than 10 park improvement and revitalization projects along with PRNS, including: New murals, new soccer fields, new tennis and pickleball courts, repaired basketball courts, new exercise equipment, new native plants, new or renovated playgrounds, repaired surfaces and sidewalks

Community & Quality of Life 

• Monthly Office Hours, annual litter pick-up and Dumpster Day events, annual outdoor festivals & resource fairs, annual holiday celebrations to recognize community leaders 

• Kicked off efforts to build community resilience and activation along the historically under-served area of Roeder Avenue and Roundtable Drive through Project Hope