World Expo 2020 (The World's Fair) in Silicon Valley?

There was a lot of buzz last week when the Governator announced Silicon Valley's candidacy for the 2020 World Expo at the current 2010 Expo in Shanghai. There is entirely different from the "Bay Area" Expo that is also in the running for 2020 and would be based out of San Francisco (which has already hosted the Expo twice). Arnold's pitch was squarely focused around the world's leader in innovation and technology, Silicon Valley/San Jose.

Of course I'm biased, but I couldn't think of a more appropriate venue for 2020. It's a very "futurish" sounding year. As children we all probably imagined having robots clean up after us and driving around in flying cars by then. Who knows, that still may be the case... but whatever technology the future brings, there is a great chance it'll be coming from here. As an added bonus, we have one of the most statistically diverse ethnic populations on the planet for any large city (even more than SF), an extremely safe and clean city, and relatively good infrastructure.

A Wold Expo would no doubt be a huge boon to the area. I've only had a chance to attend one of them, Expo 98 in Lisbon, Portugal. I remember seeing billions of dollars worth of international pavilions, world-class museums, one of the best aquariums in the world, and incredible public art. That also happened to be one of the first Expos where they didn't tear most of it down afterward, they were able to re-purpose all of that development into one of the nicest parts of Lisbon today. The museums and public art are still there, along with new restaurants, hundreds of shops, and dense housing for 100,000+ people.

A great local example of how a World Expo can transform a city is Seattle in 1962. The most iconic symbol representing Seattle, The Space Needle, was built specifically for the World' Fair. Accompanying it was a monorail, what is now the Pacific Science Center, the current Seattle Center, and even the Experience Music Project was designed to fit in with the Expo atmosphere.

So let's get involved and do everything possible to bring Expo 2020 to Silicon Valley!

Barry Swenson Hoping to Build a Pair of 14-Story Apartment Towers on North 1st St.

A recent article in the Silicon Valley Business Journal announced Barry's desire to build 440 apartment units near Skyport Drive on First. These units would be spread across 2 towers, and accompanied by 10,000sqft of retail on the ground floor. This would be a great first step in the city's grand vision to build a walkable and transit oriented secondary "downtown" all along North 1st Street. The overall plan would include 32,000 new housing units and a staggering 27 million sqare feet of office space.

The main roadblock to getting Barry's project approved is that he doesn't have the needed building allocations. When the economy was rocking in 2008, the city gave allocations to various developers to kick start the vision for North First. Unfortunately Barry Swenson wasn't able to get the allocations back then because his financing fell through. Now that he has $100m ready to go for this new development, he doesn't have the allocations... ouch. He's now lobbying the city to redistribute the allocations so that developers that are ready to build can get their projects started. I hope he's able to convince the city council!

For the full story, head over to this SVSJBJ article. Unfortunately, you'll need a paid subscription to access this one, but it's a damn good publication so it's worth it.

Steel Magnolia Coming to Ruffled Feathers Eatery!

One of country music's hottest bands is coming to do a special lunchtime performance at Ruffled Feathers in Downtown San Jose next Wednesday, September 15th! Steel Magnolia will be meeting with fans and playing 4 or 5 songs between noon and 1pm... this is open to anyone. However, if you listen to 95.3 KRTY you can also participate in a contest that will give 30 lucky winners the chance to enjoy a free lunch with the band. Just listen to Gary & July in the morning for more details (can also go to this web link). Even if you don't win, remember that the performance and meet & greet are open to everyone!

01SJ: Oglala Oyate (Sister City Cam)

Another cool 01SJ public art piece that will be up during the festival is called Oglala Oyate and will provide a look at what our sister cities are up to around the globe. I wouldn't mind if this one was up all year round. You can find it at the corner of San Carlos and 1st Street on the side of the UFCW Local 5 building.

The Usuals Expansion + Streetbot

While is hasn't been around for very long, The Usuals (1020 The Alameda) has already expanded into an adjacent space allowing for more clothing/accessories, new dressing rooms, and plenty more local art. Another bit of interesting news is that they're partnering up with Treatbot (Awesome Karaoke Ice Cream Truck) on a new concept called Streatbot, which you can think of as a food truck without the food and with lots of local clothing and art instead. Here are some pics from the last party the Usuals threw (What's that? The clothing stores you shop at don't throw parties with free food and music? Maybe it's time to find a new clothing store).

01SJ: Particle Falls

One of the many public artworks coming to Downtown San Jose during the 01SJ festival is called Particle Falls. This dynamic 8-story tall art piece displays a real time visualization of particulate pollution in the San Fernando Corridor. It can go from a trickle to a full blown waterfall depending on the amount of pollution in the air.

Sean Boyle Art Show

Come celebrate 10 years of a local artist's work with music, food, and of course some great company. Full details after the banner.

Sean Boyle's biggest show   to date on Sept. 10th! Come out the 2nd Friday of September. There's going to be a ton of art, tacos, popsicles and music by DJ Cutso of the Bangerz. Featuring a new free standing mural consisting of 21 doors and a collection of current work and art dating back to 2000.