Agnews Preservation Coalition

Save Agnews

Vote NO on "D"
June 2, 1998 Election
Ballot Measure D
City of Santa Clara

Sun Microsystems
Publicity Blitz

Sun Microsystems has acknowledged spending more than two million dollars since the first of the year to defeat the various groups that wish to retain Agnews for adaptive re-use.

Santa Clara voters have received six separate mailings from Sun Microsystems in an effort to win the vote on the referendum, and now the voters are being contacted by telemarketers.

Testimonials were mailed and paid for by Sun.

The Agnews Preservation Coalition and the other groups together cannot begin to match the blatant - and seemingly unlimited - dollar expenditures Sun Microsystems is using in their campaign to muster votes to win. Let's face it - Sun has more money that you and I do collectively. They have a whole battery of employees, consultants, lawyers, etc. on their payroll in an effort to beat us. They even paid their employees to load the Santa Clara Council Chambers during the more heated Council sessions.

Sun Microsystems is playing "hardball". If there ever was a "David and Goliath" battle raging, this is it.

Between now and the election, Santa Clara voters can expect to be bombarded by Sun's advertising and promotional materials. Don't be surprised if this material is disguised in the form of letters from your "friends and neighbors", and phoney endorsements by usually considered reputable organizations.

Let me dissect the last flyer which Sun sent to the Santa Clara voter list. Sun made some interesting statements, and they are outright misleading.

What Sun Microsystems promotes

The Reality

An 82.5-acre research and development center providing 3,600 high quality, high paying jobs.

Initially the number was 4,500 such jobs, and the number changes each time the subject comes up relative to the audience.
- The majority of these jobs are transfer jobs, not new jobs.
- The new jobs are expected to be in Phase II which is scheduled to happen 5 years after this project begins.
- Entry level jobs have never been guaranteed.
- Almost all of these employees will be commuters.
- The Environmental Impact Report (EIR) guarantees gridlock. Period. No mitigations.

Preservation of Agnews' campus setting, heritage landscape and four key historic buildings -- with two available for community use such as theater productions, receptions and parties.

Approximately 1,000 trees of the approximately 1,400 trees are scheduled for removal (see the EIR). The existing horticultural environment will be gutted. Is that preservation?
The four buildings which are to be preserved are not necessarily the most historic. The main hospital buildings will be destroyed, as will the main residence buildings. That doesn't leave much. The history of Agnews revolves about the hospital, not the administration building. Of the buildings that will be retained:
- The Administration building is certainly not particularly historic, outside of the context of the whole historical district. It is not clear at this time that the building will be preserved. There is talk about retaining only the facade. Is that preservation?
- The Governor's Mansion will have its second floor gutted. The Governor's room will no longer exist. Is that preservation?
- The Clock Tower Building will be destroyed.
  - The main wings will be removed. Is that preservation?
  - One of the minor wings will be removed. Is that preservation?
  - Right now Sun is negotiating to remove the back wall of the center structure of the Clock Tower building to replace it with glass for the "see through effect" from inside their lobby. Is that preservation?
  - Guided tours were promised during the approval process with the city. There is no mention of public access, let alone guided tours. Sun is not living up to its promises.
- The Auditorium will be preserved. This is the one building which the City Council will not let be destroyed, no matter who own Agnews
Access to the buildings is practically speaking not available
- Initially Sun proclaimed that the city would basically be given the scheduling book.
- Now the contract with the city states that the public may use the mansion (ground floor only) and auditorium on three of four weekends per month, and only if Sun has no use for the facilities. The facilities must be scheduled 6 months prior to the event, and are then still subject to cancellation by Sun. Is that public use? For how long do you think this arrangement will survive?

A park-like Northside oasis with 14+ acres of well-maintained open space, lawns, and heritage trees accessible to area residents on a daily basis

This "park" is basically Sun's driveway. There are no park facilities, and access is at the discretion of Sun.
While initially there was going to be no perimiter fence, and Sun's security came from the design of their actual structures, now there will be a perimiter fence around Agnews, with only a gap at Palm Drive (the driveway) where one can easily install a gate.
Is this a park?

New tax revenues to support police and fire services, and economic, cultural and infrastructure improvements throughout Santa Clara
- Sun has blatantly misrepresented tax revenues. In reality, no credible studies have been conducted
  - Initially Sun proclaimed that approximately $4,000,000 in sales tax revenues would derive to the city from their employees spending in Santa Clara.
    - That implied that the average Sun employee would make over $88,000 of taxable purchases in Santa Clara.
    - These are after income tax dollars, so the average salary of a Sun employee would then handily exceed $160,000 anually.
    - Since, by Sun's own figures, only 300 of their Agnews employees would actually live in Santa Clara, nobody, not even Sun's most fervent supporters believed this figure
    - This number was clearly designed to mislead
  - The number has now been reduced from $4,000,000 to $800,000, or to 20% of the original claim.
    - This means that Sun's average Agnews employee will spend more than $22,000 in Santa Clara on taxable goods.
    - That is a lot of gas
    - Remember that only 300 of these employees actually reside in Santa Clara, and that the remaining 3,300 employees commute to and from Santa Clara
  - Does this mean that all of Sun's claims and promises are only good for 20%?
You may contact the Agnews Preservation Coalition by Email. Just press the button.

Telephone 408-243-6363
See the other links for more info.