Showing posts with label san jose wishlist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label san jose wishlist. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 25, 2023

San Jose Wishlist - Halloween in the Park (Part XV)

As Halloween approaches, it is time to resurrect one of my top event wishlist items for San Jose. "Halloween in the Park."

Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year. It's the one day where you get to interact with your neighbors and the wider community. The level of creativity in decorations and costumes is also the most eclectic and interesting out of all the holidays for me--whether that's for trick-or-treating, Halloween parties, or work events.

In October it's tradition for The San Jose Blog have a wish-list post for Halloween in the Park. The idea is to build on the momentum that Christmas in the Park brings to San Jose each year and create something of similar scale for the month of October. A lot of the infrastructure such as wiring, lighting, and booths might even be able to be shared between the events. The goal would be to make Downtown San Jose the epicenter of October Halloween experiences, much as it is today with Christmas in the Park.

Below you will find brainstorming ideas we have collected for this concept so far over the years. Please have a look and provide your feedback and suggestions in the comments or on X (Twitter). Thanks!





The largest draw to Downtown San Jose for many years now has been Christmas in the Park. It has continued to grow year after year and brings in visitors from all over the Bay Area. It's economic impact is substantial and helps keep many Downtown businesses and restaurants alive.

What would you think about a similar event for Halloween? Picture Downtown lit up in orange and purple with elaborate Halloween displays assembled by local artists. Perhaps infrastructure could even be shared with Christmas in the Park (e.g. retail booths). A strong event in October would help maintain traffic between the summer months and Christmas in the Park. 
Here are the ideas we have so far:
  • Animated Halloween Displays
    • Created by local artists
    • Analogous to the Christmas displays that attract many families during Christmas in the Park (almost half a million visitors)
    • Family friendly so that everyone can enjoy it (PG/PG13, perhaps around the same level as Great America Halloween Haunt)
    • Halloween Lighting
      • Orange, purple, and green LED lighting on trees
      • May be possible to use programmable LED lighting that can go from Halloween colors to Christmas colors with the push of a button, allowing the lights to stay up for Christmas in the Park as well and reducing setup/take-down costs.
    • Halloween Food
      • Booths with candied apples, chocolates, candy, pumpkin seeds, etc.
      • Food trucks
      • Trick-or-treating station - a free piece of candy to anyone wearing a costume any day in October (could also be used to hand out promotional flyers for Downtown events/businesses/resources)
    • Retail Booths selling Halloween items, for example:
      • Artwork (paintings, glass pumpkins, etc.)
      • Home decor/crafts like candles
      • Light-up hats/necklaces/bracelets
      • Costumes
      • Zombie/Halloween make-up station 
    • Halloween-themed Carnival Games
      • Pirates of Emerson and Candlelighters (Fremont) do a good job of providing family-friendly games themed around Halloween
      • A handful of children's rides could also be added to the Paseo and reused for Christmas in the Park
    • Interactive Art
      • Subzero/ZERO1-style, but with a Halloween spin.
      • Halloween-themed video game kiosks and/or arcades
    • Pumpkins
      • Instead of the sponsored Christmas trees in Christmas in the Park, how about decorated Pumpkins (can even be Styrofoam so there is no mess/decay)?
      • Pumpkin carving station for families. 
      • Pumpkin carving contest.
    • Costumed Entertainers
      • Walking around the area, not necessarily scaring people but adding to the ambiance and providing photo opportunities for families
    • Haunts / Mazes
      • Would be ideal if these were nearby, perhaps in vacant retails spaces, surface parking lots, the San Jose Convention Center tent, or at SJSU.
      • Could partners with one of the established San Jose haunt providers such as the Winchestor Mystery House or The Bernal SCREAM.
    • Potential Events
      • Zombie Crawl / 5k Run
      • Dia De Los Muertos Events (already quite a few today)
      • Halloween/Dia De Los Muertos Bike Party
      • Horror Movie Trivia Contest
      • Weekly horror movie screening (perhaps in the Circle of Palms area?)
      • Costume Ball
      • Pet costume contests and pet-friendly events

      Saturday, August 19, 2023

      Could San Jose get their own utility instead of PG&E?

      It's a longshot, but plans are brewing for San Jose to potentially build their own power utility to replace PG&E. A theoretical "San Jose Power" would access a new underground transmission line that will expand the amount of power going to San Jose and is expected to be built by 2028.

      While there are risks, the benefits could be significant. Just look at our neighbor Santa Clara that owns and operates their own electrical utility--Silicon Valley Power. Their electrical rates are far below PG&E and among the lowest in the state, uptime is incredible with power outages being extremely rare, AND it is still generating revenue for the city of Santa Clara. Not only that, Silicon Valley Power has had a few unintended benefits such as attracting data centers and businesses with cheap electricity and miles of dark fiber optic connections that were added along the utility's right-of-way.

      There are downsides. Running a utility is a very different skill than a government and some skeptics will question whether San Jose is able to pull it off. Of course PG&E will want to shut down this idea as quickly as possible. Perhaps there is another option like partnering with Silicon Valley Power instead of reinventing the wheel for San Jose. If the end goal is to build a better service for San Jose at a lower cost and with higher uptime, they have already achieved that and perhaps there is a way to scale their success to San Jose.

      Source: The Merc



      Monday, October 31, 2022

      Happy Halloween 2022!! + Halloween in the Park (Part XIV)

      Happy Halloween everyone, hope you have a blast tonight! This might be the first Halloween in 3 years where the event is back full-force! Halloween is my favorite "holiday" of the year. It's the one day where you get to interact with your neighbors and the wider community. The level of creativity in decorations and costumes is also the most eclectic and interesting out of all the holidays for me--whether that's for trick-or-treating, Halloween parties, or work events.

      Usually in October we have a wish-list post for Halloween in the Park. The idea is to build on the momentum that Christmas in the Park brings to San Jose each year and create something of similar scale for the month of October with Halloween in the Park! A lot of the infrastructure such as wiring, lighting, and booths might even be able to be shared between the events. The goal would be to make Downtown San Jose the epicenter of October Halloween experiences.

      Below you will find brainstorming ideas we have collected for this concept so far over the years. Please have a look and provide your feedback and suggestions in the comments. Thanks!




      The largest draw to Downtown San Jose for many years now has been Christmas in the Park. It has continued to grow year after year and brings in visitors from all over the Bay Area. It's economic impact is substantial and helps keep many Downtown businesses and restaurants alive.

      What would you think about a similar event for Halloween? Picture Downtown lit up in orange and purple with elaborate Halloween displays assembled by local artists. Perhaps infrastructure could even be shared with Christmas in the Park (e.g. retail booths). A strong event in October would help maintain traffic between the summer months and Christmas in the Park. 
      Here are the ideas we have so far:
      • Animated Halloween Displays
        • Created by local artists
        • Analogous to the Christmas displays that attract many families during Christmas in the Park (almost half a million visitors)
        • Family friendly so that everyone can enjoy it (PG/PG13, perhaps around the same level as Great America Halloween Haunt)
        • Halloween Lighting
          • Orange, purple, and green LED lighting on trees
          • May be possible to use new programmable LED lighting that can go from Halloween colors to Christmas colors with the push of a button, allowing the lights to stay up for Christmas in the Park as well and reducing setup/take-down costs.
        • Halloween Food
          • Booths with candied apples, chocolates, candy, pumpkin seeds, etc.
          • Food trucks
          • Trick-or-treating station - a free piece of candy to anyone wearing a costume any day in October (could also be used to hand out promotional flyers for Downtown events/businesses/resources)
        • Retail Booths selling Halloween items, for example:
          • Artwork (paintings, glass pumpkins, etc.)
          • Home decor/crafts like candles
          • Light-up hats/necklaces/bracelets
          • Costumes
          • Zombie/Halloween make-up station 
        • Halloween-themed Carnival Games
          • Pirates of Emerson and Candlelighters (Fremont) do a good job of providing family-friendly games themed around Halloween
          • A handful of children's rides could also be added to the Paseo and reused for Christmas in the Park
        • Interactive Art
          • Subzero/ZERO1-style, but with a Halloween spin.
          • Halloween-themed video game kiosks and/or arcades
        • Pumpkins
          • Instead of the sponsored Christmas trees in Christmas in the Park, how about decorated Pumpkins (can even be Styrofoam so there is no mess/decay)?
          • Pumpkin carving station for families. 
          • Pumpkin carving contest.
        • Costumed Entertainers
          • Walking around the area, not necessarily scaring people but adding to the ambiance and providing photo opportunities for families
        • Haunts / Mazes
          • Would be ideal if these were nearby, perhaps in vacant retails spaces, surface parking lots, the San Jose Convention Center tent, or at SJSU.
          • Could partners with one of the established San Jose haunt providers such as Deadtime Dreams or The World's Largest Haunted House.
        • Potential Events
          • Zombie-O-Rama can be used to kick off Halloween in the Park (late Sep. / early Oct. time-frame)
          • Zombie Crawl
          • Dia De Los Muertos Events
          • Halloween/Dia De Los Muertos Bike Party
          • Horror Movie Trivia Contest
          • Weekly horror movie screening (perhaps in the Circle of Palms area?)
          • Costume Ball
          • Pet costume contests and pet-friendly events

          Sunday, October 31, 2021

          Happy Halloween 2021!! + Halloween in the Park (Part XIII)

          Happy Halloween everyone, hope you have a blast tonight! I'm optimistic today will mark some return to some normalcy after a brutal two years.

          Usually in October we have a wish-list post for Halloween in the Park. The idea is to build on the momentum that Christmas in the Park brings to San Jose each year and create something of similar scale for the month of October with Halloween in the Park! A lot of the infrastructure such as wiring, lighting, and booths might even be able to be shared between the events. The goal would be to make Downtown San Jose the epicenter of October Halloween experiences.

          Below you will find brainstorming ideas we have collected for this concept so far over the years. Please have a look and provide your feedback and suggestions in the comments. Thanks!




          The largest draw to Downtown San Jose for many years now has been Christmas in the Park. It has continued to grow year after year and brings in visitors from all over the Bay Area. It's economic impact is substantial and helps keep many Downtown businesses and restaurants alive.

          What would you think about a similar event for Halloween? Picture Downtown lit up in orange and purple with elaborate Halloween displays assembled by local artists. Perhaps infrastructure could even be shared with Christmas in the Park (e.g. retail booths). A strong event in October would help maintain traffic between the summer months and Christmas in the Park. 
          Here are the ideas we have so far:
          • Animated Halloween Displays
            • Created by local artists
            • Analogous to the Christmas displays that attract many families during Christmas in the Park (almost half a million visitors)
            • Family friendly so that everyone can enjoy it (PG/PG13, perhaps around the same level as Great America Halloween Haunt)
            • Halloween Lighting
              • Orange, purple, and green LED lighting on trees
              • May be possible to use new programmable LED lighting that can go from Halloween colors to Christmas colors with the push of a button, allowing the lights to stay up for Christmas in the Park as well and reducing setup/take-down costs.
            • Halloween Food
              • Booths with candied apples, chocolates, candy, pumpkin seeds, etc.
              • Food trucks
              • Trick-or-treating station - a free piece of candy to anyone wearing a costume any day in October (could also be used to hand out promotional flyers for Downtown events/businesses/resources)
            • Retail Booths selling Halloween items, for example:
              • Artwork (paintings, glass pumpkins, etc.)
              • Home decor/crafts like candles
              • Light-up hats/necklaces/bracelets
              • Costumes
              • Zombie/Halloween make-up station 
            • Halloween-themed Carnival Games
              • Pirates of Emerson and Candlelighters (Fremont) do a good job of providing family-friendly games themed around Halloween
              • A handful of children's rides could also be added to the Paseo and reused for Christmas in the Park
            • Interactive Art
              • Subzero/ZERO1-style, but with a Halloween spin.
              • Halloween-themed video game kiosks and/or arcades
            • Pumpkins
              • Instead of the sponsored Christmas trees in Christmas in the Park, how about decorated Pumpkins (can even be Styrofoam so there is no mess/decay)?
              • Pumpkin carving station for families. 
              • Pumpkin carving contest.
            • Costumed Entertainers
              • Walking around the area, not necessarily scaring people but adding to the ambiance and providing photo opportunities for families
            • Haunts / Mazes
              • Would be ideal if these were nearby, perhaps in vacant retails spaces, surface parking lots, the San Jose Convention Center tent, or at SJSU.
              • Could partners with one of the established San Jose haunt providers such as Deadtime Dreams or The World's Largest Haunted House.
            • Potential Events
              • Zombie-O-Rama can be used to kick off Halloween in the Park (late Sep. / early Oct. time-frame)
              • Zombie Crawl
              • Dia De Los Muertos Events
              • Halloween/Dia De Los Muertos Bike Party
              • Horror Movie Trivia Contest
              • Weekly horror movie screening (perhaps in the Circle of Palms area?)
              • Costume Ball
              • Pet costume contests and pet-friendly events

              Thursday, October 31, 2019

              Happy Halloween 2019!! + Halloween in the Park (Part XII)

              Happy Halloween everyone, hope you have a blast tonight!

              Usually in October we have a wish-list post for Halloween in the Park. The idea is to build on the momentum that Christmas in the Park brings to San Jose each year and create something of similar scale for the month of October with Halloween in the Park! A lot of the infrastructure such as wiring, lighting, and booths might even be able to be shared between the events. The goal would be to make Downtown San Jose the epicenter of October Halloween experiences.

              Below you will find brainstorming ideas we have collected for this concept so far over the years. Please have a look and provide your feedback and suggestions in the comments. Thanks!




              The largest draw to Downtown San Jose for many years now has been Christmas in the Park. It has continued to grow year after year and brings in visitors from all over the Bay Area. It's economic impact is substantial and helps keep many Downtown businesses and restaurants alive.

              What would you think about a similar event for Halloween? Picture Downtown lit up in orange and purple with elaborate Halloween displays assembled by local artists. Perhaps infrastructure could even be shared with Christmas in the Park (e.g. retail booths). A strong event in October would help maintain traffic between the summer months and Christmas in the Park. 
              Here are the ideas we have so far:
              • Animated Halloween Displays
                • Created by local artists
                • Analogous to the Christmas displays that attract many families during Christmas in the Park (almost half a million visitors)
                • Family friendly so that everyone can enjoy it (PG/PG13, perhaps around the same level as Great America Halloween Haunt)
                • Halloween Lighting
                  • Orange, purple, and green LED lighting on trees
                  • May be possible to use new programmable LED lighting that can go from Halloween colors to Christmas colors with the push of a button, allowing the lights to stay up for Christmas in the Park as well and reducing setup/take-down costs.
                • Halloween Food
                  • Booths with candied apples, chocolates, candy, pumpkin seeds, etc.
                  • Food trucks
                  • Trick-or-treating station - a free piece of candy to anyone wearing a costume any day in October (could also be used to hand out promotional flyers for Downtown events/businesses/resources)
                • Retail Booths selling Halloween items, for example:
                  • Artwork (paintings, glass pumpkins, etc.)
                  • Home decor/crafts like candles
                  • Light-up hats/necklaces/bracelets
                  • Costumes
                  • Zombie/Halloween make-up station 
                • Halloween-themed Carnival Games
                  • Pirates of Emerson and Candlelighters (Fremont) do a good job of providing family-friendly games themed around Halloween
                  • A handful of children's rides could also be added to the Paseo and reused for Christmas in the Park
                • Interactive Art
                  • Subzero/ZERO1-style, but with a Halloween spin.
                  • Halloween-themed video game kiosks and/or arcades
                • Pumpkins
                  • Instead of the sponsored Christmas trees in Christmas in the Park, how about decorated Pumpkins (can even be Styrofoam so there is no mess/decay)?
                  • Pumpkin carving station for families. 
                  • Pumpkin carving contest.
                • Costumed Entertainers
                  • Walking around the area, not necessarily scaring people but adding to the ambiance and providing photo opportunities for families
                • Haunts / Mazes
                  • Would be ideal if these were nearby, perhaps in vacant retails spaces, surface parking lots, the San Jose Convention Center tent, or at SJSU.
                  • Could partners with one of the established San Jose haunt providers such as Deadtime Dreams or The World's Largest Haunted House.
                • Potential Events
                  • Zombie-O-Rama can be used to kick off Halloween in the Park (late Sep. / early Oct. time-frame)
                  • Zombie Crawl
                  • Dia De Los Muertos Events
                  • Halloween/Dia De Los Muertos Bike Party
                  • Horror Movie Trivia Contest
                  • Weekly horror movie screening (perhaps in the Circle of Palms area?)
                  • Costume Ball

                  Tuesday, April 16, 2019

                  Bay Area Michelin Star Restaurants - 2019 Edition

                  The Michelin guide is the most renowned rubric in the world for measuring culinary success. Unfortunately, we have some bad news this year. San Jose's first and only Michelin Star restaurant, Adega in Little Portugal, lost its star after holding the honor for two years. It's unclear why, although it is still featured in the guide as a recommended restaurant.

                  Michelin has three different star categories:
                  • One Star - A very good restaurant in its category with cuisine prepared to a consistently high standard. A good place to stop on your journey.
                  • Two Stars - Excellent cuisine, skillfully and carefully crafted dishes of outstanding quality. Worth a detour.
                  • Three Stars - Exceptional cuisine with distinctive dishes and superlative ingredients. Worth a special journey.
                  There are also restaurants in the Michelin guide that do not get a star, but are considered "Michelin Recommended." This is already a significant honor that a very small percentage of restaurants achieve. Within this category San Jose scored a total of 8 restaurants, which is up two from last year (one is Adega). Luna Mexican Kitchen on the Alameda is the newcomer. Fortunately we we did not lose any Michelin recommended restaurants this year.


                  San Jose Michelin Recommended Restaurants:
                  • Downtown
                    • Back A Yard
                  • East San Jose
                    • Adega
                  • Midtown
                    • Luna Mexican Kitchen
                    • Din Tai Fung
                    • Walia
                  • South San Jose
                    • Thien Long
                    • Lau Hai San
                  • Camden
                    • Zeni

                  I also created a Google doc listing all of the star recipients for 2019, along with tabs for all previous years and some general statistics. Below is an image capture from the doc. This year there were a total of 57 restaurants that were awarded Michelin stars, which is up 2 from last year and an all-time high for the Bay Area. 63% of the restaurants are locating in SF, 18% in Silicon Valley (split evenly between the South Bay and the Peninsula), 16% in Wine Country, 2% in the East Bay, and 2% in Marin. This is the first time ever where Silicon Valley has more Michelin Star restaurants than Wine Country. There are 5 new restaurants on the list for 2019 and 3 that did not make the cut or were closed down. The only new starred restaurant on the list from Silicon Valley is Protege in Palo Alto.

                  Source: Michelin Guide

                  Wednesday, October 17, 2018

                  Wednesday Wishlist: Halloween in the Park (Part XI)

                  Keeping with San Jose Blog tradition, in October we have a "wishlist" post for Halloween in the Park. The idea is to build on the momentum that Christmas in the Park brings to San Jose each year and create something of similar scale for the month of October with Halloween in the Park! A lot of the infrastructure such as wiring, lighting, and booths might even be able to be shared between the events. The goal would be to make Downtown San Jose the epicenter of October Halloween experiences.

                  Below you will find brainstorming ideas we have collected for this concept so far over the years. Please have a look and provide your feedback and suggestions in the comments. Thanks!




                  The largest draw to Downtown San Jose for many years now has been Christmas in the Park. It has continued to grow year after year and brings in visitors from all over the Bay Area. It's economic impact is substantial and helps keep many Downtown businesses and restaurants alive.

                  What would you think about a similar event for Halloween? Picture Downtown lit up in orange and purple with elaborate Halloween displays assembled by local artists. Perhaps infrastructure could even be shared with Christmas in the Park (e.g. retail booths). A strong event in October would help maintain traffic between the summer months and Christmas in the Park. 
                  Here are the ideas we have so far:
                  • Animated Halloween Displays
                    • Created by local artists
                    • Analogous to the Christmas displays that attract many families during Christmas in the Park (almost half a million visitors)
                    • Family friendly so that everyone can enjoy it (PG/PG13, perhaps around the same level as Great America Halloween Haunt)
                    • Halloween Lighting
                      • Orange, purple, and green LED lighting on trees
                      • May be possible to use new programmable LED lighting that can go from Halloween colors to Christmas colors with the push of a button, allowing the lights to stay up for Christmas in the Park as well and reducing setup/take-down costs.
                    • Halloween Food
                      • Booths with candied apples, chocolates, candy, pumpkin seeds, etc.
                      • Food trucks
                      • Trick-or-treating station - a free piece of candy to anyone wearing a costume any day in October (could also be used to hand out promotional flyers for Downtown events/businesses/resources)
                    • Retail Booths selling Halloween items, for example:
                      • Artwork (paintings, glass pumpkins, etc.)
                      • Home decor/crafts like candles
                      • Light-up hats/necklaces/bracelets
                      • Costumes
                      • Zombie/Halloween make-up station 
                    • Halloween-themed Carnival Games
                      • Pirates of Emerson and Candlelighters (Fremont) do a good job of providing family-friendly games themed around Halloween
                      • A handful of children's rides could also be added to the Paseo and reused for Christmas in the Park
                    • Interactive Art
                      • Subzero/ZERO1-style, but with a Halloween spin.
                      • Halloween-themed video game kiosks and/or arcades
                    • Pumpkins
                      • Instead of the sponsored Christmas trees in Christmas in the Park, how about decorated Pumpkins (can even be Styrofoam so there is no mess/decay)?
                      • Pumpkin carving station for families. 
                      • Pumpkin carving contest.
                    • Costumed Entertainers
                      • Walking around the area, not necessarily scaring people but adding to the ambiance and providing photo opportunities for families
                    • Haunts / Mazes
                      • Would be ideal if these were nearby, perhaps in vacant retails spaces, surface parking lots, the San Jose Convention Center tent, or at SJSU.
                      • Could partners with one of the established San Jose haunt providers such as Deadtime Dreams or The World's Largest Haunted House.
                    • Potential Events
                      • Zombie-O-Rama can be used to kick off Halloween in the Park (late Sep. / early Oct. time-frame)
                      • Zombie Crawl
                      • Dia De Los Muertos Events
                      • Halloween/Dia De Los Muertos Bike Party
                      • Horror Movie Trivia Contest
                      • Weekly horror movie screening (perhaps in the Circle of Palms area?)
                      • Costume Ball

                      Wednesday, May 23, 2018

                      Wednesday Wishlist: Loops

                      It has been ages since doing a Wednesday Wishlist, and I can't think of a more timely one than this one. Transportation is constantly one of the top complaints of living in the San Jose area. We are plagued by levels of traffic that give even LA a run for it's money. We're spending billions on road improvements and public transit, but it does not seem like the net results will ever keep up with the increased demands of a growing population. We live in the innovation capital of the world, there has to be a better way.

                      Elon Musk has recently given a presentation on the first "Loop" tunnel, which is currently being built in the LA area (full video below) by The Boring Company. A loop is a lower-cost variant of the Hyperloop proposal a few years back. Stations 1-2 parking spaces wide would allow up to 16 people to enter a pod, which would then descend into a tunnel. The pod would then autonomously travel point-to-point to another station at up to 150 MPH. Rides are targeted to cost $1 per person, less than existing public transit stations.

                      Critical to making this concept successful is reducing the cost of tunneling by a factor of 10 from $1 billion per mile to $100 million per mile. This is possible by using autonomous boring machines with electric motors and batteries (surprisingly the same motors as the Tesla Model 3) that are faster and more efficient than existing machines. Most of the engineers working on the machines are from SpaceX--if anyone can figure it out, it'll be them. After all, they did figure out how to land rockets back on earth on a moving barge.

                      Given that we are at the precipice of next-generation transportation technology, San Jose should be doing everything possible to make sure we're one of the first cities to get access to Loops. Instead of investing in transit systems of the past, we should look to the future. Can you imagine connecting SJC, Diridon Station, and Downtown to every other part of San Jose within a 10min trip? Now's the time to start thinking bigger--or lower--for San Jose.