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Dear Santa Clara Residents,
What an incredible February! We successfully hosted Super Bowl LX, and I want to share some important updates with you.
Super Bowl LX was executed flawlessly, and I want to be absolutely clear about something: this was a Santa Clara event. While others may try to claim it, let's remember where the Main Event took place, Santa Clara!
The real heroes of this event were our public safety personnel and city employees. Our police department, fire department, and every city employee worked tirelessly to ensure the safety and success of this event. They planned, coordinated, and executed every detail with professionalism and dedication. From traffic management to emergency preparedness, our team demonstrated why Santa Clara can host world-class events.
Even Bad Bunny shined on our Santa Clara stage during the halftime show! The international spotlight was on us, and we delivered.
 I'm excited to announce that our Economic Development and Marketing Committee has been working on something long overdue, a community event at Levi's Stadium exclusively for Santa Clara residents. This event will give our community an opportunity to experience the stadium that we own with a day of activities, entertainment, and celebration.
For too long, our residents have watched events come and go at the stadium without opportunities to enjoy this facility that belongs to them. I advocated for this event in committee because our public deserves it. We built this stadium, we own it, and it's time our community gets to experience it in a meaningful way. More details will be announced soon but mark your calendars, Saturday, February 28th, for this will be a day for Santa Clarans to celebrate our city. Reserve your tickets using the button below. Visit SantaClaraCA.gov/FieldDay for more details.
When reserving tickets, use the code SC2026 to unlock the Santa Clara resident offer.
This year marks the 250th anniversary of our nation, a once-in-a-lifetime milestone. When we surveyed our community about where to celebrate this historic Fourth of July, the community overwhelmingly chose Central Park, our community's heart. Only 2.4% chose Mission College.
Yet, the city council majority voted to hold the celebration at Mission College for the third consecutive year, completely disregarding the community's clear preference. I am extremely disappointed in this decision. The swim center construction at Central Park is no reason to abandon our traditional celebration location for such a significant anniversary.
We asked the community what they wanted. They told us decisively. And the council majority chose to ignore them. This is not how responsive government should work. The people spoke, and they deserved to be heard.
 Now that Super Bowl LX has concluded, the final costs must be calculated and billed to the Bay Area Host Committee for reimbursement to our City's General Fund and Stadium Authority Account. However, I must voice serious concerns about the reimbursement procedure that the city council majority approved on the recommendation of the City Manager and City Attorney.
The approved procedure is deeply problematic: Santa Clara pays all Super Bowl costs upfront, but the Bay Area Host Committee decides which expenses to reimburse. If they dispute a cost, we must negotiate or go to arbitration - giving a private nonprofit veto power over our public safety reimbursements while we carry all the financial risk. Of course, I did not support this arrangement, but we are stuck with it.
I want to be clear, I will do everything in my power to ensure our city complies with Measure J, the voter-approved measure that protects our General Fund from stadium-related expenses, and all our costs are reimbursed.
I'm also closely monitoring damage to our Youth Soccer Park. During Super Bowl preparations, the fields, particularly the artificial turf, had buildings, vehicles, and heavy equipment placed on them for weeks. We have documented damage from Super Bowl 50, and I will ensure that all repairs or field replacements are fully reimbursed by the NFL, not paid by Santa Clara taxpayers.
I recently returned from the 94th Winter Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C., where more than 250 bipartisan mayors gathered to engage with federal leaders.
I'm proud to report that Santa Clara is being looked at as a national leader, particularly in data center planning and municipal energy strategies. I received numerous questions from mayors across the country about how we've managed data center growth, how Silicon Valley Power provides reliability and resilience, and how we balance long-term community benefit with strategic economic development. Many cities, especially on the West Coast, are trying to replicate parts of our model.
The conference focused heavily on housing affordability, immigration policy, and public safety. As USCM President Mayor David Holt emphasized, mayors work across parties every day to get things done.
On the international front, I had the opportunity to meet with the Ambassador of Qatar and with FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who brought the World Cup trophy to our gathering. As we prepare to host FIFA World Cup matches this summer, these relationships will be invaluable.
The conference reinforced that cities are the engine of problem-solving for the nation, and our work in Santa Clara, particularly in housing, energy, innovation, and global event leadership, is being watched and often emulated by our peers.
Super Bowl LX showed the world what Santa Clara can accomplish. Now we must ensure our residents benefit from that success, through community events, fiscal accountability, and responsive government that actually listens to what you want.
Thank you for your continued engagement and support.
Sincerely,
Lisa M. Gillmor
Mayor, City of Santa Clara
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