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Dear Santa Clara Residents and Friends,
Spring is here, and with it comes a season full of community, opportunity, and purpose. April is one of my favorite months, it brings Earth Day, a reminder of our responsibility to the natural world, and it marks another chapter in the remarkable journey our city is on as we prepare to welcome the world for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. There is a lot to share, so let's dive in.
Each year, Earth Day and Arbor Day give us a chance to pause, look up at the trees lining our streets, and remember why it matters to take care of the world we share. Trees clean our air, fight climate change, shelter wildlife, and save energy, and here in Santa Clara, we take that seriously.
How seriously? The City of Santa Clara has just been designated a Tree City USA community for the 38th time by the Arbor Day Foundation, a nationally recognized program in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service that honors cities committed to managing and expanding their urban forests. And if that weren't enough, Santa Clara has also earned the Tree City USA Growth Award 25 times, recognizing our city's innovative programs and exceptional commitment to urban forestry.
This year, we're celebrating in a beautiful new setting, and I'd love for you to join me!
Santa Clara's Earth Day/Arbor Day Celebration Thursday, April 2, 2026, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Triton Museum of Art Grounds, 1505 Warburton Ave., Santa Clara (across from City Hall)
Some conversations stay with you, and my visit to Santa Clara University with Councilmember Kelly Cox was one of them.
Kelly, who helped arrange the meeting, and I had the privilege of sitting down with a group of sharp, enthusiastic students from the IGNITE program at SCU, a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) dedicated to empowering young women who aspire to become political and community leaders. The energy in that room was electric. These young women came prepared, engaged, and unafraid to ask the real questions: What does it actually mean to hold political office? How do you balance the demands of public service with work and family? And what was it that first made us want to run? We both had plenty to say on that last one, and I'll just say the honest answers are always the most interesting ones.
What made the visit even more meaningful is that these same remarkable young women joined us at City Council, where we were proud to honor them with our Women's History Month Recognition. It was a full-circle moment, celebrating the women who came before us, while standing in the room with the women who will lead after us.
The IGNITE program exists because representation matters, and because young women deserve to see themselves in positions of power before they ever step into one. To the students of IGNITE at SCU: you have the drive, the tenacity, and every right to take up space in public life. We are rooting for you, loudly and without reservation.
Here's to our future leaders.
Picture this: high school robotics teams doing live demonstrations, Mission College's robotic dog roaming the floor, sports science exhibits showing the physics behind every kick and sprint, hands-on engineering challenges, virtual reality fire prevention, LEGO city-building, and a journey through space, all under one roof. There's something for every curious mind, every age, and every interest.
And then there are the speaker panels, and honestly, they are worth coming for on their own. You'll hear from the head of the Droid Department on Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and the builder of Grogu himself. You'll meet Sirisha Bandla, an astronaut and aeronautical engineer who flew to space with Virgin Galactic. Kari Byron of MythBusters fame will be there talking science communication. Dr. Tracy Fanara, NOAA scientist and environmental engineer. Researchers from Santa Clara University, engineers from Intuitive Surgical and THINK Surgical, and professionals from Bay FC pulling back the curtain on the STEM careers that make game day happen, off the field.
This is Silicon Valley doing what it does best — innovating, inspiring, and inviting the whole community along for the ride. Our students, our companies, our neighbors, all in one room, showcasing what makes this city extraordinary.
Let me be direct: the City of Santa Clara must be fully reimbursed for every dollar our residents and city services contribute to hosting these major events. That is not a request, it is a requirement, and I will not stop pushing until it is met.
Hosting the Super Bowl and the FIFA World Cup places extraordinary demands on our public safety personnel, our infrastructure, and our staff. Our residents should never absorb those costs through the General Fund. The agreements governing these events are clear, and I intend to hold everyone, including the Bay Area Host Committee and our own city staff, to them.
That is why I have directed that fiscal transparency for both the Super Bowl and the World Cup be placed on every City Council agenda going forward. The numbers will be presented publicly, regularly, and without exception. Our community deserves to see exactly where we stand on reimbursements, and our staff is accountable for delivering those figures to both the Council and the public in a clear and timely manner.
Transparency is not a courtesy here. It is an obligation, and I will make sure it is honored.
April is a month of renewal, reflection, and celebration, and in Santa Clara, we celebrate together.
To those observing Passover, may your seder table be filled with joy, and may the story of freedom and resilience continue to inspire. To our Muslim neighbors and friends marking Eid al-Fitr, Eid Mubarak, may this joyful conclusion to Ramadan bring peace and blessings to you and your families. To the Sikh community celebrating Vaisakhi, may the new year bring abundance and happiness. To all who celebrate Easter, may this season of hope and renewal fill your homes with light. And to our Orthodox Christian community, a blessed Orthodox Easter when it arrives later this month.
Whatever your tradition, whatever your faith, this is a season that calls us to be grateful, to be generous, and to look out for one another. That spirit is what Santa Clara is built on, and it is what will make our city shine when the world arrives at our doorstep this summer.
It is the honor of my life to serve this community. Thank you for everything you do to make Santa Clara the remarkable place it is.
With gratitude,
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 Lisa M. Gillmor
Mayor, City of Santa Clara
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