SAN JOSE, Calif. (KCBS) - Two San Jose lawmakers are abandoning their support for a citywide vote on the naming of a Vietnamese retail area.
San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed and City Councilwoman Madison Nguyen are now recommending the vote on the controversial issue not be on the ballot. It was estimated that it would take $214,000 to put the issue on the ballot.
In an exclusive interview with KCBS on Friday afternoon, Reed said he wished he had approached the issue differently. "I wish that we had had a broader community process that would have given us a name that had very broad support in the Vietnamese community, that was acceptable to the businesses, that was acceptable to all the stakeholders," acknowledged Reed. "And so that the council would be the end of the process, not the beginning of the process."
One man has been on a hunger strike in front of San Jose City Hall for the last eight days, protesting the controversy. He expressed his pleasure upon learning of Reed's change of heart. "Everybody OK with good news?" the man asked supporters. "Yeah," a crowd of supporters responded enthusiastically.
The full City Council will instead vote on the issue of naming the business district in early March.
Photo courtesy of CBS5
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KCBS' Mike Colgan reports
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