Matt Mahan

building an urban center in our downtown and it's starting to grow.

We're getting housing built.

Silicon Valley has always lacked a proper downtown or urban center.

And that's now becoming, that's San Jose's downtown.

But you're right.

It's a more sprawling, it's not like New York or Chicago or one of our more historic- What would you attribute this to though?

Yeah, I think that these – I work to the tech sector building civic tech tools, helping people essentially organize and be civically active and hold their elected officials accountable.

And I can tell you from working in the space for quite a few years that technologists –

don't start from the perspective of politics or the kind of presence that you're talking about or even brand building.

I know it's sort of the myth, although I think kind of the reality of tech that it's much more people who are

tinkerers, inventors who are literally starting in a garage, and they're interested in creating something new and powerful that gives you a new capability that can solve a problem.

And it's sort of like all the rest, the revenue, profit, sponsorships, marketing, politics is super secondary.

For years, the tech sector had a mutual avoidance with government and just wanted to be left alone.

It was actually a very libertarian sector.

And so whether you're in San Francisco, I think it still is a libertarian mindset.

I mean, you know, I think we do have some exceptions, though.

I have to give a huge shout out to Adobe headquartered in downtown San Jose.

Thousands of employees.

They contribute a ton to the community.

They're always sponsoring things, investing in arts and culture.