The Daily Fetch

Another day another big story in P-Card Gate…

The County Auditor took a closer look at Supervisor Shirakawa’s spending and found the exact same problems that everyone at Metro and the Mercury News has found.  Namely:  “…That Santa Clara County Board President George Shirakawa Jr. used his taxpayer-funded credit card to pay for his personal expenses and for items “strictly prohibited” since he took office in 2009 and demands the District 2 supervisor “immediately reimburse” $12,772…”  Good luck with getting that cash County… Which leads us to this:  Perhaps Supervisor Shirakawa filed for bankruptcy to avoid having to pay back the County for his lavish spending and to plead poverty when the FPPC came calling for the massive fines he’ll face… just a thought.  Oh, and this gem from today’s story:  “…The Controller-Treasurer will now audit all spending in Shirakawa’s District 2, including his staffers’ credit card transactions, many of which also include questionable meals and missing receipts, this newspaper found…”  We hope Cindy has lots and lots of money for George’s (and Eddie’s? and Andres’?  and Andrea’s?) lawyers…

Sal Pizarro fills us in on the changing (and lucrative) soon-to-be-new name of the San Jose Civic Auditorium…

If you were one of those plastic-loving people who lament the by-gone age of plastic bags in San Jose (Pete Constant) then you probably also love Styrofoam take-out containers… Don’t get too attached Councilmember Constant, they’re (probably) on their way out too…

Here’s some controversy for you:  The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District is filing a lawsuit against the County of Santa Clara for approving the Lehigh Southwest Cement’s quarry… Barry Chang must be pleased…

Speaking of controversy, to Palo Alto and the Weekly:  Faced with a flurry of criticism about a sweeping proposal to build four office towers and a theater in downtown Palo Alto, city officials on Tuesday scrapped the idea of bringing the project to the voters in June.