San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan takes the oath of office during his official inauguration at San Jose Center for the Performing Arts in San Jose, Calif., on Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023. (Shae Hammond/Bay ...

The potential sale of the San Jose Earthquakes by owner John Fisher might also be a way to entice the soccer club to play its games at an unspecified downtown San Jose site, the city's mayor says.

Developer John Sobrato has leased that South San Jose property to the city. The city also aims to open a new safe parking site to move more than 100 live-in vehicles off the streets, the mayor said.

It's similar to a legal battle San Jose was involved in five years ago when Liccardo was accused of conducting private talks with lobbyists, then not fulfilling requests to see related documents.