If you were driving near American High School today about 2 p.m., you probably noticed the large number of police officers roving the area. Police detained at least 20 people and stopped an apparent gang fight before it started.

Note to thieves: Upgrade in transportation may increase chances of escape. Read.

Last month, I wrote about a retail study Fremont commissioned, which basically concluded that this is a town full of high-end shoppers with no place to splurge.

According the report, 28 percent of Fremont shoppers are what they call, Young Digerati: tech savvy savvy singles and couple living in fashionable neighborhoods, who shop at Banana Republic, order from J. Crew and drive Range Rover SUVs.

The next biggest group was “Money and Brains”: Rich couples with few children who shop at Nordstrom, eat at California Pizza Kitchen, and drive a Mercedes Benz E Class.

Makes you wonder how Newark Days keeps chugging along.

The gist was that more than 90 percent of Fremont residents are moderate to big spenders, who would support high-end stores if they ever came to town.

One reason given for high-end retailers staying away is that the town has a plurality of Asian residents, and Asian-Americans typically don’t spend as much money on entertainment and apparel. Supposedly, they spend more on frivolous things like caring for their elders and educating their kids.

But Fremont’s report concluded that Asians here want to splurge at Banana Republic just as much as anybody else, even if they are paying to have their grandparents under the same roof as them and hiring tutors for their kids.

The United States Department of Labor sees things a little differently. In a 2005 report it found that Asian-Americans spent a higher proportion of family income on housing and edcuation and less on entertainment, food, booze and clothing.

To read the report, which includes a fancy graph, click here.

One thing that every candidate for Fremont City Council seems to agree on is that the key to paying for better services, like more cops, is more economic development. Only Bob Wieckowski is bold enough to defend 2006’s failed Utility Tax.

But can any city really expect economic growth when the economy is tanking and credit is tight? I asked Steven Cohen, economist for the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto, about whether Fremont could generate the kind of economic growth that could pay for new cops.

He said long-term, the city is reasonably well-positioned, but for the next few years, don’t expect more police:

“Nothing in the way of what are loosely called economic development policies are going to help any cities budget in the next year or two or three,” he said adding that Fremont will face plenty of competition from neighboring cities.

“All the cities are competing to do it. The idea that one city such as Fremont would dominate is a question even if successful not going to solve the budget problems facing them this year next year or in 2010.”

The East Bay Express had a story this week about how the Fremont mayor’s race could affect whether the A’s come to town. To read, it click here.

The only two assertions in the story that I would disagree with are 1) That Cho is more conservative than Wasserman. They almost always vote identically, at least over the past year; and 2) That John Dutra wields tremendous influence in Fremont. It seems to me that since losing the State Senate race two years ago, and Torrico’s rise in the Assembly, Dutra’s clout has waned. Doesn’t mean he can’t rustle up a lot of money for his slate, but if this were “Dutraville,” his candidates would have locked up more endorsements.

I suppose this video is appropriate since the Giants are going down in the Dawg Pound tonight. Eli, Eli, Eli.

I don’t mean to give too much attention to Vinnie Bacon, but I’ve always had a thing for talking dogs.

Finally got to look at the campaign filings. The best-known contributor in Fremont is Kristi Yamaguchi. The Olympic champ gave $500 to Sue Chan.

Trisha Tahmasbi had to settle for Fabian Nunez’s campaign fund and Bob Wieckowski’s secretary.

Those of you who keep pointing to Chan’s ties to former Assemblyman John Dutra and Tahmasbi’s ties to her boss, current Assemblyman Alberto Torrico, should feel better than I feel with the NY Giants losing to the Browns at halftime.

If your name was Dutra, you were giving to Chan: John, Dominic, Bernadine, Lisa … Shlomo, Moishe — you name it. The Dutras delivered more than $5,000 to Chan.

As for Tahmasbi, she got more than 5k from the political action committees of 11 state legislators. She also got money from Anu Natarajan, Bill Harrison and his wife, and Wiekowski and his girlfriend. Wieckowski’s secretary, Stacey Stevens, gave Tahmasbi $450.

Overall Chan had more contributions and a higher percentage of contributions coming from Fremont residents.

I wrote a story about this for tomorrow’s paper. to read it, click here.

This brings me back to summer. Tahmasbi didn’t call the City Council an embarrassment, as once commenter wrote. She said the level of police staffing in Fremont was an embarrassment.

Also, no one should assume that people who say good things about a candidates are in any way part of that candidates campaign.

I don’t see this on our web site, so I’m sending you to the Chron’s. To read it, click here.

The story in today’s Argus marks the ninth and final City Council Candidate profile. A tenth candidate, Hou Leong, never returned my phone calls.

FYI, It’s looking like The Argus editorial board — those same visionaries who advised you last time around to support a utility tax and make Ray Bilodeau a school board member — won’t be making endorsements this year. What will you do without them?

To read about Trisha, click here.