San Jose councilmembers are fighting back against “unfair” water rate hikes, voting unanimously to send a letter to the California Public Utilities Commission protesting San Jose Water Company’s proposed rate increases and calling for an investigation into a potential merger with Connecticut Water. San Jose residents who conserved water in California’s long-standing drought may now...
Following outcry, major changes coming to San Jose Planning Commission
Mayor Sam Liccardo joined with political rivals to propose sweeping changes to the Planning Commision following community outcry, changes that could reshape the size and diversity of the powerful panel. In a new proposal, Liccardo and Vice Mayor Chappie Jones teamed up with progressives Magdalena Carrasco and Maya Esparza to suggest prohibiting more than two...
San Jose official’s email sparks concern over Google displacement
As Google makes plans for its downtown San Jose mega-campus and city officials eye a new vision for Diridon Station, worries over gentrification continue to mount – and now a newly-obtained email from a top city official about displacement is raising eyebrows. San Jose’s Economic Development Director Kim Walesh last year led the city’s engagement process,...
Initiative to align San Jose mayoral election with the presidential election fails
Despite a push from community advocates to align San Jose’s mayoral election with the presidential election cycle, the votes to make the change just weren’t there on Tuesday. Mayor Sam Liccardo, Vice Mayor Chappie Jones and Councilmembers Lan Diep, Pam Foley, Johnny Khamis and Dev Davis voted against the measure, citing concerns that the presidential...
San Jose City Council to debate moving mayoral elections
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and Vice Mayor Chappie Jones on Tuesday will implore their City Council colleagues to make no changes to the mayoral election cycle and instead explore alternative ideas to increase voter turnout. Liccardo previously told San José Spotlight that he wouldn’t support an initiative to align the mayoral election year with...
San Jose housing developers voice concern with Ellis Act
Ramon Navarro Johnson lost his rent-controlled apartment in 2015 when his landlord decided to charge market rate. “I was abruptly displaced from my home, could not find other affordable housing options (and) ended up homeless for a year and a half,” he said. Johnson now has stable housing, but said he still suffers the effects of his...
Downtown church decided to sell to Google amid fear of eminent domain
“What would happen to us, what would happen to our church if this project had already been approved?” Zuniga told the council. “We consulted with a legal expert to give us advice on what would happen to us,” he added. “His advice was to negotiate with Google because if the city wanted to they could...
San Jose denies contract extension for Chick-fil-A, invests in housing for poor
City Attorney Rick Doyle cautioned the council on rejecting the contract extension on the grounds of religious or political beliefs, which could be considered a First Amendment violation. Instead, they opted to reject the extension since Chick-Fil-A is not open on Sundays – one of the airport’s busiest travel days. At the suggestion of Yeager...
San Jose City Council to mull new affordable housing funding
In an effort to spur San Jose’s dwindling housing supply, lawmakers on Tuesday will consider investing $10 million to flip market-rate apartments into affordable ones and peg 30 percent of any new housing dollars for extremely low-income housing. Housing officials this week will ask the City Council to add those two new priorities to the city’s affordable housing investment plan....
VTA recommends saving Route 22 overnight bus
A VTA bus line dubbed ‘Hotel 22’ that provides shelter to countless Silicon Valley homeless residents is safe — at least for now. Transportation officials on Friday recommended saving Route 22, a bus line that travels from Palo Alto to East San Jose. Earlier this year, officials recommended eliminating the route from 1 a.m. to...
