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It’s not official yet, but it’s pretty darn close — Rick Callender appears poised to be the next CEO of Valley Water. The Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of Directors on Friday met in closed-session via video conference to discuss the appointment of the water district’s next CEO and general manager. While no one...
FPPC looks into 49ers, Santa Clara for potential Measure C violations
Santa Clara’s contentious Measure C was defeated on Super Tuesday, but investigations into alleged violations made before polls closed March 3 are still pending. The Fair Political Practices Commission has opened investigations into actions by both city officials and the San Francisco 49ers, who were opponents of the measure, which would have split Santa Clara into three...
Advocates fight back against Santa Clara County’s new cannabis rules
A petition launched Friday to stop Santa Clara County from banning recreational cannabis sales at dispensaries under a new health order garnered thousands of signatures within hours, the latest call from advocates to overturn the controversial decision. As first reported by San José Spotlight on Wednesday, Santa Clara County leaders reversed a previous decision in...
After Bloomberg exit, Sam Liccardo backs Joe Biden for president
The field for the Democratic presidential nominee narrowed even further Wednesday when billionaire Michael Bloomberg dropped out of the race and endorsed Vice President Joe Biden, securing him droves of new supporters including San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo. ”I am clear-eyed about our overriding objective and that is victory in November,” Bloomberg said at a news...
San Jose measure to shift mayoral elections one step closer to ballot
After six months of campaigning for support, top labor leaders announced on Wednesday they’ve secured enough signatures to qualify the Fair Elections Initiative for the November 2020 ballot, a measure they say will put a cap on money in politics and increase voter turnout by aligning mayoral elections with presidential years. With the help of...
San Jose lawmakers denounce SVO’s altered photo of Sylvia Arenas
Supporters of San Jose Councilmember Sylvia Arenas are crying foul after an image of the Latina lawmaker surfaced on a new opposition website that appears to have darkened her skin. The image, which cropped up this week on a website funded by the Silicon Valley Organization’s PAC, first appeared in a Mercury News article four...
South Bay attorney Sal Liccardo promotes book fighting for blind woman
It was a sleepy Sunday morning in 1969 when a 29-year-old San Jose mother of three woke up to a surging headache, unbearable to the point where she rushed herself to the hospital. The woman’s mysterious and ferocious pain perplexed doctors, who were stunned by the sight of her head swelling up like a balloon —...
‘It’s just politics’: Ann Ravel wins backing from Dave Cortese colleagues
An unusual trend of Silicon Valley lawmakers endorsing political newcomers – instead of their own colleagues – has spread to statewide races. San José Spotlight first reported on the shift last year, highlighting how San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and many other councilmembers backed outsiders over their council colleagues. And in the crowded race for...
Unusual allies: Ex-San Jose mayor endorses Dave Cortese for Senate
After lending his support to Mayor Sam Liccardo in his 2014 run for mayor against Santa Clara County Supervisor Dave Cortese, former Mayor Tom McEnery is all in for Cortese — an unusual decision given the two politicians’ starkly opposite views. Cortese, who this year terms out from the Board of Supervisors after 12 years...
New transit centers bring buses and light rail to South Bay, BART service still delayed
In the hopes of boosting ridership in 2020, the Valley Transportation Authority overhauled its service plan for the first time in more than a decade — including opening two shiny new transit centers that will eventually connect South Bay commuters to BART for the first time. “The Milpitas and Berryessa transit centers, that will also...