Facing yet another major budget shortfall, San Jose leaders have greenlit a proposal to hike taxes on hotel stays as a means of boosting revenue for city services. The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday in favor of placing a measure to increase the city’s hotel tax, also known as a transient occupancy tax, on the...
San Jose faces tough choices to balance budget shortfall
San Jose leaders are warning of “tough” financial decisions and “hard choices” as this year’s budget season officially gets underway. The months-long process kicked off Thursday with a special study session considering how to balance a projected deficit of up to $65 million. While the city managed to balance last year’s shortfall without laying off any workers,...
The Biz Beat: 2nd STREET brings ‘treasure hunt’ to San Jose
On Jan. 30, in-the-know connoisseurs of vintage fashion lined up in droves for the grand opening of 2nd STREET at the Strawberry Park Shopping Center in San Jose. The store, which specializes in a wide selection of used clothing, shoes and accessories, is the international brand’s 54th location in the U.S. “According to the higher-ups...
San Jose loosens rules for local card rooms
San Jose is easing restrictions on its local gambling industry as part of a months-long effort to lighten the regulatory burden placed on the city’s two card houses. The City Council approved a package of five rule changes Tuesday in a unanimous vote, with Mayor Matt Mahan absent. San Jose Police Department officials said the...
Future of Santa Clara County guaranteed income programs uncertain
To make guaranteed basic income a reality, Santa Clara County leaders turned to a real world trial. Now their efforts are making strides, but it couldn’t come at a darker time for the county’s social safety net outlook. A historic set of four simultaneous pilot programs is providing $1,200 in guaranteed basic income per month...
Beloved Silicon Valley costume store takes final bow
The clustered racks of Natasha’s Attic were bustling with Victorian noblemen and Renaissance fairies looking for their evening gowns for the last time. The building where the retail-rental costume store in San Jose is located has been sold, and owner Kathy Bell has until the end of February to liquidate everything. While the eviction came...
Santa Clara County may ditch camera vendor amid privacy issues
Cities across Silicon Valley may be on the cusp of cutting ties with a surveillance company linked to local police departments’ cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Santa Clara County officials this week signaled growing distrust with Flock Safety, a company that sells license plate reading cameras to cities across California, over concerns the...
Citizen group to oversee Santa Clara County’s Measure A spending
Santa Clara County leaders promised their voter-approved sales tax increase would save local public hospitals from closure. That commitment will now be tested. The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to form a citizen oversight committee to ensure that $330 million in Measure A revenue will be spent as advertised. County leaders last year vowed Measure...
Leadership turmoil returns to Hispanic Silicon Valley business group
For the second time in seven years, a prominent South Bay business group has found itself embroiled in a leadership dispute that has led to the sudden ouster and replacement of multiple board members. Just like a similar board shakeup in 2019, this latest episode at the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Silicon Valley involves demands...
Santa Clara County residents consider leaving the area
A significant number of Santa Clara County residents say they’re considering leaving the Bay Area, a reflection of the persistent frustration over housing costs and affordability even as population data suggests the region is not experiencing a mass exodus. Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s annual survey found 40% of respondents in Santa Clara County said they...