California health officials announced Santa Clara County is now in the red tier reopening phase, which allows more businesses to operate indoors. The county is still under a substantial risk for COVID-19 spread, according to state guidelines, and local health officials urge people to wear masks and take social distancing precautions. Here’s a quick look...
San Jose activists turn to digital media to keep public engaged
After police violence in San Jose erupted during protests over Minneapolis cops killing George Floyd, hundreds of speakers poured into online government meetings to air their grievances. In the era of Zoom and COVID-19, Mary Jessie Celestin, a 21-year-old activist, is building a connective digital platform for budding activists she says is just as important...
Coffee shop dream becoming reality for San Jose sisters, despite obstacles
Coffee shops abound but not many are owned by two Black women who happen to be sisters. Jeronica Macey and Be’Anka Ashaolu are cofounders of Nirvana Soul, which is opening in downtown San Jose later this month. Macey said she always wanted to open a coffee shop and now, thanks to her sister’s unwavering support,...
San Jose casinos can reopen outdoors, lawmakers decide
Casinos can now join the ranks of local businesses allowed to operate outdoors and have the potential to restore sorely-needed tax revenue to a struggling San Jose budget. San Jose’s two card rooms, Bay 101 and Casino M8trix, will now follow suit of other open California casinos by entertaining guests outside. The setup would give...
South Bay lawyers predict surge in bankruptcies as stimulus money dries up
South Bay attorneys are bracing for a wave of new bankruptcies from individuals and small businesses that have exhausted their unemployment benefits and federal stimulus money. The number of cases filed in the United States Bankruptcy Court’s San Jose division has declined precipitously over the past five years — plummeting more than 35% to 2,718...
San Jose Google development faces another delay
Google’s sprawling proposed campus that will change the face of downtown San Jose hit a snag and is further delayed. The draft environmental impact report (EIR) for the Downtown West Project was not submitted to the San Jose City Council by the Aug. 25 deadline, according to Mayor Sam Liccardo and Director of Planning, Building...
Websites become new focus of disability rights in age of COVID-19
As a blind man, Guillermo Robles successfully sued Domino’s Pizza because the chain failed to build a website that was as accessible to him as its brick-and-mortar restaurants. Now as COVID-19 pushes more businesses, communication and emergency services online, accessibility law experts say the sooner websites comply with disability guidelines — such as providing audio...
New report outlines steps to economic recovery in South Bay
The South Bay won’t see significant economic recovery unless small business owners and residents hardest hit by the coronavirus shutdown receive more emergency aid and large employers increase wages, according to a new report. The report, by Silicon Valley Recovery Roundtable — a consortium of leaders from tech, labor, education, government and small businesses —...
San Jose merchants in fight of their lives with COVID-19’s second wave
Less than two months ago, consumer experts predicted shoppers, diners and patrons of bars and nightclubs would return to their favorite brick-and-mortar shops by the end of this summer in numbers that matched 2019. Zenreach — a San Francisco tech firm that sells marketing software to traditional retail outlets, hospitality and entertainment venues that allows...
Former San Jose city attorney Rick Doyle dies at 65
After celebrating a recent retirement and two decades of service to San Jose, former City Attorney Rick Doyle died Aug. 23 at age 65 from cancer. “San Jose has lost one of its greatest champions in Rick Doyle,” Mayor Sam Liccardo said. “Rick made a career out of fighting for our city, but through the...