East San Jose businesses are partnering with the city to launch a plan to drive more shoppers into the Tully Eastridge neighborhoods and breathe new life into its diverse economy. The business owners want to create a business improvement district as a way to draw more foot traffic to the area for upcoming events such as farmers markets...
Fight brews over San Jose’s Vietnamese garden
Some Little Saigon activists are in uproar after a San Jose councilmember’s office changed the locks and the rules for reserving events at the Vietnamese Heritage Garden. Councilmember Bien Doan announced those new rules last month after becoming the center of political divide over anticommunism earlier this summer among older Vietnamese Americans. The divide has partly played...
Historic San Jose building in need of major repairs
The San Jose Chamber of Commerce building is in need of some urgent upgrades, and the organization has launched a foundation to raise the funds. Built in 1942, the historic building that fronts the corner of West Santa Clara and Market streets is in need of a new cooling and heating system, water pipes and...
East San Jose gets funds to clean lake
Arvind Kumar and his husband Ashok Jethanandani spend their Saturday mornings pulling weeds and protecting plants native to California, but not in their yard at home. Instead, they’ve spent the last 20 years volunteering at Lake Cunningham Park in their East San Jose neighborhood — working to undo years of neglect and unsafe water. For...
The Biz Beat: San Jose restaurant sells burgers for $1.99
There’s a new burger joint in downtown San Jose, with prices cheap enough to keep even the most hungry university student fed. Campus Burgers is one block from San Jose State University and will undoubtedly be a magnet for students look for a fast, affordable lunch or dinner. And the demand is there: the restaurant...
East San Jose groups want to increase younger voter turnout
East San Jose nonprofits are launching a youth led voting campaign to shape a more equitable society and empower residents. In preparation for the Nov. 5 election, SOMOS Mayfair’s Jovenes Activos youth, in collaboration with Amigos de Guadalupe and other community organizations, is launching the “No Decision About Us, Without Us!” get out the vote...
Legal woes won’t stop downtown San Jose park revamp
San Jose is on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars after being sued over a planned concert venue at its historic but blighted St. James Park. Yet the plans are undeterred – and poised to start this year. The San Jose City Council on Aug. 27 is slated to approve a $400,000 settlement to...
Land trust wants to keep East San Jose apartments affordable
At a time when rising rents are forcing people out of their homes, one Santa Clara County nonprofit is offering an alternative solution to keep tenants from being displaced. The South Bay Community Land Trust is looking to acquire three apartment buildings on Virginia Avenue in East San Jose to keep rent affordable — by taking...
Former San Jose hotel houses 700 college students
Hundreds of college students will soon be able to call downtown San Jose home, thanks to the quick renovations of a historic hotel. Spartan Village on the Paseo, formerly the south tower of the Signia by Hilton hotel, will house roughly 700 San Jose State University students beginning this fall semester. About 120 beds will...
Ex-San Jose official lobbies for private hospital she spoke out against
Magdalena Carrasco, a former San Jose councilmember, once joined protests against one company’s hold over health care on the East Side. Today she’s helping HCA Healthcare make its most criticized move yet. Carrasco, who left office in 2022 after serving two terms as East San Jose’s representative, now lobbies city officials and her former colleagues...