What started as one San Jose councilmember taking out a restraining order against a well-connected Vietnamese American businessman is morphing into a trial that has brought some of Little Saigon’s most well-known figures out to testify. Councilmember Bien Doan has requested a restraining order against business owner Hai Huynh, which set the stage for Tuesday’s...
San Jose spruces up downtown signs ahead of Super Bowl
San Jose is revisiting a plan to make the heart of the city more walkable and easy to navigate ahead of two major sports events. The city is working to replace outdated signs in the downtown area to highlight local landmarks, businesses and public transportation options before Super Bowl 60 and the FIFA World Cup come...
San Jose coffee shop is community anchor for local artists
Nirvana Soul, a Black, women-owned business known for its vibrant pink-painted coffee shops, serves up more than unique brews — it’s a hub for local artists, poets and musicians to showcase their talents. The co-founder/sister duo, Be’Anka Ashaolu and Jeronica Macey, whose San Jose coffee shop sits on the corner of South First Street, support...
Heat scorches East San Jose playground equipment
An 18-foot-tall chicken named Chiquita overlooks children racing across the playground, while Alexandra Villalobos sits on a picnic blanket with her 12-year-old son Max at Emma Prusch Farm Park in East San Jose. Her two younger children are using the newly renovated playground, and Villalobos has warned them to avoid the sizzling-hot metal slides and...
State won’t stop closure of East San Jose hospital services
Despite urgent pleas by county leaders and local activists, state officials won’t intervene in the closure of lifesaving hospital services in East San Jose. The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) told Bay Area state legislators that the state has no authority to deny the closure or reduction of services at Regional Medical Center because these...
San Jose parks lose millions as developers get tax break
San Jose is cutting taxes and fees for at least 14 high-rise development projects or more than 4,000 homes in downtown. The San Jose City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to extend the existing Downtown Residential High-Rise Program to reduce developer costs in an effort to spark more incentives for housing construction. Under the new...
Vibrant San Jose mural draws locals downtown
The promenade at San Pedro Square has a stunning new look after more than 1,000 volunteers picked up a paint roller. A new mural called “Threads Woven” has dramatically changed San Pedro Square. The brainchild of the San Jose Downtown Association and arts nonprofit Local Color, the mural was funded through the Adobe Hometown Grant....
San Jose war monument marks milestone for Vietnamese community
A long delayed monument to fallen Vietnam War fighters will finally be unveiled at San Jose’s Vietnamese Heritage Garden, a planned cultural gathering space waylaid by community divide. The life-size statue of two armed soldiers — one American and one South Vietnamese — could be ready for public viewing this month or early July. It...
San Jose Latino leaders criticize Biden for border policy
Latino leaders across San Jose are saying President Joe Biden’s recent executive order closing the border to migrants is a step in the wrong direction for the nation’s immigration policy and immigrant communities. Those who work with asylum seekers fleeing violence such as San Jose nonprofit Amigos de Guadalupe said migrants can’t wait years for...
Silicon Valley Latino icon Victor Garza leaves a lasting legacy
Victor Garza, founder of La Raza RoundTable and a Santa Clara County Latino community icon, died this morning, multiple community leaders confirmed to San José Spotlight. He was 86 years old according to his personal Facebook page. Latina Coalition of Silicon Valley executive director Gabriela Chavez-Lopez said she learned of Garza’s death during a Race...