Months after work crews removed tattered tarps and worn wraps from a languishing, historic former church in downtown San Jose, preservationists are worried city officials have lost urgency around protecting the building for the long term. The former First Church of Christ Scientist near St. James Park has been exposed to public view since late...
Silicon Valley Vietnamese community organizes its political voice
Democratic members of San Jose’s Vietnamese community are building a club to mobilize its political front. The Vietnamese American Democratic Club of Silicon Valley wants to be chartered within the Santa Clara County Democratic Party to organize and empower like-minded members within its community. The party’s executive board gave approval in December, sending the the...
San Jose nonprofit boards lack Latino leadership
When it comes to sitting on a San Jose nonprofit board, Hispanics and Latinos are still being ignored—even though they are more than a third of the city’s population. Data collected by Latinos LEAD highlights this disparity, showing that Latinos make up only 12.5% of nonprofit board members in the San Jose metro area, which...
Private management of San Jose park sparks concerns
Two businessmen are working to take over management of one of San Jose’s most beloved parks—but concerns are mounting behind the scenes about how the pair will wrangle power over a popular public space. Dan Pulcrano—owner of the Weeklys media group which publishes a dozen newspapers including Metro Silicon Valley—has partnered with PR guru Dan...
Student homelessness grows in San Jose school district
The number of homeless high school students and families in one East San Jose school district has increased threefold in just three years. The East Side Union High School District has approximately 900 unhoused students, compared to 300 in 2020. Officials said the number continues to climb and cite inflation, cost of living increases and...
San Jose to consider paying six figures after woman crashes scooter
A woman who suffered serious facial and oral injuries when a scooter she was riding struck a broken lamp post base in downtown San Jose is set to receive a $337,500 payout from the city. The San Jose City Council will consider approving the tentative settlement agreement with Andrea Ortega at its Nov. 14 meeting....
Google’s mega campus in San Jose hits a snag
Amid ongoing turbulence with office space vacancies, Google and an Australian development firm are ending their agreement to create four work and live districts in the South Bay worth $15 billion, including Downtown West in San Jose. The tech giant on Friday said its split with Sydney-based Lendlease is not the end of its master-planned...
‘Burning Man meets Golfland’: Urban Putt San Jose will change the game
Aliens, mysterious spirits and time machines are about to collide in the most unexpected way, and it has nothing to do with Halloween. A new entertainment destination will soon open in downtown San Jose. Urban Putt San Jose will bring interactive miniature golf, food and craft cocktails to the city’s core in 13,000 square feet...
San Jose landmark faces pushback from Chavez family
It’s been four years since officials unveiled an ambitious proposal to build a world-class landmark in Silicon Valley, but a new dispute over who should manage Plaza de Cesar Chavez may further delay the project. The organizers of the “The Breeze of Innovation”—a design that would use hundreds of swaying rods powered by wind to...
Crosswalk coming to deadly East San Jose street
One of San Jose’s most dangerous streets will be getting new safety features to protect children going to school. Councilmember Peter Ortiz and a group of parents from Rocketship Fuerza Community Prep, led by community organizer and teacher Blanca Carbajal, hosted a town hall Thursday to talk about a new crosswalk coming in front of...