When Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Nolan heard about school closures in mid-March because of the coronavirus crisis, her first thought was to create a reading program for homebound students. Nolan, a senior librarian at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library, created ‘Spring into Reading,’ an initiative that encourages kids and adults alike to read, log their minutes...
COVID-19 Updates
Covid-19
Reports detail Silicon Valley’s housing crisis pre-coronavirus
As the stock market plunges, so may the real estate market. The coronavirus pandemic will shatter San Jose’s ambitious plans for housing growth over the next two years, some officials said. “We absolutely need to build more housing and we’re not going to make our target (of) 25,000 homes by 2022,” San Jose Councilmember Pam...
As courts largely close to the public, advocates fear power abuses and deaths
A judge’s decision to limit public attendance to court hearings because of the COVID-19 crisis has advocates and others worried about potential abuse of power and harmful consequences for defendants. “We don’t do secret judicial proceedings in the United States,” said David Snyder, executive director for the First Amendment Coalition. “When courts or any other...
Bramson: When a virus needs a home
What would it be like if we responded to homelessness like a disaster? I’ve heard this question many times over the years. The implication being that while the word “crisis” is thrown around pretty liberally these days when we talk about the conditions for people on our streets, we rarely act with the same mobilized...
‘There’s no escape’: Domestic violence fears in San Jose escalated by COVID-19
A San Jose mother of four was 41 years old when she was sure she would die. Pinned up against the wall, Rose Martinez laid motionless as her husband repeatedly kicked her all over her body after knocking her to the floor from a swift punch to the head. “I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God,...
How will Santa Clara County enforce non-medical cannabis sales ban? The honor system.
A little more than a week ago, top Santa Clara County officials banned all recreational cannabis sales at dispensaries as part of a widespread shelter-in-place order meant to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus. Now, those administrators are saying they have no way to enforce the new rules. Their solution? The honor system. “There...
Coronavirus cases spike in South Bay nursing homes as state rolls out new plan
Roughly 10 percent of the state’s coronavirus cases at nursing homes and long-term care facilities are in Santa Clara County, according to data released Friday. Throughout Santa Clara County, 164 workers and residents have tested positive at such facilities, including 114 residents and 50 staff members, according to Dr. Sarah Rudman, assistant health officer for...
San Jose homeless struggle to get necessities during COVID-19 shutdown
Everyone has been affected by the region’s stay-home mandate, but those in San Jose without homes say the order has left them without ways to meet their basic needs. Four homeless residents and several homeless advocates spoke to San José Spotlight this week to share how the shelter-in-place order, which went into effect March 17,...
San Jose closes some parks, parking lots ahead of Easter weekend
San Jose officials are proactively trying to tamp down on the number of people who flock to parks in the city over the upcoming holiday weekend. Nine regional parks and the parking lots at 19 city parks will be closed to the public this Saturday and Sunday, which is Easter Sunday, the city announced Thursday. Gatherings...
Dead lifts to blood draws: San Jose fitness center starts COVID-19 testing
Tucked in the back room of an otherwise empty Red Dot Fitness just west of Downtown San Jose, Adam Schafer averted his eyes when 5 mL of his blood was drawn Thursday afternoon. That small vial will be shipped overnight to Vibrant America Labs in San Carlos, where it will be tested for antibodies —...