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...
Fourth time’s a charm: Water board OKs San Jose waterway plan
The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board has green lit San Jose’s plan through 2027 to tackle homeless encampment trash going into city waterways — further ensuring the city’s compliance with environmental regulations. Deputy City Manager Kip Harkness said at a Monday San Jose City Council meeting that the city is going to...
Cupertino park will boost equity, advocates say
A new Cupertino park and trail expansion 20 years in the making is one step closer to construction, and advocates say it could create more equity across the city. The Cupertino Planning Commission unanimously approved the Lawrence-Mitty Park and Trail project’s conceptual design last week. The roughly 7.8-acre, half-mile project could provide picnic and play...
San Jose mobile home park sits next to health hazard
A community of 40 mobile homes in South San Jose sits next to one of the city’s staging grounds for trash collection, which is creating health hazards for residents. The Walnut Mobile Home Park, which houses more than 100 residents, butts up against the city’s South Yard on Monterey Road. Beautify San Jose, a city...
‘Absolutely stunned’: San Jose mayor inflates costs of not sweeping homeless camps
State officials are contradicting claims made by San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan in his push to redirect affordable housing money to homeless sweeps and shelters. Mahan has argued the city faces $60,000 in daily fines per pollutant if the city doesn’t address pollution from homeless encampments near creeks by June 2025. It’s driving his renewed...
Santa Clara County to study ban on artificial turf
Santa Clara County may need an abundance of lawn mowers if artificial turf is banned on public playing fields. The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted 3-2 to study the ramifications of artificial turf on county land, with Board President Susan Ellenberg and Supervisor Cindy Chavez voting no. The proposal came from...
Silicon Valley water supplier plans rate hikes
Santa Clara County residents could see higher water bills in the upcoming year, as one water agency looks for ways to cover costs. Valley Water, the region’s main water supplier, is proposing raising groundwater production charges on cities and private water retailers. The increase will be passed on to household ratepayers through local water companies such...
Santa Clara County to eradicate aggressive mosquito species
Santa Clara County officials are prepping to remove a foreign, invasive and aggressive yellow fever mosquito species that’s returned to the region just in time for peak mosquito season. It was easy to eradicate the species after it first arrived in the county in 2022, when vector officials trapped and removed two mosquitoes in a...
Silicon Valley agency freezes hiring amid deficit
Silicon Valley’s main water supplier is tightening its wallet in the face of a structural deficit and in an effort to keep water rates from rising. Santa Clara Valley Water District officials have frozen hiring for 72 job vacancies amid a $222 million budget deficit for the current fiscal year ending in June. The skyrocketing...
Silicon Valley dam upgrade draws scrutiny over price tag
Residents and environmental activists continue to scrutinize the Santa Clara Valley Water District’s plans to expand a regional dam. Valley Water employees presented updates and fielded questions about the controversial Pacheco Dam expansion — including questions about costs. The project’s estimated cost is $2.78 billion, but factoring financing and other contingencies could escalate the price...