Santa Clara County is expanding its hotel shelter program for North County homeless residents following the delayed opening of a modular housing site in Palo Alto. The county has selected WeHope, a nonprofit homeless service provider, to work with up to 40 unhoused adults who will be temporarily housed at a hotel in Sunnyvale or...
San Jose’s first tiny home village on private land already half full
San Jose’s newest temporary housing site will be a litmus test as to whether using private land to build shelter will be a good model for reducing homelessness. The Via Del Oro tiny home site, which can house up to 150 people and allows pets, opened Thursday. San Francisco-based nonprofit DignityMoves built the homes on...
Santa Clara County housing gets approved, but not built
Cities in Santa Clara County have approved hundreds of new homes, but construction hasn’t kept up, a data analysis by San José Spotlight shows. There’s about 37% more housing being permitted than built, and even less affordable housing, based on a countywide six-year average. Experts say rising costs and scarce resources are delaying construction, and...
San Jose’s homelessness plan is game of musical chairs
San Jose has been doubling down on clearing homeless encampments and constructing temporary shelter, though the breakneck speed of the sweeps has left many people displaced. The San Jose City Council received a midyear report on the city’s efforts to address homelessness Tuesday. Officials have been aggressive with plans to clear homeless camps along the...
San Jose veterans worried about future housing
Veterans living in a substandard housing complex in East San Jose have been moved to a hotel while the property continues to be renovated. About nine veterans were relocated from 10 Kirk Ave. in February to a hotel in Milpitas while Santa Clara County works on interior renovations in two buildings. Some of the relocated...
San Jose sweeps homeless camp near future Microsoft data center site
San Jose is sweeping dozens of RVs and tents off the Alviso-Milpitas Road parallel to Highway 237, leaving the homeless people with no place to go. Some of the unhoused individuals left once they learned a sweep was eminent, but more than a dozen people with no options remained Monday afternoon. Those with inoperable vehicles...
San Jose mayor pushes housing vouchers for homeless shelters
As San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan continues to prioritize funding for temporary solutions over permanent housing, he wants the city to explore a new proposal — using monies from Section 8 housing vouchers for homeless shelters. Santa Clara County Housing Authority leaders announced the plan during the April 15 joint meeting with the City Council....
Los Gatos affordable housing could rise near downtown
Pricey downtown Los Gatos is being primed to become more affordable to live near. The Los Gatos Planning Commission voted 4-1 April 8 to recommend the Town Council adopt zoning changes to allow developers to build 100% affordable housing near downtown along Los Gatos Boulevard, without requiring retail space in their plans. Commissioner Susan Burnett...
West Valley cities team up to consider homeless shelter
The West Valley has scarce resources for the hundreds of homeless residents living on its streets. That may change as elected leaders consider adding its first shelter. All five West Valley municipalities — Cupertino, Saratoga, Monte Sereno, Campbell and Los Gatos — recently approved a homeless shelter feasibility study conducted by Good City Company. The...
Santa Clara County emergency housing vouchers in jeopardy
Santa Clara County officials are bracing for more cuts to their housing voucher programs, which subsidizes rent for low-income individuals. Last month, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) informed the county that Emergency Housing Vouchers were expiring. This pandemic-era program, which began in 2021 through a $5 billion lump sum approved by...