San Jose is clearing one of its most infamous homeless camps again, in what city officials claim will be the last time. About 100 homeless people have repopulated the creek around Story Road across from Happy Hollow Park & Zoo — an area known as “the Jungle.” The city will begin clearing the area on April...
Silicon Valley homeless prevention program goes national
A homelessness prevention program that began in Santa Clara County is expanding across the country. Nonprofit Destination: Home is partnering with 10 different organizations across the U.S. to bring rental assistance and case management for people facing eviction, with a goal of helping more than 10,000 families remain stably housed. These organizations span both large and...
Santa Clara County brings mental health services to shelters
An at-times icy relationship between San Jose and Santa Clara County seems to have thawed as the county works to bring mental health services to the city’s temporary housing sites for homeless residents. Last year, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan claimed the county wasn’t doing enough to address homelessness, and called for more county investments....
Touted San Jose shelter rife with dysfunction, workers said
A San Jose development touted as the gold standard for prefabricated temporary housing has turned into a hornets’ nest fraught with problems. A total of six former and current workers claim Branham Lane — a three-story site with 168 apartments operated by LifeMoves — is plagued with managerial dysfunction, unprofessionalism and alleged drug dealing between an...
Gilroy case ruling strengthens California public records law
Cities will be held accountable when they withhold or destroy pertinent information during a public records request, as a result of a landmark California Supreme Court decision. In City of Gilroy v. Superior Court, the California Supreme Court on Jan. 15 unanimously ruled that governments must be held accountable even when records no longer exist...
San Jose homeless relocation program serves few
A pilot program to reconnect homeless people in San Jose to family outside the city had minimal effect in the past year. Homeward Bound, proposed by Mayor Matt Mahan as another option to help get homeless people off the streets, reconnected 42 individuals to their support systems since it began last February. Out of the...
Santa Clara County uses federal funds to house homeless people
Santa Clara County is using its latest round of federal funding for homelessness to rapidly house people in apartments. The county received nearly $600,000 from the Emergency Solutions Grants Program, which can be used to fund shelter operations, outreach, homelessness prevention or rapid rehousing. Over the past five years, the county has received $2.5 million in these...
Santa Clara County considers safe parking site for women
Homeless women face exacerbated safety risks on the streets, and Santa Clara County officials are considering a safe parking site for women who become homeless to escape intimate partner violence. Santa Clara University researchers raised the idea in a report to county leaders last year. The study found that women and children fleeing domestic violence face...
San Jose says RV parking site is unpermitted
A San Jose safe parking program on VTA property is in violation for operating without proper approvals. The city served VTA a notice after a Dec. 9 inspection found vehicles parked at the Santa Teresa station aren’t storing trash properly and that the site is operating without permits or approvals, among other violations. The site...
2025 in review: Silicon Valley’s state of housing and homelessness
This year was daunting for Silicon Valley leaders and their efforts to confront homelessness. Actions to stem the growing tide of people falling into homelessness were threatened by federal and state funding cuts, on top of a record number of people losing their housing, driven by rising costs. Santa Clara County and San Jose leaders...