Hope in the form of housing is becoming a reality for youth emerging from foster care or experiencing homelessness. Construction is underway to convert the 61-room Pavilion Inn, a former hotel on North Fourth Street in San Jose, into affordable, supportive housing to help young adults become self-sufficient and avoid a lifetime of homelessness. In...
Silicon Valley leaders question nonprofit on alleged discrimination
Two Santa Clara County city councils aired grievances to HomeFirst officials following a range of concerns related to services and allegations of racial discrimination. The Sunnyvale City Council heard a presentation Tuesday from HomeFirst Chief Executive Officer Andrea Urton and Chief Program Officer Kelly Vazquez about the nonprofit’s city support services and broader metrics countywide....
San Jose housing nonprofit accused of discrimination, toxic culture
Michael Love was hired, housed and fired by HomeFirst — one of five ex-employees who say the nonprofit targeted them because they are Black. Love and four other fired workers told San José Spotlight they faced racial discrimination and were abruptly let go without cause. An investigation by this news organization uncovered additional claims of...
UPDATE: South San Jose slated to get more homeless housing
San Jose is taking an offer from a legendary South Bay philanthropist to ease the city’s transitional housing shortage. The San Jose City Council today unanimously approved a five-year lease for $1 annually from John A. Sobrato to construct Via del Oro, a 150-bed interim housing project, on land he owns. Via del Oro will...
San Jose looks to cut costs at homeless housing sites
San Jose leaders are looking to cut costs while continuing to fund temporary housing solutions, a main approach of the mayor’s plan to solve homelessness. City officials are proposing several detailed recommendations to overhaul San Jose’s interim housing programs while simultaneously trimming costs, including eliminating private security during the daytime. The San Jose City Council...
Sunnyvale officials examine homeless services results
Sunnyvale is spending the next six months determining if its existing homeless support services are sufficient for its unhoused residents. Homeless service provider HomeFirst agreed to a six-month extension of its existing pilot program with the city, contingent on city officials receiving detailed data about sheltered bed usage for its homeless residents. The program’s contract...
San Jose could allow homeless residents to sleep outdoors
San Jose is considering adding safe sleeping sites to its long-running list of homelessness responses—an idea officials have shot down before. Amid the city declaring homelessness an emergency last week, local leaders want supervised outdoor living spaces with supportive services for the city’s unhoused residents. Safe sleeping sites are already in place in San Diego and...
A win for San Jose: VTA approves homeless housing site
After a monthslong debate between local leaders, North San Jose is set to receive 200 temporary homes for homeless residents. The VTA board of directors unanimously approved building the homes at its Cerone bus yard on Thursday. The consensus by the 12-person board comes as a surprise after deep political divides and ongoing disputes threatened...
San Jose officials pressure VTA for homeless housing
Whether a result of politics or caution, San Jose’s hopes of opening an interim housing site at a public transit lot in the northern part of the city may not happen exactly how leaders want. The VTA board of directors is voting Thursday on where to build 200 homes for homeless residents. The 12-person board...
Silicon Valley homeless nonprofit accused of racial profiling
NAACP representatives have accused HomeFirst of racially profiling employees and voiced their anger in front of the homeless service provider’s headquarters. The allegations include displaying photos of former Black employees in a handbook “like criminal mugshots,” rescheduling Black employees who needed child care and recently firing a Black employee who is now facing homelessness himself...