San Jose voters passed a property transfer tax to help fund affordable housing, but the mayor wants to reallocate more than 50% of those dollars for other uses. The city manager’s budget unreleased proposal, obtained by San José Spotlight, shows that $38 million of the $70 million in Measure E funds earmarked for affordable housing...
San Jose opens homeless housing site in police parking lot
Dozens of homeless residents will be able to get off the streets, as new interim housing opens near the doorstep of the San Jose Police Department. The Guadalupe Emergency Interim Housing site, located on a former SJPD parking lot, opened Wednesday. Housing advocates and elected officials said it’s the latest project in the city’s attempt to...
Santa Clara County scores millions in HUD funding
Millions of federal dollars are funneling into Santa Clara County to help shelter and support those experiencing homelessness. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced an $11 million one-time grant to the Santa Clara County Continuum of Care coalition—a group of local government, private and nonprofit partners dedicated to ending and preventing homelessness....
San Jose breaks ground on prefab homeless housing
San Jose is breaking ground on a unique transitional housing site that will support hundreds of homeless residents when complete. Preparation is underway for a three-story, prefabricated modular project on Branham Lane and Monterey Road in the south part of the city. Planning for the site in District 2 began in 2021. It will open in April 2024 with...
San Jose mayor proposes homeless ban in parts of city
San Jose’s mayor has faced criticism for his plan to ban homeless residents from setting up camp in certain parts of the city, but he believes it’s only because people don’t fully understand it. As part of his March budget message, Mayor Matt Mahan asked the city to explore enacting no encampment zones, which would prohibit homeless camps in...
A new push to move San Jose homeless from Coyote Creek
Valley Water is shelling out millions for San Jose to clear out homeless residents living along Coyote Creek. The $4.8 million contract with the city comes as the water agency prepares to build out mandated flood protection measures along a nine-mile stretch of the creek following the devastating 2017 floods. The nearly 120 to 200 homeless people living along the waterway...
San Jose braces for bill criminalizing homelessness
When Jade Sweeney surveys the area where she slept in south San Jose just last week, she not only feels sad—she feels violated. She said her belongings were taken and discarded by city workers following a sweep of her camp. She’s lived in San Jose for more than 50 years and became homeless last year....
San Jose won’t meet homeless housing goal
One of San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan’s main goals is to finish his predecessor’s promise and complete 1,000 interim homes for the unhoused by the end of this year—but city staff said that’s impossible. Interim homes are quick-build temporary shelters designed to be a fast and cheap solution to getting homeless residents off the streets and on the path to permanent...
State to audit San Jose’s homeless spending
California is set to audit how San Jose spends its homeless funding, following a request from state Sen. Dave Cortese. The state’s Joint Legislative Audit Committee voted unanimously Wednesday to approve the audit proposed by Cortese last year. The California State Auditor will review the success rate of various state and local programs—including Project Homekey—in...
Santa Clara residents blast homeless housing plan
Dozens of Santa Clara residents weighed in on a proposed supportive housing development for homeless people, with the majority against the idea. The proposed development, at the corner of Benton Street and Lawrence Expressway, would include between 80 to 120 interim, or transitional, homes. The county, through its nonprofit partner LifeMoves, would offer on-site support services, and each...