San Jose revealed scads of new details about Google’s plans to build a sprawling downtown campus with 7.3 million square feet of office space and 4,000 housing units spread out over more than 80 acres with improvements to public amenities, including 10 parks and the trails that will eventually connect them all. San Jose Downtown...
Santa Clara County sets affordable housing requirement on new developments
Housing developers who want to build in unincorporated parts of Santa Clara County next year will, for the first time, have to set aside units for low-income residents or pay an in-lieu fee. The Board of Supervisors on Oct. 6 approved the requirement that low-income housing make up 16 percent of new developments containing three...
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Partner in downtown San Jose development alleges racketeering
A federal court in San Jose is expected soon to rule on a lawsuit in which a member of a local real estate consortium has charged some of his former partners with racketeering involving a downtown parcel near the proposed Google Transit Village. The case centers around an approximately 1.2-acre site at 777 West San...
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UPDATE: San Jose council OKs anti-displacement plan to protect renters, landlords
Amid a housing crisis exacerbated by COVID-19, San Jose leaders approved a 10-part plan to provide rent relief and give nonprofits first dibs on property that goes on the market. The anti-displacement plan was approved Sept. 23 past the 12 a.m. curfew in a 10-1 vote. Councilmember Johnny Khamis cast the lone dissenting vote. Displacement...
Measure A housing not moving fast enough, oversight committee says
Asserting housing isn’t getting built fast enough with funds raised by the Measure A housing bond, an independent oversight committee is urging Santa Clara County to find ways to speed things up. The Measure A bond, passed in 2016, so far has generated $421 million for new projects. In March, the county allocated $137 million...
Latest eviction moratoriums a double-edged sword for South Bay tenants, landlords
New state and federal laws approved this month would punish landlords with steep fines and even jail time if they try to evict someone behind on rent. But that’s not necessarily reassuring news for tenants. While housing attorneys and tenants’ rights activists say the laws will shield more renters from property owners who want to force...
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San Jose makes dent in low-income housing shortage with grants, developments
San Jose made progress this week in securing housing for low-income, senior and homeless residents. Gov. Gavin Newsom awarded $14.5 million to the city on Sept. 16 to purchase property to house the homeless. Earlier this week the San Jose City Council approved three more affordable housing projects. The city also greelit a revamp of...
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Proposed housing project at San Jose’s Blossom Hill station would help fund transit
The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is looking to build 328 apartments at the Blossom Hill light rail station in south San Jose, with revenue from the development to be used to fund transit operations. “It’s all about generating revenue and riders in order to reinvest into our existing transit system,” said Kelly Snider,...
Santa Clara County seeks funds to buy hotels to house homeless
As Santa Clara County’s homeless population continues to grow, county officials are moving to turn more hotel properties into permanent and interim housing. The county is vying for $19 million in state CARES Act funds through California’s project Homekey to purchase and refurbish two hotel properties and turn them into interim housing for the most...
New panel begins to tackle emergency needs of homeless in Santa Clara County
Even as long-term solutions for homelessness in Santa Clara County gain momentum and support, emergency measures are lacking and likely will get worse. That was the grim reality presented to the county’s Unhoused Task Force, which held its initial meeting Sept. 9. Proposed by Supervisor Dave Cortese earlier this year, the group aims to address...