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As homeless resident Deborah Santos watched her trailer go up in flames, she and her son wondered where they would stay—a homeless shelter, a motel room or maybe even a temporary tiny home. She was given a two-person tent and a blanket. Residents at the Columbus Park homeless encampment near downtown San Jose say a...
San Jose State gives students more access to emergency beds
San Jose State University students achieved a small victory for peers in need of temporary emergency beds. The university recently agreed to allow students access to the beds for four weeks rather than 48 hours without asking them to take out a loan, Lana Gomez, president of the Student Homeless Alliance, told San José Spotlight....
San Jose clears more than 200 homeless encampments
San Jose has cleared out 224 homeless encampments since January, with more than 75% of those removals happening in Districts 3 and 7, city data shows. City officials said a sweep could mean booting one person from their camping spot—or clearing out a massive site with multiple people. Advocates, who have long called for the...
San Jose officials exploring more potential Project Homekey sites
San Jose officials are quietly inquiring about hotels that might fit the criteria to acquire through Project Homekey funds in 2022. Mayor Sam Liccardo recently contacted the owner of two hotels—the Quality Inn on 13th Street and the Tully Inn on Tully Road—to see if they might be a good fit for the Project Homekey...
UPDATE: San Jose officials suggest dropping Opportunity Housing
A San Jose commission is asking the City Council to abandon a controversial local housing initiative in favor of a similar state law. And they’re looking for ways to ensure the law would open the door to more affordable housing. The Planning Commission voted 8-2 Wednesday to approve several staff recommendations for how to implement...
UPDATE: San Jose council delays potential Calle Willow rezoning
Small businesses owners in San Jose’s Calle Willow district are fearing displacement. A delayed rezoning vote on their neighborhood isn’t likely to help assuage their fears. The San Jose City Council voted Tuesday to delay a vote to remove Willow Street, known to residents as Calle Willow, from a city plan to increase building height...
‘You’re not wanted here’: Advocates decry barriers around San Jose homeless camp
In an effort to clear one of the Bay Area’s largest homeless camps, San Jose installed barriers near Columbus Park right before Thanksgiving, prompting concern from some unhoused advocates. The city installed K-Rail barriers at the intersection of Spring and Hedding streets and east of it earlier this month. The city also placed “no outlet/not...
San Jose expands investigation of labor violations at emergency housing sites
San Jose is expanding its investigation of illegal labor practices, including wage theft, at emergency housing projects handled by Habitat for Humanity, but there’s no set date for when workers will get paid. The city’s Public Works Department is demanding $319,631.46 in restitution for workers from Veev Build, a subcontractor, for various alleged labor violations reported by...
San Jose’s Cambrian Park Plaza inches toward redevelopment
Cambrian Park Plaza is a step closer to redevelopment with the release of its draft environmental report. Located at the intersection of Union and Camden avenues in San Jose with its iconic carousel sign, the reimagined single-story shopping center, which dates back to the 1950s, is a long way from approval. An estimated completion date...
Nonprofits bring Thanksgiving meals to San Jose’s homeless residents
Folks tend to travel long distances to eat on Thanksgiving. But for unhoused residents in San Jose, Thanksgiving dinner is coming to them. Amid the homeless encampment at Columbus Park in San Jose, faith-based nonprofit CityTeam helped brighten up Thanksgiving for many unhoused residents by bringing hot meals to the park. The nonprofit has a tradition...