Construction is set to begin this month on an affordable housing project in the shadow of the Tamien VTA and Caltrain station. After years of planning, San Jose-based developer The Core Companies has officially secured nearly $140 million in city, county and state funding for the Tamien Station housing and retail project, being developed on...
San Jose leaders back legislation for speed cameras
Over the last several years San Jose has watched its traffic fatalities in the city increase exponentially. Now city officials are banking on a state bill to move those numbers downward. In an effort to lower fatalities, city leaders are supporting Assembly Bill 645, which would establish a pilot program for speed safety cameras in San...
UPDATE: Downtown San Jose street to become pedestrian path
San Jose is on the road to preserving pedestrian-only access indefinitely on San Pedro Street—but it will take years and millions of dollars in long-term infrastructure improvements to make it possible. The San Jose City Council unanimously voted Tuesday to give initial approval for plans to repave the street as a sidewalk and reroute the...
East San Jose traffic light took months to replace
An East San Jose traffic signal has finally been replaced after a monthslong saga between East San Jose residents and Santa Clara County. The installation is viewed as a minor victory. County workers installed a new signal at the intersection of Ocala Avenue and Capitol Expressway last Thursday after a traffic accident demolished the old...
San Jose Cinco de Mayo street closures seen as ‘racist’
San Jose’s 36-year ban on cruising was lifted last fall—but the closure of 10 different highway ramps over Cinco de Mayo weekend left residents wondering whether the reversal was just symbolic. San Jose police coordinated with Caltrans and California Highway Patrol beginning Friday evening through early Monday morning to close several on-and-off ramps heading into...
Silicon Valley transit promotes mental health hotline
Next time riders takes a VTA bus or light rail train, they will be greeted by a huge mental health awareness campaign. The national 988 hotline launched last summer and aims to redirect suicide crisis and mental health distress calls to trained counselors rather than police officers. Santa Clara County is one of two counties in...
UPDATE: San Jose to transform Story Road-Keyes Street corridor
With a new influx of cash, the Story Road-Keyes Street corridor in East San Jose will be transformed from a danger zone to a safe stretch. The San Jose City Council unanimously voted on Tuesday to secure the final funding for safety infrastructure across the 2.3-mile road project. The dollars will transform one of San...
San Jose lawmaker seeks changes to state towing practices
Vehicles won’t be towed or have their registration denied due to a few parking tickets if a proposed state bill passes. For low-income families, this could prevent the loss of livelihood and housing instability. Assembly Bill 1082, authored by San Jose Assemblymember Ash Kalra, would prohibit towing or immobilizing vehicles due to unpaid parking tickets. If approved,...
Silicon Valley’s Central Bikeway could be a game changer
Santa Clara County residents could soon ride on the region’s first bicycle superhighway. The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority could approve the basic design of the Central Bikeway—a 10-mile stretch of protected bike lanes between San Jose and Santa Clara—as soon as next month. VTA’s bicycle advisory committee voted unanimously Wednesday to recommend the transit...
San Jose gives new airline room to fly
San Jose officials waived more than $1 million in fees for Spirit Airlines as the company takes off at San Jose Mineta International Airport. The San Jose City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to grant the airline approximately $1.7 million in fee waivers and marketing dollars. Airport and city officials said the waivers will incentivize more...