Editor’s note: Resources for any person who is feeling depressed, troubled or suicidal are listed at the bottom of this article. With Palo Alto facing increased pressure to address youth mental health, Assemblymember Marc Berman introduced legislation this week aimed at providing access to free suicide prevention training to all K-12 students, teachers, administrators and parents...
Palo Alto homeless residents find shelter in Sunnyvale hotel
It’s a simple hotel room: a bed and night stands, a small kitchenette and a bathroom tucked in the far corner. For Paul and Sheryl, it’s the difference between a good night’s sleep and a restless eight hours in a crowded shelter — or worse, on the street. “Out there, you have one eye open...
Mountain View in ‘active negotiations’ for new pickleball facility
Mountain View recently announced that it has identified a site for an interim pickleball facility after a proposal to build courts at Cuesta Park and the adjacent annex fizzled last year in the face of substantial opposition from nearby residents. The city is currently negotiating the use of a privately owned property that could be developed...
San Jose lawmaker’s housing bills advance through Congress
A pair of bills spearheaded by Congressman Sam Liccardo that aim to speed up the approval process for new residential projects advanced through the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this week as part of a bipartisan housing package. The bipartisan act aims to alleviate the housing shortage by streamlining housing regulations, updating certain programs in...
Mountain View approves plan to close downtown train crossing to cars
Long-awaited plans to close Castro Street at the downtown Caltrain tracks and fully divert vehicle traffic at the rail crossing are moving forward, after the Mountain View City Council voted Tuesday to approve the new design for the major transit stop. The project, which will reconfigure the roadway and dead-end Castro Street at West Evelyn...
Developer applies for Palo Alto housing project despite lawsuit
Undeterred by an ongoing legal challenge, the nonprofit Alta Housing last week filed a formal application to construct an affordable-housing complex with 72 apartments on a downtown parking lot near the corner of Lytton Avenue and Kipling Street. The six-story project on what’s known as “Lot T” is the first to take advantage of the city’s new...
Mountain View nonprofit forgoes federal funding on principle
The Community Services Agency in Mountain View is opting to forgo some of its federal funding, rather than compromise its commitment to serving all those in need, the nonprofit announced this week. CSA has decided not to apply for funding through the Community Development Block Grant program after the federal government required recipients to check the immigration...
Mountain View wants more parks — but it won’t be cheap
Mountain View is nearing the finish line to adopt a new parks and recreation strategic plan that aims to expand and improve access to the city’s parks, open spaces and trail system over the next decade, with a particular focus on underserved neighborhoods. Presented to the City Council last week, the plan lays out a...
Mountain View police turn off license plate cameras after breach
All of Mountain View’s license plate cameras are being disabled, effective immediately, Police Chief Mike Canfield announced Monday afternoon. The move comes in the wake of the police department’s disclosure last week that hundreds of law enforcement agencies had accessed the sensitive data in violation of the city’s policies for over a year. The cameras will remain...
Mountain View launches pop-up program due to downtown vacancies
On a recent Saturday afternoon in downtown Mountain View, groups of people filled the outdoor seating at restaurants along Castro Street, dogs and their owners strolled the sidewalks and minutes after the Don’t Eat Me storefront opened its doors, people shuffled inside. The pop-up shop recently opened in a previously vacant space on Castro Street,...