With campaign season underway, and donations soon to pour in, San Jose officials are looking to make sure money funding local elections is from America. The San Jose City Council is poised to consider a policy that would prohibit foreign-influenced corporations from making contributions in city races—in hopes that election results reflect the will of...
Sunnyvale to reconsider property transfer tax ballot measure
Sunnyvale officials are considering a property transfer tax ballot measure for a second time. The Sunnyvale City Council on Tuesday voted 5-1 to discuss—at a future meeting—putting a property transfer tax on the November 2024 ballot. Councilmember Russ Melton dissented and Councilmember Alysa Cisneros was absent. Councilmembers will begin discussing the details of the tax...
San Jose approves hundreds of homes east of downtown
San Jose officials have signed off on plans for more than 900 apartments near a future BART station east of downtown. The massive housing project near the city’s Little Portugal and Roosevelt Park neighborhoods is being planned by San Jose-based Roygbiv Real Estate Development. It gained approval Wednesday at the San Jose Planning Director’s hearing. “This is...
Housing planned at Sunnyvale train station
Sunnyvale has greenlit a new vision for the future of the Lawrence Caltrain station that will make it more convenient for residents and workers along the transit corridor. The Sunnyvale City Council on Tuesday unanimously voted, with Councilmember Alysa Cisneros absent, to approve plans to develop two parcels totaling nearly three acres into a mixed-use...
Downtown Sunnyvale’s housing anchors the community
The stream of customers barely slowed at Bean Scene Cafe on Murphy Avenue in Sunnyvale, as owner Kenny Lam poured espresso shots and steamed milk for lattes. The cafe, along with all of downtown Sunnyvale, has returned to pre-pandemic levels of foot traffic and engagement. City leaders and business owners attribute the success to a...
San Jose District 8 candidate wants to curb city vices
A neighborhood mom with a background in tech is hopping into the District 8 San Jose City Council race on a platform of fighting for the most vulnerable residents. Candidate Surinder “Suri” Kaur Dhaliwal says she is being catapulted into this race by her deep-rooted faith in Sikhism and love for her community. District 8...
San Jose approves hefty pay out for public records lawsuit
San Jose officials have approved a $500,000 payout to San José Spotlight and the First Amendment Coalition following a public records lawsuit involving former Mayor Sam Liccardo. The San Jose City Council unanimously signed off on the agreement Tuesday to cover attorneys’ fees and costs for the two organizations, which formally wraps up a more...
San Jose residents want police to clamp down on noisy neighbors
Residents in the West San Jose Starbird neighborhood are wondering why parties with loud music and strobe lights aren’t shut down. The noise and at times lack of response by the San Jose Police Department may have led some residents to believe the city doesn’t have a noise ordinance, but that is not the case....
Email reveals former San Jose mayor’s bid for Congress
It appears former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo is likely all in for the congressional race—and he’s already got a fundraiser coming up. Liccardo, who termed out last December after two mayoral terms, has hinted at his aspirations for higher office. But an email obtained by San José Spotlight shows he is already actively campaigning...
San Jose withholds police officer names behind racist texts
More than three weeks after a San Jose cop resigned following discovery of his racist text messages, police and city officials have yet to name who he was texting with. San Jose Police Department officials told San José Spotlight there is one current officer and one former officer found to be in text message threads...