After several years of raising money by raffling firearms, San Jose’s police union leaders have decided to cancel the raffle indefinitely in the wake of a mass shooting in Gilroy last weekend that killed three people and injured more than a dozen others. “This was planned well in advance of the tragedy in Gilroy,” said...
Santa Clara County supervisorial candidates release fundraising hauls
The newly-released fundraising totals in the Santa Clara County supervisor’s race show a few unexpected front-runners as the candidates bolster their war chests. Five candidates are vying to replace Supervisor Dave Cortese and represent a district that spans San Jose, Alviso, Sunnyvale and Milpitas. According to the latest county finance reports, former Sunnyvale Councilmember Otto...
San Jose, nonprofits wait for ruling on Google negotiations lawsuit
San Jose officials and two groups suing the city over an alleged lack of transparency in its negotiations with Google for a massive new downtown campus presented their cases to a Santa Clara Superior Court judge on Thursday morning. Now they’re all waiting to see what she’ll decide. “The decision could come tomorrow or two...
Republican businesswoman enters San Jose council race
The fight for San Jose’s District 10 City Council seat — being vacated by outgoing Councilmember Johnny Khamis — just got a little more crowded. Helen Wang, a longtime business owner and registered nurse, told San José Spotlight she’s running for the Almaden Valley seat to “protect and enhance” the district’s safety, public services and...
San Jose measure to shift mayoral elections moves forward
Top labor leaders from the South Bay gathered in front of San Jose City Hall Wednesday morning to push support for a proposal they say will put a cap on money in local politics and boost voter turnout by shifting mayoral elections to presidential election years. Leaders are racing to enact the sweeping reform called...
Santa Clara County officials beef up law enforcement presence after Gilroy shooting
In the wake of a shooting rampage in Gilroy that left three people dead, Santa Clara County law enforcement officials are ramping up security at public events — including the upcoming county fair and San Jose jazz festival. Sheriff’s deputies patrolling the fairgrounds in South San Jose when the 75th Annual Santa Clara County Fair...
Cupertino policymaker in hot water for past sexual harassment lawsuit
After making headlines for encouraging people to contact pro-growth activists’ employers to get them “reprimanded,” Cupertino Planning Commission Chair R “Ray” Wang is in hot water again — this time for a sexual harassment lawsuit that was buried for more than a decade. Rosanne Foust, a top transportation leader, accuses Wang of sending sexually explicit...
San Jose opposes bill to ban towing vehicles
A handful of California lawmakers want to bar cities from towing cars over unpaid parking tickets and other fees that disproportionately harm low-income families and people living in their cars. But in San Jose, officials are pushing back stating that the bill will exacerbate existing parking woes and excessive abandoned vehicles on city streets. The...
How you can help Gilroy Garlic Festival’s youngest victims
A day after a gunman opened fire on a crowd enjoying the Gilroy Garlic Festival, tributes poured in for the rampage’s youngest victims — Stephen Romero, 6, and Keyla Salazar, 13. Katiuska Pimental Vargas, a community organizer with San Jose-based nonprofit Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN) posted on Facebook that her niece —...
Competing with tech, Santa Clara County cities balance budgets with need for talent
Salaries and benefits at public agencies can be a contentious issue from who decides on raises to how many resources are divvied out between departments and how the public benefits from it all. But inside the various city halls around Silicon Valley, cities are facing their own challenges when it comes to attracting and retaining talent. Silicon...