As Democratic presidential hopefuls debated national issues Tuesday night, a trio of candidates vying for California’s Senate District 13 seat gathered in a little room inside Sunnyvale’s Elks Lodge to make their case to local voters. SV at Home Action Fund hosted the candidate forum, grilling the contenders on issues around housing, including their stance...
Identity politics in San Jose: How powerful is the Vietnamese vote?
The power of the Vietnamese vote has stood out for decades in San Jose politics as voters have rushed to the polls in droves to support their candidates — usually those with similar last names. But as the population continues to grow and new generations enter the mix, the question of whether identity politics still...
San Jose: More than 40 families reunited with aging parents from Mexico
After violence in Michoacan tore his family apart, Jose Angel Mendoza was separated from his mother and hasn’t seen or spoken to her in more than two decades. But on Saturday, Mendoza and his loved ones were one of 43 families gathered in a San Jose auditorium, waiting to be reunited with his mother after nearly a...
Changes coming to Santa Clara renters, homebuilders and Airbnb users
Changes are on the way for Santa Clara when it comes to residential rental rules, including short-term rentals made popular by websites like Airbnb. City elected leaders and planning commission members this month discussed changes for rentals that could affect how many people can rent a single-family home and create first time rules around short-term...
San Jose Downtown Association meeting took an unexpected turn
A roomful of San Joseans gathered inside a church hall Friday to hear about the state of downtown amid a rapidly changing landscape from a longtime Silicon Valley leader. Instead, they got an earful about a labor-backed measure that Scott Knies, executive director of the San Jose Downtown Association, called “devious” and “duplicitous.” The initiative,...
Santa Clara County union negotiators share new proposal details amid strike delay
With an ongoing labor strike interrupted by intentional PG&E blackouts across Santa Clara County, members of SEIU Local 521’s bargaining team spent the last two days preparing a contract proposal for the 12,000 county workers it represents, the union announced at a news conference Friday afternoon. Negotiators declined to discuss many of the specific details...
PG&E restores power in San Jose, but city costs soar amid shutdown
After a grueling week following a statewide power outage and a countywide state of emergency, San Jose officials confirmed Thursday evening that PG&E has restored power to most residents and the city will return to normal operational hours Friday. At a news conference Thursday afternoon, Mayor Sam Liccardo said fewer than 1,500 PG&E customers in...
A week after Santa Clara County strike began, union to make a new offer and suspend strike
One week after hundreds of Santa Clara County service workers left their jobs for a massive strike, union leaders prepared a new offer for the Board of Supervisors to consider, potentially ending the standoff that began six months ago. That development comes after a week of work stoppages, pickets and other strike actions across county...
Santa Clara County declares local emergency ahead of PG&E power outage, no impact to airport
The first streak of planned power outages swept across California on Wednesday, prompting local leaders to act fast in declaring a state of emergency as both Santa Clara County and San Jose prepare for the looming blackouts — expected to hit tonight. In a fourth news conference this week, San Jose city officials confirmed that...
Santa Clara votes again to strip 49ers of stadium duties, moves downtown revitalization effort forward
Santa Clara city officials have reaffirmed their decisions to strip the San Francisco 49ers of the ability to sign contracts at Levi’s Stadium and to remove the team as the manager of the $1.3 billion stadium during non-NFL events. The votes on the matters, held Tuesday night during the Santa Clara City Council meeting, are...