San Jose on Tuesday will grapple with waiving its wage theft policy to award a major banking contract to Chase — which has disclosed prior wage theft violations — or to create its own public bank. The city’s current banking agreement with Wells Fargo is set to expire on June 30. City officials put the...
San Jose behind on housing goals, Liccardo suggests cutting taxes
Mayor’s budget plan In preparation for the City Manager’s Office creating next year’s budget, the council is poised to approve a budget plan issued by Liccardo earlier this month. Liccardo’s proposal calls for tightening the city’s purse strings as City Hall braces for an economic downturn. “The recent release of the City’s five-year general fund forecast shows...
South Bay residents and elected officials respond after New Zealand massacre
The reverberations of a well-planned “terrorist attack,” in the words of New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand yesterday have left Muslim communities in the South Bay reeling. Prayers for the 49 dead and scores who were injured could be heard in Friday sermons across the Bay Area, as...
San Jose City Hall had no diaper changing stations — until now
San Joseans now have a place to change their children’s diapers in City Hall — for the first time. The Capital of Silicon Valley had no diaper changing stations in any of the 42 public restrooms inside City Hall. Now, on the first floor of City Hall, in both the men’s and women’s restrooms, two pull-down changing tables...
Sam Liccardo focuses on housing crisis in new budget plan
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo’s new budget priorities align closely with his goal of alleviating Silicon Valley’s housing crisis by investing in affordable housing, pursuing another housing bond and cutting red tape for developers. “We need a lot of tools in the toolbox in order to meet our goals,” Liccardo told San José Spotlight in...
Silicon Valley lawmakers applaud Newsom order halting death penalty
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order Wednesday halting the executions of 737 death row prisoners in the state, repealed California’s lethal injection protocols and shuttered the San Quentin State Prison execution chamber. Of the 737 condemned inmates, who now have stays of execution, 25 of them had their trial in Santa Clara County. Silicon Valley lawmakers...
Evergreen college board extends development talks
The San José-Evergreen Community College District Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday to extend an exclusive negotiating agreement with a San Jose developer for an ambitious mixed-use project slated for roughly 13.5 acres of district property near Evergreen Valley College. Republic Urban Properties, LLC, is behind the massive development project called “Montgomery Place.” While some...
San Jose lawmakers approve taller buildings in downtown
More than a decade after it was proposed and following months of contentious debate, city lawmakers on Tuesday unanimously approved height increases of up to 35 feet downtown and up to 150 feet in the Diridon Station Area. The discussion has been riddled with controversy as advocates, airport commissioners and city officials debated the impact of the proposed...
Santa Clara County lawmakers express concern with costs of all-mail election
Santa Clara County lawmakers on Tuesday debated a plan to roll out all-mail elections in 2020 and replace precinct polling places with 125 “vote centers” that would be open much for up to 11 days before Election Day. Some supervisors however, expressed doubt, citing the biggest drawback to the plan — its price tag. “I’m...
San Jose lags on posting public records because of turnover
San Jose has fallen behind on posting certain city records with officials taking weeks to publish some public meeting videos and minutes. The city’s public database for meeting minutes and videos has holes for several weeks. The city clerk, Toni Taber, said her department is struggling to keep up with posting meeting records, such as minutes, because of turnover in her department. “As far as minutes, we’re short...