The South Bay Labor Council’s Executive Board — which represents nearly 100 local unions in Silicon Valley — voted Monday night to sanction a strike by members of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 521, including more than 11,000 Santa Clara County employees. “Today, the South Bay Labor Council on behalf of first responders, teachers,...
Santa Clara bucked city rules with Singer public relations contracts
Two years after Santa Clara officials worked to fix a botched public affairs contract, a San José Spotlight investigation found city leaders repeated some of the same errors mere months after vowing not to make those mistakes again. Public documents show city officials didn’t follow the city’s code, typical timelines and industry best practices when...
In diverse Silicon Valley, lawmakers are flooded with hate mail
San Jose prides itself on its diversity — a myriad of different cultures represented by an equally diverse City Council. But behind the scenes, many lawmakers in the heart of Silicon Valley are bombarded with aggressive and threatening hate mail, often mirroring stereotypically racist rhetoric. Though some councilmembers didn’t report receiving much hate mail during...
Santa Clara County DA applauds high court ruling giving prosecutors access to police misconduct records
The Constitutional rights of criminal defendants in California are not outweighed by state laws protecting the confidentiality of police personnel records, the state Supreme Court ruled last week. In a way, the court’s opinion vindicates Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen’s approach to balancing the rights of law enforcement officers to keep their personnel...
Santa Clara leaves police chief decision to voters, disputes scathing grand jury report
It’s official: Santa Clara will have two police chief elections in 2020 after councilmembers on Wednesday night said they couldn’t agree on who to elect to the newly-vacant position between now and Dec. 2020. The decision comes after a contentious meeting where elected officials were set to decide what to do about the retirement of longtime Chief Mike...
Alviso residents angry over fencing structure blocking the bay
Some Alviso residents are shaking their heads over a proposed fencing structure on the Alviso County Marina Park, raising concerns that they were not notified about the project after the framework for the structure went up earlier this week. And now county officials have put that work on hold to solicit community input — something...
Historic downtown San Jose church hit with Satanic graffiti
A historic Catholic Church in the heart of downtown San Jose was vandalized Sunday morning, hours before congregants gathered to participate in Sunday mass. Satanic and anti-semitic graffiti spray were sprawled against the church’s outside walls, alongside taunting drawings of a ghoulishly painted smile below two windows and a two-toned colored pentagram. Church officials from...
Two years after flood, Japanese Friendship Garden awaits repairs
More than two years after catastrophic floods ravaged the Japanese Friendship Garden, the beloved garden has yet to be fully rebuilt. “We’ve been working as hard as we can and working through the process to do what needs to be done,” said Shannon Heimer, general manager for Happy Hollow and Kelley Park — which houses the...
Santa Clara County supervisors push for more oversight on new jail project
While mulling recommendations this week for contract changes for the new jail facility design, Santa Clara County lawmakers took the opportunity to call for additional oversight over the massive project. Jeff Draper, the director of the county’s Facilities and Fleet department, requested an increase in the project’s supplemental work allowance to install a permanent generator...
The future of Coyote Valley a hot topic during San Jose forum
The fate of Coyote Valley has been looming over San Jose residents’ heads for more than 40 years, dividing the city on whether to preserve or develop the 7,000 acre plot of mostly undeveloped land out on the fringes of south San Jose. Thursday night, that debate sparked to life as experts and policymakers gathered...