Santa Clara County lawmakers on Tuesday voted to approve a transfer of $8 million to cover overtime in the Sheriff’s Office, agreed to allocate money for refugee programs and discussed moving the Hope Village homeless encampment. The board approved a one-time transfer of roughly $3 million to cover overtime payments in the Sheriff’s Office, while...
San Jose council approves safe parking, co-living downtown
San Jose is taking the bold step of allowing homeless residents to park their vehicles overnight at certain churches, community centers and libraries. City lawmakers on Tuesday voted to expand San Jose’s safe parking beyond a single city-owned lot to allow parking in places of assembly. Last October, the City Council approved a $250,000 pilot program to allow...
Sam Liccardo beefs with NRA over new gun law proposals
Mayor Sam Liccardo caught heat on social media after Dana Loesch, a vocal and controversial spokeswoman for the National Rifle Association, took aim via Twitter at his newly-unveiled gun laws overhaul proposal. “Think of the craziest gun control law out there, and I guarantee you that California lawmakers can come up with something more ridiculous,”...
Santa Clara looks to extend ban on recreational cannabis
Silicon Valley is home to some of the first recreational pot shops in California. But not in Santa Clara. The Mission City passed a moratorium on commercial pot two months ago — after voters approved a measure legalizing recreational sales — and now lawmakers want to extend the ban. “There’s not enough time, really, to do all...
San Jose City Council to consider ‘co-living’ housing in downtown
Big cities like San Francisco, New York City and Los Angeles have rolled out what some are calling “dorms for adults.” And now San Jose could be next to approve the trendy new living model that’s all the rage in other cities and is designed to help alleviate the growing housing crisis. The “co-living” concept revolves around the...
Pat Dando sculpture in the works to honor lawmaker’s memory
Pat Dando, a former San Jose vice mayor remembered for her advocacy and tireless work ethic, will be honored with a bronze sculpture at the Almaden Library and Community Center next year. The idea for the sculpture took shape at Dando’s memorial service held after the beloved politician and community advocate died from lung cancer in July 2017...
‘Spotlight Series’ features robust debate over height limits
Above a noisy jazz cafe in a small, packed room, a crowd sat attentively Thursday evening as a panel of experts –an advocate, a policymaker, and an industry professional — spoke on raising building height limits in downtown San Jose. The first-of-its kind educational forum, hosted by San José Spotlight, touched on the hot policy debate dividing...
Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office requesting $8M for overtime
Citing much-needed jail reforms implemented over the past four years, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office is asking county lawmakers for more than $8 million to cover growing overtime costs. The request, which will be considered at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, would allocate $8.1 million from the Special Programs Labor Reserve. With little discussion, a county supervisors’ committee last week accepted a report from...
Former San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed is moving to Colorado
After three decades in San Jose and leading the city through some of its most pressing fiscal challenges, former Mayor Chuck Reed is saying goodbye to San Jose — sort of. Reed confirmed to San José Spotlight that he’s moving to Monument, Colorado, where his daughter, son-in-law and two grandkids live. “My wife wants to...
Mayor Sam Liccardo unveils plan to strengthen local gun laws
California is home to some of the most stringent gun laws in the nation, but San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo says they don’t go far enough. The mayor on Tuesday announced a plan to strengthen the city’s decades-old gun safety law to fight straw purchases and stop black-market gun sales. “A significant percentage of guns are entering our community from legal gun...