JMA Ventures, LLC — new owners of the Hayes Mansion in south San Jose — has plans to begin a multi-million dollar makeover on the luxury hotel in December. Although plans haven’t been finalized, the renovation includes an upgrade of the hotel’s guest rooms and common areas, said Hayes Mansion General Manager Jeff Carpenter in...
San Jose Submerged: A flood website launched for victims, whistleblowers
A new website dubbed San Jose Submerged is detailing “the history of negligence” by government agencies that failed to protect San Jose residents from disastrous flooding two years ago and pushing to ensure they get compensated. “It’s so unbelievable that this happened in San Jose in the self-proclaimed Capital of Silicon Valley and folks were...
San Jose flooded by parked cars despite push for transit-oriented future
Unlike affordable housing, there is no shortage of cars in San Jose. This proves to be a burden for many residents returning home to overcrowded or high-density apartment complexes, during the evening or late at night. In San Jose, cars pile up along public streets — some abandoned and others parked for weeks — spilling...
San Jose’s new website won’t debut until late fall
A massive makeover of San Jose’s antiquated website planned for March has been delayed, in part, because of the webmaster fleeing for a neighboring city and San Jose’s difficulty finding a replacement in the heart of tech innovation. However, city staff say an even better design is expected to launch late this fall. “I would say what...
Three Bay Area mayors, including Liccardo, discuss crippling housing crisis
Three mayors from cities in the Bay Area spoke at a panel in San Francisco Wednesday to discuss long-term solutions to ease one of the region’s most critical political challenges — the housing crisis and its growing aftermath. The mayors, Sam Liccardo from San Jose, Jesse Arreguin from Berkeley, and Steve Scharf from Cupertino, weighed...
San Jose City Council: Who pays their staff the most?
Who pays interns? Also working on the floor is a few dozen interns – but they’re not all paid. Most of the councilors without paid interns, however, said that they often offer interns salaries if they wish to continue past their internship period. A spokesperson for Liccardo confirmed that while his office offers year-round paid fellowship programs,...
2020 census citizenship debate erodes trust in Santa Clara County
President Donald Trump’s exhausted attempts at including the citizenship question on the 2020 census proved unsuccessful, putting to rest a matter that some officials worried would affect local turnout. On Thursday, the president announced that he’s backing down on his efforts of including the question after admitting that an ongoing, raging legal battle would interfere with printing...
Avoiding confrontation, some Republicans live in fear in Silicon Valley
Disappointing. That was what Justin Aguilera thought of the turnout at a rally in downtown San Jose last month to support President Donald Trump’s bid for reelection. Aguilera says a “silent majority” of Republicans claim to be Democrat in Silicon Valley just to avoid “confrontation and harassment.” “There’s a lot of people that are scared....
As Southern California rattles, is San Jose ready for ‘the big one’?
Southern California was hit with two powerful earthquakes last week, serving as a potent reminder that it’s just a matter of time before “the big one” strikes the Bay Area too. Is the South Bay ready? “In our field we can’t urge people enough to be prepared,” said Louay Toma, program specialist with the County of Santa Clara...
Why are Silicon Valley socialists targeting a veteran congresswoman?
Silicon Valley Congresswoman Anna Eshoo sits on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, an affiliation that by itself is enough to raise the hackles of many red-blooded American socialists who aren’t fond of commerce or its regulators. They tend to see business interests and politicians as working hand in glove to maximize their profits...