San Jose officials have agreed to green light Mayor Matt Mahan’s latest budget plans — but stopped short of tying portions of councilmembers’ pay to their perceived performance. The City Council voted Tuesday to approve a $5.5 billion proposed operating budget for fiscal year 2025-26. Several of the mayor’s proposals moved forward, including reallocating Measure...
San Jose language programs could boost school enrollment
San Jose school districts are counting on specialized programming to slow their enrollment decline. While overall enrollment continues to fall, a number of local school districts have found a way to attract new students through transitional kindergarten and dual language immersion during the 2024-25 school year. Alum Rock Union School District in East San Jose...
The Biz Beat: El Bazar Azteca shares Mexican art and heritage
Before opening El Bazar Azteca in San Jose three years ago, Teresa Saldana was selling her imported Talavera pottery on street corners out of a van. Even then, the bright colors of the ceramics, instantly recognizable as symbols of Mexican culture, were almost impossible to resist. “I am probably one of her first customers,” devoted...
Sources: San Jose officials used racial slurs in group chat
A group of San Jose politicians allegedly participated in an inflammatory text thread with a disgraced colleague that included racial slurs and derogatory remarks, according to law enforcement sources. Sources say the participants in the text thread, which included councilmembers and community leaders, made the remarks while discussing city meetings and public business. Mayor Matt Mahan,...
San Jose safe parking no better than street life, residents say
Heidi White entered the Santa Teresa safe parking site 19 months ago thinking it’d be her first step out of homelessness. Instead, her health has declined and housing is still a dream. White said she hardly sees her caseworker and is never informed of when a new affordable housing development is opening. Since moving there...
San Jose settles for $620K over police brutality claims
City officials are paying out more than half-a-million dollars after officers injured protesters rallying against police brutality in summer 2020. The $620,000 settlement comes in response to a civil rights lawsuit filed five years ago by the NAACP San Jose/Silicon Valley, San Jose Peace and Justice Center and community organizers such as Derrick Sanderlin —...
San Jose mayor redefines ‘Responsibility to Shelter’ policy
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan is changing his tune when it comes to arresting homeless people who refuse shelter. Mahan held a news conference Wednesday to talk about how he is redefining his “Responsibility to Shelter” initiative. When it first rolled out in March, Mahan said those who refuse shelter three times within an 18-month...
San Jose councilmembers push back on pay tied to performance
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan wants to withhold up to 5% of his colleagues’ salaries if they fail to meet citywide goals — a policy numerous councilmembers said would come at the expense of already underserved residents. The “Pay for Performance” policy was introduced as part of Mahan’s March budget message after he said City...
San Jose Chick-fil-A could displace family-owned restaurant
A Mexican restaurant serving San Jose residents for more than 20 years may be pushed out of its building to make way for a new fast-food location. Taqueria Eduardo on 255 Race St. off West San Carlos Street is one of two San Jose locations owned by Luis Martinez. But that could drop to one if...
Sharks Way celebrates San Jose hockey team
San Jose is showing love to the Sharks by permanently naming part of a downtown neighborhood after the national hockey league team. City leaders earlier this month renamed the corner of West St. John Street and North Almaden Boulevard to “Sharks Way” in an effort to connect the team’s hundreds of thousands of fans with...