San Jose is planning to slash its funding for immigrant protection services in half amid a budget deficit, while immigrants continue to face fear of federal enforcement. The city’s proposed operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year allocates $500,000 for legal defense services and education — half of what the city allocated last year. Immigration advocates...
Escalating sign spat riles San Jose District 9 candidates
Campaign signs go missing in just about every election cycle in San Jose — and accusations begin to swirl of theft and sabotage. Usually, the sign takers go to great lengths to hide their identities. But in the ongoing race for the District 9 City Council seat, the man behind a rash of sign disappearances...
Budget cuts will close San Jose safe sleeping site
San Jose plans to decommission its only sanctioned tent homeless encampment months after it opened. The Taylor Street Navigation Hub is scheduled to close by next January as San Jose grapples with its $50 million deficit. The move comes as a shock to homeless advocates, as San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan threw his weight behind the...
San Jose library could restrict archive access due to budget cuts
Access to the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library room housing archives of San Jose and Santa Clara County’s rich history is about to become more limited if proposed cuts to the city’s budget pass. The California Room inside the library may close its services to the public as the city looks for ways to...
Knight Foundation funds first South Bay journalism fellowship
A new journalism fellowship aimed at strengthening local news coverage and training the next generation of reporters is coming to the South Bay — supported by a $155,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The initiative brings together San José Spotlight, The Mercury News and San Jose State University in a...
San Jose restaurant to relocate after city takes away parking
A long-standing Mexican restaurant is relocating after San Jose converted the motel next door into a homeless shelter. Los Garcia’s Restaurant will move into the former Fairway Zone Sports and Bar Lounge at 1150 Murphy Ave. in North San Jose following months of declining income, due in large part to customers not being able to find...
San Jose budget proposal outlines millions in service cuts
After months of speculation about where the budget axe might land to balance a $50 million deficit, San Jose’s city manager has released a proposal for the upcoming fiscal year that includes broad cuts to city services but avoids layoffs. The $5.5 billion budget proposal submitted by City Manager Jennifer Maguire on Friday has come...
Historic San Jose farmhouse seeks funds for renovations
A historic Japanese American farmhouse has found a new home after an eight-mile journey from what were once the orchards of North San Jose to the city’s History Park. A coalition of three local nonprofits, joined by San Jose Councilmember Rosemary Kamei, pushed the developer and the city to save the Sakauye farmhouse. The group...
The Biz Beat: San Jose’s Mama Flow Studio rethinks fitness
Cat Gieser transitioned from a high-pressure marketing career to becoming a perinatal movement specialist and certified birth doula. Through her Mama Flow Studio, she offers cutting-edge pre- and post-natal yoga programs, empowering women with a means of rehabilitation that goes far beyond simply helping them to “bounce back” after childbirth “What we do at Mama...
San Jose resident sues city over 7-story apartment project
Neighborhood opposition against a proposed seven-story apartment complex in Willow Glen has entered a new phase, after one resident launched a lawsuit intended to force the city into conducting a more thorough review of the development’s potential impact on the area’s sewer system. Jeffrey Yuille, who lives directly adjacent to the proposed development site at...