San Jose promised homeless people living in RVs a safe parking site by the end of January. Now, it’s unclear when it will open. Infrastructure work is still needed, pushing back the opening of the Santa Teresa VTA light rail site until at least March 31. But even that may not happen, housing department spokesperson Jeff Scott...
San Jose legislator wants to raise foster age
Foster youth could get an additional five years of county support under a newly-introduced state bill. Senate Bill 9, introduced by state Sen. Dave Cortese in December, would raise the age limit of young adults who are terming out of the foster care system from age 21 to 26. While the proposed five-year extension is...
Deadly San Jose road to get makeover
San Jose is gearing up to address safety concerns along one of the region’s deadliest roads. Congressmembers Zoe Lofgren, Anna Eshoo and Jimmy Panetta announced last week San Jose will receive a $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help convert Monterey Road from a highway into a boulevard in an effort to...
San Jose joins a new DACA appeal fight
San Jose is joining a national fight to protect undocumented residents as a federal court gets ready to once again deliberate the decade-old DACA program. The San Jose City Council unanimously voted this week to join the Los Angeles city and county’s legal brief that claims dismantling the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, would be costly and catastrophic...
End of an era: San Jose antique shops could disappear
Walking past the palm trees that line San Carlos Street, it’s hard to miss the string of antique shops that have survived in an area once known as “Antiques Row.” These nostalgic shops may become a distant memory after the San Jose City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to annex a portion of West San Carlos...
What’s next for the former Fry’s HQ in San Jose?
A plan to build a massive office campus in North San Jose over the next decade is moving forward after winning approval from the San Jose City Council Tuesday evening. Campbell-based Bay West Development plans to build nearly two million square feet of office space across seven buildings on the site of the shuttered Fry’s...
San Jose housed more than 2,500 people — but still falls short
San Jose reportedly had one of its most significant years in housing the homeless, but advocates said the efforts are barely making a dent. In the past year, San Jose helped nearly 2,600 homeless people get off the streets, with 71% of them moving into permanent housing, according to a city report published this month. The...
San Jose officials call for street vendor protections
San Jose officials have a message for street vendors: report any attacks, because the city is listening. San Jose’s Latino councilmembers and a coalition of a dozen local advocates gathered Thursday to reassert their commitment to protect street vendors and highlighted services available to them following recent attacks on two vendors near downtown. “Street vendors...
Coalition calls on San Jose to build park along Coyote Creek
A 50-acre piece of land along Coyote Creek sits deserted and is frequently home to encampments and blight, yet the city still hesitates to support a coalition’s pursuit to turn it into a park for community benefit. Coyote Meadows Coalition, a group comprised of more than a dozen local groups and hundreds of volunteers, has spent the...
Former San Jose official reflects on the childhood that changed him
Chappie Jones, former vice mayor of San Jose, grew up on a redlined street in Sacramento, a street informally designated for Black residents, while the remaining streets in the area were not. Today the homes on his childhood street are valued lower than homes on other streets nearby. This basic inequality, rooted in racism, gave Jones profound...