Federal officials say a planned ICE facility in South County will typically house about 10 detainees, according to the most detailed official statement yet released outlining the project. New court documents filed last week lay out the legal response to a lawsuit seeking to block the facility, and claim detention space will be used only...
Civil Grand Jury raises concerns over Silicon Valley BART extension
VTA officials will provide more clarity about the finances and long-term costs of the massive Silicon Valley BART extension in response to a Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury report that criticized the agency’s management and oversight of the project. The June 17 report raised concerns about VTA’s financial planning and oversight of the roughly $13...
Santa Clara County affordable housing stuck in pipeline
Santa Clara County’s affordable housing projects funded by local dollars are stuck in a “logjam” struggling to secure other money needed to start construction. While the county has built more than 3,000 affordable homes over the past decade with Measure A, a $950 million bond approved by voters in 2016, 600 apartments and homes are stuck...
State dollars ease Santa Clara County public hospital cuts
Public hospitals in California have been thrown a lifeline thanks to the advocacy work of Silicon Valley lawmakers, but more is needed to save the bleeding caused by federal budget cuts. State Assemblymembers Patrick Ahrens, who represents North San Jose, Sunnyvale and Cupertino, and Ash Kalra, whose district includes East San Jose and South County,...
San Jose metro area ranks No. 1 in lawyer salaries
San Jose tops the nation in lawyer salaries, but the high pay masks a tradeoff with steep living costs and student loan debt pushing more graduates toward private practice — making public service work harder to sustain in one of the country’s most expensive markets. The San Jose metro area ranks No. 1 among 70...
Silicon Valley hospital among best in the U.S.
Dan Koski doesn’t know where he would be without the care of doctors, therapists and nurses at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center’s Rehabilitation Center. An accident while swimming in the ocean this year caused a spinal injury that left Koski paralyzed in his arms and legs. By a stroke of luck, he was admitted to...
Silicon Valley lawmaker’s playbook aims to block ICE facilities
South Bay and Peninsula leaders are seeking to sharpen their legal defenses against new federal immigration facilities by strengthening local zoning rules. Amid a nationwide multibillion dollar buildout of immigration detention centers, Silicon Valley Congressmember Sam Liccardo unveiled a policy “toolkit” Wednesday developed by his office to aid local governments hoping to forestall such facilities....
Legal experts weigh in on South County ICE facility lawsuit
Santa Clara County and state leaders are gearing up for legal battle to block a planned ICE facility in South County. The lawsuit filed last month by California Attorney General Rob Bonta and county officials argues the federal government has illegally bypassed environmental laws, local zoning rules and other statutes in advancing the project just east...
San Jose food lines grow longer as more people seek help
Across San Jose, nonprofits running food distributions are seeing their lines explode. Martha’s Kitchen, which provides hot meals and has a weekly food pantry, has seen its numbers nearly triple since June, serving between 150 to 300 people each week. Hunger at Home, another nonprofit group fighting food insecurity, has seen a 30% increase of...
Foreign student visa restrictions to hit Silicon Valley
New federal regulations will restrict how long international students can attend U.S. colleges, and schools are scrambling to work through the problem as the fall semester begins. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has finalized a rule that limits most international students on F-1 visas and J-1 exchange visitor visas to a four-year education...