Kelly Tasker, a grandmother at the age of 44, battled homelessness for nearly a decade. Through the help of the Compassion Center in Gilroy, Tasker found her first permanent apartment that would have given her a chance to get help with her chronic illness and lift her partner off the streets. But for Tasker, along...
Santa Clara County shields Coyote Valley from development
Climate advocates and conservationists are praising Santa Clara County lawmakers for creating protections for one of the last green open spaces in the South Bay. The Board of Supervisors voted last week to drastically limit development in Coyote Valley, preserving it for open space and agriculture and helping the region achieve climate change goals. “I commit...
Unemployment continues to drop in Silicon Valley
Unemployment continues to drop in Silicon Valley, but the recovery remains lopsided for certain industries. The unemployment rate in the South Bay dropped half a percentage point to 3.1% between mid-October and mid-November, according to a recent report from Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s Institute for Regional Studies. This is within 0.3% of the March 2020...
Landlords use scare tactics as Santa Clara County evictions grow
Since the statewide eviction ban ended in September, Santa Clara County landlords have been kicking tenants out of their homes in growing numbers. A total of 365 eviction lawsuits have been filed in Santa Clara County from September through Nov. 30 of this year, according to data from the Santa Clara County Superior Court. Of those,...
Homeless deaths soar in Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County saw a record high number of homeless deaths this past year, a somber reminder of the exacerbating housing crisis and inequality in one of the wealthiest regions in the nation. The number of people who died on the street in the region has grown in the last few years. In 2020, the area...
Civil Grand Jury accuses Santa Clara County sheriff of corrupt misconduct
A Civil Grand Jury has formally accused Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith of granting concealed weapon licenses to donors and political supporters and lying about accepting gifts. The accusation filed Tuesday claims Smith committed willful and corrupt misconduct by making it a practice to grant licenses to carry concealed firearms to people based on...
Santa Clara County adopts political map for next decade, with a shakeup
Santa Clara County officially has a new map of its political boundaries for the next decade. The Board of Supervisors adopted a map Tuesday proposed by Supervisor Cindy Chavez. Officially known by the number 90195, this map makes several significant adjustments to the five district boundaries, most notably moving Los Gatos and Almaden Valley out...
Santa Clara County reports first COVID omicron infection
The omicron variant of the coronavirus has been found in Santa Clara County, prompting health officials to urge residents to get their booster shots. According to the county, the infected individual showed symptoms on Nov. 30 and got tested Dec. 1. The person, who traveled to Florida, is fully vaccinated, but did not receive a...
South Bay union fighting for telework won’t let its employees work from home
A California union is fighting with its employees over a proposed teleworking policy—a tricky position for Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 521, which has advocated for teleworking for its members. Members of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 9423 and Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 29 are demanding their employer, SEIU,...
San Jose lawmakers establish design goals for BART extension
San Jose lawmakers and transit leaders are cautiously laying the groundwork for how to integrate new BART stations in San Jose. The City Council received an update Tuesday from VTA and BART officials on the latest stages of the BART Silicon Valley Phase II project. This major infrastructure development will extend BART service by six...