Santa Clara’s fight to reinstate at-large council elections is over, ending a battle by five plaintiffs who accused the city of shutting out voters of color. Santa Clara reached a settlement of $712,500 Tuesday night with five Asian Americans who filed a suit in 2017, alleging that the city’s at-large council system violated the California...
Asian lawmaker in Santa Clara gets snubbed at anti-Asian hate event — by his colleague
At an event dedicated to stopping hate and violence against the Asian community put on by Santa Clara Councilmember Kathy Watanabe, Korean-American Councilmember Kevin Park was denied a chance to speak. The event, held at the Santa Clara Northside Library, was titled “#StopAsianHate” and run by Watanabe and Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor. Speakers included...
Santa Clara police union in hot water over its donation ask
In a move that seems straight out of a mafia playbook, the union representing Santa Clara’s police officers solicited donations from businesses in exchange for police department support. In its “2021 Business Supporter” flyer, sent to local retailers, the Santa Clara Police Officers’ Association said, “Place our decal in your window, and we will direct...
San Francisco 49ers consult medical experts to bring fans back to Levi’s Stadium
The San Francisco 49ers launched a medical advisory team aimed at reopening Levi’s Stadium to fans during the COVID-19 pandemic. The team says the committee, made up of several prominent Bay Area health officials, will make safety recommendations that will allow for the return of fans to Levi’s Stadium. While the committee’s findings are right...
Will a $300K consultant fix Santa Clara’s tourism woes?
Santa Clara is mulling whether to pay a consultant $300,000 to create a tourism strategy for the city, a move scrutinized by several city councilmembers given the city’s questionable history of hiring expensive consultants. “It’s starting to look more like wasteful spending,” said Santa Clara Councilmember Anthony Becker. “I’d rather see available funds spent on...
Santa Clara loses fight over district elections
Santa Clara lost a bid to overturn a lawsuit forcing it to hold district elections after the city was sued for allegedly violating the California Voting Rights Act. City officials appealed the decision in 2019, despite previous unsuccessful efforts from other cities in similar California Voting Rights Act cases. But an appeals court Dec. 30...
Santa Clara mayor hints at more legal battles with 49ers over financials
Santa Clara lawmakers are not pleased with the loss of revenue from non-NFL events at Levi’s Stadium, and they say it’s due to sloppiness on the part of the San Francisco 49ers’ management. An accounting report presented this week to the Stadium Authority, a legislative body comprised of Mayor Lisa Gillmor and other elected leaders, stemmed...
Major political changes coming to Santa Clara City Hall
One incumbent councilmember is out. Three new faces are in. And Mayor Lisa Gillmor has lost her stronghold on the Santa Clara City Council. “You’ve got a unique city because they have so much potential in Santa Clara and all of it is being squandered on personality,” said political consultant Rich Robinson. “This election is...
Santa Clara council candidates, 49ers, police union point fingers over campaign donations
The San Francisco 49ers have now poured millions more into a campaign to unseat Mayor Lisa Gillmor’s allies on the Santa Clara City Council — drawing the ire of the city’s police union. The NFL team initially invested $250,000 into a PAC to help elect Anthony Becker, Suds Jain, Harbir Bhatia and Kevin Park. The...
Santa Clara lawmaker calls herself environmental candidate but owns lucrative oil and coal stock
Teresa O’Neill has touted herself the environmental candidate for Santa Clara City Council but a review by this news organization found the councilmember owns up to $1.02 million in stocks in oil and coal-mining companies, according to her recent Form 700 disclosures. On her ballot statement and in various interviews, O’Neill has cited fighting climate...