Santa Clara leaders on Tuesday approved an additional $300,000 — for a total of $800,000 — in city funding to help small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. The city’s Small Business Assistance Grant Program, which began April 15, was set to distribute $500,000 to small companies experiencing financial hardship due to the impacts of the...
FPPC looks into 49ers, Santa Clara for potential Measure C violations
Santa Clara’s contentious Measure C was defeated on Super Tuesday, but investigations into alleged violations made before polls closed March 3 are still pending. The Fair Political Practices Commission has opened investigations into actions by both city officials and the San Francisco 49ers, who were opponents of the measure, which would have split Santa Clara into three...
Santa Clara City Council extends renter protections, delays Pruneridge traffic plan
Santa Clara renters are now protected from evictions through May 28 if they’re unable to pay rent due to financial strain caused by COVID-19. After the City Council adopted an urgency ordinance two weeks ago, state and countywide eviction moratoriums were also approved, leading Santa Clara leaders to approve an adjusted timeline to avoid confusion...
Look inside: Santa Clara Convention Center set up for 250 COVID-19 patients
Rows of cots, hand washing stations and other medical supplies have been retrofitted inside the Santa Clara Convention Center as it transitions into a temporary federal medical station to treat less-severe COVID-19 patients. The coronavirus has been ripping through the South Bay, with Santa Clara County counting 542 confirmed cases and 19 deaths as of...
Santa Clara council OKs renter protections, small business relief program
The Santa Clara City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved an urgency ordinance that immediately halts evictions through May 8 as the financial fallout from the coronavirus continues to wallop the nation. City lawmakers, who ratified a local emergency last week, also approved a 90-day ordinance that will kick in 45 days from now and provide...
Santa Clara Convention Center transitioning into temporary federal hospital
As the number of COVID-19 cases in Santa Clara County continues to rise – up to 302 as of Sunday, with 10 deaths – so does the strain on area hospital staff and resources. In an effort to ease that demand, the Santa Clara Convention Center started the process of transitioning its facilities Monday morning...
San Francisco 49ers announce donation for coronavirus recovery
Levi’s Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers, sat empty Thursday amid the county’s “shelter in place” order to slow the spread of coronavirus, as the NFL team announced plans to help residents get back on their feet. 49ers President Al Guido announced the team donated $49,000 to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation’s newly-created emergency...
Santa Clara declares local emergency due to coronavirus
The Santa Clara City Council ratified a local emergency Tuesday in an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus, following the lead of Santa Clara County, which issued a heightened shelter in place order on Monday. “There is a hollow sound in this chamber,” Mayor Lisa Gillmor said, sitting six feet from her fellow councilmembers...
Santa Clara officials fail to appoint councilmember in tense public meeting
Tensions ran at a fever pitch Monday night as Santa Clara councilmembers realized that for the third time in a row, they’d fail to agree on who to appoint to a key elected position in the city that was vacated early. Santa Clara officials spent about an hour discussing how to fill a council seat representing...
Santa Clara officials will attempt to appoint Mahan replacement
Santa Clara leaders on Monday will attempt to appoint a new councilmember to represent the city’s District 5, following the early resignation of former Councilmember Patricia Mahan due to health issues. The big question since Mahan’s Feb. 1 resignation has been whether the remaining councilmembers would be able to agree in the required four-fifths vote...