Sunnyvale is taking steps to make its downtown more inviting for residents and visitors alike by beautifying its most historic block. The Sunnyvale City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved concept plans to turn the historic Murphy Avenue block of downtown into a permanent pedestrian mall, with Councilmember Russ Melton absent. The plans include more bike...
San Jose hits some homelessness goals, misses others
San Jose is inching toward its housing and homelessness goals, but still has a ways to go before it can shelter thousands of unhoused residents. The city released its latest annual homelessness report in early November detailing its progress in cleaning up the streets and waterways, sweeping encampments and building temporary housing. It met some goals,...
San Jose LGBTQ+ community grapples with Omar Torres scandal
The allegations were hard to believe. Initial reports of a child sex abuse investigation into San Jose Councilmember Omar Torres reeked of a political smear to his supporters, who had yet to see key details, in early October. For more than a year, the District 3 official faced incessant online vitriol for being an openly...
How will the 2024 propositions affect Silicon Valley?
This year’s election cycle brought 10 propositions to California voters. Some will either usher in statewide changes or no changes at all. Some residents were shocked by the rejection of Proposition 6, which would have ended forced labor in prisons. Others are celebrating the passage of Proposition 3, which codified the right to same-sex marriage...
San Jose tow-away zones threaten RV residents
People living in RVs along Almaden Expressway are worried they’ll be thrown onto the streets when San Jose begins its tow-away zone program next year. Under a new pilot program, the city will choose up to 30 temporary tow-away zones and 10 permanent sites to clear RVs for street sweeping and cleanup by the end...
What a second Trump presidency means for Silicon Valley
Following a red wave that swept much of the country, a second Donald Trump presidency will usher significant changes in the nation and Silicon Valley. More than 28% of Santa Clara County voters this month cast a ballot for Trump — up from 25% in the presidential election in 2020 and 20% the New York...
Op-ed: Santa Clara County judges line up with DA on death sentence reversal
Since August, local judges have been nullifying murderers’ death sentences one by one. But there’s a problem: The law the judges have been relying on to reduce those death sentences doesn’t apply to death sentences. And that’s not the only problem. It’s easy for judges to make mistakes when they’re hearing only one side of...
Cupertino has millions to spend from Apple settlement
With Cupertino absolved from paying California millions of sales tax dollars it collected from Apple, city officials are strategizing how to use it. Cupertino was allowed to keep the roughly $74.5 million in Apple sales tax revenue it set aside from 2021 through August after reaching a settlement with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration...
Santa Clara voters approve multimillion-dollar infrastructure bond
Santa Clara’s $400 million infrastructure bond looks to be passing, giving the city a much needed cash infusion to tackle infrastructure repairs. As of 5 p.m. on Monday, Santa Clara’s Measure I had 69.1% approval, squeaking past the 66.7% needed to pass. The 30-year bond will levy $19 per $100,000 of assessed property value. Officials...
San Jose officials greenlight hospital expansion
No one at the packed San Jose City Council meeting wanted the West Valley hospital to close or miss its seismic retrofit deadline, but numerous residents wanted city officials to hear their concerns about the company that owns the hospital. The San Jose City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve the environmental impact report...