San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan hosted several gubernatorial candidates at a tiny home site Friday, in the hopes of showcasing the city’s approach to slash homelessness through building temporary housing — and to get their buy in. During a tour of the city’s newest tiny home village at Cherry Avenue, Mahan said he’s looking for...
Can Mahan break the curse of San Jose mayors?
As the Capital of Silicon Valley, San Jose fuels global innovation — but despite the city’s considerable economic heft, its elected leaders still struggle to command political clout on a broader stage. The city, California’s third largest, has never produced a competitive candidate for governor in its modern history. And over the past 50 years,...
Lawsuit alleges San Jose license plate readers violate privacy rights
A new lawsuit by local advocacy groups alleges San Jose’s use of data collected by automated license plate readers deployed around town violates drivers’ privacy rights The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Santa Clara County Superior Court, takes aim at the city’s practice of allowing the San Jose Police Department to search a vast database of license...
Agreement lets San Jose clean up Caltrans property
San Jose is cleaning up state-owned land in an attempt to keep freeway underpasses free of homeless encampments. San Jose and Caltrans have an agreement that allows the city to clean up trash and sweep encampments on 13 sites owned by the state. California will partially reimburse the costs up to $400,000, and the city is in...
San Jose approves expanded Taser, body cam contract for police
For years, police technology firm Axon Enterprises has been dogged by accusations that it’s attempting to unfairly corner the market on Tasers and body-worn cameras for law enforcement. Despite some hand wringing, the San Jose City Council voted unanimously Tuesday, with Vice Mayor Pam Foley absent, to approve a new, expanded contract with the firm to...
Santa Clara County closes homeless housing and treatment gap
Santa Clara County and San Jose leaders are turning a page in their fraught relationship — vowing to bring more county behavioral health workers into city-run shelters and close gaps in placing the city’s homeless residents into housing. The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted unanimously to approve a new partnership announced Friday by San...
Measure A earns support of San Jose mayor, police and DA
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, joined by county law enforcement and prosecutors, is backing a last-minute sales tax to protect Santa Clara County’s public hospitals from massive federal cuts. It comes after Mahan — along with the county’s Deputy Sheriffs Association and Government Attorneys Association — initially cast doubt and uncertainty about his stance on...
Silicon Valley officials target mental health efforts at homeless shelters
Two local elected leaders are teaming up on a plan to bring behavioral health workers directly to homeless residents living in shelters. District 2 Santa Clara County Supervisor Betty Duong unveiled her proposal alongside San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan on Friday. The plan calls for adding another team of workers from the county Valley Homeless...
Editorial: San Jose mayor should support county general tax
Santa Clara County is on the edge of a financial cliff due to devastating federal and state cuts to its health care and safety net services. If the county falters, San Jose won’t be left unscathed. All 15 municipalities in the county will feel the impact of $1.4 billion in federal cuts to Medi-Cal through...
San Jose mayor signals doubt on county sales tax measure
Santa Clara County’s three-month sprint to raise sales taxes could stage a showdown between one of California’s most progressive Board of Supervisors and one of the state’s most centrist Democrats. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan has declined to state his position on Santa Clara County’s proposed five-eighths cent sales tax increase measure, which county supervisors...