Santa Clara County leaders may exert more power over the Office of Education, whose elected board voted to fire its controversial superintendent, Mary Ann Dewan. The Board Supervisors on Tuesday voted 4-0 to look into whether it should decide who sits on the countywide school district’s Board of Education. Supervisor Susan Ellenberg recused herself, with...
San Jose veterans home operator dumped over poor conditions
Formerly homeless veterans living in poor conditions at a San Jose complex hope things get better with the change in nonprofit service providers. The property at 10. Kirk Ave. is home to dozens of veterans that have lived with black mildew, fire hazards and unsafe electrical systems, among other problems — issues that have been...
Election 2024: Mountain View official runs for D5 county seat
Margaret Abe-Koga grew up in San Mateo watching her parents live in a bubble. As Japanese immigrants seeking a better life in the U.S., Abe-Koga’s parents became enmeshed in the Japanese American community — but struggled outside of it and relied on her to translate English. As the family’s only link to the English-speaking world, she...
Election 2024: Longtime politico could land Santa Clara County D5 seat
Sally Lieber jumped into politics at age 13, rallying in Detroit for former Michigan state Sen. Doug Ross between delivering newspapers. She caught the political bug early, and since then has held numerous posts in California. This November she wants to add another achievement to her lengthy resume: Santa Clara County supervisor. Lieber, 63, is...
County leaders secure purchase of East San Jose hospital
Santa Clara County leaders have approved a $315 million effort to acquire and integrate Regional Medical Center into California’s second largest public hospital system — and restore the lifesaving care a for-profit corporation systematically cut from East San Jose. While the county is still finalizing the agreement with HCA Healthcare, the Board of Supervisors on...
Santa Clara County renames road to honor former executive
Santa Clara County has renamed its main public hospital’s entrance to honor a former top official, even though his relationship with county doctors turned icy during crises. What was once Renova Drive in front of Valley Medical Center in San Jose is now Jeff Smith Way, after former County Executive Jeff Smith. The road’s namesake stepped down...
Santa Clara County candidates share plans to tackle homelessness
Candidates vying for two open seats on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors are sharing their plans for the region’s top issues: homelessness and housing. Nonprofits PATH and Destination: Home hosted a candidate forum Wednesday moderated by those with lived experience. The candidates in Districts 2 and 5 discussed a number of topics including...
Election 2024: Madison Nguyen could make history again in D2 county race
Madison Nguyen, wearing black athletic pants and tennis shoes, walks with her 12-year-old daughter Olivia Tran in scorching 93-degree heat, canvassing an East San Jose neighborhood across from Story Road. They coordinate reading out house numbers, before her daughter jogs down the street to convince residents to vote for her mom as the next Santa...
Election 2024: Betty Duong in tight race for D2 county supervisor
Betty Duong knocks on the door of an East San Jose porch wearing a big floppy sun hat and white sneakers. She chats with the man who opens the door in Vietnamese about her run for the District 2 seat on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors when suddenly the man’s wife sees her and exclaims...
Santa Clara County to allow Tasers in jails with limits
Santa Clara County leaders have agreed to arm sheriff’s deputies in the jails with Tasers despite a year of protests from civil rights activists and community groups. The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved the purchase of 75 Axon Tasers with a 3-1-1 vote, but with certain use conditions. Deputies can’t fire more than four...