Browsing Category : Government

San Jose residents endorse community demands for Google mega-campus land deal


While Google and the City of San Jose have excluded the public from their negotiations, last night nearly 100 community members and leaders gathered at a public meeting to review and endorse a set of community demands for Google’s proposed San Jose mega-campus. Attendees assessed a set of proposed demands developed through eight months of consultation with San Jose communities. Around 1,500 San…

Silicon Valley Organization Backs Pierluigi Oliverio for County Supervisor


The Silicon Valley Organization (SVO), formally the San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce, has endorsed Pierluigi Oliverio, a candidate accused of sexually harassing and berating a female staff member while he was a San Jose City Councilmember. Earlier this month a video titled #HimToo, based upon a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Oliverio, was released. SVO’s new Executive Vice President, Madison Nguyen should…

San Jose Unified Trustee Paymon Zarghami Resigns


San Jose Unified Trustee Paymon Zarghami stepped down from his post on the Board earlier this month. Zarghami, who had served on the Board since 2014, had been embroiled in a controversy regarding his treatment of a district parent who questioned his possible conflict of interest on the Perseverance Charter School petition vote. The resulting investigation found that Zarghami’s interactions…

Policy Watch: Week of 2/20


City of San Jose Successor Agency to approve compensation agreement for Google Diridon parcels Staff rec is to approve a Compensation Agreement by and among the Successor Agency to the Redevelopment Agency of the City of San Jose, the City of San Jose, the County of Santa Clara and other affected taxing entities under Health and Safety Code Section 34180…

Community groups demand transparency in Google negotiations after non-disclosure agreements exposed


Community groups have called for answers from the City of San Jose after it was revealed that the Mayor, various councilmembers and other City officials had signed non-disclosure agreements with Google over the sale of a number of valuable parcels of publicly owned land (source). Community members have long voiced concerns about the lack of transparency throughout the negotiation process…

South Bay Labor Council Announces Endorsements for County Supervisor and San Jose Council Races


Yesterday the South Bay Labor Council announced its candidate endorsements for the Santa Clara County Supervisor District 4 race and the San Jose City Council races.  In the supervisorial race, the Labor Council endorsed both San Jose Council Member Don Rocha and Santa Clara Council Member Dominic Caserta.  In the San Jose Council races, the Labor Council endorsed: Council Member…

Policy Watch: Week of 2/12


City of San Jose Memos from Liccardo / Carrasco / Arenas / Jimenez / Peralez & Rules Committee recommend an opposing City-sponsored ballot measure to the Evergreen Senior Homes Initiative UPDATES: Liccardo, Carrasco, Arenas, Jimenez and Peralez recommend: Approve recommendation (a) and (c) as outlined in the staff report dated February 2, 2018 related to the petition initiative amending the…

Healthcare System in Santa Clara County Under Attack


Santa Clara County officials are alarmed.  Trump Administration actions could cost the County $200-$400 million per year, decimating the County’s social safety net.   Among the gravest threats are: Increased cost of healthcare to those no longer insured by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and once more uninsured. This alone would impact the County healthcare system by approximately $150 million per…

San Jose Residents Deliver Open Letter at Googleplex in Protest Over Google’s Expansion Plans


This morning, nearly a hundred San Jose residents demonstrated at Google’s Mountain View headquarters over the tech giant’s plans to build a new mega-campus in San Jose. Google is negotiating with San Jose City Council to buy valuable public land near Diridon Station for its proposed 6-8 million square foot campus that will be home to up to 20,000 Google…

Alejo Drops Out of State Senate Race


Yesterday, Monterey County Supervisor and former State Assemblymember Luis Alejo announced, via social media, that he will not be running for the District 12 State Senate seat Anthony Cannella is vacating. Alejo cited his new duties as Chair of the Board of Supervisors as the reason for his decision. However, there is some speculation that it was difficult for him…