In an alarming change that could force Cupertino, Saratoga and Los Altos Hills to slash millions of dollars from their budgets or raise local taxes, the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office is revamping a long-standing contract that provides those cities with public safety services. The new contract could potentially raise police costs for those jurisdictions by about a third through 2027. While the cities assert the contract changes came as a surprise with limited transparency, the county argues that policing has become far more expensive and that these municipalities must now pay for the true cost of the services.
Severe cuts to critical federal revenues continue to wreak havoc on Santa Clara County's finances, forcing county officials to slash 365 positions from the budget halfway through the fiscal year. While the county routinely opens its budget mid-year to make revisions, it's been years since the county made changes of this magnitude, with most of the eliminated positions coming from health care.
Parental neglect contributed to the previously unreported deaths of three Santa Clara County children in 2022, even after repeated referrals urged the county's child welfare agency to intervene and ensure their safety. In each case, social workers closed repeated referrals as unfounded or inconclusive, referred parents to voluntary services they never completed
A significant number of Santa Clara County residents say they're considering leaving the Bay Area, a reflection of the persistent frustration over housing costs and affordability even as population data suggests the region is not experiencing a mass exodus. Joint Venture Silicon Valley's annual survey found 40% of respondents in Santa Clara County said they are likely to leave in the next few years, a decline from recent years when up to 57% of respondents were looking to move.
According to data shared with SFGATE by AirDNA - an analytics firm focused on STR companies like Airbnb - this year there were roughly 500 more listings added in Santa Clara County for the week of Feb. 2 compared with last year. The county had about 3,200 available listing nights for that week in February last year, but that has jumped to roughly 3,700 this year for the week during the Super Bowl.
Santa Clara County has paid $5.5 million to settle a lawsuit over its former chief pediatrician for foster kids, a one-time foster and adoptive parent accused of sexually abusing a boy in his care, according to his lawyer. The settlement agreement between the county and the former foster youth, a Northern California resident now in his 30s, is the first time the county has paid damages to one of Dr. Patrick Clyne's accusers and attorneys say more lawsuits are imminent.
An effort to develop housing at public transit stations in Santa Clara County has awakened after being dormant for decades - and is expected to rake in lease profits and fuel train ridership. VTA leaders next week will open the doors to their first new public transit-oriented apartment complex in 20 years, between the Willow Glen and Alma neighborhoods next to the Tamien light rail station. Complete with a child care center and improved transit plaza, the complex will offer 135 affordable apartments.
From Highway 101 to Monterey Road, traffic in Silicon Valley has become deadly for wildlife trying to move between the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Diablo Range. Now, a major project is underway to connect preserved open spaces in the South Bay and reduce dangerous crashes for drivers. Monterey Road is a death trap, said Fraser Shilling, a researcher at UC Davis who studies how wildlife interacts with roads.
The county received nearly $600,000 from the Emergency Solutions Grants Program, which can be used to fund shelter operations, outreach, homelessness prevention or rapid rehousing. Over the past five years, the county has received $2.5 million in these grants and largely used the money to fund rapid rehousing programs, which give people time-limited rental subsidies. "(These) funds are an important source of funds for our rapid rehousing program, assisting approximately 50 households a year to obtain and maintain permanent housing,"
The county originally had planned to lease the 1410 S. Bascom Avenue medical offices in a 30-year deal approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2022. But the multi-decade lease would have cost the county on average $25.5 million annually. In the agreement approved by the Board on Tuesday, the county will instead purchase the property using lease revenue bonds that will lower the annual payment to roughly $20 million. The county says the total savings amount to $112 million over the course of three decades.
In 2023, more than 8.4 million renter households nationwide were paying more than half their income for rent or living in severely inadequate housing. That figure has barely changed since the pandemic. For regions like Santa Clara County - where housing costs have long outpaced wages - this is not a warning sign. It is daily reality. Gov. Gavin Newsom's proposed budget reflects a state navigating fiscal constraints while continuing to prioritize housing and homelessness.
Larry Stone, who has been assessor for 30 years, decided to step down now rather than at the end of his term a year from now. Had he waited for the end of his term, the office of assessor would have appeared on next year's ballot along with many other races. Instead, by leaving now, he's creating a single-office, small turnout race, with the person he endorsed having a head start over outside candidates.
Silver, a 55-year-old North County resident, said he was appreciative of the support from county leadership, adding that his appointment preserves vital continuity in the office that will help them maximize their mission to help vulnerable and indigent people disproportionately ensnared in the criminal court system. The office has a long tradition of being very client-centered and focusing all decisions through the lens of what's best for the community and the specific clients we serve, Silver said in an interview.
The provocative move by the Berkeley-based Prison Law Office comes after years of the county agreeing about the need to improve its deputy-to-inmate ratios - by either increasing custody staff or reducing the jail population - but not making meaningful progress, said Donald Specter, a senior staff attorney and former executive director for the law firm, which secured the reform agreement.
"Whatever their circumstances are, we welcome them. We opened it to families as well because they too are entitled to benefits, and sadly most of them are caregivers," Escalante told San José Spotlight. "The Stand Down ... is a way of providing that support that so many veterans need when they transition from service to the civilian world. ... We have never forgotten the sacrifice they've made. We are here to support them."
Martha's Kitchen, a nonprofit that provides millions of cooked meals every year for people in need, has moved into a 31,900-square-foot building on 749 Story Road in San Jose. But it's paying off a $7.5 million loan for the facilities, and needs an additional $3 million to $5 million to construct a commercial kitchen. In addition, Martha's Kitchen is getting fewer food donations to make meals, causing it to dig deeper into its own pocket.
SAN JOSE - South Bay law enforcement officials announced they have arrested a half-dozen people and recovered more than $1 million in merchandise stolen from major regional retailers, including Home Depot and Target, as part of an organized theft outfit that trafficked the goods online. In addition to finding houses in the area filled to the brim with pilfered items including power tools and various housewares, the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office and District Attorney's Office say they uncovered an accompanying phone and internet scam
