San José’s reserve has dropped to $12.5 million while financial discipline and new revenue proposals move forward at the same time. San José’s Budget Stabilization Reserve has fallen from $63 million to just $12.5 million in roughly 18 months. At the same time, the City is projecting a $55–$65 million General Fund shortfall and signaling […]
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Why I’m Doing This
I’ve spent years watching how choices get made in city halls, commission chambers, and behind closed doors — choices that shape how we live, work, and move around the Bay Area. Some are smart. Some are baffling. Many never get the attention they deserve. And too often, the people who care the most — residents, […]
Read Full Article →It’s Time for San José to Stop Using Roundup in Our Parks
San José continues to rely on glyphosate-based herbicides in public parks despite health warnings, safer alternatives, growing community concern, and increasing uncertainty at the federal level. Most mornings I take my two beagles, Bailey and Parker, to Williams Street Park. They sniff every corner, pull toward the same patch of grass, and treat the place […]
Read Full Article →Open space tax measure to appear on June ballot in Santa Clara County
Open space tax measure to appear on June ballot in Santa Clara County – The Mercury News The Big Picture A new parcel tax measure will appear on the June ballot in Santa Clara County that would generate about $17 million per year for the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority. The measure would impose […]
Read Full Article →New budget documents place San Jose’s estimated shortfall around $56 million
New budget documents place San Jose’s estimated shortfall around $56 million The Big Picture San José is facing a projected $56 million budget shortfall for the coming fiscal year, driven largely by declining sales tax revenue and rising employee salary and benefit costs. The deficit comes as the city begins its annual budget process and […]
Read Full Article →Congrats, Your City Gets to Host the Super Bowl. The Party’s 40 Miles Away.
The game is in San Jose’s backyard but locals say San Francisco is having all the fun; ‘another Charlie Brown–with-the-football moment.’ The city’s more glamorous cousin, San Francisco, ended up with the lion’s share of official Super Bowl week activities. This despite San Francisco being 40 miles north of Levi’s Stadium, where the game will […]
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First affordable housing development for artists coming to San Francisco
First affordable housing development for artists coming to San Francisco – CBS San Francisco The Big Picture San Francisco is moving forward with a 14-story affordable housing development designed specifically for artists at Market and Gough streets. The project, called Artists Hub on Market, will provide below-market apartments reserved for certified working artists along with […]
Read Full Article →San Jose housing towers owner preps sales of residential units
Landmark San Jose housing tower owner preps sales of residential units Big Picture The owners of 188 West St. James, a pair of long-troubled residential towers near San Pedro Square, are making a decisive push to sell hundreds of unsold condominium units and reset the project’s future. New ownership under Machine Investment Group, with Centurion […]
Read Full Article →Palo Alto City Council praises Town & Country’s growing housing proposal
City Council praises Town & Country’s growing housing proposal – Palo Alto Online vBig Picture The Palo Alto City Council is signaling a real shift by welcoming a sizable housing proposal at Town & Country Village, one of the city’s most established retail centers. The plan would add roughly 160 apartments on existing surface parking […]
Read Full Article →Google widens San Jose holdings with purchase of office building
Google widens San Jose holdings with purchase of big office building The Big Picture Google continues to expand its footprint in North San José with the purchase of an 83,900-square-foot office building at 4500 North First Street in the Alviso district for $25.2 million. The deal brings the company’s total investment in the area to […]
Read Full Article →OpenAI signs South Bay office deal as tech company expands
OpenAI signs South Bay office deal in huge expansion for tech company The Big PictureOpenAI has signed a 10-year lease for approximately 439,000 square feet of office space at 350 and 380 Ellis Street in Mountain View, marking a significant expansion of the company’s physical presence in Silicon Valley. The deal covers two three-story buildings […]
Read Full Article →Plans for a school come back into view for empty San Jose offices
Plans for large school come back into view for empty San Jose offices The Big PictureA vacant office building at 525 Race Street in San Jose could be converted into a private high school under a preliminary proposal from BASIS Independent Schools. The plan would reuse the three-story, 72,700-square-foot office building and add a 16,600-square-foot […]
Read Full Article →Major salt pond restoration nears completion in Mountain View
Major salt pond restoration nears completion in Mountain View – Mountain View Voice Big PictureA major phase of the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project in Mountain View is nearing completion, marking a significant step in returning former industrial salt ponds to functioning tidal wetlands. The 435-acre site near Shoreline Park has completed most of […]
Read Full Article →San Jose traffic deaths dropped in 2025
San Jose traffic deaths dropped in 2025 – San José Spotlight Big Picture:San Jose saw a meaningful drop in traffic deaths in 2025, continuing a multi-year downward trend in roadway fatalities. Last year 41 people died on city streets, a 16% decline from 49 in 2024 and the lowest total since 2012. It marks the […]
Read Full Article →San Jose police arrest Gilroy man linked to 114 vehicle burglaries in two days
SJ police arrest Gilroy man linked to 114 vehicle burglaries – NBC Bay Areav Big Picture San José police arrested Ramses Hernandez Rivera, a 23-year-old from Gilroy, on suspicion of being behind a massive vehicle burglary spree that hit 114 cars in North San Jose over just two days in November 2025. Officers tied him […]
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Open space tax measure to appear on June ballot in Santa Clara County
Google widens San Jose holdings with purchase of office building
New budget documents place San Jose’s estimated shortfall around $56 million
First affordable housing development for artists coming to San Francisco
Congrats, Your City Gets to Host the Super Bowl. The Party’s 40 Miles Away.
OpenAI signs South Bay office deal as tech company expands