Santa Clara County News, Traffic & Weather


All the Santa Clara News, Traffic and Weather, with directories of local Government, Community Groups & Nonprofits in one place!
Image caption: Julia Gitis (second from left) at at a pop-up demo of a Community News Lab neighborhood bulletin board in San Francisco on May 8, 2025. (Image Contributed).
Digital Billboards: Community Networking Part II

Part II of our interview with Julia Gitis, working to bring digital community information bulletin boards to neighborhoods in San Francisco.

Image caption: The annual budget cycle.
The News: May 19, 2025

Municipalities and counties across California are getting their budgets ready for fiscal year 2025-2026.

Image caption: In ye olden times before social media, there was Community Memory.
The Rise of Community Networking

Even before the Internet, people were finding ways to communicate online.

Image caption: Ruins of a home destroyed by the Camp Fire in 2018.
The News: May 12, 2025

California is still preparing for fire season as more communities become Firewise.

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Wildfire Awareness & Community Safety

All across California, people are working together to protect their neighborhoods, communities and each other.

Image caption: This isn't his first (bike) rodeo.
The News: May 5 2025

With spring sprung and the last rains fading into memory, it's Bike Month! And (coincidentally) : public transportation construction projects begin in earnest.

Image caption: Spring has sprung at the McKinley Park Rose Garden in Sacramento.
Gratitude and Generosity

We welcome the warm season with stories of community foundations doing good work ... and more!

Image caption: Gov. Gavin Newsom joined CAL FIRE Chief Joe Tyler and firefighting personnel last week to announce that, as peak fire season approaches, California is adding a second C-130 airtanker to the world’s largest aerial firefighting fleet.
The News: April 28, 2025

California prepares for fire season and California Local forks The Newsletter.

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Stewart Brand’s ‘Whole Earth’ and its Place in the Universe

Meet the hippie intellectual who changed the world with the first published photograph of our entire planet.

Image caption: Stewart Brand, who helped create the online world as we know it, lived much of his real life on a houseboat in Sausalito.
Silicon Valley’s Earthbound Roots

Elon Musk and his cadre of tech leaders might have us believe that embracing cyberculture means abandoning our planet—and humanity. But the giants upon whose shoulders they stand had a much better idea.

Image caption: The California Assembly Committee on Permitting Reform wants to make it easier to build windmills, solar farms, electric trains—and housing.
Earth Day 2025 Preview

In advance of Earth Day, we consider radical changes to the California Environmental Quality Act, and the surprising history of the Coastal Commission.

Image caption: Asm. Buffy Wicks speaking at a presser for the California Legislature's Permitting Reform Package.
De-weaponizing CEQA

A radical overhaul of the California Environmental Quality Act appears imminent. And: Is the era of the big NO already ending?

Image caption: Does California’s signature environmental law protect the state’s scenic beauty, or cause more problems than it solves?
CEQA: The Surprising Story of CA’s Key Environmental Law

The California Environmental Quality Act, CEQA, is the state’s signature environmental legislation, and is also often named as the villain in the state’s housing shortage. But the story may not be that simple.

Image caption: California's Department of Education receives only a fraction of its funding from the federal government, with most of that money earmarked for the state's neediest students.
California's Vulnerable Students Threatened

In which we focus on California public education.

Image caption: How does your local school measure up?
How California Measures School and Student Success

Measuring performance of the California public school system is a complicated business. We explain.

Image caption: The VA’s National Cemetery Administration cares for the graves of 4 million veterans, including those at Gettysburg, the world's first military cemetery.
Who Is Government?

Michael Lewis's new book celebrates the heroes of the federal bureaucracy currently under attack.

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Unlikely Tales of Bureaucratic Heroism

‘Who is Government?’ An army of selfless individuals working on problems the private sector doesn’t care about.

Image caption: Thirteen citizens are charged with keeping their eye on California government.
California’s Little Hoover Commission

A law from 1962 mandates the improvement of California government. We explain.

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Government Efficiency vs. Chaos

An honest call for overhauling our governments—and an intro a couple of institutions that hold governments accountable.

Image caption: Participation on Civil Grand Juries is open to all Californians of voting age.
How Civil Grand Juries Make Government Better

Civil Grand Juries are a powerful means by which ordinary citizens investigate local governments and provide recommendations for improvement.

California Local Pin Marker   Bulletin Board
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05/21/2025

Downtown San Jose Adding New Entertainment Zones

The city has greenlit a plan to designate specific areas where outdoor events can flow freely with food, drinks, and fun. Examples include live music, street festivals, and casual gatherings under...

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05/21/2025

Should the Sharks sign Mitch Marner?

With the Toronto Maple Leafs officially out of the playoffs, Toronto fans as well as management are understandably unhappy with the way the team exited the second round. There is a general consens...

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05/21/2025

Valley Water Earns Top Investment Policy Certification

Valley Water has earned the Investment Policy Certification from the California Municipal Treasurers Association (CMTA). This recognition highlights Valley Water’s commitment to financial transpar...

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05/21/2025

Weekly City Manager Updates: May 19, 2025

City Manager Ed Shikada shares brief updates at each Council meeting, highlighting details about upcoming events, City services, and City Council discussions planned. His comments are summarized t...

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05/20/2025

SJHN Daily: Misa Open To Playing in NCAA, Sharks Sign Afanasyev

When the San Jose Sharks take the stage with the second-overall pick of the 2025 Draft this June, one name that could stand out to GM Mike Grier is Michael Misa. The star center for the Saginaw Sp...

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05/20/2025

Santa Teresa Water Treatment Plant: Investing in Safe, Clean Water for the Future

Valley Water has completed a $20.6 million project to upgrade the Santa Teresa Water Treatment Plant, replacing 12 essential filters and installing new valves and nozzles. This is crucial for ensu...