Santa Clara County Homelessness Digest

What happens in seven years? That was the question during a special meeting of the Santa Clara City Council—a continuation from last week, when the council was slated to vote on a homeless housing project at Benton Street and Lawrence Expressway.

Fast food is the largest employer of homeless workers in California, with one of 17 unhoused individuals in the state working in the industry. That is according to a new report released by the Economic Roundtable.

San Jose voters passed a property transfer tax to help fund affordable housing, but the mayor wants to reallocate more than half for other uses. The city manager’s budget proposal shows that $38 million of the $70 million earmarked for affordable housing may shift to homelessness services.

California cities of every size lack shelter beds for the state’s growing homeless population. A new bill would force local governments to do more, and punish ones that don’t plan housing for homeless Californians.

After hours of listening to dozens of people who turned out for public comment, the Santa Clara City Council did not vote on a proposal to turn a vacant lot at Benton Street and Lawrence Expressway into temporary housing.

When Palo Alto rolled out in 2020 a new program that allowed local congregations to host vehicle dwellers on their lots, the Highway Community Bible Church was the first to step up to the plate. Now, it's the first to seek renewal.

Dozens of homeless residents will be able to get off the streets, as new interim housing opens at the Guadalupe Emergency Interim Housing site, near the doorstep of the San Jose Police Department.

Millions of federal dollars are funneling into Santa Clara County to help shelter and support those experiencing homelessness.

Milpitas nonprofit Hope for the Unhoused held its inaugural Community Homeless Conference. The event, according to organization President Rob Jung, was held with the goal of educating the community on the challenge of homelessness within both the city and Santa Clara County.

Democratic voters in California cities are pushing mayors and city councils to clear homeless camps. Leaders are responding with new ordinances, from Sacramento to San Diego.

San Jose’s mayor has faced criticism for his plan to ban homeless residents from setting up camp in certain parts of the city, but he believes it's only because people don’t fully understand it.

Valley Water is shelling out millions for San Jose to clear out homeless residents living along Coyote Creek. The $4.8 million contract with the city comes as the water agency prepares to build out mandated flood protection measures along a nine-mile stretch of the creek.

Senate Bill 31, proposed by state Sen. Brian Jones of San Diego, would ban people from sitting on the sidewalk within 1,000 feet of a “sensitive area,” defined as a school, daycare center, park or library.

Looking to contain rapidly rising costs, the nonprofit looking to build a residential complex for unhoused individuals near the Palo Alto Baylands is preparing to eliminate amenities and solicit donations.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan's top issues—homelessness, public safety, growth and blight—haven't changed since he took office, but tackling them is going to require an aggressive approach.

As major cities like San Jose and San Francisco struggle after the pandemic pushed people to remote work, discussion of converting empty offices to housing is gaining traction.

Dozens of Santa Clara residents weighed in on a proposed supportive housing development for homeless people, with the majority against the idea. The proposed development, at the corner of Benton Street and Lawrence Expressway, would include between 80 to 120 transitional homes.

San Jose promised homeless people living in RVs a safe parking site by the end of January, but infrastructure work will push back the opening of the Santa Teresa VTA light rail site until at least March 31.

San Jose reportedly had one of its most significant years in housing the homeless, but advocates said the efforts are barely making a dent, according to a city report published this month.

The Mountain View City Council is considering some tweaks to its 72-hour parking rule, which prohibits parking in the same spot for more than three days.

Dozens of residents advocated for causes from traffic and transportation to senior services and supporting the homeless population.

For some unhoused folks, a brief respite from the rain on Jan. 4 meant it was time to prepare for what was to come.

San Jose's unhoused population is not as big as initially reported, but the number of chronically homeless people continues to grow, new county data shows.

Geraldo Garcia had 10 minutes to pack his belongings, scramble into a car and leave his makeshift shelter near Coyote Creek."I'm sad. I'm desperate. I really don't know where to go," Garcia said.

San Jose faces a grim new record of both pedestrian fatalities and automobile accidents. Factors include a homeless population pushed into freeway margins, lack of crosswalks, and reckless driving.

Days before Christmas, Zayna Herring, her 4-year-old son Alex and her roommate sat in the courthouse, worried they'd soon be homeless. "It's a lot of stress," Herring said. “Everything takes money, and that’s what we don’t have.”

The encampment near Mineta San Jose International Airport is gone and a makeshift RV camp at Columbus Park is almost barren, but dozens of homeless residents still have no place to go.

The San Jose City Council voted unanimously last week to pursue tiny home projects at the Cerone and Cottle VTA sites, located in North and South San Jose, respectively.

Sam Liccardo, Chappie Jones, Matt Mahan and David Cohen want to make it easier for residents to track how the city is spending money on its growing homelessness crisis.

And Santa Cruz County gets money to turn offices into housing, as part of Gov. Gavin Newsom's last 2022 round of Homekey funding.

Federal Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley allows clearing out of Columbus Park homeless encampment, located under the flight path of Mineta San Jose International Airport. San Jose vows to transition the homeless into permanent shelters.

The CVS on The Alameda, which closed about two weeks ago, offered a convenient one-stop shop for groceries, basic goods and pharmaceutical needs, but it also became a "magnet" for homeless residents.