Santa Cruz, a beach town that promotes a legacy of tolerance — “Keep Santa Cruz Weird” is the slogan on T-shirts — hasn’t been able to solve a persistent problem with homelessness. As city officials, nonprofits and activists struggle for answers, the onset of winter poses even more threat to those who find shelter in the open. Looming over everything this year is a resurgent coronavirus.
California’s undocumented workers face food insecurity and evictions now that $75 million in California state funding appropriated in April to support them through the crisis has been depleted.
Cynicism comes easily to those living in Jurassic Park, a homeless encampment in San Jose. As COVID-19 struck the city, a case manager for a local nonprofit knew that he couldn’t leave them behind.
REDWOOD CITY — Redwood City has not been immune to California’s housing crunch. Councilmember Ian Bain, who passed the mayoral title to Diane Howard on Dec. 9 after finishing a two-year term as the city’s top government official, doesn’t have to imagine what it’s like to have trouble affording Bay Area housing.
REDWOOD CITY — For the past decade, a 1,400-acre salt property in Redwood City has been a community battleground.
SAN JOSE — In an effort to address San Jose’s housing shortage, the city’s planning commission has recommended that any home can build a detached accessory dwelling unit so long as it is 45 feet from the property line.
MOUNTAIN VIEW — Opponents of Mountain View’s new ban on RV overnight parking are rushing to collect enough signatures to block enforcement of the new rule.
MOUNTAIN VIEW – Mobile homes, which refer to houses built in factories and transported to different sites, are affordable housing options in overpriced Mountain View. The city harbors six mobile home parks and a total of 1,130 mobile home spaces. But both a newly passed state law and an existing city law that limit how much landlords can increase rent do not apply to mobile homes.
SONOMA COUNTY — When the Kincade Fire swept through Sonoma County last week, one thought crossed the minds of homeowners and builders alike: Will we have to rebuild again?
REDWOOD CITY — Redwood City officials approved an urgency ordinance capping rent increases and setting new requirements for just-cause evictions, joining a small group of California cities to pass similar emergency measures as tenants wait for statewide protections that take effect in 2020.
MOUNTAIN VIEW – Mountain View’s plan to develop 412 acres into housing, office space and retail will be put to a Nov. 5 City Council vote after four years of debate over how to start closing the gap between new jobs and new homes in the city.
Bay Area counties and non-profit organizations are preparing for the 2020 Census by canvassing neighborhoods to make address lists more complete and recruiting “trusted messengers” like priests and community organizers to encourage hard-to-count populations to respond to the census.
