Rumors that SF is shipping its homeless population to other northern California cities was validated last week, as the city of Humboldt complained that SF is simply shooing its homeless to the North Coast college town. SF Standard reports.
Read More
Bay Area-raised Anne Gray volunteers with For Californians, focused on restoring Prop 58 parent/child transfer rights that were lost when Proposition 19 passed in 2020. In this Opp Now exclusive, Gray walks us through what she sees as the devastating fallout from rushed implementation, and asks, “Can’t we do better?”
Read More
SJ CM David Cohen's confused embrace of Prop 5 (which would lower from 66% to 55% the threshold for new local taxes) struck many Opp Now readers as surprising, as just a few week's prior, he was advocating against the Taxpayer Protection Act. In the former, he championed letting locals vote on tax thresholds; in the latter, he opposed the tax threshold initiatives—aligning himself with Gov. Newsom and others who worked to prevent the TPA from even being on the ballot. An Opp New exclusive.
Read More
In this exclusive Opp Now installment, four history educators (from SJ, Berkeley, and SF) discuss what book/documentary/podcast they'd assign local politicians as “required reading.” Spanning from the beginning of time itself, to ancient Greece, to our modern world—their recommendations (poignant and powerful) read below.
Read More
Below, prominent marketplace organization International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) argues that Gov. Newsom's recent package of 10 anti-crime bills is helpful—but insufficient when trying to penalize chronic retail thieves of under $950 (thanks to a Proposition 47 loophole). ICSC offers Prop 36, on the ballot this November, as a potential solution for Californians wanting safe streets.
Read More
Despite local officials acting like full funding has been secured for the super late, wildly expensive, and widely panned BART-to-downtown-SJ project, the facts don't support their claims. According to documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, the FTA has been very clear with VTA that their funding is only for preliminary work—and further funding is still contingent on future developments and achievements by VTA that are by no means guaranteed. An Opp Now exclusive.
Read More
Many alert Opp Now readers raised their eyebrows when CM David Cohen, in supporting the much-derided Prop 5 (which would lower the local tax threshold from 66% to 55%), suggested that majority rule was and should be the preferred form of democracy. The New Naratif website disagrees.
Read More
The day before the San Jose Planning Commission considered and ultimately voted to recommend approving the proposed Schiele Avenue/Alameda Park Historic District—a block of homes in the Garden Alameda district of San Jose—a vocal critic of designation sent an irate email to a group of local civic leaders, city planners, and journalists. Alongside many gross factual misstatements, the email also disparaged historic preservation professionals as “cultist" and the historic homes in question as “crappy.” Responding to this email, Preservation Action Council chief Ben Leech provides some much-needed clarification. Below is Leech's public comment sent to the recipients prior to the Planning Commission meeting on August 28th.
Read More
As Bay Areans prepare to vote on Proposition 5 this cycle, many are asking, “What exactly is a special tax for 'public infrastructure'? What kind of projects are included?” The answer, as elucidated below by The Press Democrat and Sac Bee, may be a bit of a chin-scratcher: the “infrastructure” label can be slapped on, well, most any gov't venture that costs money.
Read More
Let's take a spin at this game: What ballot measure, you might ask, are pols like CM Cohen lauding and mistakenly linking to a wacky understanding of American civics? Bonus question: Would it shock you if all this bill does is make it easier for gov't to borrow money for non-priority projects, incurring debt on your dime? A Proposition 5 breakdown below from HJTA's VP of Comms, Susan Shelley.
Read More
Irene Smith, one of the first local leaders to advocate for sanctioned encampments and congregate housing to address SJ's homelessness crisis, provides City staff some helpful guidelines re: how to make our first sanctioned encampment effective for both neighboring and homeless communities. From Medium.
Read More
According to Palo Alto councilmember Greg Tanaka, SB-1047, ostensibly designed to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) and prevent potential harm—if signed into law—will hamstring technological progress, stifle small businesses, and harm California’s competitive edge in the global AI race. His Opp Now exclusive comments below.
Read More