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Thanksgiving affords us a little more free time, thankfully. But rather than getting pulled into the chaos that is Black Friday, here's a list of suggestions on how to give back a little during the four-day weekend.
Read More 9San Jose Inside (https://www.sanjoseinside.com)
The stink of ex-Supervisor George Shirakawa Jr. has dissipated, and Santa Clara County is focused on a fresh start for 2014. “Scandal is no longer in the air,” Supervisor Ken Yeager said after Tuesday’s State of the County speech, delivered by recently sworn-in Board President Mike Wasserman. “We certainly spent most of last year changing and improving public outreach and creating much more transparency than there was before.” Wasserman’s address focused on the county’s role as a safety net for the most vulnerable, while also highlighting the little-known services it provides for residents.
Read More 3Stories on the plight of the homeless during the recent cold weather have focused on adults living in encampments. But in San Jose there is another homeless population that rarely gets any attention: homeless college students. CNN Money wrote about a homeless college student who was turned out of her Midwest school during winter break. Where do homeless students living in local college dorms go during winter break?
Read More 0Copper wire theft and other problems leave hundreds of streetlights dark, creating a public safety problem in several neighborhoods. But what if the city leases these poles to telecom companies as cell stations to expand their 4G network? Councilmembers Rose Herrera and Sam Liccardo proposed the idea, saying the lights get fixed, courtesy of Philips, and San Jose receives better cell phone service while residents aren’t left in the dark.
Read More 2A point-in-time count on the number of homeless individuals and families in San Jose and Santa Clara County was completed earlier this year. Santa Clara County had 1,200 homeless youth under age 25—either in homeless shelters or on the street. This was more than the number counted for San Francisco during the same time. It is hard to believe that we have more homeless youth and young adults than San Francisco, but the numbers don’t lie.
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