Tracked Issues
Editorially curated live civic issues linked to meetings, organizations, statements, and news.
Cities
Showing 113 active issues.
Climate Action & the Ravenswood Flooding Challenge • Featured
active • Flooding
Last activity: Jun 2, 2026
The City Council's top self-identified priority for FY 2026–27 is climate action — mitigation, adaptation, and resilience — reflecting Menlo Park's genuine and growing physical vulnerability to sea level rise, flooding, and extreme heat. Th…
Budget Pressure — Rising Fees & Structural Constraints
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Jun 2, 2026
Menlo Park is bracing for a fiscal squeeze that is already hitting residents' pocketbooks. The City Council unanimously — though cautiously — approved a new city fee schedule in April 2026, with increases ranging from 5% to more than 300% a…
Downtown Transformation & the Parking Lot Housing Debate • Featured
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: Jun 2, 2026
Menlo Park's most contentious near-term planning battle centers on whether to redevelop the city's downtown surface parking lots — all 556 public parking spaces — into affordable housing while maintaining public parking access. The city iss…
Meta's Willow Village Cancellation — A Blow to the City's Housing & Tax Base
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Jun 2, 2026
One of the most significant development reversals in Menlo Park's history came without warning on May 1, 2026. Meta announced it was halting the long-planned Willow Village project — a massive mixed-use neighborhood adjacent to its main cam…
Affordable Housing — Strong Market-Rate Numbers, a Serious Affordability Gap • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Jun 2, 2026
Menlo Park is making genuine progress on housing production — but that progress is deeply uneven. As of the end of 2025, Menlo Park had already permitted nearly 60% of its required higher-income units but had permitted a much smaller share …
VLF Revenue Shortfall & Long-Term Fiscal Health • Featured
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Jun 1, 2026
Like every city in San Mateo County, Foster City is squeezed by the countywide vehicle license fee (VLF) replacement revenue shortfall that is draining millions from local general funds annually. Foster City's general fund is relatively lea…
SB 79 & Transit-Oriented Development Pressure • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Jun 1, 2026
Foster City faces a new pressure from SB 79 — the state's transit-oriented housing law taking effect July 1, 2026 — despite not having a Caltrain station of its own. The city is served by SamTrans bus routes connecting to the Hillsdale Calt…
District Elections — A New Democratic Era Begins • Featured
active • Governance, Elections, and Civic Process
Last activity: Jun 1, 2026
Foster City is making a historic governance transition in 2026 — its first-ever district-based elections after decades of at-large Council seats. At a public hearing on December 2, 2025, the City Council adopted a district map and finalized…
Sea Level Rise — The Levee Is Done, But the Work Is Not • Featured
active • Flooding
Last activity: Jun 1, 2026
Foster City completed the largest public works project in its history in February 2024 — a multi-year levee improvement program that is already earning national recognition. The Levee Improvements Project has been recognized by the Floodpla…
4% of the Way to a Mandatory Goal • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Jun 1, 2026
Foster City is in a housing production emergency. Two years into the 2023–2031 RHNA cycle, Foster City has completed just 73 of the 1,896 homes it is required to plan for and has approved only 38 new units — roughly 3 to 4 percent of its st…
The November Supervisor Races — Moderates vs. Progressives for the City's Direction • Featured
active • Governance, Elections, and Civic Process
Last activity: May 27, 2026
The 2026 San Francisco Supervisor elections are among the most consequential local races anywhere in California. Five Supervisor races will be on the November ballot — and whether moderates can maintain their slim Board majority, won in the…
The Overpaid CEO Tax & November's Battle Over Business Taxation • Featured
active • Economy & Community
Last activity: May 27, 2026
San Francisco faces a high-stakes November 2026 ballot showdown over how to tax the city's wealthiest companies. Measure D — the "Overpaid CEO Tax" — on the June 2, 2026 ballot aims to increase the tax on large businesses whose highest-paid…
Charter Reform — Efficiency or Power Grab?
active • Governance
Last activity: May 27, 2026
One of the most politically charged debates of 2026 is whether San Francisco should fundamentally reform its 500-page City Charter. Mayor Lurie and his moderate allies argue that charter reform is necessary to clear out the bureaucratic com…
Housing Production — 82,000 Units Needed, Thousands Entitled but Unbuilt • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: May 27, 2026
San Francisco has a state-mandated RHNA obligation of 82,069 new units by 2031 — the largest allocation in the city's history. Progress has been deeply uneven: in 2024, nearly two-thirds of SF's housing production was affordable — but the a…
Federal Funding & the Sanctuary City Standoff • Featured
active • Immigration
Last activity: May 27, 2026
San Francisco is at the front lines of the national battle over sanctuary city policies and federal funding. Federal funding accounted for 6% of San Francisco's general fund for the last full fiscal year ending June 2025 — nearly $1 billion…
Muni & Transit — A $307 Million Fiscal Cliff Barely Averted • Featured
active • Transit
Last activity: May 27, 2026
San Francisco's Muni system is in the worst financial crisis in its history, and the approved budget is a triage measure, not a recovery. The SFMTA Board in April 2026 unanimously approved a balanced two-year operating budget of $1.5 billio…
Downtown & Office Vacancy — A 30% Vacancy Rate That Defines the "Doom Loop" • Featured
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: May 27, 2026
San Francisco's downtown office vacancy problem is the worst of any major American city — and it drives everything from Muni's financial crisis to retail closures to the city's tax revenue shortfall. The city's office vacancy rate has hover…
Homelessness — A Policy Impasse at Scale
active • Homelessness
Last activity: May 27, 2026
San Francisco's homelessness crisis is one of the most expensive and intractable in the nation. The city spends more per homeless resident than virtually any city in America, yet the fundamental outcomes — people housed, people off the stre…
Fentanyl & Open-Air Drug Markets — The Defining Visual of SF's Crisis • Featured
active • Crime and Public Safety
Last activity: May 27, 2026
Despite years of enforcement operations, open-air drug use remains the most visible symbol of San Francisco's urban crisis. After a record 806 overdose deaths in 2023, deaths declined 21% in 2024 to 635 — but rates began rising again in 202…
The $642 Million Budget Deficit — Painful Cuts Ahead • Featured
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: May 27, 2026
San Francisco's fiscal crisis looms over every other issue in the city. The city's projected two-year General Fund shortfall for FY 2026–27 and FY 2027–28 stands at $642.8 million — an improvement from a prior projection of $817.5 million, …
The US 101/Woodside Road Interchange — Fixing the Peninsula's Worst Bottleneck
active • Traffic / congestion
Last activity: May 26, 2026
The intersection of US 101 and SR 84 (Woodside Road) in Redwood City is one of the most congested and dangerous interchanges on the Peninsula — and a major reconstruction project is finally moving forward. The US 101/Woodside Road interchan…
Waterfront Development — A Transformational Deal in Negotiation • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: May 26, 2026
Redwood City's bayfront is the site of one of the most consequential development negotiations on the Peninsula. The City Council created a dedicated subcommittee in February 2026 to negotiate a major waterfront development agreement — a sig…
The Greater Downtown Area Plan — A 25-Year Vision Taking Shape • Featured
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: May 26, 2026
Redwood City is in the middle of one of the most ambitious long-range planning processes on the Peninsula. The Greater Downtown Area Plan, which City Council reviewed in its first meeting of 2026, is a 25-year land use, economic development…
Homelessness — A $1.2M Outreach Commitment With Accountability Built In • Featured
active • Homelessness
Last activity: May 26, 2026
Redwood City is taking a more structured, outcomes-focused approach to homelessness than most Peninsula cities. The City Council in February 2026 approved a two-year, $1.215 million contract with LifeMoves for encampment outreach, case mana…
Housing Production & Tenant Protections — Leading the Peninsula, But Not Done • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: May 26, 2026
Redwood City is one of the most active housing producers on the Peninsula, but affordability remains a stubborn challenge. City Council reported in March 2026 that Redwood City issued building permits for 490 homes in 2025 and 1,321 homes s…
Renter Protections & the Affordability Crisis — New Rules, Unresolved Pressures • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: May 25, 2026
San Mateo is one of the most expensive rental markets in the country, and the City Council took a significant step in December 2025 to protect existing tenants. The Council adopted a new Residential Tenant Protection Program, which requires…
Downtown San Mateo — Keeping the Heart of the City Vibrant • Featured
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: May 25, 2026
Downtown San Mateo is one of the strongest performing downtowns on the Peninsula, but it faces real headwinds from post-pandemic office vacancy, retail evolution, and the pressure of new high-density development along its edges. San Mateo's…
Flooding & Stormwater Infrastructure — A $9 Million Annual Need • Featured
active • Flooding
Last activity: May 25, 2026
Flooding is one of San Mateo's most persistent and costly quality-of-life challenges, and its aging stormwater system is increasingly unable to handle intensifying storms. The city estimates it needs approximately $9 million per year to str…
Historic Preservation vs. Housing — A Line in the Sand • Featured
active • Historic preservation
Last activity: May 25, 2026
San Mateo is engaged in one of the most consequential — and contentious — historic preservation policy debates on the Peninsula. The City Council held an emotional January 26, 2026 study session dominated by broad concerns over property rig…
SB 79 & the Housing Transformation of the El Camino & Caltrain Corridor • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: May 25, 2026
San Mateo has more to gain — and more to lose — from SB 79 than almost any other Peninsula city, with two Caltrain stations (Hayward Park and San Mateo) and dense El Camino Real frontage squarely in the law's half-mile radius. SB 79 takes e…
VLF Revenue Shortfall — Belmont Caught in the Countywide Squeeze
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: May 25, 2026
Belmont has been grappling with the same VLF (vehicle license fee) replacement revenue shortfall that is squeezing every San Mateo County city. The city has experienced a $1.5 million annual shortfall in VLF replacement revenue, anticipated…
El Camino Real Safety & the Grand Boulevard Initiative • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: May 25, 2026
El Camino Real — Belmont's primary commercial and transit spine — is simultaneously the city's most important economic corridor and one of its most dangerous roads for pedestrians and cyclists. With substantial housing planned along El Cami…
Hillside Roads & Geologic Hazards — An Infrastructure Backlog • Featured
active • Traffic / congestion
Last activity: May 25, 2026
Belmont's hillside neighborhoods — governed by the Hillside Residential and Open Space (HRO) zoning districts — sit on some of the Peninsula's most geologically complex and slope-prone terrain. The HRO districts are subject to geologic and …
Affordable Housing Production — Still Falling Short • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: May 25, 2026
Despite significant rezoning activity along its El Camino Real corridor, Belmont has not yet met its state-mandated RHNA targets for low and very-low-income housing. The California Department of Housing and Community Development has determi…
SB 79 & the Transit-Oriented Development Transformation • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: May 25, 2026
Belmont sits squarely in the path of SB 79, California's new transit-oriented housing law, with its Caltrain station at 995 El Camino Real serving as a Tier 1 qualifying stop. SB 79, which takes effect July 1, 2026, overrides local height a…
Housing & The Largest Upzoning in County History
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: May 24, 2026
San Mateo County is making a historic housing bet along its transit corridors. On April 21, 2026, the Board of Supervisors adopted an amended Housing Element on a 4-1 vote, creating three new high-density zoning districts near Colma BART — …
Sea Level Rise — California's Ground Zero
active • Climate, Environment, and Resilience
Last activity: May 24, 2026
San Mateo County has been formally identified as the most vulnerable county in California to sea level rise — a designation that carries enormous long-term policy and financial stakes. The county's bayfront communities, including Redwood Sh…
Youth Mental Health Crisis — Alarming Data Demands Action
active • Mental health
Last activity: May 24, 2026
San Mateo County is confronting a youth mental health emergency that elected officials described as "sobering" even during a ceremonial Mental Health Month proclamation. A representative from the Peninsula Suicide Prevention / Felton Instit…
Sheriff's Office Aftermath — Rebuilding Accountability & Trust • Featured
active • Police accountability
Last activity: May 24, 2026
San Mateo County is still working through the fallout of one of the most dramatic law enforcement governance crises in the Bay Area in recent memory. In May 2025, an independent investigation found evidence of conflicts of interest, misuse …
The VLF Funding Crisis — A $157 Million Injustice • Featured
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: May 24, 2026
San Mateo County is fighting one of the most consequential — and least publicized — fiscal injustices in California. The dispute centers on "in-lieu VLF" replacement funding that counties and cities receive tied to a vehicle license fee red…
Civic Center Master Plan — Reimagining the Heart of Gilroy • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Gilroy is pursuing a generational reinvestment in its civic core. The city has released a Draft Environmental Impact Report for a Civic Center Master Plan that proposes demolition of the existing City Hall, Wheeler Auditorium, City Hall Ann…
Pedestrian Safety — A Crisis at School Crossings • Featured
active • Traffic / congestion
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
A tragic fatal accident in January 2026 that claimed two lives near a Gilroy school galvanized the city and school district into action. In a joint meeting on February 4, Gilroy Unified School District board members and City Council members…
District-Based Elections — A Historic Democratic Shift • Featured
active • Governance
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Gilroy is making history in 2026. The city has transitioned from at-large elections to district-based elections, and November 2026 will be the first time Gilroy residents vote by district — with Districts 4, 5, and 6 on the ballot, and cand…
Housing Production — Big Pipeline, Slow Delivery • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Gilroy has a state-mandated RHNA obligation of approximately 1,810 units for the 2023–2031 cycle, with a commitment to 40 opportunity sites for multi-family homes, a downtown expansion district, and a First Street mixed-use corridor. But de…
Homelessness — The Bay Area's Most Disproportionate Crisis • Featured
active • Homelessness
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Gilroy carries a homelessness burden that few California cities its size can match. Gilroy has more than 17 unhoused residents per thousand residents — one of the highest rates in the entire Bay Area — and while the city lacks large visible…
Sports Tourism Strategy — A Big Bet on Economic Diversification
active • Entertainment
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Morgan Hill is pursuing one of the most distinctive economic development strategies in South Santa Clara County: becoming a regional hub for sports tourism. The city has authorized negotiations for a major multi-use indoor sports complex at…
US 101 Congestion — Growth Without Transportation Solutions
active • Traffic / congestion
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
US 101 through Morgan Hill is one of the most congested stretches of freeway in Santa Clara County — and rapid housing growth is making it worse. The section of US 101 from Dunne Avenue to the south end of Gilroy has been stop-and-go seven …
Downtown Housing Boom — Parking, Character & State Law Tensions • Featured
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Morgan Hill's beloved downtown is in the middle of a housing transformation that is creating genuine friction between new residents, existing businesses, and a City Council trying to balance state law compliance with small-town character. P…
Structural Budget Deficit — Planning Ahead for a Revenue Measure • Featured
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Morgan Hill is managing a slow-building fiscal challenge that its leadership is now openly addressing. Mayor Mark Turner confirmed at the April 1, 2026 City Council meeting that the city's general fund reserve is not expected to drop below …
DOJ Lawsuit — A Federal Battle Over the Natural Gas Ban • Featured
active • Utilities
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Morgan Hill is now a defendant in a high-profile federal lawsuit that puts its climate policies directly in conflict with the Trump administration. On January 5, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice filed suit in the Northern District of Ca…
The Churchill Avenue Rail Crossing — Safety, Community, and Loss • Featured
active • Transit
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
One of the most emotionally resonant civic debates in Palo Alto centers on the Churchill Avenue rail crossing — and what its future means for community safety and connectivity. Residents have clashed over a proposal to close the Churchill c…
"Ghost Homes" & Billionaire Compounds — Equity at the Extremes
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Palo Alto is grappling with a uniquely Silicon Valley phenomenon: ultra-wealthy property owners purchasing and aggregating multiple homes — sometimes leaving them vacant for years — while the city struggles to meet its housing production go…
Budget Deficits — An Albatross Around the City's Neck • Featured
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Palo Alto is facing a structural fiscal crisis that is constraining nearly every policy decision. A long-range financial forecast presented to the City Council shows budget deficits every fiscal year through 2032, larger than previous proje…
Cubberley Community Center — A November Ballot Gamble
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Palo Alto's most consequential civic vote in years will come this November, when the City Council plans to ask residents to fund the redevelopment of Cubberley Community Center. The city's pollster FM3 has recommended that Palo Alto wait un…
SB 79 & the Housing Transformation of South Palo Alto • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Palo Alto is confronting a housing mandate of 6,086 units by 2031 — and the arrival of SB 79 on July 1, 2026 is dramatically raising the stakes. One of the primary concerns for city officials is the numerous historic sites in the SB 79 "spl…
Limited Civic Visibility — Engagement in a Low-Profile City
active • Governance
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Monte Sereno’s small size and lack of commercial or institutional hubs mean civic engagement often flies under the radar. Meetings can have low attendance, and key decisions may move forward with limited public input. While that can make go…
Environmental Preservation vs. Development — Protecting Open Space • Featured
active • Parks & green space
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Monte Sereno’s identity is closely tied to its natural landscape — mature trees, hillsides, and open space — but that environment is under constant pressure. Development proposals, even at small scale, can raise concerns about tree removal,…
Infrastructure and Service Dependence — A Small City in a Regional System • Featured
active • Governance
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Monte Sereno operates with a minimal municipal footprint, relying heavily on Santa Clara County and neighboring cities for essential services — from policing and fire protection to roads and public health. That structure keeps the city lean…
Wildfire Risk — Living on the Edge of the Interface • Featured
active • Environment
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Situated in the wildland-urban interface at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Monte Sereno faces elevated wildfire risk. Dense vegetation, narrow hillside roads, and limited evacuation routes compound the danger — especially as climate …
Housing Pressure vs. Rural Character — A City at a Crossroads • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Monte Sereno has long defined itself by low-density zoning, large lots, and a quiet, semi-rural identity — but state housing mandates are forcing change. Like every city in California, Monte Sereno must plan for additional housing under the…
Wildfire Preparedness & Evacuation Safety
active • Environment
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Saratoga is one of 14 communities in Santa Clara County identified as at elevated wildfire risk, and the threat is not abstract — fires in the Santa Cruz Mountains have come perilously close to the city's hillside neighborhoods in recent ye…
Traffic Safety & Hillside Road Conditions
active • Traffic / congestion
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Traffic safety is consistently cited by Saratoga residents — and elected officials — as among the top quality-of-life concerns in the city. Newly elected Councilmember Belal Aftab identified traffic, housing, and crime as his top three prio…
Fiscal Sustainability — A Structural Budget Gap
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Saratoga has been managing a structural budget shortfall that has forced difficult trade-offs across city services. The city projected a $4.8 million budget deficit by 2026, identified years ago at a special City Council meeting, forcing th…
Builder's Remedy Projects — Two Contested Developments Loom Large • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Saratoga is navigating two major Builder's Remedy housing applications that have galvanized community opposition and raised serious safety questions. The first is the Masson Estates project on Pierce Road: a 25-unit single-family developmen…
Housing Mandates vs. Wildfire Risk — An Impossible Equation? • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 30, 2026
Saratoga faces perhaps the most acute tension between state housing law and physical geography of any city in Santa Clara County. Roughly half of the city is located in the Wildland Urban Interface — the area most at risk for wildfire — and…
The Pathway System — Preserving the Town's Defining Asset
active • Parks & green space
Last activity: Apr 29, 2026
Los Altos Hills is defined by its 100-mile network of unpaved equestrian and pedestrian pathways — a community asset found nowhere else in Silicon Valley, embedded in the town's General Plan as a core element. In September and October 2025,…
Community Fiber — Building the Town's Digital Infrastructure • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 29, 2026
Los Altos Hills is making a significant long-term investment in community-owned fiber optic internet infrastructure — an unusual civic project that reflects the town's commitment to self-reliance. The Los Altos Hills Community Fiber (LAHCF)…
Wildfire Risk & Evacuation Planning — The Town's Most Urgent Existential Threat • Featured
active • Environment
Last activity: Apr 29, 2026
Wildfire is the single greatest physical threat to Los Altos Hills. The Los Altos Hills County Fire District identifies wildfires, earthquakes, power outages, storms, and landslides as the primary hazards facing the community, emphasizing t…
Flock Safety Cameras — A Town That Said No First
active • Police accountability
Last activity: Apr 29, 2026
Los Altos Hills made national news in January 2026 as one of the first municipalities in California to sever ties with Flock Safety. The Town Council voted to end its contract with Flock Safety immediately and directed staff to begin taking…
Housing Lawsuit — The State vs. a Town Fighting Back • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 29, 2026
Los Altos Hills is now the subject of active fair housing litigation — one of the most consequential civic battles in the town's history. The California Housing Defense Fund (CalHDF) filed suit in Santa Clara County Superior Court on April …
Aging Adults & Age-Friendly Community Planning
active • Seniors
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Altos has taken a notably proactive approach to serving its growing population of older adults. The city received the Age-Friendly designation from AARP and the World Health Organization in May 2024, and in December 2024 received approv…
Complete Streets, Traffic Safety & Safe Routes to Schools • Featured
active • Traffic / congestion
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
The General Plan Update — A Once-in-a-Generation Community Vision
active • Governance
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Altos launched a comprehensive General Plan update in January 2026 — the first since the plan's adoption in 2002 — to address emerging issues, new state laws, and community priorities over the next 20 years. The update aims to preserve …
Flock Safety License Plate Readers — Privacy, Immigration & Public Safety
active • Police accountability
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Altos has actively embraced Flock Safety automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras as a public safety tool, with the city maintaining a robust network used by the Los Altos Police Department. City officials have highlighted that cri…
Housing Mandates — 1,958 Units in a City That Has Never Built at Scale • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Altos faces one of the most difficult RHNA challenges in Silicon Valley relative to its existing character. The city's current allocation is 1,958 housing units for the 2023–2031 cycle, of which 1,105 are required to be affordable — an …
Infrastructure & Fiscal Sustainability — Roads, Trees & a Town Stretched Thin
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Gatos faces growing infrastructure maintenance demands that its revenues struggle to keep pace with. In April 2026, emergency repairs began on Shannon Road to address a critical roadway failure, including construction of a retaining wal…
The General Plan Fracture — What Kind of Town Does Los Gatos Want to Be? • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Gatos is in an unusual and legally precarious position: the Town Council voted to rescind the Land Use Element and Community Design Element of its 2040 General Plan in April 2024, following a resident-driven referendum, leaving the town…
The West Valley Mosque Dispute — Religious Freedom & Neighbor Relations • Featured
active • Ethnic communities
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
A closely watched land use and civil rights dispute has emerged around the West Valley Muslim Association (WVMA), which operates a mosque at 16769 Farley Road and applied for a conditional use permit modification to extend its operating hou…
Wildfire Risk & Evacuation Planning
active • Environment
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Gatos has one of the most serious wildfire exposures of any incorporated town in Santa Clara County, with hillside neighborhoods, dense tree canopy, and limited evacuation routes. The Town Council has been taking sustained policy and bu…
Housing Battles — The Town vs. the State (and Developers) • Featured
active
Last activity: Apr 28, 2026
Los Gatos is one of the most litigated housing battlegrounds in California. The town was late in adopting a compliant Housing Element, triggering the state's "Builder's Remedy" — a mechanism that allowed developers to file projects the town…
Housing Affordability & RHNA — Racing Against the Clock • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Campbell has a state-mandated obligation to plan for 3,870 new homes by 2031, with 1,542 designated as affordable. Progress has been slow: as of its most recent annual progress report, the city had counted only 117 homes toward its state-ma…
City Council Conduct — A Governance Crisis
active • Governance
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Campbell's City Council has been rocked by a serious misconduct controversy involving Councilmember Elliot Scozzola. The Council unanimously stripped Scozzola of his vice mayor title in March 2026 following an incident at The Garret bar and…
Downtown Campbell's Future — Growth vs. Character • Featured
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Campbell's beloved downtown strip on East Campbell Avenue is at an inflection point. A 90-home, five-to-six-story development proposed at 600 E. Campbell Ave. — a vacant lot sandwiched between The Pruneyard and the historic downtown core — …
The Starter Homes Loophole — Neighborhoods vs. the State • Featured
active
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Even before SB 79, Campbell has been navigating a fierce fight over the Starter Homes Revitalization Act (SB 684/SB 1123), which allows up to 10 small homes on vacant residential lots. Campbell passed a policy last year that allowed develop…
SB 79 — The Law That Could Triple Campbell's Population • Featured
active • Density / upzoning
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
No city in Santa Clara County faces a more proportionally dramatic impact from Senate Bill 79, the new state transit-oriented housing law effective July 1, 2026, than Campbell. Campbell — covering just 6.5 square miles with a population of …
City Hall Governance — Legal Battles & Accountability
active • Governance
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Milpitas's City Council has been embroiled in ongoing legal and governance controversy stemming from the ouster of former City Manager Steve McHarris. McHarris filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against the city in late 2023, alleging he …
Traffic Congestion — The Price of Transit-Oriented Growth
active • Traffic / congestion
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Milpitas has added roughly 7,000 new housing units near its BART station over the past decade — and traffic has paid the price. Traffic congestion in the Milpitas Metro Area is already severe, particularly on Montague Expressway between I-6…
Supportive Housing Safety — The Hillview Court Crisis • Featured
active • Mental health
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Hillview Court, a 134-unit permanent supportive housing complex for formerly homeless residents at 1000 Hillview Court, has been the site of an alarming pattern of deaths. Milpitas police recorded multiple calls for service where people wer…
Innovation District — Can Milpitas Compete for Tech Jobs?
active • Economy & Community
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
The Innovation District is a 74-acre area within the Milpitas Metro Specific Plan, envisioned as a thriving employment destination featuring modern office, creative flex space, and R&D buildings — with the opening of the Milpitas Transit Ce…
The Great Mall & BART Transit Village — A 30-Year Transformation Underway • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Milpitas is in the middle of one of the most ambitious urban redevelopment efforts in Santa Clara County. The Milpitas Metro Specific Plan, adopted in 2023, covers approximately 510 acres in the city's southern corridor centered on the Milp…
Downtown Revitalization & Office Vacancy
active
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Despite Mountain View's strong reputation, its downtown is not immune to the post-pandemic commercial real estate slump. The city's office vacancy rate stands at roughly 20% — consistent with neighboring cities but still a drag on downtown …
Sea Level Rise & Shoreline Climate Resilience • Featured
active • Flooding
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
A large swath of northern Mountain View faces serious long-term flooding risk. City projections show the Bay could rise between 23 and 42 inches by 2070, potentially flooding a large portion of the city's northern Shoreline community. The c…
Google's North Bayshore — A 30-Year Megaproject Begins • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
Mountain View approved the largest development project in its history in 2023: Google's North Bayshore Master Plan, covering 153 acres and including up to 7,000 housing units, 3 million square feet of office space, 26 acres of parks and ope…
SB 79 & the Future of Downtown Castro Street • Featured
active • Historic preservation
Last activity: Apr 27, 2026
The most urgent land-use battle in Mountain View right now centers on Senate Bill 79, the state's new transit-oriented housing law. Signed by Governor Newsom in October 2025, SB 79 goes into effect July 1, 2026, and sets statewide zoning st…
City Council Political Divisions — Governance at a Crossroads
active • Governance
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
Cupertino's City Council is sharply divided — and those divisions are shaping nearly every major decision. Mayor Kitty Moore blocked a Council ally from becoming vice mayor at a recent meeting, even though both belong to the same political …
Wildfire Risk, Evacuation Planning & Public Safety • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
Cupertino's hillside and foothill neighborhoods face genuine and growing wildfire exposure, and the City Council is updating its Health and Safety General Plan element for the first time since 2014. State law now requires expanded requireme…
Budget Instability — Life After Apple Tax Revenue
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
For years, Cupertino's finances rested on an unusually lucrative — and legally questionable — tax arrangement with Apple. Following a state audit and more than a year of fiscal uncertainty, the city recently recorded a projected $4.5 millio…
The Rise/Vallco Redevelopment — A 20-Year Saga Continues • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
The former Vallco Mall site is among the most watched development projects in Silicon Valley. The Rise is planned to include thousands of housing units, extensive office space, retail, and community features — but its long timeline, rising …
Housing Mandates vs. Community Control — A City Under State Pressure • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
Cupertino is in a sustained clash with the State of California over housing production. The city has entitled 2,929 units but issued building permits for only 368 units, leaving a shortfall of 4,220 units to meet its RHNA numbers. The situ…
The AI & Data Center Energy Dilemma
active • Artificial Intelligence
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
Santa Clara sits at the center of a high-stakes debate over data centers, AI infrastructure, and power supply. The city has 55 data centers, which buy 60% of the power generated by Silicon Valley Power (SVP), the city-owned utility — and th…
Levi's Stadium Governance & the 49ers Relationship
active • Entertainment
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
The city's financial and political relationship with the San Francisco 49ers continues to be a flashpoint. For the second consecutive year, the 49ers have asked the Santa Clara Stadium Authority to cover the lease for their 52,000-square-fo…
Downtown Revitalization & the Future of City Hall
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
The City Council is preparing to release a Request for Proposals for development on 4.5 acres of city-owned land in Downtown Santa Clara, with the goal of creating a vibrant town square, restoring the historic street grid, adding new retail…
Traffic Safety & Neighborhood Livability • Featured
active • Development & Neighborhoods
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
Traffic safety has become a quality-of-life priority for Santa Clara residents. The city has launched a "Please Slow Down" initiative to encourage lower driving speeds, with free yard signs available to residents. A recent fatal collision i…
FIFA World Cup & Super Bowl Legacy — Costs, Benefits & Resident Impact • Featured
active • Entertainment
Last activity: Apr 26, 2026
Santa Clara is the only city in the country to host both the Super Bowl and the FIFA World Cup in the same year City of Santa Clara — a remarkable distinction that has also put real strain on city resources and sparked political controversy…
Downtown Revitalization — Murphy Avenue & the Cityline Build-Out
active • Downtown revitalization
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
Sunnyvale's downtown is in the midst of a generational transformation. Murphy Avenue — between West Washington and West Evelyn avenues — is currently closed to vehicles and being converted to a permanent pedestrian-only mall, with construct…
Stormwater Pollution & Clean Water Act Violations • Featured
active • Environment
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
A federal judge ruled in March 2026 that Sunnyvale violated the Clean Water Act, finding the city responsible for more than 1,200 violations involving bacteria pollution discharged from its stormwater system into Stevens Creek, Calabazas Cr…
Immigration Enforcement & the "ICE-Free Zone" Policy • Featured
active • Immigration
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
In one of the most watched civic actions of 2026, the Sunnyvale City Council unanimously voted to prohibit ICE agents from using city-owned property for civil immigration enforcement, joining a growing number of Santa Clara County municipal…
Housing Affordability & RHNA Compliance • Featured
active • Housing Affordability
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
Sunnyvale is under mounting state pressure to meet its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) — the mandated number of units each California city must plan for every eight years. In the current RHNA cycle, Sunnyvale has built just 272 of …
Transportation & Transit Future (VTA) • Featured
active • Transit
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is navigating a dual mandate — running a regional transit system while developing affordable housing on underutilized land near stations. Ten VTA projects currently in active development…
Federal Funding Threats to County Services • Featured
active • Budget priorities
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
The county is confronting $70 million in anticipated lost federal funding it will need to backfill, with the Office of Supportive Housing facing the largest losses of $29 million. Federal Medi-Cal cuts are driving multiple departmental shor…
Child Welfare System Failures
active • Youth
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
The county's Department of Family and Children's Services has been placed under expanded state oversight following the death of toddler Jaxon Juarez in foster care. A county medical examiner report found that three child abuse-related death…
Homelessness & Housing Affordability
active • Homelessness
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
Santa Clara County has a record number of more than 10,700 homeless people, according to a recent point-in-time count. Chronic homelessness has increased 21% since 2023, and more people are reporting being homeless for the first time — near…
Mental Health Services Budget Crisis • Featured
active • Mental health
Last activity: Apr 25, 2026
The Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services Department is facing a $100 million deficit for fiscal year 2026–27, driven by federal Medi-Cal cuts triggered by H.R. 1, changes in state funding, the end of one-time COVID-19 dollars, and …