Sometimes good ideas last forever. And Boxing Day is a good day to appreciate them. Local historian April Halberstat gives us an affectionate review of our epic, historic local rail line--now called Caltrain. An Opp Now exclusive.
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Overflowing sunshine. Flowers, green grasses, and fruits of every kind. Early California poet (and namesake of the Oakland park) Joaquin Miller (1837–1913) revels in the wonders of “A California Christmas,” below. We echo his gratitude for this special place and the folks in it—and, from the Opp Now team, heartily wish you a wonderful Holiday Season and New Year. :-)
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It's not North Beach, but SJ has its own legacy of Beat Literature from the 1950s. And perhaps none is more stirring than this dreamy, little-remarked passage from Jack Kerouac's The Dharma Bums, in which the narrator hitches a (literal and spiritual) ride on a southbound Xmas Eve train, beginning his SJ-to-LA journey from the sidings of the old Southern Pacific station downtown.
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Historian April Halberstadt whisks us back to Christmas a century ago in her historic San Jose home—when local agriculture was booming, the city rapidly expanding via annexations, and the faith-centered Wright family (living in now-Halberstadt’s home) making their mark on CA politics. An Opp Now exclusive.
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Small restaurants/food trucks are disproportionately impacted by hidden gov’t fees, fines, and taxes (maybe that’s why so many are closing up shop and heading elsewhere). So Opp Now contributors Gus Mattammal and Susan Shelley have two main suggestions for local gov’t: “aggressively” permit new vendors, and break up big food monopolies. An exclusive.
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SJ residents recently reported receiving an online poll from City Manager Jennifer Maguire exploring resident feelings about a tsunami of expensive new city taxes. The potential levies range from upgrading SAP Center to fixing storm drains. This type of polling is often used by cities to determine what messages might help a particular proposed tax increase succeed in an election. A summary of the poll's new tax 'n' spend aspirations below.
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Washington Policy Center highlights Mariya Frost’s article on Sioux Falls’ SAM Flex app, powered by Pantonium’s tech. It ditches fixed routes for on-demand bus rides, cutting costs and CO2 while boosting rider access. With similar tech in nearby Sacramento, Silicon Valley has the opportunity to adopt this private-sector innovation and take its transit to another level.
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If you thought it was over with the bait-n-switch Measure A, think again. November, 2026 will see SB63 on the ballot--a deceptive measure which aims to hide the bailout of the region's bankrupt and unsustainable mass transit systems under the guise of "road repairs." An Opp Now exclusive collated by our editorial team.
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Pre-approving modular design libraries. Waiving impact fees for workforce housing. And–yes—keeping CEQA under control. SF Briones Society’s Jay Donde and former Hollister mayor Victor Gomez lay out how local gov’t might streamline the building process—and save residents thousands along the way. An Opp Now exclusive.
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SJ CM Michael Mulcahy sang the praises of the impact of bankrupt county hospitals in his district as he endorsed the "bait-n-switch" Measure A. Problem is: Mulcahy ignores the negative impact big hospital developments can (and do) have on local residents. Experts and National Community Reinvestment Coalition daylight what Mulcahy doesn't see.
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County Assessor finalist Rishi Kumar has elevated the cause of relief for tax-burdened Santa Clara County residents in his campaign. He advocates for property tax exemptions for seniors as a key part of his candidacy. The local county tax-and-spend cabal, however, is clutching their pearls over his reform ideas, arguing--hilariously--that the county assessor should just be a faceless spreadsheet jockey, and not work for county taxpayers. Jose Esteves, former Milpitas mayor, sets the record straight and highlights how Kumar's tax reform advocacy is on target and sorely needed.
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SJ CM Michael Mulcahy only spent less than two minutes endorsing Measure A sales tax increase (ostensibly to bail out the county's bankrupt hospitals). But in that brief time, he further diminished his pro-business credentials by misreading the impacts of big hospitals on local business community. Experts (including the National Community Reinvestment Coalition) unpack some of Mulcahy's dubious assertions
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