Posts by Take Back San Jose

Long Story Short… Here’s what you need to know this week — in 30 seconds or less: Keep scrolling for all the data and details. Dear Neighbor, Hope fuels action. It’s won presidential campaigns, it’s ended wars, it’s powered scientific breakthroughs.  The absence of hope breeds stagnation. Because the moment we lose faith in progress,…

January 14, 2025 Image by Jon Evans New research reveals that homelessness across the U.S. is up more than 10%, despite billions (mis)spent on addressing the crisis. Robert Marbut, former U.S. homelessness czar, says that the country’s Housing First policies—which effectively redirected monies away from treatment and towards expensive new housing—has exacerbated unprecedented levels of…

August 18, 2022 Local nonprofit spokespeople recently took to the op-ed pages of local media to buttress SJ’s widely criticized Housing First and Permanent Supportive Housing strategies. Their rickety defense neglects crucial details on how barrier-free permanent housing is ineffective, costly, and wrongly targeted. Various expert sources below analyze PSH’s inadequacies to assist local communities. To receive daily updates of…

May 25, 2023 CityWatch LA’s Tim Campbell describes how barrier-free housing programs, such as what SJ and LA provide, are not successful if used independently of other support measures—especially substance abuse and behavioral interventions. Many SJ locals like past councilmember Johnny Khamis are calling for more comprehensive strategies to address homelessness. Housing First can be…

August 25, 2023 Data says: Housing First flounders on actually abating homelessness in CA/Utah The Cato Institute team parses outcomes from California’s and Utah’s Housing First policies, and wonders why pols keep pouring taxpayer funds into initiatives that have only seen elevated homelessness rates. Between 2016 and 2022, for instance, CA’s rose by 93%—so really,…

November 23, 2025 The burning of the Amazon Rainforest is a classic example of a common flaw in local government thinking–considering only the benefits of an action, regardless of its price. Image by Amazônia Real from Manaus AM, Brasil, CC BY 2.0 One of the biggest problems baked into Silicon Valley progressive governance is the systemic…

April 5, 2021 Michael Brilliot of the SJ Planning Dept recently chided Planning Commissioner Pierluigi Oliverio for saying that San Jose’s proposed Opportunity Housing initiative would eliminate single family zoning in the city, even though the initiative would allow up to six units on lots currently zoned for single families. Brilliot publicly said PLO was…

December 23, 2019 Affordable housing & living. Integrated communities. Booming economy. Increased densification. Scott Beyer of Market Urbanism takes on liberal snobbery about Houston’s urban success in Catalyst. “Anyone who advocates for “Market Urbanism”—aka free-market city policy—must grapple with a common response: “but then we’ll get a bunch of Houstons.” The implication is that Houston is…

December 15, 2023 SJtoday takes us on a tour through the heart of DTSJ’s streets, highlighting the unique, vibrant, and culturally rich murals the Silicon Valley’s Capital has to offer. Below, take a break from local news and enjoy a tasting plate of SJ’s best art: celebrating cultures all over the globe, important figures like…