Some of the unhoused individuals left once they learned a sweep was eminent, but more than a dozen people with no options remained Monday afternoon. Those with inoperable vehicles were given a 72-hour warning before vehicles were impounded. The encampment, which sits on the Milpitas – San Jose border, is located on the San Jose side next to the future home of a Microsoft data center site. The tech giant purchased the 65-acre site in 2017 for $73 million. It’s protected by a fence.

Many of the unhoused like Lynn Shipman came from Milpitas three years ago, after the city swept where she parked and painted the curb red. Others from Milpitas joined after the city restricted sleeping in public areas in 2022, Shipman said. Then, Fremont made it illegal for people to camp in public spaces in February, bringing more people to the area. Shipman said what started out as a few vehicles parked on a side street behind the highway sound wall ballooned to about 70 people at its peak.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said the city shouldn’t bear the weight of taking on homeless people from other areas.

“I’ve asked our city attorney to explore legal action against cities enacting punitive policies that displace their unhoused residents into San Jose without providing shelter, which strains our resources and pushes vulnerable people further into crisis,” Mayor Matt Mahan told San José Spotlight.

Shipman found housing last year, but has returned to the camp frequently to help. She’s been towing the inoperable RVs and trailers with her truck to a nearby parking lot in Milpitas so the vehicles don’t get impounded during the sweep.

One man has been calling the safe parking site in Mountain View, but his calls have gone unanswered. Another man with an inoperable car tried to make repairs so he could move his vehicle. Others were packing  belongings before the city cleared the area. This is the first time in three years the city has swept the area, homeless people said.

“People are fearful. They don’t know where else to go,” Shipman, 60, told San José Spotlight.

There’s not enough places for people to park their vehicles without fear of getting swept. San Jose’s two safe parking sites, one on Berryessa Road and the other at the Santa Teresa VTA light rail station, are full. The Berryessa site, which opened last month, can hold 86 RVs and the Santa Teresa site can hold 42 RVs. But there are an estimated 1,000 lived-in vehicles throughout the city.

“It’s unfortunate that we are unable to provide enough safe parking sites at this time to accommodate everyone that must be relocated,” District 4 Councilmember David Cohen, whose district includes the encampment, told San José Spotlight. “As difficult and heartbreaking as this situation is, the city of San Jose cannot legally deny a private property owner access to their land.”

Advocates said the city is clearing the encampment for the giant tech company’s plans to construct its data centers. A Microsoft spokesperson said the data centers are necessary for the growing demand of cloud storage services.

“We understand the cities are taking steps necessary to ensure safety and are working with the impacted individuals,” a Microsoft spokesperson told San José Spotlight.

As San Jose continues to sweep other parts of the city and implement temporary RV bans, people funnel into other neighborhoods and areas, including Columbus Park.

The city is planning to add 1,000 beds or spaces for homeless residents this year, including tiny home communities like Via del Oro and Cherry Avenue, and the city’s first sanctioned sleeping site near Watson Park. However, these sites are largely reserved for those encamped in the immediate vicinity.

San Jose is looking to lease more motels to house homeless people this year, bringing the total number of new beds up to 1,400. The city is exploring the possibility of having safe parking at the motel sites for people who don’t want to give up their RVs.

“San Jose is one of the few cities in the Bay Area dramatically expanding its shelter and interim housing system, but we won’t carry the burden for the entire region,” Mahan said.

Jerry Drawhorn, 59, said they have not been offered any housing resources. Outreach workers from nonprofit Abode Services came out last week, but only took down their names, he said.

Housing department spokesperson Jeff Scott said outreach teams visited the encampment twice before the sweep. Workers informed residents of the upcoming sweep, made sure individuals were entered in the city’s system that tracks homeless people and encouraged the individuals to contact the shelter hotline, Scott said.

Advocates like Yolie Garcia, an organizer for Milpitas group Hope for the Unhoused, have taken it upon themselves to help people find housing, provide food, pay for storage and motel stays and connect people to resources. Garcia said San Jose should’ve provided more resources to help with the move.

“I don’t have a problem with them moving them out,” Garcia told San José Spotlight. “But come out here and look at your community, see what’s needed, so that this can go in a smooth way—not this way. It’s inhumane.”

Contact Joyce Chu at Joyce@sanjosespotlight.com or @joyce_speaks on X. 

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Mayor Carmen Montano and Councilmembers Hon Lien and Evelyn Chua had plans to travel from Jan. 16-20 to the United States Conference of Mayors in D.C. and the inauguration of President Donald Trump. The travel approval and coverage of expenses looked to be a done deal, until Montano pulled the item from the consent calendar for discussion at the Jan. 7 council meeting. Montano wanted Lien’s travel request denied to guarantee the council had a quorum to conduct business if a special meeting was called during their absence.

Councilmembers voted 3-2 to deny Lien’s travel expense request, with Lien and Vice Mayor Garry Barbadillo voting against it.

“What if a plane crashes?” Montano said at the council meeting. “I think it’s prudent that only two go, and there’s always other opportunities in the summer.”

Montano and Chua did not respond to requests for comment.

Montano requested $5,900 for the trip, Chua requested $5,800 and Lien requested $5,000. Lien, who had already registered for the conference and bought plane tickets, had planned to pay her own way, but ended up canceling her trip. Every councilmember is allowed a conference and training budget of $10,000 per fiscal year.

“It is unfair, since I already had pre-planned meetings and people that I want to connect to,” Lien told San José Spotlight.

The conference, which ran from Jan. 17-19, is typically geared for mayors, though there are no restrictions on who can attend. The city covered Montano and Chua’s travel expenses from Jan. 16-20, with approval to attend the inauguration the day following the conference, according to the city’s agenda report. Lien said Montano and Chua didn’t end up going to the inauguration.

At the council meeting, Montano said she wanted Chua to attend the conference because she couldn’t make it last year due to an emergency.
Lien said she attended another conference in D.C. last year where she made new connections and learned about different grants the city could apply for, including a grant that enhances street safety around schools.

“I brought back the idea of the grant,” Lien said at the council meeting. “I shared (it) with staff, and we were successful in securing a $2.9 (million grant). So this is training.”

Contact Joyce Chu at joyce@sanjosespotlight.com or @joyce_speaks on X.

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Former City Manager Steve McHarris filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Milpitas in December 2023, accusing city officials of intimidation and unethical behavior — including from former Mayor Rich Tran and current Mayor Carmen Montano. As part of the pretrial process, witness depositions take place outside the court where they answer questions under oath. These depositions help attorneys prepare for what the witnesses will say in court.

However, Tran did not respond to several attempts by McHarris’ lawyer to question him. McHarris’ lawyer, Stephen Jaffe, filed a motion earlier this month requesting the court penalize Tran for obstructing the pretrial process.

“Tran is the most critical witness affiliated with the defendant and is the principal actor behind the allegations of wrongdoing made in plaintiff’s complaint,” Jaffe wrote in the filing. “Indeed, to illustrate how probative and relevant Tran’s testimony is to this case, the factual allegations in plaintiff’s complaint recite Tran’s name 62 times.”

Tran could not be reached for comment.

To penalize Tran, Jaffe is asking the Santa Clara County Superior Court to remove Tran’s response to the lawsuit, leaving him with no defense statements, and have the court officially declare Tran has lost the case due to a failure to respond in a timely manner.

In addition, the filing claims Tran lied about his whereabouts as an excuse to not show up for a deposition. Tran claimed he was traveling internationally and unavailable on Dec. 23, the date of his deposition. But he was playing pickleball in Milpitas on Christmas, according to the filing.

“Such obvious dishonesty from the former elected Mayor of the defendant city surely justifies the most extreme consequence,” Jaffe wrote.

Jaffe and McHarris declined to comment.

In November, the court granted Milpitas a protective order that bars Harris and Jaffe from releasing information gained during pretrial to the public.

“The city has every reason to believe that (Jaffe) will continue to utilize his contacts with the media to disseminate confidential material to gain any advantage he can,” attorneys with Meyers Nave, the law firm representing the city, said in a motion. “This misuse of the discovery process has imposed a substantial burden on the city and its employees who have a right to privacy.”
The city has denied any wrongdoing in regards to McHarris’ accusation of its unethical behavior, and hired an outside law firm to conduct its own investigation into the issues.

McHarris served as city manager from May 2020 to June 2023, when the Milpitas City Council voted him out. McHarris is the third city manager to be let go since 2017.

McHarris publicly accused Milpitas administrators of a hostile work environment in a claim filed May 2023, detailing instances of intimidation against himself and other city employees. McHarris also claims Tran and Montano pressured him to fire an employee without a reason. When McHarris resisted, he felt he was retaliated against.

Former Councilmember Anthony Phan, who wanted to keep McHarris, previously said City Hall fell apart after his departure.

“There’s been a mass staff exodus, from the entry level to the very top executive team level,” Phan previously told San José Spotlight. “I think it’s a testament to the kind of eroded trust that people have in city leadership.”

Contact Joyce Chu at joyce@sanjosespotlight.com or @joyce_speaks on X. 

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Montano was first elected Milpitas mayor in 2022 after serving as vice mayor — making her the first woman mayor in the city’s history. With Milpitas mayors serving two years per term, the 2024 campaign started almost immediately. Montano faced candidates who included Councilmembers Lien and Anthony Phan, as well as community advocate Voltaire Soriben Montemayor who is running for the fifth time as a mayoral candidate. Montano is leading with 35.9% of the vote, Lien in second place with 33.2% of the vote, Phan with 21.2% and Soriben Montemayor with 9.5% as of Friday afternoon.

A Milpitas native, Montano oversaw the 70th anniversary of the city’s incorporation earlier this year, highlighting its history of agriculture and industry, as well as recent investments in affordable housing, public safety, transportation and economic development.

Montano did not respond to a request for comment.

She previously told San José Spotlight that Milpitas is like every other city: “It’s growing, it’s part of progress, but it has to be smart progress.”

Lien announced her run for Milpitas mayor during her first term on the city council. Before joining the council, she served two terms as a trustee on the Milpitas Unified School District board and became involved in community service after retiring from her seafood wholesale business, Sunnyvale Seafood, in 2007.

She said she remains optimistic that the final election results will show her as the winning candidate, and she will wait until all votes are counted.

If elected mayor, Lien said her goals would be to improve the city’s public safety, increase affordable housing and support the city’s unhoused residents.

“I’m going to stay positive. We walked up and down the neighborhood, knocked on doors and phone banked up until the day of the election,” Lien told San José Spotlight. “Hopefully those who voted late voted for me.”

Montano’s priorities for 2025 include increasing the affordable housing stock, bolstering funding for police and fire and fiscal responsibility with taxpayer dollars. Montano wants to launch an audit to ensure public dollars are being spent appropriately.

But her tenure has been marked by an escalating feud with ousted City Manager Steve McHarris, who accused Montano and the city council of wrongful termination and intimidation — claims which Montano and councilmembers have denied. City officials recently filed a protective order to stop McHarris from disparaging the city by releasing information gained during his lawsuit against the city.

Contact Vicente Vera at vicente@sanjosespotlight.com or follow @VicenteJVera on X, formerly known as Twitter.

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Milpitas City Council candidate Bill Chuan and Councilmember Hon Lien, who is running for the mayoral seat, had their campaign banners defaced with anti-Asian language. “NO ASIANS” was spray-painted over Chuan’s banner on Barber Lane. Alongside it, “NO NO” was painted over Lien’s banner.

“I am really sick of having people attack others (based on) their ethnicity and their race,” Lien told San José Spotlight. “This land is the land of opportunity to everyone, not just one group or another.”

Voters elected Lien to serve on the Milpitas City Council in 2022. Born in South Vietnam, she and her family fled the country during the Vietnam War and stayed in a refugee camp in Malaysia before relocating to the U.S.

Lien has served as a trustee on the Milpitas Unified School District board and on the Milpitas Planning Commission, but said this is her first time experiencing anti-Asian hate in an election. The incident has not only caused her to feel angry, but also uneasy.

“Because I don’t know how far people would take it, so I’m very careful of my surroundings,” Lien said.

Chuan, who has also served on the city planning commission, said the defacement didn’t instill any fear — instead he felt an urgency to stop discriminatory acts.

“When I saw the anti-Asian graffiti, I was shocked and disturbed,” Chuan told San José Spotlight. “ I couldn’t believe what I saw, especially in a diverse city as Milpitas. In my earlier days, I have experienced anti-Asian hate, but not like this recent incident.”

The Milpitas Police Department is investigating the incidents as hate crimes. Lt. Tyler Jamison said these are one-off incidents and there hasn’t been a pattern of racist graffiti in the city.

“We take incidents like this very seriously, as they do not reflect the values of our diverse and inclusive community,” Jamison told San José Spotlight. “Over the past five years, there has only been one other reported incident of graffiti with hate-based rhetoric in Milpitas. That incident was not similar to this.”

With a population of 80,000 people, nearly 75% of Milpitas residents are of Asian descent — 57,500 people. Latinos are the next most populous group at 10,500 residents, according to 2020 U.S. Census data.

Anti-Asian hate became widespread when the pandemic hit as more people reported attacks and feared harassment. California had the most reported incidents compared to other states, according to Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center. From 2020 to 2023, the nonprofit received 4,320 reports in California of anti-Asian hate acts ranging from physical injury, harassment, property damage and more. The state with the second highest number of occurrences, New York, had half as many incidents.

The Bay Area had some of the highest numbers of anti-Asian hate incidents, with Santa Clara County logging 328 incidents and San Francisco racking up 946 occurrences from 2020 to 2023.

“(Anti-Asian hate) is as prevalent as it was during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Manjusha Kulkarni, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate, told San José Spotlight. “According to our latest report, we found that nearly half — 49% — of all Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the U.S. have recently experienced racism or discrimination in the form of an act of hate as a direct result of their race, ethnicity or nationality.”

But San Jose State University Sociology Professor Hien Do said anti-Asian hate in America started long before COVID-19.

“California has been home to the most severe discriminatory laws against Asian Americans,” Do told San José Spotlight. “The 1882 (Chinese) Exclusion Act began in California, the internment of Japanese Americans also was in California. So it’s not like we’re immune to it.”
In regards to the most recent attacks on Asians, Do said it’s psychologically damaging for the community and signals to Asians that they shouldn’t speak out.

“There was a professor … who talked about this idea of the forever foreigner, that no matter how many generations we’ve been here, that it still feels as if we are seen and not part of America,” Do said. “That perpetuates that notion when they think of Asian Americans, that they think of us as being … these invaders of their society.”

To lessen anti-Asian hate crimes, Do said the strategy is two-fold: It begins with continuing to collect more data to show how pervasive the issue is, and also requires educating communities on the issue.

“People think that (because) we are the model minority, that these things don’t happen to us,” he said. “It is very important for people to make sure that they are able to work together and to build bridges between and amongst communities so that we can eradicate this problem.”

Contact Joyce Chu at joyce@sanjosespotlight.com or @joyce_speaks on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

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Goodwill of Silicon Valley launched its first-ever store at the Elmwood Correctional Facility in Milpitas last week, providing incarcerated women hands-on training in using a cash register and how to select and sort items. The small store is stocked with shoes, backpacks, pants, shirts, sweaters, underwear and socks. It’s open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1-3 p.m., and women who are getting released will be scheduled to stop by the store to pick out free clothes.

@sanjosespotlight

Goodwill has opened a new store in the most unexpected location — and for the employees it could be a life-altering experience. Goodwill of Silicon Valley launched its first-ever store at the Elmwood Correctional Facility in Milpitas last week, providing incarcerated women hands-on training in using a cash register and how to select and sort items. The small store is stocked with shoes, backpacks, pants, shirts, sweaters and underwear and socks. It’s open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1-3 p.m., and women who are getting released will be scheduled to stop by the store to pick out free clothes. Learn more at SanJoseSpotlight.com.

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The idea to put a store in the jail emerged as Goodwill staff and the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office discussed how to better serve incarcerated people. Goodwill partners with the  county’s Reentry Resource Center and has been working with people transitioning out of the criminal justice system for more than a decade.

“So as a part of that … this idea emerged that maybe we can bring a store here and do some training and provide the clothing for the women as they’re exiting,” Trish Dorsey, vice president of mission services at Goodwill of Silicon Valley, told San José Spotlight.

Women who have shown good behavior at Elmwood, such as attending classes, will operate the store twice a week. Goodwill hopes to offer the job training to incarcerated men at a later date.

The store is particularly valuable for 30-year-old Myra. This is her first job.

“This program is really important for me,”she told San José Spotlight. “I’ve never had any work experience. Having a cash register, having a store to help me to see what I will be dealing with as far as working at a store, it’s a good opportunity for me. I’ll be released with a lot of work experience.”

Other incarcerated women expressed how this opportunity is a stepping stone for transitioning back into the workforce with employable skills — something they can put on their resumes. Working at the facility could help the women find work at a Goodwill store in the county once released.

“​​To get that experience while in jail, it’s unheard of,” Sinica, 46, told San José Spotlight.

Not only will this program provide a pipeline for employment when the incarcerated women get out, but those who are getting released will also have the opportunity to pick out clean clothes. On release, women will be allowed to take home two tops, two bottoms, a pack of underwear, a pack of socks, shoes and a backpack for free to allow an easier transition back into society.
“I think this is priceless for them,” Jessica Castello, Goodwill of Silicon Valley’s vice president of retail, told San José Spotlight. “Not only are we giving them the tools that they need to reenter society with work skills, but we’re also showing them that they matter. We’re giving them clothing to be able to go out and hold their heads high. I’m hoping that they select something for a job interview.”

The store utilizes clothing donations that Goodwill of Silicon Valley receives, and the Elmwood Correctional Facility is allowing the nonprofit to use the space for free. Castello wants to get other Goodwills around the country to implement similar programs.

“I’m going to start talking with other Goodwills and see if it’s something that they would like to work through with any of the facilities that are in their jurisdiction,” Castello said.

Contact Joyce Chu at joyce@sanjosespotlight.com or follow @joyce_speaks on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

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Last December, ousted City Manager Steve McHarris filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Milpitas, accusing city officials of intimidation and unethical behavior — including Mayor Carmen Montano. The city denied wrongdoing and hired an outside law firm to conduct its own investigation into the same issues.

In new court filings, Milpitas is alleging McHarris sought media coverage to disparage the city and to disclose confidential information about employees. The city is asking the state’s superior court to grant it a protective order to stop McHarris from releasing information gained during the pretrial discovery part of the case to the public.

“The city has every reason to believe that plaintiff’s counsel will continue to utilize his contacts with the media to disseminate confidential material to gain any advantage he can,” the motion filed by law firm Meyers Nave, which is representing the city, read. “A protective order is clearly warranted in such circumstances to protect third parties as well as the city’s attorney-client privilege with its attorneys.”

The city claims McHarris’ lawyer released the deposition of the city’s economic development director to the media.

“This misuse of the discovery process has imposed a substantial burden on the city and its employees who have a right to privacy,” the filing stated.

Lawyers from Myers Nave did not respond to requests for comment.

“The city of Milpitas’ motion for a protective order is just the latest of a long and continuous series of actions to hide evidence in this case from my client and the voting public,” Stephen Jaffe, McHarris’ lawyer, told San José Spotlight. “Specifically, the city is hiding audio recordings of closed council sessions in which McHarris’ termination was discussed and decided. No city should be governed in secret.”

Jaffe also said the city refused to release the findings of the investigation it hired an outside firm to conduct surrounding McHarris’ firing, which Jaffe believes supports their case.

McHarris served as city manager from May 2020 to June 2023, when the Milpitas City Council voted him out.

Councilmember Anthony Phan, who wanted to keep McHarris, told San José Spotlight that City Hall fell apart after his departure.

“There’s been a mass staff exodus, from the entry level to the very top executive team level,” Phan said. “I think it’s a testament to the kind of eroded trust that people have in city leadership.”

While McHarris was city manager, Phan said he put financial controls in place, such as limits to city credit cards and contract requirements. The assistant city manager resigned and several department directors left after his firing, according to Phan. McHarris is the third city manager to be let go since 2017.

McHarris publicly accused Milpitas administrators of a hostile work environment in a claim filed May 2023, detailing instances of intimidation against himself and other city employees. He filed the lawsuit last December following the city’s rejection of his claim.
One of McHarris’ key claims is that his firing violated his contract because the council cannot terminate him within six months of an election.

McHarris also claims Montano and former Mayor Rich Tran pressured him to fire an employee without a reason. When McHarris resisted, he felt he was retaliated against. He also claims Montano tried to pressure him to hire her friend to a city position. McHarris is suing for damages that would exceed a million dollars.

Montano did not respond to a request for comment.

“McHarris has every right to do what he’s doing,” Phan said, “and I hope that justice prevails at the end of the day.”

Contact Joyce Chu at joyce@sanjosespotlight.com or @joyce_speaks on X, formerly known as Twitter.

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Residents have rung warning bells for more than a year about frequent fatal overdoses where bodies aren’t found until the smell reaches other rooms. Yet Abode Services, the contractor selected by Santa Clara County to manage the 134-apartment complex, boasts of having a wealth of on-site services to focus on the residents’ well-being.

Milpitas police have recorded five calls for service where a person was pronounced dead at the apartments between Sept. 5, 2023 and Sept. 5, 2024. Police couldn’t say whether the causes of death were overdoses — which are determined by the coroner — but they’ve repeatedly been called to the apartments about possible overdose emergencies within the last year. Coroner officials didn’t respond to requests for their data on deaths at Hillview.

Friends and family members of the dead believe the actual number is much higher.

Mariah Lopez, 24, recalls her 40-year-old father, Paul, fighting the idea of moving to Hillview after spending time in sober living homes. Her father believed Hillview would do more harm than good in his fight to get off hard drugs. During her father’s first week at Hillview, a nearby resident was found dead in their room.

“When he moved there he told us it wasn’t a good idea, because he’d seen all this drug use there,” Lopez told San José Spotlight. “He was doing good. But being in those apartments, it’s so easy to get your hands on them.”

Paul died in July, after trying and failing to complete the paperwork for another housing program. As to the cause, Lopez said she’s waiting for more information from the coroner. But his body wasn’t found for five days, Lopez said, leaving it so decomposed the family couldn’t hold an open casket funeral.

“Multiple people had been asking for a welfare check to be done on him,” Lopez said. “They said it was smelling in the hallway by his door and nobody had seen him come out of his house the last couple days with his dog.”

Abode Services CEO Vivian Wang said the organization is committed to its residents.

“We are heartbroken when confronted with any loss of life, and we offer our deepest condolences to the loved ones of anyone who has passed away at supportive housing sites or while experiencing homelessness,” Wang told San José Spotlight. “While we cannot comment on any specific Abode participant or housing resident, we can say with confidence that we are deeply committed to our residents. We remain very invested in listening to their needs, learning what benefits them the most and making sure our supportive services are catered to their needs and goals.”

John Tuitasi, 58, stood in the parking lot of Hillview on Wednesday, watching Milpitas police walk in and out of the apartments amid concerns over residents’ safety. Tuitasi ended up at Hillview after suffering a stroke while homeless in San Jose. He was taken to Valley Medical Center where social workers helped connect him with Abode.

He said he believes more people have died at Hillview than the official numbers let on. But he also said the overdose problem shouldn’t lead to shutting down a site that’s helped people find stability, including himself. He said he’s leaving in two months, after Abode helped connect him with a more permanent housing situation.

“It’s not like the whole apartment (complex) does it,” Tuitasi told San José Spotlight. “The staff can give us the outlet, the support, but some people aren’t ready for it yet. Everybody heals at their own time. Some people get it. Some people don’t.”

Rosie Chavez, a community organizer who’s keeping track of the deaths at Hillview, said she’s frustrated due to the nonprofit’s lack of oversight.

“People are not being called. They’re not doing checks,” Chavez told San José Spotlight. “They’re leaving bodies.”

Lopez said Abode needs to check in on residents more frequently.

“People are coming in through the back door and not signing in at the front. Sometimes people just sign in and say they’re going to see someone but don’t,” she told San José Spotlight. “Have security check the residents every day. Go knock on their doors. Have people sign in and out every time they come in and out.”

Abode didn’t respond to questions about their resident sign-in and check-in policies.

In three cases where police responded to a possible overdose, a caller from the apartments told dispatchers they suspected a drug overdose. In one case, when the police arrived, they suspected drugs based on the person’s medical symptoms. And in another, fire personnel determined the patient had consumed an excessive amount of alcohol which required medical treatment, Police Lt. Tyler Jamison told San José Spotlight.

County officials are standing by Abode, describing it as a “valued partner” that provides stable housing to the community’s most vulnerable residents.

“The health and safety of all people in our housing programs is central to everything the County of Santa Clara does to end and prevent homelessness, and we are deeply saddened by any loss of life among our residents,” a county Office of Supportive Housing spokesperson told San José Spotlight. “We closely monitor the performance of all our permanent supportive housing programs and providers on an ongoing basis.”
It’s the latest dehumanizing test for residents at the apartments who — until moving to Hillview — are all formerly homeless. When county officials proposed to convert the old Extended Stay America hotel into apartments under Project Homekey in 2020, surrounding Milpitas residents turned out in droves to stop it, claiming it would draw an influx of criminals and mentally ill people on the streets.

But after opening in 2021, Hillview has become a life raft for people hoping to piece their lives back together, with on-site case management, therapy and individual supportive services, as well as weekly group classes and programs. The sessions cover everything from stress management and financial literacy to cooking and harm reduction.

Lopez described her father as immensely loyal to his family, even in the face of his own challenges.

“He was always there if you needed him, no matter what it was. He knew how to play piano, he was a great painter — he painted this huge painting on his whole wall,” Lopez said. “Yeah, he did drugs. But when it was time to be with his family, he knew how to kick that stuff to the curb and get it together.”

Contact Brandon Pho at brandon@sanjosespotlight.com or @brandonphooo on X, formerly known as Twitter.

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He joined the race late last year after waiting to run again, since mayors can only serve six consecutive years and officials who serve their maximum term limits must wait two years. Tran previously serviced as mayor from 2017 to 2022. In an op-ed published by the Milpitas Beat, Tran said his work would take him out of the city frequently and he wouldn’t be able to dedicate enough of his time and energy to the city if he were mayor.

He added that launching a startup has been a lifelong dream of his and now is the time to pursue it.

“I’ve witnessed a lot of death during my short time out of office, friends who didn’t make it to 40, 45, or 50 years old,” Tran wrote. “I’ve often preached to others to go for their dreams ‘now’ because tomorrow isn’t promised.”

He added that he hasn’t decided on who he might endorse in the mayoral race, but said he has made public endorsements for city council races before. Mayor Carmen Montano announced her intent to run for reelection, though she has not yet filed, and Councilmember Hon Lien will be challenging her in November.

Montano could not be immediately reached for comment.

Lien said that as a businessperson, she’s happy for him and wishes him good luck. Lien added that she doesn’t know how his departure will affect the race, but she said voters will choose who they think is best for the job.

“My main focus is how I serve my city and the voters who voted for me,” Lien told San José Spotlight. “I represent them and I’m just going to do the same thing.”

Tran endorsed Montano in 2022. He praised her leadership after her speech at the 2024 State of the City address.

Tran has been a divisive figure since his election in 2017. He has previously been criticized by residents and councilmembers for spurring controversy, such as his statements on homelessness and threats to sue Santa Clara County and state over a Project Homekey proposal in 2020. He previously told San José Spotlight that during his last term as mayor, he was concerned about the city’s governing — two city managers left during his tenure and a third was terminated after he left office.

While Tran will not be running this year, he said he plans on returning to the city in the future.

“I’ll be traveling internationally and that just takes me away from Milpitas, but you know, one day, I’ll be back,” Tran told San José Spotlight. “I love Milpitas.”

Contact B. Sakura Cannestra at sakura@sanjosespotlight.com or @SakuCannestra on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

The post Familiar face withdraws from Milpitas mayor’s race appeared first on San José Spotlight.

Her message focused on the city’s history of agriculture and industry, as well as recent investments in affordable housing, public safety, transportation and economic development.

Montano said looking at the city’s past has helped inform how the city will move forward. As a Milpitas native, she remembers watching orchards turn to automotive factories and is eager for the city’s latest evolution — the development of its new innovation district.

“It’s just like every other city, it’s growing, it’s part of progress, but it has to be smart progress,” Montano told San José Spotlight. “You have to think about the future generations, how are these projects going to influence or impact the future.”

The Milpitas City Council approved the 75-acre innovation district as part of its citywide rezoning plan. Montano said the city will focus on attracting artificial intelligence, automotive technology and bioscience businesses. She added that the district is a key component to stimulating job growth in the city, alongside businesses expanding their footprint, such as KLA, Cisco and Apple.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Milpitas has about 77,000 residents, about 70% of whom are Asian, 13.5% are Hispanic or Latino and 13.3% are white. The median household income is $166,769.

Another focal point is the city’s affordable housing development. In her speech, Montano highlighted more than $773,000 that’s been allocated toward housing production. The city recently approved two 100% affordable housing projects near the city’s transit center. She also touched on a financial support program the city launched that gives 50 households $645 a month to help with rental payments.

Milpitas was the first city in the county to receive state approval on its housing element. The state is requiring Milpitas to add 6,713 homes by 2031, with more than half being below market rate—a requirement the city has struggled to meet in the past.

Milpitas Chamber of Commerce Office Manager Bernadette Gomez said she was particularly happy with the city’s housing update, given the statewide need.

“People always complain that there’s not enough housing but always complain that we’re building too many houses, but we do need more housing,” Gomez told San José Spotlight.

She also said building more housing near the transit center was crucial to encouraging the use of public transportation.

Montano mentioned in her speech that Milpitas SMART, the city-exclusive rideshare service, reached an average of 800 riders weekly. The city won awards from the American Public Transportation Association and the California Association of Public Information Office for how the program was marketed to its residents. 

Former Milpitas Mayor Rich Tran said he was fully supportive of Montano’s efforts as mayor.

“I’m so honored to know that I was succeeded by the first woman mayor in the history of Milpitas, and the best candidate for the job regardless of gender,” Tran told San José Spotlight.

Dublin resident Maria Angelica Colmenares said she came to support Montano and learning more about the city made her interested in moving to the area — especially the city’s investments in economic development.

Another of Montano’s supporters, San Jose resident David Lonero, said he was interested in the city’s plans to revitalize Main Street. Montano said in her speech that the city council will soon be adopting the Gateway-Main Street Specific Plan to encourage development, transportation and community engagement, which she hopes revitalizes Main Street as a destination space. Lonero said he used to work in Milpitas and would visit Main Street often and would like to see it reinvigorated.

“It was a whole different vibe back then,” Lonero told San José Spotlight. “She’ll get it back.”

Contact B. Sakura Cannestra at sakura@sanjosespotlight.com or @SakuCannestra on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The post Milpitas mayor celebrates city’s 70 years of growth appeared first on San José Spotlight.