Nationally recognized transit expert (and frequent Opp Now contributor) Randal O’Toole continues Opp Now’s exclusive series on Local Gov’t Hopes & Fears. His pitch: The SCC should treat failing urban transit systems as private businesses that are losing customers/revenue. After all, should local transit agencies get heftier subsidies to serve less riders?

Are nonprofits better than private developers at meeting the needs of San Jose residents? Market Urbanism Report's Scott Beyer does a deep dive into COPA's history and specifics; he concludes it's a misguided, cost-increasing approach to addressing legitimate affordability and displacement concerns, in this Opp Now exclusive.

Disenfranchisement. Voter suppression. Lack of transparency. Backroom deals. The list of concerns about SJ Council’s wrongheaded moves to deny District 8 and 10 citizens the right to vote continues to grow. Irene Smith, head of Bay Area Housing Network—SJ adds a new critique: The appointment process aims to erase the city’s much-vaunted diversity. From an exclusive phone chat with Opp Now’s Christopher Escher.

The snatching of citizen voting rights by SJ City Council has some people wondering if our deeply centralized, bureaucratic model of city governance has gone too far. Irene Smith, former candidate for D3 (and critic of the council appointment process, see here) laid out a new way of looking at municipal governance that focused on a more bottoms-up, "deconcentrated" approach, excerpted below.

Rose Herrera (District 8) and Forest Williams (then-District 2) have both served as SJ councilmembers, so they bring experienced points of view to how SJ politics have changed, and the challenges the new council faces. Both have applied for the interim seats the council will appoint. They chatted with us in this Opp Now exclusive.

Nationally-recognized housing expert Scott Beyer (founder of Market Urbanism Report) suggests SJ's newly-electeds can take a look at best practices and be inventive to solve city’s housing crisis--if they retain a sharp focus on greatly increasing supply asap. An Opp Now exclusive.

Silicon Valley Taxpayers Association president Mark Hinkle examines zoning laws, construction codes, and permit fees as three key hindrances to a thriving San Jose housing market. An Opp Now exclusive.

The recent City Hall brouhaha over special elections v appointments for open council seats put a spotlight, for many, on the City's flawed system of citizen feedback. Why come out and speak at Council meetings if you're not heard, and if the end result is that you don't even get to vote? Former D3 CM candidate Irene Smith (Q&A nearby) advocates for a more up-to-date, professional Office of Public Listening. An Opp Now exclusive.

This week's showdown at City Hall over special elections featured a lot of yelling and name calling and hardly any listening. Former D3 CM candidate and President of Business & Homes Network - San Jose, Irene Smith, puts on her Counselors' spectacles and sees a misguided system in a chat with Opp Now's Christopher Escher. An Opp Now exclusive.