WGNA's Next Open House monthly meeting will be held on September 26, 2019, at the Willow Glen Community Center (2175 Lincoln Avenue).  A presentation will be made about the fourth part of our “Urban Living" series, "Crane Watch Willow Glen", a discussion about new real estate developments in Willow Glen.  Project updates will be given on...

• The Ohlone 
  • Condominiums and mixed-use development
  • 800 units
  • Developer: Green Republic LLLP
• Tamien Station
  • Transit-Oriented Development (TOD)
  • 569 units (24% affordable)
  • Developer: UrbanCo Tamien LLC
• Park and Laurel
  • Affordable Transit-Oriented Development
  • Laurel – 82 family units, Park – 100 senior units
  • Developer: Santa Clara County, Housing Authority
• Page Street Development
  • Affordable housing
  • 81 studio apartments
  • Developer: Charities Housing
• Misc. Local Developments

Address issues and participate in urban planning and land use, proposed developments, street improvements, transportation, public works, and the design and vision of the city.  Be involved in the feedback on road diet improvements, crosswalks, bikeways, traffic calming devices, etc. Make the connections between California High-Speed Rail, Caltrain, county VTA, and public trails.  Discuss multi-modal transportation options for automobiles, public transportation, commercial freight delivery, bikeways, and the bridges, transfer points, and safe crossings between all these areas urban life.

— See our Urban Ecology WGNA social media page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UrbanDesignWGNA/

Seasonally, every year, Bike to School month returns in the spring (usually May), and Walk to School Day returns in the autumn.

Stakeholders for a Safe Green Village sponsors and organizes our annual National Center for Safe Routes to School"Bike to School" activities, the next occurring in May 2019.  Co-sponsors include Willow Glen Neighborhood Association - WGNA and other groups.

Through the year, and as part of the celebrations, students at our elementary schools receive bicycles, helmets, and razor scooters.

This national event is organized locally by Stakeholders for a Safe Green Village in partnership with the National Center for Safe Routes to School.  Our regular co-sponsor is the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association - WGNA.

WHO: PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS for the Willow Glen event include:

Willow Glen Elementary
River Glen School K-8
Ernesto Galarza & Hammer Montessori
Gardner Academy and Washington Elementary

Join children & adults around the world to celebrate the benefits of biking and walking to school:

• Encouraging a child’s next stage of independence
• Physical activity
• Teaching safe pedestrian & bicycling skills to children
• Awareness of how walkable & bikeable community improvements can be made
• Concern for the environment Reducing traffic congestion, pollution & speed near schools
• Sharing time with community leaders, parents & children
• Creating joy and fun!
• Promoting psychological well-being and alertness
• Fostering maturation and responsibility
• Creating habits of activity, empowerment and thinking differently

UPDATE as of  Monday 18 March 2019

The Hope Village Relocation to Willow & Lelong Streets was defeated on Monday 18 March 2019.
In a meeting at Gardner Community Center that evening (7:00 PM), Councilmember Dev Davis and Mayor Liccardo announced that a decision at the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD) earlier that afternoon (3:00 PM) would prevent the use of this site for a homeless encampment.  The relocation project had also received tremendous disapproval by area residents and stakeholders.

Subsequent meetings on the topic of the Hope Village Relocation to Willow Glen have since been canceled.

WGNA Issues Position Paper on
Hope Village Relocation to Willow & Lelong Streets

SUBJECT: WGNA Position Paper opposing the Hope Village Relocation Proposal at the site of Willow and Lelong Streets.

TO: Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD)

OUR POSITION: The Willow Glen Neighborhood Association (WGNA) strongly urges the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD) to deny the requested permit and the use of this site for Hope Village or any similar homeless transitional housing projects.

See the position paper here in PDF document form.

WGNA Issues Position Paper on
Hope Village Relocation to Willow & Lelong Streets

SUBJECT: WGNA Position Paper opposing the Hope Village Relocation Proposal at the site of Willow and Lelong Streets.

TO: Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD)

OUR POSITION: The Willow Glen Neighborhood Association (WGNA) strongly urges the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD) to deny the requested permit and the use of this site for Hope Village or any similar homeless transitional housing projects.

See the position paper here in PDF document form.

Next WGNA Meeting for
Thursday 28 March 2019,
7:00 PM

The next open house meeting of the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association will be a Town Hall Meeting with a panel discussion on issues relating to the San Jose Fire Department's proposal to build the new fire station #37 in Willow Glen, long planned on the site near the community center on Lincoln and Curtner Avenues.   The panel members will include San José Fire Chief Robert Sapien, Jr.; Councilmember Pam Foley, District 9 (South Willow Glen); and Councilmember Dev Davis, District 6 (Central Willow Glen).

Additionally, we will have a chat on the San Jose Fire Museum in downtown San Jose, with its mission on educating the public about the history of the San Jose Fire Department.

We will be updating this page with more information on this meeting, so please stay in touch.

 * * * UPDATE: as of Monday 18 March 2019 * * *

The Hope Village Relocation to Willow & Lelong Streets was defeated on Monday 18 March 2019.
In a meeting at Gardner Community Center later that evening (7:00 PM), Councilmember Dev Davis and Mayor Liccardo announced that a decision at the Santa Clara Valley Water District earlier that afternoon (3:00 PM) would prevent the use of this site.  The relocation project had also received tremendous disapproval by area residents and stakeholders.

Subsequent meetings on the topic of the Hope Village Relocation to Willow Glen have since been canceled.  

Tomorrow night's meeting on Wednesday 13 March is hosted by Willow Glen Neighborhood Association - WGNA at the Elk's lodge.

It's an open house meeting, whereas the city councilmembers, county supervisors, representatives, and departments are invited to attend and speak. The WGNA Board has encouraged Councilmember Dev Davis to participate along with all of the stakeholders in our community in an open house forum.

As a resident, if this issue is important to you, and you cannot get a reserved seat in the city-sponsored meeting on March 20th, nor a confirmation for the second meeting on the unsaid date, then you are encouraged to attend Wednesday's meeting organized by WGNA and the Elk's Lodge on March 13th.

Per the City of San Jose's flier, the Hope Village Relocation project is still considered a "proposal" at the Willow & Lelong Street locations; so, we would like to give residents the opportunity to review the issues, express their concerns, and speak out on what they think is important. That also includes the voice of, and the particular interests directly relating to, the homeless in our community.

See WGNA's Facebook page at Willow Glen Neighborhood Association - WGNA, as well as here on WGNA.net.

Questions or other matters, please email [email protected] and your message will be forwarded to the board.

Next WGNA Meeting for
Wednesday 13 February 2019,
7:00 PM

The next open house meeting of the Willow Glen Neighbmeeting of Willow Glen Neighborhood Association will be at the Willow Glen Community Center (2175 Lincoln Avenue, between Malone Rd. & Curtner Avenue.

The meeting will begin with a brief review and update of issues by the 2019-2020 Legislative Session by the staff from California Senator Jim Beall's office in the 15th District.

The second part of the meeting will include several updates on the Diridon Station Area and the Diridon Integrated Station Concept Plan, a collaborative effort to redesign and expand the station.  The four partner agencies working together on the Concept Plan include the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA), Caltrain, Santa Clara County's Valley Transit Authority (VTA), and the City of San José. 

In the past, WGNA has also hosted meetings on the Google/Diridon Station Area Plan (DSAP), whereas we will continue to expand on that topic here.  Google is working on an application for a master plan development, and the City of San José is preparing to review their application in conjunction with an update to the DSAP.  Leading the discussion will be Lori Severino, Civic Engagement Program Manager for the city's DSAP.  

At the Board and Membership Meeting of the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association (WGNA) on October 11, 2018, the board members issued a position paper to Mayor Sam Liccardo, and the City of San José's Planning Department, supporting the Google Campus proposal & Diridon Station Area Plan.  

The paper relates to the project on the Diridon Station Area Plan and Google, the Silicon Valley technology company that intends to develop a major transit-oriented campus in the core of the city, expanding the present-day downtown San José.   This potential mixed-use master plan development includes offices, residences, retail shops, restaurants, and open spaces, and it's estimated that Google will employ 15,000 to 20,000 people.  

On September 13, 2018, the representatives from Google visited with the City of San José in the Willow Glen neighborhood to tell us more about its plans, and how that fits in with the City of San José's Diridon Station Area projects.  See that news story here, as well as in the below page flip in this article.

The WGNA position paper was endorsed by the WGNA Board and reads in part: