San José is the tenth most populous city in the United States and the economic, cultural, and political center of Silicon Valley. While the region has experienced incredible economic growth, a lack of affordable housing threatens the long-term success of its residents, particularly San Jose’s Hispanic and low-income residents who are more likely to be burdened by rental costs. In response, the City has laid out an ambitious roadmap to accelerate new housing development and address this growing challenge. This includes a working plan to permit and build 25,000 units, with over half dedicated to affordable housing, by 2022.
Despite this progress, the COVID-19 pandemic threw the entire Silicon Valley housing industry into limbo and highlighted the inaccessibility of code enforcement services in the city. San Jose will partner with FUSE to transform its permitting and code enforcement processes, increasing both the ease and accessibility of these services, especially to those from traditionally underserved and underinvested neighborhoods. FUSE will work with the Department of Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement to implement innovative solutions to address inequities in access, providing quality, easily available services to all residents during and after the pandemic.
