Piecemeal policies and fragmented oversight has led to concerning transactions by San Jose’s credit card-holding employees.

San Jose will offer additional training and protection for the rangers who patrol the city’s 100-plus parks and 50-plus miles of trails.

San Jose considers whether to support a state bill that would demand greater transparency from water companies about rate changes.

Sunnyvale Councilman Jim Griffith breaks down why civic leaders consider Measure M a threat, and why they’ve stepped up to oppose it.

The Greater and Greener Conference, a leading international symposium for urban parks, takes place in San Francisco next month.

If you haven’t recently visited your neighborhood park or one of San Jose’s signature parks, you are among the majority of citizens. Our parks encounter much less traffic during the winter than the rest of the year.

City and county governments must operate with less money, while citizens still expect the same level of services. Two recent partnerships show great work can still be done in this new paradigm.

Summer is officially over and it seems like an appropriate time to reflect on the activities, challenges and accomplishments of the past few months, along with the people who really distinguished themselves by their work.

I have been to Chicago many times, but while visiting in August I was given a special tour of several parks, courtesy of Gia Biagi, chief of staff for the Chicago Park District. San Jose would do well to model its park system after the Windy City.

An annual audit of the city of San Jose’s procurement cards (P-cards) unearthed a litany of violations—alcohol purchases, personal car rentals and way too much money spent on food.

Considering the national obesity rate and the health benefits of playing outdoors, parents have every incentive to encourage their children to get off the couch and under the sun.

Influential voices on urban planning from the 1970s should be used for context when we talk about reshaping San Jose's parks—especially St. James Park.

There are currently at least three efforts to change the landscape and ambiance of St. James Park.

We owe a huge debt of gratitude to volunteer leaders and a few hundred citizens who have been cleaning our creeks, clearing our trails and preserving our parks while the City Council debates how to allocate its limited resources.

San Jose Parks Foundations and similar organizations across the country all have public events to celebrate the wonder and beauty of our public parks. It occurred to us that we need something, too, so ordinary citizens can gather together.

I believe that of all the aspects of city government people encounter most frequently in their daily lives, parks top the list. So what do they think about the importance of our parks and trails?