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Local news from San Jose, CA is in your feed.

Long-dormant Alien Terrorist Removal Court used for first time to deport legal US resident

Rule Changes

The Alien Terrorist Removal Court existed for 30 years before anyone used it. On Friday the Justice Department announced its first case: Nazira Haji Zada, a lawful permanent resident in Fort Worth, Texas, was deported to Afghanistan after conceding she was an "alien terrorist."

Why it matters: The Justice Department now has a tested path to deport legal US residents on terrorism grounds, using classified evidence outside standard immigration courts.
~281M likely Q2 '27

Updated 2 hours ago

US solar installations surge as federal tax credits begin phasing out

Built World

The US added 11.4 gigawatts of solar capacity in the second quarter of 2026 — a 45% jump from a year ago and the market's strongest quarter in years. Nearly all of it was utility-scale: developers rushed to start construction on large solar farms before a July 4 deadline stripped federal tax credit eligibility.

Why it matters: The last big federally subsidized solar rush has passed. Whether US clean power can keep growing without tax credits now gets tested.
~340M likely Q2 '27

Updated 4 hours ago

Deadly ferry fire off Palawan leaves dozens dead and missing

Built World

Recovery teams pulled more remains from the burned MV June Aster on Saturday, raising the death toll to 76. Thirteen people remain missing, and forensic teams in Coron are working to identify the dead.

Why it matters: Dozens dead on a Philippine ferry puts the operator's liability and the country's uneven maritime safety record under scrutiny.
~115M likely Q3 '26

Updated 4 hours ago

Houthis strike Saudi Aramco's Jazan refinery, reopening a front held quiet since 2022

Force in Play

What began as a single drone strike on August 9 has grown into the most serious Saudi-Houthi fighting since the 2022 truce. On September 8, Houthi missiles and drones hit four Saudi cities, wounded 73 people, and set fires at oil sites. The 400,000-barrel-per-day Jazan refinery has not fully operated since late July.

Why it matters: Every drone that hits Saudi oil infrastructure makes Gulf supply riskier and raises prices at the pump worldwide.
~60M possible Oct 15 '26

Updated 4 hours ago

Jacks Bar receives California ABC license in San Jose

San Jose, CA Built World

On September 9, 2026, the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control granted Jacks Bar an active on-sale general eating place license (type 48) at 233 S White Road in San Jose. The license permits the sale of beer, wine, and spirits for on-site consumption, but it is not the final step before opening.

Why it matters: The fate of a new neighborhood bar hinges on a stack of permits—this license is the first domino.
~1M possible Apr 1 '27

Updated 4 hours ago

Ignite licensed for downtown San Jose location at 31 N Market St

San Jose, CA Rule Changes

California's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) issued a type 47 license to Ignite at 31 N Market St in downtown San Jose on September 8, 2026. The license permits on-site sale of beer, wine, and distilled spirits for consumption at the premises, and is typically held by restaurants or bars.

Why it matters: A new restaurant or bar at a prominent downtown San Jose corner signals renewed investment in the city's post-pandemic nightlife and dining scene.
~1M possible Jun 1 '27

Updated 4 hours ago

Hop & Vine secures beer-and-wine license for its San Jose spot

San Jose, CA Rule Changes

California's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control activated Hop & Vine's Type 47 license on September 8, 2026. That permit, logged in the department's licensing portal, is what a food-serving business needs to sell beer and wine on site. It's one approval, not a final green light.

Why it matters: An active beer-and-wine license is what lets Hop & Vine serve its core menu; without it, the Alameda spot can't pour a glass.
~78K likely End '26

Updated 4 hours ago

Mercury's surface holds far less silicon dioxide than thought

New Capabilities

Mercury's surface holds about 37 percent silicon dioxide by mass, up to 25 percent less than earlier estimates. That gap points to a hotter volcanic past, with lava rising from deeper mantle regions melted at extreme temperatures.

Why it matters: If confirmed, Mercury's deep, hot melting rewrites models of how the innermost planet's crust formed and how differently it evolved from Earth.
likely End '27

Updated 6 hours ago

Harvard researchers use sound waves to shield quantum bits from noise

New Capabilities

Harvard researchers extended the memory of a diamond-based quantum bit roughly threefold by surrounding it with a continuous stream of microscopic sound waves. The technique, published in Nature Physics, could let phonons both carry and protect quantum information in compact networks built on chips.

Why it matters: If this technique scales, quantum networks could fit on a single chip, moving quantum computing toward practical machines.
likely End '27

Updated 6 hours ago

Stop N Save 110 licensed for alcohol sales in San Jose

San Jose, CA Rule Changes

A Stop N Save convenience store at 2297 McKee Road in San Jose received its alcohol license from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control on September 2. The active Type 21 off-sale general permit lets the store sell beer, wine, and distilled spirits.

Why it matters: Residents near McKee and Jackson avenues gain a new local source for beer, wine, and spirits, shortening errands.
~1M likely Jan 1 '27

Updated 6 hours ago

Empire Armadillo revives shuttered San Jose BBQ spot, wins beer and wine license

San Jose, CA Built World

Armadillo Willy's locked its doors on Blossom Hill Road in June 2025, ending a long run at a busy corner in South San Jose. Nine months later, a new operator reopened the space as Empire Armadillo BBQ & Deli, fusing Texas-style smoked brisket with house-brined New York pastrami.

Why it matters: Beer and wine service makes the revived Blossom Hill barbecue corner a fuller restaurant, not just a lunch spot, anchoring San Jose's Santa Teresa retail strip.
~1M likely Q2 '27

Updated 6 hours ago

US consumer confidence drops to second-lowest on record as gas prices jump

Money Moves

American consumers turned sharply more pessimistic in early September. The University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index fell to 47.8, the second-lowest reading since 1952, down from 51.7 in August.

Why it matters: Elevated inflation expectations push the Fed toward hiking, squeezing households already facing record fuel prices, and risk stalling consumer spending into 2027.
~340M likely Sep 17 '26

Updated 8 hours ago

San Jose taqueria gets beer and wine license

San Jose, CA Rule Changes

California Wet Burrito, the taqueria near San Jose State University, now holds a state beer and wine license. The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control issued an on-sale beer and wine license for the restaurant at 336 E William St on August 20, 2026.

Why it matters: Beer and wine sales typically lift a restaurant's margins and draw an evening crowd, changing the economics of this student-area taqueria.
~1M likely Nov 20 '26

Updated 8 hours ago

Minnesota solar farms planted with native habitat see native bees multiply 20-fold

New Capabilities

In 2018, Enel Green Power seeded two retired farm fields in southern Minnesota with native grasses and wildflowers beneath its solar panels. By 2022, native bee numbers had grown 20-fold, total insects had tripled, and flowering plant species had increased sevenfold.

Why it matters: Solar is spreading across farm country. Planted with native habitat, those acres can restore insects and boost pollination for adjacent crops.
~5.7M possible Jan 31 '28

Updated 9 hours ago

Salesforce unveils enterprise AI harness to govern agents across the business

New Capabilities

Enterprises are putting AI agents to work across their business systems, which creates a new problem: controlling what those agents can see, do, and spend. Salesforce's answer, unveiled September 10, 2026, is the Trusted Enterprise AI Harness, a software layer that wraps AI in six capabilities: context, agency, action, governance, security, and models.

Why it matters: Enterprises deploying AI agents face a governance decision: adopt Salesforce's harness, a rival like ServiceNow, or assemble point tools from startups.
~22M likely Apr 30 '27

Updated 10 hours ago

Fountainhead Bar secures state liquor license in downtown San Jose

San Jose, CA Rule Changes

Fountainhead Bar cleared a key regulatory step toward serving drinks in downtown San Jose's SoFA Market when the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) marked its license active on August 18, 2026. The type 47 license is the state's standard on-sale general eating place permit, allowing beer, wine, and spirits for on-premises consumption so long as the business also sells food.

Why it matters: A new cocktail bar in SoFA Market adds to downtown San Jose's thin nightlife options and tests whether the creative district can draw evening crowds.
~1M likely Feb 18 '27

Updated 10 hours ago

Round Table Pizza receives beer-and-wine license for San Jose Berryessa location

San Jose, CA Built World

A Round Table Pizza at 2550 Berryessa Rd in north San Jose took a step toward opening on August 18, 2026. The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) granted the location an active beer-and-wine license, type 41.

Why it matters: The opening would add a sit-down pizza option to Berryessa, a San Jose neighborhood adding housing and transit riders since its 2020 BART station.
~1M likely Q2 '27

Updated 10 hours ago

San Jose Eggo plant, birthplace of the frozen waffle, to close

San Jose, CA Money Moves

The frozen waffle was invented on this San Jose factory floor. The plant that made Eggos for parts of nine decades will stop production in November.

Why it matters: 112 workers lose jobs as Mars closes the San Jose plant that invented the frozen waffle, ending a 90-year production run.
~1M likely Nov 4 '26

Updated 12 hours ago

PayPal cuts 251 San Jose jobs in AI-driven restructuring

San Jose, CA Money Moves

PayPal filed notice to eliminate 251 jobs at its San Jose headquarters, effective October 30. The affected roles skew unusual: nearly 50 directors and more than 40 senior managers, a middle-heavy cut rather than bottom-of-org-chart thinning.

Why it matters: Profitable payments giants are shrinking payroll to fund AI: PayPal shed 7,100 jobs since 2021, and this round targets senior roles at headquarters.
~1M likely Feb 28 '27

Updated 12 hours ago

Houthis seize strategic island at Red Sea shipping chokepoint

Force in Play

Ship crossings through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait fell to 15 on Friday, half the previous day's total. Houthi rebels seized Perim Island that day, completing their takeover of the strait that carries 10 to 12 percent of global trade.

Why it matters: The Houthis control the strait that carries 10-12 percent of global trade, Saudi Arabia's backup pipeline is shut, and oil is above $100.
~60M likely End '26

Updated 13 hours ago