Q: In San Jose, can a motorist stopped by law enforcement ask for the officer’s COVID vaccine status? And are law enforcement officers required to wear a mask when interacting with the public?
Mike Bayless and many others
A: You can ask the officer if they have been vaccinated or if not, if they are being tested twice a week. They are not required to wear masks.
Q: I have lived in Los Gatos/Monte Sereno for 30 years and have seen many changes to the striping on Winchester Boulevard between Lark Avenue and Highway 9, but nothing like what was recently completed. Some lanes were eliminated but, more importantly, weird striping patterns that no one can understand have been installed.
What in the world is going on there?
Jim Rubnitz
A: Los Gatos is making big changes on Winchester after completing its recent paving project. They are in the process of adding protected bike lanes along the corridor to make it safer for bicyclists. Go to www.losgatosca.gov/ConnectLG for more information.
Unfortunately the weekend storms delayed final work on striping. They were only able to get the first layer of striping done. They will finish when the pavement dries out.
Q: You wrote “San Jose has launched what it calls Cash for Trash, a pilot program to battle blight by having homeless folks pick up trash at encampments in exchange for reloadable cards from Mastercard.”
We’re paying people to literally clean up after themselves? Seriously? How can I get in on this deal when my friends and I have an outing at a park? We’d love to get paid for cleaning up the mess we made.
A.J. Strong
A: Cash for Trash is taking place at 40 locations throughout San Jose. Site locations are determined with input from Valley Water. During the first week of the program at two sites, 27 homeless residents enrolled and collected over two tons of trash. San Jose is the first city in the country to launch a program to pay homeless to tackle the blight accumulating on streets and in waterways near encampments.
Crews distribute trash bags at each location, redeemable at $4 per bag. Participants can turn in up to five bags per person for a total of $20, which will be loaded onto a Mastercard City Key card. These debit cards can be used to pay for essential items, with restrictions on items including alcohol and tobacco.
Funding for Cash for Trash is made possible through an allocation of $50,000 from the City of San Jose designated for trash clean up. In addition, Valley Water is providing $60,000 per year through the year 2023 for the program.
Look for Gary Richards at Facebook.com/mr.roadshow, or contact him at [email protected] or 408-920-5335.
