Airport Exposes Class Divisions in Silicon Valley

Google, which is responsible for many of the jets that will use the new $82 million center, is helping bring badly needed cash to Mineta San Jose International Airport, just as the tech industry is creating jobs and wealth in Silicon Valley. But the tech boom is also sharpening income inequality and fueling a housing boom that is squeezing families out of many Silicon Valley communities.

Whether it is the possibility of private jets’ disturbing the sleep of San Jose homeowners, or the transformation of Palo Alto’s last mobile home park into luxury apartments, local developments throughout Silicon Valley highlight how the tech boom is leaving many behind. Local officials worry about the trend, which experts say will only accelerate, and its effects on the valley’s work force and diversity.

“We’re very focused on being a progressive and fair community in terms of those issues,” Gregory Scharff, mayor of Palo Alto, said of efforts to provide affordable housing while recognizing the “national treasure” that is Silicon Valley. “We actually innovate and create huge wealth for the United States. If you look at the companies that have just come out of Palo Alto, I would make you a bet that it would be one of the largest G.N.P.’s — it could be a country.”

In the past, the tech industry created middle-class jobs and lifted the overall economy of Silicon Valley. But as tech companies have shifted manufacturing and midlevel jobs overseas over the years, highly paid workers have increasingly clustered here. Per-capita incomes have been rising even as median incomes have decreased for five years in a row, according to Joint Venture Silicon Valley, a private organization that co-publishes an annual report on the region.

“We’re getting more high earners, and they’re skewing the averages completely off,” said Russell Hancock, chief executive of Joint Venture. “We are becoming a community where our teachers, our police, our firefighters, our nurses, they can’t live with us. They have to come in from other places. Healthy communities have all these people living together.”

Sales figures for single-family homes in Santa Clara and San Mateo, the two main counties in Silicon Valley, show median prices have risen about 30 percent in the past year while the inventory of available homes has fallen by roughly half, according to an analysis of local multiple listing service data by the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors. The median prices for March — $735,000 in Santa Clara and $925,000 in San Mateo — only hint at the current market’s frenzy.

Each property now typically attracts between 10 and 30 offers, eventually selling from 5 percent to 25 percent above the asking price, said Moise Nahouraii, the owner of Referral Realty in Cupertino. Jeff Barnett, a former president of the association and a regional vice president at Alain Pinel Realtors, said 30 percent to 40 percent of sales were paid in cash.

“Last year, the market came up,” Mr. Barnett said. “This year, it’s on fire; it’s just unreal.”

In Palo Alto, one of the hottest markets, the longtime owner of the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park has moved to sell the property to a developer planning to build a complex with amenities that include a pool, a spa, a business center, a chef’s demonstration kitchen and a pet grooming station. A local ordinance would guarantee the park’s 400 residents — more than a quarter of whom are children and 85 percent are Hispanic — some compensation and possible relocation within Palo Alto.

But the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley, a private group that provides free legal services on housing and other issues, is pressing the city to reject the conversion. With the waiting lists for affordable housing getting longer by the day, the group argues, the park’s residents will be forced to leave Palo Alto, away from jobs and schools.

One resident, Mary Kear, 55, grew up in Mountain View, where her father owned a hardware store and was a farmer, and where Google has its headquarters. Ms. Kear, who worked in sales for more than three decades and is now a part-time school custodian, said she had to move a dozen times over the years because of rising rents, eventually gravitating to the park eight years ago. She hoped the city would reject the conversion.

“But I’m also going to try to talk to the guy at Facebook,” she said in the living room of her tidy two-room trailer, adding that she had read that the company’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, had recently established a political action committee for immigration reform. “He’s trying to help immigrants, and immigrants are here.”

New Orleans Saints’ Jimmy Graham — We Got EGGED by Airport Workers/Falcons Fans

New Orleans Saints' Players
We Got Egged
by Falcons Fans The New Orleans Saints got a rude and messy welcome to Atlanta last night ... as airport workers hurled eggs at a charter bus carrying the team!

The smelly assault went down moments after the Saints got off the plane in Atlanta and boarded a bus. Officials at Atlanta's airport confirm that eggs were thrown at the bus as it drove off the tarmac.

Several Saints players, including star tight end Jimmy Graham, blamed airport workers for the incident.

Graham tweeted ...

Bus just got egged after landing in ATL by the ramp workers. Classy! "RISE Up" smh

— Jimmy Graham (@TheJimmyGraham) November 29, 2012

Airport officials say they are scrambling to find out who's unleashed the eggy hell.

The Saints flew in for tonight's game against the Atlanta Falcons -- and we're guessing the egg culprits are big fans of the dirty birds.

Fun fact: Eggs can really mess up your paint job, guys.

Stalley (MMG) Roasted Outside Ohio Airport

App Smart: Find Your Way Through the Airport Maze

As I planned our summer vacation this year, one of the critical issues I considered was how to shepherd two young children through the different airports where we would need to change flights.

Apps came to the rescue.

The iFly Pro app is probably the most widely known app of its kind. The app, which is $7 on iOS and Android, bills itself as an all-purpose airport guide for “the informed traveler.” It contains an airport guide for airports around the world — from Aalborg through Zurich — as well as flight timing data and other airline information. Inside the United States, it even alerts you to airport status, including departure delays and closings.

I used London Heathrow as a test case because it’s one of the most crowded and confusing airports I’ve ever been in, and the Olympics will probably increase traveler traffic even more.

The app’s clean, simple interface provides live information about flight arrivals and departures, and its terminal maps show in which direction the gates lie. But in terms of actually helping you navigate the warren of corridors and concourses, you’re on your own; the map of the building is a blue blob. But you can plot your location on the map and, using your phone’s GPS function, drop data on the map from a list of amenities, which helps find their approximate location.

The iFly app also tells you which airlines fly from which terminals and includes a comprehensive list of shops. It also provides information about A.T.M.’s, playgrounds and places you can eat. Its comprehensive parking and transportation guides include prices.

But for “layover ideas” at Heathrow, the app is less helpful. It suggests you “obtain pamphlets and information about Central London” at the airport’s five terminals, which isn’t useful for planning your trip.

The app works a little better for a giant airport like Chicago O’Hare or Newark because it offers layover ideas and a bit more detail in each section. That’s the app’s main difficulty: it seems quality of information isn’t consistent. For the airport nearest my home, iFly lacks maps for the entire second terminal.

Some advice: make sure you use the app before you set off, exploring each subsection and terminal map you’re going to need. This might be necessary because it downloads some of its content from a server, which could be a problem if you’re in an airport with no data connection or only paid-access Wi-Fi.

IFly is also available free without live flight data.

One alternative is the free iOS and Android app, GateGuru. While this app does have simple maps for some, but not all, airports, it’s less about helping you navigate. Instead it tries to be a portal for crowdsourced reviews of services offered by airports and a guide for wait times at check in and security.

Though this information may be more useful because it is timely, it’s dependent on people actually using GateGuru to review cafes and report delays. Right now, the page for Los Angeles International tells me there’s an average wait time of 10 minutes at Terminal 5, which would be handy if I were going through that particular terminal, but there is no data for the other terminals.

The makers, aware of this, have tried to encourage users to submit data by making a game of it; a leader board ranks “highfliers” who take part. You may even find it fun to fill in the data yourself as you’re waiting, bored, for your flight. You’ll even be helping other travelers.

The GateGuru app is more aesthetically pleasing than iFly, and even has a flight tracking section where you can bookmark a one-glance summary of flights you want to keep an eye on. But the app’s navigation can be a bit tricky, an important factor when you’re stressed and struggling to get to your departure gate on time.

If airport maps are all you’re after, try Airport Maps, which is newly updated and free on iOS. It’s far less polished than the others, but it has more details on some airports’ facilities. You can pay to download more as the makers add them to the database.

Quick Calls

I joked about Frankfurt, but there’s a slick app just for this airport on Windows Phone for $1.29. For whiling away the hours in the airport, one of the simplest and most addictive games for Apple iOS devices, Tiny Wings, has just been upgraded to Version 2. It’s an upgrade so big, the maker could have sold it as a new app, but instead made it free for existing owners. Check it out for $1.

App Smart: Find Your Way Through the Airport Maze

As I planned our summer vacation this year, one of the critical issues I considered was how to shepherd two young children through the different airports where we would need to change flights.

Apps came to the rescue.

The iFly Pro app is probably the most widely known app of its kind. The app, which is $7 on iOS and Android, bills itself as an all-purpose airport guide for “the informed traveler.” It contains an airport guide for airports around the world — from Aalborg through Zurich — as well as flight timing data and other airline information. Inside the United States, it even alerts you to airport status, including departure delays and closings.

I used London Heathrow as a test case because it’s one of the most crowded and confusing airports I’ve ever been in, and the Olympics will probably increase traveler traffic even more.

The app’s clean, simple interface provides live information about flight arrivals and departures, and its terminal maps show in which direction the gates lie. But in terms of actually helping you navigate the warren of corridors and concourses, you’re on your own; the map of the building is a blue blob. But you can plot your location on the map and, using your phone’s GPS function, drop data on the map from a list of amenities, which helps find their approximate location.

The iFly app also tells you which airlines fly from which terminals and includes a comprehensive list of shops. It also provides information about A.T.M.’s, playgrounds and places you can eat. Its comprehensive parking and transportation guides include prices.

But for “layover ideas” at Heathrow, the app is less helpful. It suggests you “obtain pamphlets and information about Central London” at the airport’s five terminals, which isn’t useful for planning your trip.

The app works a little better for a giant airport like Chicago O’Hare or Newark because it offers layover ideas and a bit more detail in each section. That’s the app’s main difficulty: it seems quality of information isn’t consistent. For the airport nearest my home, iFly lacks maps for the entire second terminal.

Some advice: make sure you use the app before you set off, exploring each subsection and terminal map you’re going to need. This might be necessary because it downloads some of its content from a server, which could be a problem if you’re in an airport with no data connection or only paid-access Wi-Fi.

IFly is also available free without live flight data.

One alternative is the free iOS and Android app, GateGuru. While this app does have simple maps for some, but not all, airports, it’s less about helping you navigate. Instead it tries to be a portal for crowdsourced reviews of services offered by airports and a guide for wait times at check in and security.

Though this information may be more useful because it is timely, it’s dependent on people actually using GateGuru to review cafes and report delays. Right now, the page for Los Angeles International tells me there’s an average wait time of 10 minutes at Terminal 5, which would be handy if I were going through that particular terminal, but there is no data for the other terminals.

The makers, aware of this, have tried to encourage users to submit data by making a game of it; a leader board ranks “highfliers” who take part. You may even find it fun to fill in the data yourself as you’re waiting, bored, for your flight. You’ll even be helping other travelers.

The GateGuru app is more aesthetically pleasing than iFly, and even has a flight tracking section where you can bookmark a one-glance summary of flights you want to keep an eye on. But the app’s navigation can be a bit tricky, an important factor when you’re stressed and struggling to get to your departure gate on time.

If airport maps are all you’re after, try Airport Maps, which is newly updated and free on iOS. It’s far less polished than the others, but it has more details on some airports’ facilities. You can pay to download more as the makers add them to the database.

Quick Calls

I joked about Frankfurt, but there’s a slick app just for this airport on Windows Phone for $1.29. For whiling away the hours in the airport, one of the simplest and most addictive games for Apple iOS devices, Tiny Wings, has just been upgraded to Version 2. It’s an upgrade so big, the maker could have sold it as a new app, but instead made it free for existing owners. Check it out for $1.

Gadgetwise Blog: App Smart Extra: Airport Maps

This week’s App Smart column was all about apps that can help you deal with one of the more irritating hassles of going on vacation or a business trip: Navigating an unfamiliar airport efficiently. There are several apps that wrap up information about airports all around the world.

But it is also worth noting that some airports or airport-controlling authorities have taken the effort to produce their own smartphone apps. These are dedicated pieces of software that may be more useful to you if your travel plans are well known.

Some airports in the United States have several apps dedicated to helping you travel through them, too, but they sometimes are not official, and some have only limited information. The $2 O’Hare Airport stats app for iOS devices, for example, simply has flight information. It’s a hit-and-miss affair because there are so many American airports to choose from. So it is worth spending a little time searching through the iOS App Store and Android Play and testing out the free app options long before you fly to see if there is a dedicated app that can help.

For example, London’s Heathrow Airport is a complicated and confusing place, and the generic apps only partly help. But there is an official LHR (Heathrow’s airport code) app for iOS, Android and BlackBerry that is both highly polished and graphically simple. As well as offering live information on flights (subject to your phone’s having a data connection, of course), the app allows you to enter data for your specific trip, find information about transportation connections and parking, view detailed maps, and find out about security procedures, where to find Internet access and so on. There is even a section that lets you reserve some products from in-airport stores, which you can then pick up when you’re there.

If you ever find yourself in Portugal, the Portuguese airport authority ANA has an iOS and Android app that may be the most graphically pleasing yet. It’s simple to navigate and offers flight information and comprehensive data on the services at each of its five airports.

App Smart: Find Your Way Through the Airport Maze

As I planned our summer vacation this year, one of the critical issues I considered was how to shepherd two young children through the different airports where we would need to change flights.

Apps came to the rescue.

The iFly Pro app is probably the most widely known app of its kind. The app, which is $7 on iOS and Android, bills itself as an all-purpose airport guide for “the informed traveler.” It contains an airport guide for airports around the world — from Aalborg through Zurich — as well as flight timing data and other airline information. Inside the United States, it even alerts you to airport status, including departure delays and closings.

I used London Heathrow as a test case because it’s one of the most crowded and confusing airports I’ve ever been in, and the Olympics will probably increase traveler traffic even more.

The app’s clean, simple interface provides live information about flight arrivals and departures, and its terminal maps show in which direction the gates lie. But in terms of actually helping you navigate the warren of corridors and concourses, you’re on your own; the map of the building is a blue blob. But you can plot your location on the map and, using your phone’s GPS function, drop data on the map from a list of amenities, which helps find their approximate location.

The iFly app also tells you which airlines fly from which terminals and includes a comprehensive list of shops. It also provides information about A.T.M.’s, playgrounds and places you can eat. Its comprehensive parking and transportation guides include prices.

But for “layover ideas” at Heathrow, the app is less helpful. It suggests you “obtain pamphlets and information about Central London” at the airport’s five terminals, which isn’t useful for planning your trip.

The app works a little better for a giant airport like Chicago O’Hare or Newark because it offers layover ideas and a bit more detail in each section. That’s the app’s main difficulty: it seems quality of information isn’t consistent. For the airport nearest my home, iFly lacks maps for the entire second terminal.

Some advice: make sure you use the app before you set off, exploring each subsection and terminal map you’re going to need. This might be necessary because it downloads some of its content from a server, which could be a problem if you’re in an airport with no data connection or only paid-access Wi-Fi.

IFly is also available free without live flight data.

One alternative is the free iOS and Android app, GateGuru. While this app does have simple maps for some, but not all, airports, it’s less about helping you navigate. Instead it tries to be a portal for crowdsourced reviews of services offered by airports and a guide for wait times at check in and security.

Though this information may be more useful because it is timely, it’s dependent on people actually using GateGuru to review cafes and report delays. Right now, the page for Los Angeles International tells me there’s an average wait time of 10 minutes at Terminal 5, which would be handy if I were going through that particular terminal, but there is no data for the other terminals.

The makers, aware of this, have tried to encourage users to submit data by making a game of it; a leader board ranks “highfliers” who take part. You may even find it fun to fill in the data yourself as you’re waiting, bored, for your flight. You’ll even be helping other travelers.

The GateGuru app is more aesthetically pleasing than iFly, and even has a flight tracking section where you can bookmark a one-glance summary of flights you want to keep an eye on. But the app’s navigation can be a bit tricky, an important factor when you’re stressed and struggling to get to your departure gate on time.

If airport maps are all you’re after, try Airport Maps, which is newly updated and free on iOS. It’s far less polished than the others, but it has more details on some airports’ facilities. You can pay to download more as the makers add them to the database.

Quick Calls

I joked about Frankfurt, but there’s a slick app just for this airport on Windows Phone for $1.29. For whiling away the hours in the airport, one of the simplest and most addictive games for Apple iOS devices, Tiny Wings, has just been upgraded to Version 2. It’s an upgrade so big, the maker could have sold it as a new app, but instead made it free for existing owners. Check it out for $1.