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But officials say the plaza management group, known as the Vietnam Town Condominium Owners Association, did not follow the city\u2019s orders by the required Dec. 18 deadline. Restaurant owners said the barricade remains on the ramps to the parking garage\u2019s upper floors, while the first floor is open.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing has been done,\u201d Jason Tran, owner of Pho This Way, told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight.<\/p>\n \nContribute to Local News Matters\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The city\u2019s understaffed code enforcers had been investigating the plaza for a year, but did not take action until\u00a0San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight first reported on business owners\u2019 complaints<\/a>. On top of the parking issues, merchants have filed a lawsuit accusing plaza management of unfairly levying fines on eateries for using outdoor common areas \u2014 while favoring certain businesses with discounted monthly association dues.<\/p>\n The lawsuit and this news outlet\u2019s reporting\u00a0sparked debate online<\/a>\u00a0about whether Vietnam Town\u2019s potential is being squandered as a dynamic community gathering space for San Jose\u2019s Vietnamese population \u2014 the\u00a0largest in any U.S. city outside of Vietnam<\/a>.<\/p>\n The city will assess new fines on plaza management for not complying with their order, according to a spokesperson for the Building, Planning and Code Enforcement Department. On top of the garage closure, officials also dinged plaza management for installing two trash compactors in the parking lot next to the garage without permits, as well as the installation of electrical infrastructure on the property without permits. Merchants raised those issues in their lawsuit, complaining that management was wasting business improvement funds on unnecessary equipment.<\/p>\n The department will prepare the case for its appeals hearing board, which will set a new compliance date, along with a per-day fine for every day the plaza is confirmed to be out of compliance.<\/p>\n Appeals hearing expected this month<\/p>\n \u201cThe board will have discretion to uphold or modify staff\u2019s recommendation. The department expects the case to be heard by the appeals hearing board in January,\u201d code enforcement spokesperson Marika Krause told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight.<\/p>\n Deon Vu, president of the Vietnam Town Condominium Owners Association, declined to comment on the lawsuit. He argues that his organization isn\u2019t entirely to blame for the parking issues.<\/p>\n \u201cThe garage has been closed because the elevators and sprinklers aren\u2019t working,\u201d Vu told San Jos\u00e9 Spotlight. \u201cWe\u2019re getting permits from the city. You\u2019re telling me the city wants it opened \u2014 that\u2019s kind of strange, because we\u2019re waiting for their approval.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe board will have discretion to uphold or modify staff\u2019s recommendation. The department expects the case to be heard by the appeals hearing board in January,\u201d<\/p>\n Marika Krause, San Jose code enforcement spokesperson<\/p>\n He could not say when the garage\u2019s needed maintenance might be complete for reopening. Krause didn\u2019t respond to requests for information about Vu\u2019s claim.<\/p>\n Tran said he isn\u2019t buying Vu\u2019s reasoning.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been complaining about this for a year and they haven\u2019t done anything. They probably still wouldn\u2019t without the media attention now,\u201d Tran said.<\/p>\n While the first floor of the parking garage doesn\u2019t require an elevator to access it, Tran questions why it would stay open if sprinkler defects affect the whole garage.<\/p>\n \u201cFurthermore, the plaza cannot open or sell Vietnam Town (commercial spaces)\u00a0without available parking,\u201d Tran said. \u201cIf the parking garage is defective, then how come the builder keeps selling units? I\u2019m not sure how the argument fits.\u201d<\/p>\n Contact Brandon Pho at\u00a0brandon@sanjosespotlight.com\u00a0or @brandonphooo on X.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767837251_958_LNM-20250616-SJSPOTLIGHTLOGO-01.jpg\")
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