What’s the speed, really?
“Red Phone, here is something interesting that I bet the City Traffic Engineers have not caught. On Chestnut Street, going north, in the block that Eliot School is located, there is a sign that says speed limit 35 miles per hour. At the corner in the same block is another speed limit sign that says speed limit 25 with another sign warning of the school zone. The speed limit changes and increases from 25 to 35 within 50 feet of each other all within and in front of the school zone. Check this out.”
Red Phone:
You got it, caller. Red Phone checked in with Gilroy’s Transportation Engineer Don Dey to see what he had to say about the signs.
“The speed limit for Chestnut Street is 35 miles per hour,” he said. “Eliot School is located on Chestnut Street and just as with other schools in the city, the roadway adjacent to the school is posted for 25 miles per hour when ‘Children Are Present.'”
Dey added, that to avoid confusion for motorists, “I will look into having the 35 miles per hour sign relocated to another section of Chestnut Street.”
Fighting fires
“I’m calling regarding the firefighters of Gilroy. I frequently see four firefighters strolling through stores like Safeway, Costco, Nob Hill and Smart & Final. Do they ever respond to fires? It would be very interesting to find out how frequent they actually respond to fires. I think they’re grossly overpaid for what they do and the City of Gilroy would be better to turn it over to some sort of private agency for firefighting. Thank you very much.”
Red Phone:
In case you missed it, the Dispatch ran an article on the annual firefighter training on Saturday.
Since the start of the year, firefighters have averaged one structure fire a month, but the majority of calls firefighters respond to are medical aid.
To read the story on their training, visit www.gilroydispatch.com.
Eagle Ridge uproar
“I’m responding to the article on patrolling Eagle Ridge (Thursday, April 6). There is something more that stinks in Gilroy besides the garlic. This is an obvious attempt to give a private sector something that the rest of us do not have. The simple thing to do would be to take those gates down off the road and let Eagle Ridge become part of the city. Then we don’t have to worry about patrolling private roads and people who made deals in 1990 can keep their deals. Thank you.”
– “They say the police are going to patrol now in Eagle Ridge. No one else is allowed in Eagle Ridge. I have a friend who tried to bicycle and change her route. She just wanted to do a little loop and they stopped her at the gate and said, ‘No, you can’t go there.’ So I guess the only people are the elite people who live there or those who are willing to pay to golf or to go to the restaurants. My tax money going to patrol those roads when I’m not allowed in there or my friend’s not allowed in there, is unacceptable. I’m going to look at who voted for that. Thank you for listening.”
Red Phone:
The Gilroy City Council voted 4-3 to enforce a 30 mph speed limit along a quarter-mile stretch of road between the Eagle Ridge golf clubhouse, a public facility, and the community gatehouse off Santa Teresa Boulevard. Council members who voted for the enforcement were Mayor Al Pinheiro, Peter Arellano, Paul Correa and Roland Velasco. Those in dissent were Craig Gartman, Dion Bracco and Russ Valiquette.
Readers:
Do you have a comment, complaint or compliment about an issue that affects Gilroy and its residents? Just let the Red Phone know. But remember to leave a name and number when you call or e-mail. The Red Phone won’t publish this information – it will only be used if verification is necessary. Contact the Red Phone at 842-9070 or e-mail re******@gi************.com.
