Spring issssssssssss
… almost, maybe, could be … here. Ah, it’s a lovely time in
South County when the grass rises in the hills, the wildflowers
greet the sky and the creeks swell after the splashdown. Baseball’s
here, hurler Peter Mickartz, Gilroy High grad, is 4-0 on the mound
up at Chico State and keeping that b
oyhood dream alive. There’s no Barry Bonds in uniform for the
Giants – ah, what a relief – and one of the best walks going is
behind the lovely Christmas Hill Park. Head up the east hill and
over to the knoll where your reward is a full-circle view of
Gilroy. It’s best in the morning when whispe
rs of fog cover parts of the valley below.
Spring issssssssssss … almost, maybe, could be … here. Ah, it’s a lovely time in South County when the grass rises in the hills, the wildflowers greet the sky and the creeks swell after the splashdown. Baseball’s here, hurler Peter Mickartz, Gilroy High grad, is 4-0 on the mound up at Chico State and keeping that boyhood dream alive. There’s no Barry Bonds in uniform for the Giants – ah, what a relief – and one of the best walks going is behind the lovely Christmas Hill Park. Head up the east hill and over to the knoll where your reward is a full-circle view of Gilroy. It’s best in the morning when whispers of fog cover parts of the valley below.
Below the knoll, too, is the amphitheater at Christmas Hill Park, a lovely yet forlorn facility in need of repair. The Rotary Club floated an idea a few years back to renovate the facility in partnership with the city. That was a great idea that, I think, received the proverbial bureaucratic whipping to death. I hereby and good naturedly nominate civic minded and all-around classy person Assistant City Administrator Anna Jatczak to retrieve the matter from the doldrums and place it before the Rotary powers to be. Perhaps her Newfoundlands can help tear out the old board seats that need fixin’ and I bet Garlic Festival Director Brian Bowe would be open to having his board discuss a possible renovation partnership.
Nothing needs a good fixin’ like our very own Santa Clara Valley Water District. Creek stopped up? Call the county. Water quality problem? Call the regional board. Yet, the Walking Whistleblower reports two men in a Santa Clara Valley Water District van Monday enjoying an hour reading the newspaper holed up at the far south end of the Uvas Levee off Thomas Road. While we certainly encourage newspaper reading, it’s more than discouraging that this time is being spent on the taxpayer’s nickel. Oooops, it’s the water district, so we’ll make that the taxpayer’s $100 bill. Remember, those high water district salaries are justified by the skills necessary for water district jobs … like finding the best places to hide. Rosemary Kamei and Sig Sanchez, water district representatives, no doubt will want to check into the van’s license plate: 1151435. How about a capital project suggestion: GPS for water district vehicles? And thanks again to our Walking Whistleblowers who are becoming quite an army. Remember, it’s simple to join, just blow the whistle on untruth, unjustness and the unAmerican way via email to
ed****@ga****.com
.
Our beloved MayorAl, responding to a crying need for water and a Whistleblower’s lament, has indeed, in mayoral fashion, seen to it that those fancy water faucets at the new Gilroy Sports Park are turned on for all the good garlictown youngsters out there running around on the baseball diamond. Thank you. After all, if the water’s good enough to ban bottled water on the Council dais, we ought to make it available to the residents and youth baseball players. BTW, is it really true that the girls teams don’t get to use the sports park fields? Whistleblowers weigh in.
It’s no surprise the Santa Clara County Fair keeps losing money in San Jose at the county fairgrounds. The fair has been on a seesaw ride for years and the agricultural roots are pretty much gone north of Coyote Valley, so what to do? Supervisor Don Gage has talked about bringing the fair to South County once the facilities at Harvey Bear Ranch are in. That could make sense. Agriculture has changed tremendously – wineries and flowers have long surpassed prunes. But there are solid 4-H programs here and plenty of ag-related business. Stop the fair, re-invent it – perhaps combining it with the ever-popular home and garden show – and open up down here. That might be the ticket to success. Heck, it might even work at Bonfante/Gilroy Gardens.
Ah, flowers and gardens … reminds me that the annual Rotary Club Flower Sale stocked by the world’s most beautiful leftovers from the annual pack trials held at Goldsmith’s Seeds is coming. Mark your calendars for Saturday, April 12. But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. There’s another good cause right around the corner and that’s the St. Patrick’s Day annual dinner. Wonderful corned beef and cabbage with a no-host bar all to benefit the deserving St. Joseph’s Family Center which helps the poor in our community in myriad ways. Tickets – $25 – are available for the Saturday, March 15 event at the St. Mary’s Parish office on First Street.
Also on First Street is one of the Peat’s McDonald’s, that’s Steve and Jan who own all those quarter pounders with cheese. If you missed the story in Tuesday’s business section, you’ll be happy to know that some McDonald’s are going feng shui. (I’m never quite sure how to say that, but it’s sure fun to mispronounce … fung shoo, fang shway, feng shaw … anyway, back to our story) … the look of the Hacienda Heights’ franchise may never make it to Gilroy, but what about garlic feng shui – you’d almost have to stop – or at least drive around the block – for a look at that design.
