The second high school project, downtown’s BBQ feast and crimes
against Gilroyans make the list
The following organizations and individuals deserve either CHEERS or JEERS this week:
JEERS: For the news that the Gilroy Unified School District will have to borrow $15 to $20 million to complete just the first phase of Christopher High School and prepare for upcoming facility needs. That’s a lot of debt to burden the school district’s general fund with, but the needs are clearly crying needs. GUSD should have built Christopher High School first, then solved school facilities equity issues one by one. Gilroy voters passed the $69 million bond in 2002 based on the strength of the need for the second high school. By choosing to place that project last on the list, the district has hoodwinked the voters.
CHEERS: For the enticing emerging energy downtown. Saturday, it’s the Rock ‘n’ Ribs event from 11am to 6pm, which features celebrity BBQers and their cooking teams competing for cash prizes. Good eats, and live music from a stage in the 5th Street parking lot, are assured. The Sun Kings, a Beatles tribute band, will finish off the evening. And tonight, the Fifth Street Live music series continues – BBQ and Solis wine available for added fun.
JEERS: For the drive-by shooting in the Northwest Quad just past midnight Tuesday which ended in a fiery post-chase car crash. The drive-by shooter riddled a home on Summerhill Circle with bullets, and two teens were arrested by the Gilroy Police Department which is conducting an ongoing investigation. Police say the events are gang related. Robert Orosco, 18, and a 15-year-old girl were arrested. Another male suspect is at large. Perhaps the “Lucky Seven” program, where known criminals are visited regularly by probation and police officers, should be brought back, reinstated and expanded.
CHEERS: For Gilroy police and Santa Clara County Sheriff’s deputies who busted up an extensive fraud ring. The thieves stole credit card numbers from the trash can at a Gilroy dry cleaners. Ironically, officers and deputies were victims, too, since they used the cleaners for uniform upkeep. At least 17 people were victimized, but thanks to diligent work three arrests have been made and more are likely to follow. Hopefully, all will face years and years of hard time.
JEERS: For parents who drop their young children off unsupervised at public facilities like the Gilroy library. It’s unfathomable on two levels – the safety of the child and the burden it places on the staff at the facility. Policies must be in place and enforced in order to stop this nonsense.
