Tag: geography of california

You’ll find me at the Garlic Festival almost every year. If I’m not meandering around with friends, I at least take a quick break from work Friday to swing by and grab a peppersteak sandwich and some garlic bread.

The chamber of commerce brochure says our summer California hills are golden. I don’t buy it. Except for a few moments after sunrise and before sunset, the hills look brown to me. Each year, the warming weather dries the seasonal streams and bakes the life force out winter’s lush grasses. When it does, I feel a bit of my life force ebb as well.

The Santa Clara County Open Space Authority will have a public workshop March 4 to provide information and solicit input on how to facilitate and manage use and access to the Coyote Valley Open Space Preserve in south San Jose. 

Six residents of South County submitted their qualifications and letters of interest to qualify for an appointment to an open seat on the Santa Clara Valley Water District’s board of directors. 

The Santa Clara County Board of Education filed a lawsuit Dec. 11 against former County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Charles Weis to recover proceeds the board loaned him for a condo in San Jose.  During his four years of service, Weis was provided with a $915,000 housing loan as part of his employment contract. According to various reports, he used $890,000 of that to secure a condo in downtown San Jose about five miles away from the district office. After retiring June 30, Weis noted that he wished to turn the condo – which has dropped significantly in value since it was purchased in 2008 – over to the County Board of Education.Weis, however, did not pursue any other steps to properly transfer the property or repay his housing loan to the board, according to a press release by the Santa Clara County Board of Education. Despite efforts by the board to come to an agreement on how to handle the property, Weis has not cemented a plan for resolving the debt on his condo, according to the press release. The County Board of Education chose to pursue legal action against Weis to establish title of the condo property and recover the remaining funds from the loan. The suit is for $952,409.69. 

HONORS: Kahikoleiulu Dudoit: Navy Seaman Recruit Kahikoleiulu Dudoit, a 2011 graduate of Central High School, recently completed U.S. Navy basic training at Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Ill.

The truly great thing about our community is the caring spirit for those less fortunate that goes beyond what I have experienced in any other community in which I have lived. This time of year, everyone is gearing up for the cold winter months ahead and working to make them more bearable for those living on low incomes. The Compassion Center, St. Joseph’s Family Center, the Salvation Army, and the temporary winter shelter for the homeless at the National Guard Armory are all in full swing in preparation for the upcoming winter months. Our caring community inspires even those who live beyond our borders to reach out and donate.     

The purchase of 120 acres of undeveloped property in southern Santa Clara County will vastly expand an open space preserve near Canada Road, authorities said.

UPDATE: Homicide suspect arrested by GPD

Dozens of community-based and local nonprofit organizations stand to gain from a recent $1 million federal grant awarded to the Santa Clara County Public Health Department by the Centers for Disease Control.