Politics

In a press release, the city of Morgan Hill pushed back on threats of deporting residents, part of the agenda of President-elect Donald J. Trump. It also took on proliferating hate crimes.Here is the release:Recent national events have triggered some negative impacts in many Morgan Hill residents; fear and uncertainty about their well-being and their status in our community and country. The Morgan Hill City Council and staff want to reassure our residents that we will stand up for all of them. Many of our residents are foreign-born and fear that changes in immigration rules or enforcement could separate their families. There are also concerns about proposed federal registries of community members of the Muslim faith. And the recent nationwide spike in hate crimes is causing even more fear. Here in Morgan Hill, we cannot control the events in Washington, D.C., but we can do much to care for each other here at home. We want to assure you that: Hate Crimes will not be tolerated in Morgan HillOur Police Department is committed to enforcing laws against commitment of hate crimes without regard to the immigration status of the victim or reporting party. Please report all incidents to the Police Department at 408-779-2101. Our Police will not be used for federal immigration enforcementChanges to immigration laws and enforcement are the responsibility of federal policy makers. Local police should not be involved in federal immigration enforcement and our Police Officers will continue to focus their time on high priority crimes. In accordance with best practices of local law enforcement professionals nationally, we will stay out of immigration enforcement. Our priority is to maintain the trusting relationship Morgan Hill Police Officers have with our community. Anyone who witnesses or is a victim of any crime can contact the Police Department without fear of inquiry regarding their immigration status. Your Constitutional rights will be protected We cannot know if assertions made during national campaigning -- like Muslim registries -- will come to fruition. We will monitor any proposed legislation or executive actions from Washington and work closely with our national, state and local representatives, other cities, and if necessary, the courts, to protect the Constitutional rights of our residents.  Discrimination based on race, national origin, ethnicity, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, color or disability is prohibited under federal and/or state law. We will protect the rights of all our residents, regardless of background or sexual orientation. Morgan Hill residents are highly ethical; we have a set of ethical values that are fundamental to the character of our community. Foremost among the ethical values is respect. Because we respect those we interact with, we treat them honestly, fairly and responsibly. In this time of uncertainty and fear, we encourage all our residents to maintain a high level of respect in all their interactions. Thank you for making Morgan Hill a well respected and inclusive community.

Enthusiasm was high at Gilroy City Council Monday, as a packed chambers watched four new city council members and a mayor get sworn in after a record-breaking election on Nov. 8.

The City Council on Nov. 7 welcomed new finance director Jimmy Forbis, who comes to Gilroy from the city of Monterey. His official start date was Nov. 1, and he will earn an annual salary of $175,000.

With thousands of new homes being built on the city’s west side, Gilroy’s Planning Commission on Nov. 3 studied the school district’s plans to build a new elementary school at Glen Loma Ranch.

The $1.1 million Paseo project is getting its finishing touches this week, after years of work. Workers posted Gilroy history placards along the alleyway at 7453 Monterey St. between Fifth and Sixth streets.The paseo is a linear, tile-lined rectangular mini-park and walkway that will serve as an aesthetic shortcut from Monterey Street to the parking lots between Eigleberry Street and Gourmet Alley.The city purchased the property in 2012 and demolished the unreinforced masonry building on the site to make way for the new pedestrian amenity. A design group of volunteers selected the design.  

Gilroyans said they want a new police chief who understands gangs, the homeless population, graffiti and those who are mentally ill.

Did you make it to the holiday parade? It's a great way for Gilroyans to bring in the spirit of the season. 

Drones may be at the top of many holiday wish lists this year, but rules governing their recreational use in Gilroy are still being determined.On Nov. 21, the City Council directed staff to prepare an ordinance regulating drones—or unmanned aerial vehicles, as they are officially called, after hearing examples of rules applied in other California cities. Currently, the only statewide laws apply to drone usage around the scene of an emergency.The Gilroy Police Department has received calls from residents about drones invading people’s privacy and flying at night or during early morning hours, causing disruptions. An ordinance would give police an enforcement mechanism to take action and issue citations when they receive complaints.GPD Captain Kurt Svardal told the council the department looked at Los Angeles, Santa Clara and Ripon to see if any of their ordinances could apply to Gilroy.The staff report recommended the city apply some of the rules from Los Angeles, declaring it a “middle of the road approach.”A Dispatch poll found that about half of respondents wanted to ban drones outright, but the police and City Council did not feel this was necessary.“We are not proposing an all-out ban,” said Mayor-elect Roland Velasco. “We are trying to come up with a compromise that allows hobbyists to get out there, but also protects the privacy of neighborhood residents in the area.”The council suggested the ordinance include rules governing time of flight—sunup to sundown; and that the drone must remain within the line of sight of the operator. It would also include exemptions for public safety uses by law enforcement or other emergency responders. Traffic calming for Upper Welburn  After several community meetings between public works staff and a neighborhood group consisting of 37 residences in the Upper Welburn Avenue area between Santa Teresa Boulevard and Mantelli Drive, as well as a presentation by the group at its Oct. 17 meeting, the City Council approved $25,000 to be spent on temporary “soft” traffic calming measures and follow-up monitoring to address various traffic issues in the area. They include installation of “No Right Turn” signs along southbound Mantelli just before the intersection with Welburn and a temporary plastic delineator barrier at the western entrance of Welburn at Mantelli, with “Do Not Enter” signs and a reflective marker yellow centerline stripe on upper Welburn. Staff will also discuss student drop-off at the nearby Pacific Point Christian School, which residents say cause much of the congestion.    

The Gilroy Gardens Chinese light exhibit ‘Lumination,’ which was scheduled to end in November, has been extended until Jan. 8. The nighttime show of Chinese artistry made with tens of thousands of colored lights, has drawn tourists from all over and added to the park’s hours of operation. It will be open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. through most of December. It will be open every night from Dec. 16 to Jan. 8—but not Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Check gilroygardens.org for tickets, daily events and  schedules. 

The Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters this week enacted automatic recounts in 10 contests in the county following the Nov. 8 general election, two of which were Gilroy races.Both the Gilroy City Council and Gilroy Unified School District Board of Trustees had three seats up for grabs. Because of the narrow margin of victory between the third and fourth place finishers in both races, they qualified for the automatic recount. The races’ top two vote getters are not affected.“I don’t think it will swing much, but I don’t know,” said Paul Kloecker, the former councilman who placed third in the current council race. “I will do my celebrating when I get sworn in.”The automatic recounts are based on unofficial semi-final results following the record-setting number of polling place, provisional, and mail-in ballots cast on Nov. 8, when nearly 83 percent of the county’s registered voters took part.In the City Council race, Kloecker received 5,471 votes, 95 more than fellow planning commissioner Tom Fischer, who got 5,376 votes. That is just a 0.24 percent difference, less than the 0.5 percent that triggers an automatic recount as mandated by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors earlier this year.A similar thing happened in the GUSD Board of Trustees race. Third place finisher BC Doyle, a former Navy SEAL, retired GUSD union leader and maintenance worker, received 8,439 votes, or 22.42 percent; while Paul Nadeau, director of operations of the nonprofit Navigator Schools, received 8,387 votes, or 22.28 percent. That is just a 0.38 percent difference.Nadeau, however, dropped out of the race before the election due to a potential conflict of interest because Navigator Schools operates a local charter, Gilroy Prep, which falls under the purview of the GUSD board. But his decision to drop out came too late to get his name removed from the ballot, leading him to garner thousands of votes. Nadeau said he would resign if elected and under the advice of counsel, run at a later time when it did not pose a conflict.The automatic recount, which started on Monday and will continue until the end of the weekend or whenever it’s completed, involves 150 county staff working from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the county registrar of voters office.“This is only the second time automatic recounts have taken place,” said Anita Torres, communications representative for the county registrar of voters.The eight other county races involved in automatic recounts are: Cupertino Union School District Board; Palo Alto Unified School District Board; Los Altos City Council; Monte Sereno City Council; San Jose City Council District 8; Los Altos Hills City Council; city of Santa Clara police chief; and Measure Y in the San Jose Unified School District.Narrow margins of victory, where small number of votes separated the winner from the loser, had become commonplace in small local elections. County supervisors earlier this year felt that, to satisfy voter confidence and offer greater transparency, automatic recounts paid for by the county, would be enacted if certain criteria were met, Torres said.If the contest is in a district within the county and it is not for a state or federal office; and if the margin of victory is within 0.5 percent of the total number of ballots cast or 25 votes, an automatic recount is triggered.The automatic recount as authorized by the Board of Supervisors is limited in scope and involves recounting by hand machine-counted ballots only, said Torres. “A person can see voter intent, whereas a machine would not catch it and mark it as an over- or under-vote.”Before the Board of Supervisors action, a recount would have to be voter-initiated with the costs covered by the candidate.Fourth place City Council finisher Tom Fischer said while he does not expect the recount to change the election outcome, it has been “quite an experience.”The planning commissioner, whose term ends in 2018, said if he does not surpass Kloecker to take the third spot free and clear, he intends to apply for the council seat left vacant when mayor-elect Roland Velasco is sworn in Dec. 12.However, he pointed out, the City Council can decide to bypass the application process altogether and just appoint Fischer as the fourth top vote getter in the council race.“They can pretty much do what they want to fill that seat,” he said.The top vote getters in the City Council race were GUSD Board President, Fred Tovar and incumbent Cat Tucker. In the GUSD Board of Trustee race, Mark Good and James Pace took the top spots.The final results for the Nov. 8 election will be certified by the registrar of voters on Dec. 8, after all manual recounts and audits have been completed.