Guest View

At a recent city function, a guest speaker said Anderson Dam was built in 18 months but the retrofit would take 8-10 years. It was his next comment that resonated with me: “That’s just the way it is.” I sat there thinking, nothing is...

On April 21, the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association (GGFA) released a statement that the Garlic Festival was postponed indefinitely due to prohibitive insurance required by the City of Gilroy. We stand by that statement. Some of the talk online against the city and council is...

In the heart of Downtown Gilroy lies a culinary treasure that has been enchanting residents and visitors alike for the past two years. Tempo Kitchen and Bar, born from the visionary minds of the dynamic duo, Dan and Nancy Nelson, recently celebrated its illustrious...

It was a warm Thursday summer evening, and everything was in place. I stepped back and was completely in awe. In previous years, I had seen the wonder of creating a venue in a matter of days, having a celebration of Garlic and family for...

When federal government and state governments passed laws governing wages, working hours and other workplace conditions prior to World War II, agricultural labor was exempted. Many years later, after the 40-hour work week became standard, California’s Industrial Welfare Commission decreed that farmworkers could work up...

I recently pedaled past what used to be Gilroy’s Sunshine Bicycles. Instead of all those shiny new bikes in the windows, all I saw was a lonely, little “For Rent” sign. Truly the end of an era. Shifting gears from sad to happy… A super Cycle...

Health insurance—can’t live with it, can’t live without it… or can you? These days, it seems the price we pay for health insurance is more than what it’s worth.  When you tally up the monthly premiums, health care deductibles and copays, the average healthy American...

By Susan Mister As I write this, it is the end of January, the season of gift giving is behind us, and yet, I have been given one special gift that I‘m excited about and want to share with all of you. This is the first...

California enters the new year with its existential issues still unresolved, and a new one—an immense budget deficit—threatens to make dealing with them even more difficult. California has made very little progress, if any, on narrowing its shortage of housing, its levels of homelessness and...

My great-grandfather was a bishop in a small Christian denomination who got his start preaching on street corners. Crowds gathered to hear his message of God’s love. Eventually he founded a church in Dayton, Ohio’s poorest district, leading standing-room-only services. I admire my great-grandfather,...