County seeks input on future of road system
Residents were given a glimpse into the future of the county road system Aug. 26 in San Martin, and an opportunity to put their own two cents in to help shape the Santa Clara County Circulation and Mobility Planning Project.Approximately 30 residents attended the first of four community forums being held in different locations throughout the county. The initial meeting was conducted at the San Martin Lions Hall.The series of meetings is part of a proactive and extensive community outreach process “to ensure public input into the Circulation and Mobility Planning Project and Roads Master Plan recommendations,” according to the County Roads and Airports Department fact sheet.There are three additional meetings scheduled, including a Sept. 9 community outreach forum at Guglielmo Winery (1480 E. Main Ave.) and a Sept. 15 forum at Gilroy Unified School District (7810 Arroyo Circle). Both meetings begin at 6 p.m. County officials will give a brief presentation followed by opportunities to give feedback on the proposed road system and road-related policies for each area.Among the plans outlined were improvements to the major corridors through San Martin, including Masten, Church, San Martin, Middle, Center and New avenues as well as Santa Teresa Boulevard, according to the San Martin Neighborhood Alliance.Proposed improvements on Center Avenue include a two-way, third lane for turns, paved shoulders/bikeways on both sides and a pedestrian/horse trail on one side.“I think that the infrastructure upgrades for San Martin’s streets and roads are long overdue,” San Martin resident Swanee Edwards said. “For too many years, the county has used San Martin as a dump.”The draft plan and environmental impact report are due to be released by November 2014, according to county staff.For more information or to provide input, call (408) 573-2417, e-mail at circulationplan@countyroads.org or visit circulationplan.countyroads.org.
The Hawaiian island of Maui: Where civilization and Eden merge
Think Hawaii and images of romance, blue skies and glorious weather float by the conjured thoughts. Midway across the warm Pacific lies a chain of islands called Hawaii, 2,000 miles of ocean from our mainland with no continental coast between. These small bits of land appear offered to the sky by water and pressed to the earth by stars. Here civilizations of Occident and Orient merge under the tropical influence of the Polynesian culture.
