Los Gatan 11-9-2022

PELLERIN STARTS STRONG IN ASSEMBLY RACE

Business tax measure garners majority in favor

Todd Guild, Reporter

Former Santa Cruz Coun ty Clerk Gail Pellerin appears poised to become the first wom an from Santa Cruz County to hold a seat on the State Assem bly, with early returns showing 67.4% of voters supporting her throughout the district.

Early results as of 8pm Tues day also showed 65.5% of Santa Clara County voters supporting her run for the 28th District.

Her opponent is Republi can Liz Lawler, who currently serves on the Monte Sereno City Council.

The newly redrawn Assem bly District 28 includes Los Gatos and also covers north Santa Cruz County, Morgan Hill and southern San Jose.

Lawler, a native of Los An geles, moved to Monte Sereno with her family in 2013, and was elected to the city coun cil in 2018, serving a year as mayor in 2020. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Berkeley.

Business tax holds early lead

Voters so far seem support ive of the plan to raise the busi ➝ Assembly, 4

ROOKIE CANDIDATE ROB MOORE SOARS INTO FIRST PLACE IN EARLY RESULTS

Incumbent Badame notches a close second in council race

Drew Penner, Reporter

In early voting results, Rob Moore, the progressive firsttime candidate for Los Gatos Town Council, edged ahead of the slow-growth-advocating in cumbent Mary Badame to claim first place in early voting re sults. There are three positions available on Council, as Mayor Rob Rennie was up for reelec tion, and Councilmember Mario Sayoc decided not to run again. Moore’s initial tally was 3,776 (22.8%) to Badame’s 3,615 (21.82%), Rennie’s 3,369 (20.34%), executive Rob Stump’s 2,870 (17.33%), long-time local businesswom an Margaret Smith’s 2,200 ➝ Council, 4

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HOLDING A LEAD Los Gatos Town Council candidate Rob Moore speaks during a candidate forum in September. He led all vote-getters for council, early election results showed Tuesday night.

Drew Penner/Los Gatan file

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VOL.2 NO.10

BUSINESS TAX GAINS EARLY SUPPORT

Assembly, from page 1

ness tax rate in Los Gatos, garnering 56% in favor of Measure J, early elec tion results show.

Measure J would increase the town's base business tax rate by 30 percent for businesses with more than $50,000 in annual gross receipts.

Taxes for licensed businesses have not increased in the town since 1991.

The tax rate for retail businesses with more than $50,000 in gross receipts would also be increased by 40 percent, while e-commerce busi nesses would be added to the town's “manufacturing, wholesaling and jobbing” tax category.

That category's tax rate would also be increased by 120 percent.

Town officials estimate the tax in crease would generate roughly $1.2 million per year for the general fund, and help shore up a forecasted bud get deficit.

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EARLY RESULTS POUR IN FOR COUNCIL RACE

Council, from page 1

(13.28%) and Planning Commission er Reza Tavana’s 735 (4.44%).

“It feels really good. It’s a lot of hard work, so it’s very gratifying,” said Moore, when asked about his pole po sition status minutes after the results were released. “Fingers crossed.”

As the night unfolds, the future direction of the town hangs in the balance, as some candidates stridently oppose the residential development outlook advocated by others.

While Stump and Badame are the candidates favored by those in town urging as little growth as possible, in the hopes of preserving the small-town character of the community, Moore and Rennie have advocated for policies that would allow some density increas es, while preventing intensification in other areas. Tavana did not appear to have done much active campaigning during the race.

The Los Gatos Community Alliance, a local group behind a referendum

that seeks to do away with parts of the 2040 General Plan that would allow additional home construction in some areas of town, supported Stump and

Badame and decried Moore and Ren nie for boycotting a public forum they held. Moore and Rennie had refused to attend, saying the event was biased against them.

At the last Council meeting, Nov. 1, Badame was the lone vote against allowing a developer to put up a less ob trusive form of story poles, the visible markers that demonstrate the size of potential developments to the public. She said locals need to be made aware of projects coming down the line how ever possible, so they have a chance to share their comments.

Meanwhile, in the education world, two candidates seemed to be rising to the top for the Los Gatos-Saratoga UHSD Governing Board. Alex Shultz had brought in 6,394 votes (26.1%), with Steve Chen just behind at 6,302 (25.72%), with Misty Davies in third at 4,641 (18.94%), David Guidry at 3,699 (15.1%) and Chris Miller at 3,465 (14.14%).

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RESIDENTS GET CRASH-COURSE ON WHAT TO DO DURING AN EARTHQUAKE

Local residents went through a dryrun of how to react to a natural disaster, Saturday, when they were hit with a 7.2 magnitude “earthquake.” The imaginary calamity was organized by the Los Ga tos-Monte Sereno Community Emer gency Response Team.

The participants were dealing with a faux-quake 100 times more powerful than the real one that shook the region just days earlier.

CERT members headed to the In cident Command Center on Lyndon Avenue, on the dead-end street behind St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception School, across from Mint Condition Fit ness.

The storyline for the day included a widespread electrical power outage and disrupted cell phone service. Attendees were told there’d be no regular access to 911 dispatch.

“This is why the command center on Lyndon Avenue is equipped with solar battery power for lighting and ham and GMRS radio communications,” ex plained Lorraine Hepworth, one of the organizers. “CERTs and volunteers who registered online—and some just drop ping in—then proceeded to join together on the cul-de-sac to respond to whatever emergencies had occurred, as the simu lation rolled out over the next few hours.”

As the exercise unfolded, details emerged (seemingly spontaneously) via a group that had not rehearsed what would happen.

Business owners on Santa Cruz Ave nue, and homeowners within a square mile, had agreed to allow signs to be posted on their property, to add an extra layer to the drill.

One person secretly posted 50 signs at 40 different addresses the day be fore, setting up a minefield of addi tional problems to be identified and responded to.

The concept was to prepare a team of CERT members who will be able to jump right into action and respond effectively during a real emergency, bridging the crucial gap until profes sional help can arrive.

“The CERT Incident Commander dispatched one CERT and one volun teer to ride their bikes, and one runner to carry GMRS radios and maps with them as they quickly and collectively covered 10 smaller geographic zones,” Hepworth said.

They were responsible for surveying the square mile west of Highway 17 and south of Highway 9, looking for fires and gas leaks. This information was then relayed to the ICP radio communi cations group on Lyndon Avenue.

Those volunteers then passed the messages on, over amateur radio waves,

to the Emergency Operations Center on Los Gatos Boulevard, which was staffed by four CERT members, who operated under the direction of the police depart ment and Town officials.

“Six field teams of CERTs and volun teers, organized under the direction of the operations leader on Lyndon Ave nue, proceeded on foot with radios and maps to canvas each zone for additional problems to be responded to appropri ately,” Hepworth said. “The simulation also included volunteers who were res cued by field teams as well as volunteers who walked in as injured residents, and other volunteers who ran in reporting ‘calamities’ and ‘distress’ they had ob served in the area.”

The “injured” residents were

SB9 RULES: LOS GATOS INTRODUCES PERMANENT LOT-SPLIT ORDINANCE

types of housing to be built, as long as projects fall within certain thresholds.

Drew Penner, Reporter

The Los Gatos Town Council intro duced an ordinance Nov. 1 that would guide the development of lot-split hous ing, a type of project that’s been mandat ed by Sacramento in a bid to solve the affordability crisis.

The permanent plan to address Sen ate Bill 9 would replace a stop-gap plan put in place earlier this year.

Associate Planner Ryan Safty noted the Town is required to allow certain

The two types of housing under SB9 are: 1. A two-unit housing development to be built on a single-family parcel. 2. A one-time “lot-split” subdivision of an existing single family residential parcel into two parcels.

This is a way for the State to generate up to four units of housing on a plot of land that used to only allow one, as it seeks ways to tackle rampant home lessness and lack of affordable options across California.

On Sept. 28, the Planning Commis sion held a public hearing and produced recommendations for Council for its SB9 plan.

At Council, one resident, who said he lives in a lot-split unit, offered some input.

Both he and his neighbor have a 1,500-square-foot house, he noted, sug gesting these sorts of homes be allowed to have a higher floor-area-ratio (FAR) while maintaining other restrictions.

“Because that will keep the aesthetics in good shape,” he said. “But it will allow you to get a little more house.”

Tony Jeans, the owner of THIS De sign & Development, urged Council to allow aesthetic features like gables while maintaining privacy features, by not requiring a 5-foot setback on the upper floor in some cases.

He also asked for an 18-foot height limit in hillside areas—slightly higher

brought to a medical triage area so CERT members could practice their first-aid skills.

“The exercise produced an extensive amount of reporting and an overall experience that was educational for the community members who partic ipated while giving CERTs and volun teers training opportunities,” she said.

“More exercises and focused training will be conducted to help LGMS be come better prepared for and more resilient in disasters.”

Organizers encourage all residents to take the necessary steps to ready themselves and their families for emergencies, and to gain the skills needed to provide assistance to others when disaster strikes.

than the proposed 16-foot limit.

Councilmember Matthew Hudes not ed hillsides were excluded from the urgency ordinance.

“And now it’s being included, is that correct?” he asked staff.

Safty said this was added based on direction from the State.

Hudes asked if it was required, or just recommended.

Town Attorney Gabrielle Whelan said hillsides aren’t specifically mentioned in State law, but notes it does talk about “hazards.”

Hudes said some areas are only not exempt from SB9 because of a loophole that allows high fire hazard areas to ap ply if fire codes are followed.

“I’m really concerned about this as a safety issue—increasing density, par

Council agrees to loosening of upstairs setbacks, but keeps height limit for hillsides

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Assistant Town Manager Arn Andrews (second from left) gives a debrief to volunteers of an earthquake drill organized by the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Community Emergency Response Team on Nov. 5.

CIVIL JURY FINDS EX-SHERIFF SMITH GUILTY OF CORRUPTION

Longtime official left post days before verdict

Barry Holtzclaw, Reporter

A San Mateo County jury on Nov. 3 returned a verdict of guilty against former Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith on six counts of cor ruption and willful misconduct.

Smith, who announced her re tirement on Oct. 31 while the jury was deliberating, faced the charges in a civil trial that had been filed by a Santa County Civil Grand Jury in December.

Sentencing in such a case could normally result in her removal from office, but the sheriff’s surprise an nouncement two months before the end of her sixth term makes that punishment moot. It remained un clear what sentence could result from the verdict.

“We are gratified that the jury con sidered the evidence from our inves tigation and found all the allegations against the sheriff to be true,“ Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement after the verdict. “We look forward to working with the next sheriff and the honest and hard-working sheriff’s deputies to serve our community with honor and integrity.”

“I would like to thank the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office and prosecutor Gabriel Markoff for their excellent work on this vital matter.”

Markoff, an assistant district at torney in San Francisco, handled the prosecution to avoid any perception of conflict of interest, the same rea son the trial occurred in San Mateo County Superior Court, instead of Santa Clara.

“The actions of a few people are not a reflection of the great work that our deputies do every day,” Acting Sheriff Ken Binder said in a state ment. “The men and women of the Sheriff’s Office are looking forward to new beginnings, with the Sheriff election coming up next week.”

Binder was named acting sheriff on Monday.

Smith, a six-term sheriff who turned 70 this year, first joined the county Sheriff’s Department in 1973.

The misconduct allegations against Smith by a Santa Clara County civil grand jury included doling out concealed carry licenses to campaign donors, accepting San Jose Sharks tickets and not report ing them as gifts and mismanage ment of the county jail.

On Nov. 8, county voters decid ed between retired sheriff’s captain

POLICE BLOTTER

OCT. 30

• A man was arrested for being in possession of unlawful para phernalia on the 200 block of Los Gatos-Saratoga Road at 3:55am.

• A vehicle was stolen on N. Santa Cruz Avenue.

• A “large amount” of headphones was stolen on N. Santa Cruz Ave nue at 2pm.

• A woman was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol on N. Santa Cruz Avenue and An drews Street at 10:25pm.

OCT. 31

• A group of juveniles were report edly shooting at each other with toy guns at Oak Meadow Park at 3:17pm.

• A man was arrested for driving with a suspended license on University and Lark avenues at 4:06pm.

• A vehicle was burglarized on Pol lard Road.

• A caller reported they were un able to sleep due to a loud party on Johnson Avenue at 9:53pm.

NOV. 1

• A man was arrested for inflicting injury on a cohabitant on the first block of Manzanita Avenue at 2:19am.

• Items were stolen from a front yard on University Avenue.

• An unknown suspect egged two vehicles parked on Blossom Hill Road.

• A credit card was stolen from a mailbox on Oka Road.

• An unknown suspect shot a paint ball gun at a vehicle on Union Ave nue and Thomas Drive.

• A woman was arrested for inflict ing injury on a cohabitant on Los Gatos-Saratoga Road at 8:47pm.

• A juvenile was reported for play ing basketball in Bachman Park at 9:51pm.

NOV. 2

• A man was reportedly trespass ing in a side yard on Broadway at 4:17pm.

NOV. 3

• A group of teenagers on e-bikes were reportedly riding recklessly on Thomas Drive and Union Ave nue at 9:24am.

• Someone stole a vehicle’s cata lytic converter on Pollard Road.

NOV. 4

• A woman was arrested for inflict ing injury on a cohabitant on the 17600 block of Bruce Avenue at 10:32am.

• A caller thought a man running on S. Santa Cruz Avenue at 12:07pm was suspicious because he was holding his waistband.

• A man was arrested for being in possession of unlawful para

phernalia on E. Main Street and Church Avenue at 9:45pm.

NOV. 5

• A man was arrested for battery on the 100 block of Oak Rim Court at 1:44am.

• Petty theft was reported at a business on the 14100 block of Blossom Hill Road at 1:01pm.

• A bike was reported stolen on High School Court.

• A group of juveniles egged a house on Avery Lane. The caller said it was an ongoing issue.

• A home was burglarized on Har wood Court.

• A woman was arrested for inflict ing injury on a cohabitant on the 16400 block of W. Mozart Avenue at 7:58pm.

Information is compiled from public records released by the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Department.

Kevin Jensen and retired Palo Alto police chief and former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s captain Robert Jon sen as the new sheriff.

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FINISHING FAST

Tau, Stefanopoulos lead the pack

Emanuel Lee, Sports Editor

Led by standouts Aydon Stefanopou los and Sophie Tau, the Los Gatos High boys and girls cross country teams won Santa Clara Valley Athletic League De Anza Division championships at Crystal Springs in Belmont on Nov. 1.

The boys had a low score of 37 points to easily beat runner-up Lynbrook. The Los Gatos girls were even more dom inant, finishing with 25 points to beat second-place Monta Vista by a whopping 54 positions. Tau continued her spectac ular senior season, running the 2.95-mile Crystal Springs course in a personal-re cord (PR) of 17 minutes, 57.8 seconds.

Sophomores Shea Elmore (second in 18:53.1) and Addison Lundstrom (third in 19:16.9) went second and third, allow ing the Wildcats to sweep the top three individual spots. Juniors Abigail Zolla (20:35.7) and Kate Herron (20:45.6) finished ninth- and 10th, respectively, while sophomore Erika Snell ran a PR of 21:07.4 to place 15th.

The SCVAL De Anza and El Camino

Division races were run separately, but Tau’s time was second overall, trailing only Lauren Soobrian of Los Altos who finished in 17:49.8. It was a break through performance for Tau, who had a third, fourth and fifth-place finish in the three regular-season league meets.

A performance like this and another one in the Central Coast Section Cham pionships on Nov. 12 would put Tau squarely among the section’s very elite.

“It’s a little scary,” she said. “I’ve always been in that second group, getting fourth or around there, so to get second overall was a big surprise. A race like this helps me to know I can stay with the top run ners in CCS.”

While the muddy conditions weren’t ideal for fast times, the cool tempera tures were perfect running weather. Tau said she and her teammates ran on the outer edges of the course away from the mud, allowing them to run fast times.

Tau led from the start after taking things out harder than she was planning to and as a result ran alone for most of the race.

“I’ve never led a race on that course before,” she said. “I definitely hung on for

that last mile and was hurting because the first two miles I went out a lot faster than I usually do.”

Tau didn’t check her time until there was about a mile to go, at which point she thought she could go sub 18. She did just that, establishing an 18-second PR in the process.

“Besides the mud, the conditions were nice so I knew I needed to capitalize on them,” she said.

Tau has been remarkably consistent this season, but even then she was a bit surprised by her result.

“It’s always special to win and show a strong time compared to some of the runners from the El Camino Division,” she said.

Tau was proud of her teammates and has been particularly impressed with Lundstrom, who was on the junior varsi ty team last year.

“Addison is great because she im proved a lot in the last track season and this season for cross country she’s been training really hard,” Tau said. “She’s going strong and very motivated. Every workout she’s close behind me or next to me, so I knew she could have a big PR. We can always count on her to finish strong and I’m really proud of her and know when I’m gone next year she’ll be one of the leaders on the team.”

Stefanopoulos continued his tremen dous season with an eight-second PR at Crystal Springs, finishing in 15:30.3

to place first in the De Anza and the third fastest overall, behind Mountain View’s Evan Markelz (14:51.1) and Palo Alto’s Grant Morgenfeld (15:04.5).

The super sophomore had plenty of support as senior Keaton Wong finished seventh in 16:25.4, a big 28-second PR. Jack Fan was eighth in 16:31.5, and sophomore Ben Klarich was ninth in 16:36.2, a massive PR of nearly two minutes.

“Ben, I’m really proud of that guy,” Stefanopoulos said. “He’s always shown it in track, and I knew he could be pretty fast in cross country. Run ning Crystal Springs the second time around for him, you learn a lot. Where the hills are, where to push, and it’s really important to know that course.”

Junior Jensen Bidmead took 12th in 16:46.5, a 34-second PR, and seniors Will Jenkins and Noah Hale had near ly identical times as they finished a hip apart in 26th and 27th, respectively.

Stefanopoulos felt great in warmups and had his race strategy dialed in.

However, as runners are bound to do, Stefanopoulos went out a little harder than he would’ve liked and ran a 4:58 first mile.

“I felt strong but was a little too excit ed,” he said. “So the race didn’t exactly happen as I had planned going into it.”

Around the first mile, Stefanopoulos felt “smooth and strong” going up one of the biggest hills on the course, at which point he thought he would go 15:40.

“That was kind of my mental state at the time,” he said. “I had mud going up my legs. I felt like I was cruising but I didn’t feel like I was going that fast.”

The sophomore said he was shocked he and most of his teammates were able to nail PRs.

“If you told us before the race we would have a PR, none of us would’ve believed you,” he said.

Stefanopoulos is known for having a strong finishing kick, and that was on display once again. With 1,000 meters to go, Los Gatos coach Paul Lawryk yelled out “six seconds” as Stefanopou los ran by, which meant the next runner wasn’t far behind.

“I didn’t know that but once I heard that, I knew I could extend the lead,” said Stefanopoulos, who wound up winning the race by 19 seconds. “I re lied on my strong kick and it was nice knowing I have that finishing speed.”

RUNAWAY Sophie Tau is all alone as she races toward victory in the SCVAL De Anza Division Finals at Crystal Springs in Belmont on Nov. 1. The senior standout finished in a PR of 17:57.8 to lead Los Gatos to the team championship.

Edward Tau

’CATS ROUNDUP: GIRLS VOLLEYBALL TEAM SET FOR THE FUTURE

Water polo teams make history; football set for CCS

Emanuel Lee, Sports Editor

It wouldn’t be a Los Gatos High girls volleyball match if it didn’t in volve an extended set.

The No. 6 seed Wildcats won anoth er marathon set but ultimately lost the match and saw its season end against No. 3 seed Menlo-Atherton High in a Central Coast Section Division I play off quarterfinal on Nov. 1. Game scores were 25-19, 25-14, 25-27, 25-16.

Wildcats coach Brynja Thompson said she’ll remember this year’s team for its propensity to be involved in suspenseful, riveting matches that of ten went the full five games.

“I think we got to play more sets than any other team,” she said. “We always go four or five sets; we never do anything in three. So, what I’ll re member the most is all the volleyball we played together. Those five sets in the beginning of the season didn’t cripple us; they really made our sea son more memorable.”

Los Gatos finished 11-14 and will graduate UC Santa Barbara-commit Hannah Slover. However, Thompson was excited when asked about the players who are projected to return next season. They include Allison Black, Nicole Steiner, Maya Walker, Kate Vanderbosch, Sarah Herman and Mia Halsey. Black and Halsey led the team with seven kills each in the M-A match.

“Oh my God, we don’t want to talk about next year yet because I’ll get too excited,” she said. “I want to be in the moment right now.”

M-A displayed its superiority de fensively, time and again getting balls up that against most teams would fall for a point.

“Menlo-Atherton is really good at what they do and I think we learned a lot from that and we will use those things as we move forward,” Thomp son said. “Our players are so amazing, there’s no one person that’s really go ing to make or break our season and that's what the team has been work

ing on for so long. And that is really being distributive, really making all the players shine to be very difficult to defend.”

Water Polo

The girls team achieved a mile stone for the program by winning its first-ever match in the CCS Open Divi sion playoffs, defeating Menlo School 11-7 on Nov. 5. The No. 4 seed Wildcats (26-1) received a huge game from Lily van Putten, who had four goals, five steals and drew five exclusions.

The victory earned Los Gatos an au tomatic berth into the CIF NorCal Re gional Championships, which starts on Nov. 15. Karissa Elliott continued her tremendous play of late with three goals, Julia Ernsting scored twice and Ella Ralston added three assists.

Goalie Rachel Stephens finished with 12 saves and scored from mid pool just before the third-quarter buzzer.

Meanwhile, the Los Gatos boys team also made some history, reaching

the Open Division for the first time in program history.

The No. 8 seed Wildcats were in tough against top seed Sacred Heart Prep, the lone team outside of South ern California that is ranked among the top 10 in the state. Connor Sulli van capped off a spectacular season with six goals, Liam Amburgey had two and goalie Jake Cannon produced “several amazing blocks,” according to coach Davor Koret.

Los Gatos had a fine season, high lighted by a thrilling win over Gunn in the third-place game of the league tournament. And with several key players returning, Los Gatos looks set on making a deeper CCS and potential CIF run in 2023.

Football

Los Gatos is back in the section’s premier Division I playoff field for the second consecutive season. Champi ons of the SCVAL/PAL De Anza Di vision, the Wildcats (8-2) earned the

No. 3 seed and play host to No. 6 Mitty (7-3) on Nov. 11 at 7pm.

They concluded the regular-sea son with a strong 31-14 win over Menlo-Atherton in a league crossover game on Nov. 4. Jake Boyd was just 8-of-18 passing but for 161 yards, or 20 yards per completion. Emiliano Mejia had another superb game, rushing for 91 yards on 13 carries.

Jaylen Thomas led the receiving core with five receptions for 53 yards, and Henry Wong and Boxer Kopc sak-Yeung had touchdown receptions of 69 and 54 yards, respectively.

Defensively, Henry Masters and Landon Heard shared team-high hon ors with 12 tackles each, and Luchi Casale had 11.

Heard also had two interceptions, continuing his ball-hawking ways. Wong and Nicolas Ramos each had two tackles for losses. Lyndon Bailey and Ryan Vernale combined for nine quarterback pressures, making things tough for the M-A offense.

losgatan.com : november 9-15, 2022

losgatan.com : n ovember 9-15, 2022

PUMPED UP Mia Halsey, Maya Walker and Allison Black celebrate after the Los Gatos High girls volleyball team won an extended rally during their Central Coast Section Division I playoff quarterfinal match at Menlo-Atherton on Nov. 1.

Jonathan Natividad

AFTER LEAK, SAN JOSE WATER TWEAKS EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN

Drew Penner, Reporter

Council held a discussion during its regularly scheduled meeting Nov. 1 about emergency response lessons to be learned from a recent water disruption in the Villa Avenue area.

“This is an opportunity for us to dis cuss potential ways of doing it better in the future,” said Mayor Rob Rennie. “We could improve our interaction with San Jose Water company.”

Hundreds of people were without water service for about a day after a work crew struck a pipeline, but residents were left under a boil water advisory for three additional days.

During the repair, several projected service restoral times were missed, re sulting in locals having to rely on bottled water longer than anticipated.

“This incident lasted several days,” said Town Manager Laurel Prevetti. “I think both of our agencies have learned quite a bit in terms of emergency communica tions and how we can better coordinate.”

John Tang, SJ Water’s president of government relations, admitted the com pany “fell short” of its own standards.

LETTER

Story highlights overlooked individual

The recent article on Sahr Fania by Drew Penner (Los Gatan, Nov. 2-8) was wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing the story of a Los Gatan who does not fill the profile that is often told about “important” people in other Los Gatos publications. Please continue to tell the story of the indi vidual(s) not often highlighted, but who make up the thread of our com munity...who are also Los Gatans.

Ann Rice Los Gatos

“There’s nothing more important to us than delivering clean and reliable water service to our customers,” he said. “Our response here is not indicative of how we respond to numerous other leaks every day.”

While leaks come with the territory of operating a utility, the water com pany says the climate of uncertainty around the Los Gatos disruption, which occurred around noon on Oct. 20, was more serious than usual.

“We understand that customers were inconvenienced, and the lack of available information early on exacerbated the situa tion,” Tang said. “For that we are truly sorry.”

Affected customers will be receiving letters of apology and a $50 account credit.

“How we respond is important,” he said. “The lessons learned from this incident will help us in future instances.”

When SJ Water initially assessed the leak, it figured it would be a quick fix, but the outage dragged on because one thing after another failed to solve the problem.

The company says, at first, it was working with inadequate equipment, as it attempted to restore service to 600 customers.

Tang said the company has three main takeaways:

Ensure proper parts and equip

ment are ready to be deployed during emergencies.

Update its record-keeping system. Improve communication with Town officials and customers.

“We are going to take these les sons-learned to heart,” Tang said. “I thank you again for the opportunity to address you.”

Pat Kearns of Water Rate Advocates for Transparency, Equity and Sustainability (WRATES), said the water company was downplaying the severity of the incident.

“This is not a leak, this was a rupture,” he said, noting there were patients with serious medical conditions who were affected by the disruption.

Kearns called for an independent task force to investigate the incident.

He urged the utility to step up to the plate with more than it’s currently offering.

“Fifty dollars will not cover the charges for the water we had to waste,” he said. “The costs are not just the additional water that was wasted.”

According to Kearns, some residents were forced to stay at hotels for several days so they could take a shower before going out to appointments, such as to court or the hospital.

Councilmember Matthew Hudes asked Tang how well the water bottle distribution process went.

Tang said he connected with Prevetti as soon as he learned of the situation.

He reported that part of their re sponse went smoothly.

ORDINANCE MOVES FORWARD

SB9, from page 6

ticularly on streets that are narrow and we know we have vegetation problems on these streets,” he said. “There will be wildfire. And there will be wildfire on places where we’ve increased density.”

Allowing lot-splits in these areas could open the Town up to legal liability, he argued.

Vice Mayor Maria Ristow wondered if Council should ask staff to tweak SB9 rules to promote duplexes, instead the current FAR approach, meant to require a smaller (cheaper) unit, before a de veloper could maximize density with a larger home.

Town Manager Laurel Prevetti said duplexes don’t have to have to be the same size, pointing to “very nice” exam ples in Minnesota.

Mayor Rob Rennie said sometimes

one side of a duplex can have a double garage and while the other will have a single garage.

“I rented one of those once,” he said. “And I got the single-garage side.”

Upon these comments, Ristow said she was satisfied the 1,200-square-foot size limitation for the first new SB 9 unit rule should stand in the new ordinance.

Councilmember Marico Sayoc won dered about what balance the commu nity should strike between notifying res idents and not—since the streamlined nature of SB9 means they’ll have little ability to affect change on such projects.

Hudes asked if there’s a way for the Town to ensure lot-split units are afford ably priced.

Whelan said, in her opinion, Los Ga tos can’t force developers to offer homes

at lower price points, but it can offer incentives.

Hudes moved to approve recommen dations put forward by Planning Com mission, with no front setbacks for flag/ corridor lots, driveway requirements, and to develop an application modeled on Atherton’s and Santa Clara County’s (which makes developers confirm they’ll use one of the units as their primary res idence for at least three years).

Hudes said his motion did not include increasing the maximum height in the hillsides but did include notification rules for some neighbors, even though they won’t be allowed to comment on the project in a public hearing.

He also made the five-foot setback for the second story so it only applies to the rear and internal property lines.

Council gave the ordinance first read ing unanimously and asked staff to re turn with additional information about affordability options and fire safety laws.

WATER DISRUPTION San Jose Water officials hand out water bottles during the boil water advisory on Oct. 24.

Ratepayers rep says utility needs to offer more support

LOCAL SCENE

LOCAL COMPANY PARTNERS WITH INTERNATIONAL NONPROFIT TO HELP END EXTREME POVERTY

Health Bear Food Company of Monte Sereno has partnered with Opportunity International, a Chica go-based, global nonprofit whose mis sion is to design, deliver and scale innovative financial solutions to help families living in extreme poverty.

“Health Bear and Opportunity Inter national are coordinating with female farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa to en hance their farming practices, improve their harvests, feed their families, send their children to school and break the cycle of poverty,” said Johanna Mahal of Opportunity International.

Health Bear founder Lisa Matar is now working with Opportunity In ternational and female farmers to improve their quality of life by mod ernizing their farming practices.

“In all reality, I have something in common with these female farmers,” she said. “We are all business women working diligently every day to move our businesses in the right direction to be more efficient and prosperous. There is nothing more powerful than women supporting women. It is my joy and plea sure to help them grow their businesses.”

Matar said she founded Health Bear to bring healthy food to busy people looking for a quick, but healthy, solu tion for breakfast.

“With grab-and-go food at our fin gertips, we can start our days off right but easily forget there are millions of people in the world that have a hard time getting the food they need to thrive,” she said.

To support the efforts, visit health bearfood.com and donate to Opportu nity International at checkout.

COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION

FILLING VACANCY

The Santa Clara County Board of Education is accepting applications to fill a vacancy on its seven-member Board of Education. The open Board Trustee Area 3 seat was created after Trustee Rosemary Kamei submitted her resignation, effective on Dec. 21,

because she won the election for San Jose City Council's District 1 seat in the June primary.

Applicants must be registered voters and must reside within Trustee Area 3, which includes Cambrian, Camp bell Union, Luther Burbank, Moreland, Union and Campbell Union High school districts and a small portion of San Jose Unified and Santa Clara Unified.

The County Board serves as a de cision-making body for countywide charter schools and serves as an appel late body for charter school petitions denied by local school districts. The board also is an appellate body for such actions as interdistrict transfer atten dance requests and student expulsions.

Any registered voter residing in Trustee Area 3 is eligible to serve on the County Board of Education, except the county superintendent of schools or any member of her staff and any employee of a public school district or charter school within the jurisdiction of the Santa Clara County Board of Education.

Applicants can verify residen cy in Area 3 by calling the Santa Clara County Office of Education at 408.453.6924. In addition, California law requires that candidates be at least 18 years of age, a citizen of California, and must not be disqualified from holding a civil office.

The provisional appointee will serve until the term expires in November 2024.

Interested individuals should sub mit a letter that includes interests and qualifications for the position. Include a minimum of three references and a resume. All materials must be received by noon on Nov. 12.

Submit applications to Dr. Mary Ann Dewan, County Superintendent of Schools, 1290 Ridder Park Drive, MC 201, San Jose, CA 95131-2304 or email to MDewan@sccoe.org. All materials, upon submission, become property of the SCCOE and as such, are public record.

For information, contact the Super intendent’s Office at 408.453.6540.

DESANTIS INDUCTED INTO THE HONOR SOCIETY OF PHI KAPPA PHI

Rachelle DeSantis of Los Gatos was recently initiated into The Honor So ciety of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society.

DeSantis was initiated at University of Southern California.

DeSantis is among approximately 25,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be initiated into Phi Kappa Phi each year. Member ship is by invitation only and requires nomination and approval by a chapter. Only the top 10 percent of seniors and 7.5 percent of juniors are eligible for membership. Graduate students in the top 10 percent of the number of candidates for graduate degrees may also qualify, as do faculty, professional staff and alumni who have achieved scholarly distinction.

‘AMERICAN PICKERS’ FILMING IN CALIFORNIA

Antique collectors are encouraged to dust off their collections and share their stories with the crew from the “American Pickers” TV show.

The History Channel series is film ing in California in January, and is looking for collectors to apply for the chance to be featured on the show.

The series explores the world of antique “picking,” following skilled pickers in the business as they hunt for America’s most valuable antiques. As they hit the back roads from coast to coast, the Pickers are on a mission to recycle and rescue forgotten relics.

The show’s producers are looking for leads. If you or someone you know has a large, private collection or accu mulation of antiques that the Pickers can spend the better part of the day looking through, send your name, phone number, location, and descrip tion of the collection with photos to americanpickers@cineflix.com or call 646.493.2184.

The Pickers do not pick stores, flea markets, malls, auction businesses, museums, or anything open to the public.

WOMEN SUPPORTING WOMEN Lisa Matar (right), founder of Health Bear Food Company, and Johanna Mahal of Opportunity International are working together to help female farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa enhance their farming practices.

CALENDAR

ONLINE AUTHOR TALK

The Los Gatos Library will host an online author talk with Bonnie Garmus on Nov. 10 at 11am. Garmus will discuss her debut New York Times bestselling novel, “Lessons in Chemistry.” The nov el is set in 1960s California and features the singular voice of Chemist Elizabeth Zott, a scientist whose career takes an unexpected detour.

➝ libraryc.org/ losgatoscalibrary/20213.

HOLIDAY TREE LIGHTING

The Annual Los Gatos Holiday Tree Lighting is scheduled for Dec. 2 at Pla za Park beginning at 5pm.

For information, visit losgatosca. gov/2510/Tree-Lighting.

CHRISTMAS/HOLIDAYS

PARADE

Los Gatos Lions, LGS Recreation and Los Gatos High School present the 66th Annual Los Gatos Children's Christmas/Holidays Parade on Dec. 3 at 11am in downtown.

➝ lgsrecreation.org/parade.

FANTASY OF LIGHTS

Fantasy of Lights Walk-thru and Drive-thru tickets are on sale now. Fantasy Walk-thru runs Dec. 3-4 at Vasona Lake County Park. The Drive-thru runs nightly Dec. 6-30 (closed Christmas Day).

➝ parks.sccgov.org/fantasylights-2022.

TERRA FIRMA ART EXHIBIT

New Museum Los Gatos presents “Terra Firma,” an art exhibition about our relationship to the land, on view through March 19. “Terra Firma,” a group show organized by guest cu rator Marianne K. McGrath, brings together work by 15 artists, working in diverse media including drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, installation and sound.

➝ numulosgatos.org.

LIVE JAZZ MUSIC

Live jazz performances at the Tast ing House, 368 Village Lane, take place Fridays and Saturdays from 6-9pm, and Sundays from 11am-2pm.

ENTERTAINMENT AT GARDINO’S

Gardino’s, 51 N. Santa Cruz Ave., features entertainment four days a week.

➝ bit.ly/3OSvPHS.

ONGOING

Los Gatos Farmers Market

The Los Gatos Certified Farmers’ Market offers seasonal fruits and veg etables from Santa Clara County yearround. More than 40 local farmers and food producers sell their wares Sundays from 9am to 1pm at Town Park Plaza on Main Street and N. San ta Cruz Avenue.

➝ cafarmersmkts.com/losgatosfarmers-market.

Campbell Farmers Market

The Downtown Campbell Farmers Market is held Sundays, rain or shine, from 9am to 1pm.

➝ uvfm.org/campbell-sundays.

The Kiwanis Club of Los Gatos

The club meets the first three Thurs days of the month at noon at Double D's, 354 N. Santa Cruz Ave. First two Thursdays of the month feature guest speakers.

➝ lgkiwanisgives.org.

Rotary Club of Los Gatos

The Rotary Club of Los Gatos meets Tuesdays from noon to 1:30pm at Shir Hadash Synagogue, 20 Cherry Blossom Lane. For information, visit losgatosrotary.org.

The Los Gatos Morning Rotary Club

The Club meets every Wednesday morning 7:30-8:30am at Los Gatos Lodge, 50 Los Gatos-Saratoga Road. Program includes featured guest speakers.

losgatan.com : november 9-15, 2022

losgatan.com : n ovember

Roberta Jones Jr. Theatre

REAL ESTATE

HOME OF THE WEEK

The

RANCH ON THE HILLS

This Los Gatos ranch estate sits on eight acres with panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and hills.

Located at 17210 Fawndale Road, the 3,900-square-foot home, designed by architect Frank Laulainen, includes five bedrooms and four bathrooms.

The first level main suite includes dual bathroom areas, a walk-in closet, separate den/study and floor-to-ceil ing windows. The upper level offers

four corner bedrooms, two full baths, a laundry room and wrap-around deck.

The main level family room, kitch en/breakfast and dining rooms all face the pool with three sliding doors.

The property also includes a guest house, tennis court, paddocks and more.

The home, built in 1963, is listed at $3,995,000 by Coldwell Banker Realty. For information, visit bit.ly/3TXuzGl.

Coldwell Banker Realty

FAWNDALE ROAD

main family room looks out to the pool.

Coldwell Banker Realty

INSIDE Floor-to-ceiling windows are a staple of the home.

SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM IN LOS GATOS

The team that launched the original Los Gatos Weekly has come together once again to give the town the quality of journalism it needs.

News about local people, school sports and vital community issues will fill the pages of thislocal publication –and a live web site.

Los Gatos deserves real reporting.

lgsubs.com

To advertise call

Serenity Polizzi 408.200.1323 Eric Bocanegra 408.200.1309

Looking to Move from the Bay Area?

Housing too expensive here? Now with working in place, you can live where you want for much less and keep your job. Let me nd you a real estate broker out of the area or out of state. I will do the leg work. I will also give you a $100 gift certi cate when you purchase through my referral!

All I need to know is the city you want to move to.

The Rodino Realty Group Give me a call or text at 408.431.6640

losgatan.com : november 9-15, 2022

231 El Cajon Way, Los Gatos

231 El Cajon Way, Los Gatos

231 El Cajon Way, Los Gatos

Jan Kollenborn

Jan Kollenborn

DRE 01181966 jan.kollenborn@compass.com 408.828.0043 jankollenborn.com

Jan Kollenborn

DRE 01181966

DRE 01181966

jan.kollenborn@compass.com 408.828.0043 jankollenborn.com

Jan Kollenborn

DRE 01181966

jan.kollenborn@compass.com 408.828.0043 jankollenborn.com

jan.kollenborn@compass.com 408.828.0043 jankollenborn.com

Jan Kollenborn

DRE 01181966

Stunning Los Gatos home expanded and rebuilt in 2019. Light and airy open floor plan brimming with gorgeous upscale accents, fixtures and skylights throughout. Spacious entryway leads to a well designed chef’s kitchen featuring fully integrated Thermador appliances, double ovens, gas range, Carrera marble backsplash, quartz countertops, walk-in pantry, wine fridge and a large island perfect for gathering. The spacious great room showcases vaulted ceilings, Velux opening skylights, a gas fireplace in a floor to ceiling stacked stone wall, ample space for large dining and a statement light fixture.

Stunning Los Gatos home expanded and rebuilt in 2019. Light and airy open floor plan brimming with gorgeous upscale accents, fixtures and skylights throughout. Spacious entryway leads to a well designed chef’s kitchen featuring fully integrated Thermador appliances, double ovens, gas range, Carrera marble backsplash, quartz countertops, walk-in pantry, wine fridge and a large island perfect for gathering. The spacious great room showcases vaulted ceilings, Velux opening skylights, a gas fireplace in a floor to ceiling stacked stone wall, ample space for large dining and a statement light fixture.

jan.kollenborn@compass.com 408.828.0043 jankollenborn.com

Stunning Los Gatos home expanded and rebuilt in 2019. Light and airy open floor plan brimming with gorgeous upscale accents, fixtures and skylights throughout. Spacious entryway leads to a well designed chef’s kitchen featuring fully integrated Thermador appliances, double ovens, gas range, Carrera marble backsplash, quartz countertops, walk-in pantry, wine fridge and a large island perfect for gathering. The spacious great room showcases vaulted ceilings, Velux opening skylights, a gas fireplace in a floor to ceiling stacked stone wall, ample space for large dining and a statement light fixture.

Stunning Los Gatos home expanded and rebuilt in 2019. Light and airy open floor plan brimming with gorgeous upscale accents, fixtures and skylights throughout. Spacious entryway leads to a well designed chef’s kitchen featuring fully integrated Thermador appliances, double ovens, gas range, Carrera marble backsplash, quartz countertops, walk-in pantry, wine fridge and a large island perfect for gathering. The spacious great room showcases vaulted ceilings, Velux opening skylights, a gas fireplace in a floor to ceiling stacked stone wall, ample space for large dining and a statement light fixture.

Stunning Los Gatos home expanded and rebuilt in 2019. Light and airy open floor plan brimming with gorgeous upscale accents, fixtures and skylights throughout. Spacious entryway leads to a well designed chef’s kitchen featuring fully integrated Thermador appliances, double ovens, gas range, Carrera marble backsplash, quartz countertops, walk-in pantry, wine fridge and a large island perfect for gathering. The spacious great room showcases vaulted ceilings, Velux opening skylights, a gas fireplace in a floor to ceiling stacked stone wall, ample space for large dining and a statement light fixture.