Mary’s garden grows

LAH resident Mary Davey champions open space, myriad humanitarian causes

Some might consider the causes of open space and fair and affordable housing to be at opposite ends of the spectrum. After all, doesn’t open space disappear under the weight of the clustered, higher-density development usually associated with affordable housing?

Unincorporated Los Altos residents face a ‘lights-out’ scenario from county

Residents living in unincorporated Los Altos could find themselves in the dark next month if they vote against a tax reassessment to fund street lighting.

The Santa Clara County Department of Roads and Airports was scheduled to mail ballots this week to approximately 12,000 property owners living in unincorporated areas of the county, seeking ratification of an assessment to continue existing street lighting. The lights will go out in any area that rejects the assessment, county officials said.

Wild pigs rooting, district staff is not

There could be one less set of footprints on local hiking trails starting this summer. The Mid-Peninsula Regional Open Space District Board of Directors is slated to decide this June on the details of a removal program that would thin out the wild pig population at its Peninsula parks.

Jodi Issacs, district resource management specialist, said the district has recorded a remarkable increase in pig activity at its parks over the past four years, especially at its Long Ridge Open Space Preserve on Skyline, where pigs are moving in from the south and west.

News Briefs

The crackdown on speeding motorists in Los Altos Hills just got tougher. The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors last week unanimously approved a request from the California Highway Patrol to use radar to enforce the speed limit on Eastbrook Avenue between Magdalena Avenue and Mora Drive, which lies in unincorporated Santa Clara County in Los Altos Hills. The posted speed limit on this stretch of road is 35 mph.

This is the second area in unincorporated Los Altos Hills over recent months that the Highway Patrol has targeted to use radar to enforce the speed limit. The board of supervisors last December approved the use of radar on Mora Drive between Eastbrook Avenue and Terrace Drive, where the posted speed limit is 25 mph.

LAH cable company selling assets in wake of financial trouble

Pacific Sun Cable Partners, owners of the cable television system serving Los Altos Hills, is in the process of selling all of its assets because of financial problems. Included in the assets is the cable system serving Los Altos Hills.

Last September, a verbal agreement with a new group of investors to acquire and upgrade Sun Cable was approved by the Los Altos Hills City Council but the deal fell through.

Keep garage doors closed, Los Altos police warn

Police are warning Los Altos residents to keep their garage doors closed. Noreen Sorg, community service officer for crime prevention with the Los Altos Police Department, said there has been an increased number of reported garage burglaries in the area since February.

“I always see more (garage burglaries) this time of the year,” she said. “People are out more, working in their yards. This is a reminder for people to keep their doors down. It’s difficult … you have a child riding a bicycle up and down the street, but a person could walk up, see an opportunity and take it. You won’t even hear them.”

LAH manager subject of surprise evaluation

The future of Los Altos Hills City Manager Mark Miller appeared up in the air last Thursday as councilmembers met in an unexpected closed session to discuss his evaluation.

Councilwoman Toni Casey asked for a closed session at the end of the public agenda items.

Letters to the Editor

Let’s see if we have this straight. A similar open enrollment (honors) program was tried six years ago at St. Francis High School and found not to be workable, and now Mountain View High School thinks it should try it anyway (Town Crier cover story, April 26).

Common sense tells us only one of two things can result from adopting such a short-sighted approach. Either the non-qualified students will be in over their heads and decide to drop out, or the classes will need to be “dumbed down” by teachers to the lower level, completely negating the purpose for the honor classes in the first place.

The widening of America - a posterior motive

A Side of Clyde

It’s just a game of inches, but sports stadiums, airline companies and movie theaters are beginning to address the conflict between today’s backside and yesterday’s chair dimensions.

Worry - as right as rain

The Living Experiment

“Isn’t it wonderful? Your adult children have all turned out so well. You can stop worrying about them now,” I said to a neighbor recently. One look at her shaking head showed me how misguided my words were.

LAH forms new rec committee

The Los Altos Hills City Council established a recreation committee at its regular meeting last Thursday, and immediately selected Rebecca Hickman, Patti Radlo and Jane Kawasaki, from the audience as its first members.

Four members of the council approved the action, but Mayor Elayne Dauber objected to forming a committee in such a precipitous manner.

Hidden Villa’s Mother’s Day weekend: Ropes course, jazz quartet

Whether you’re looking for a little adventure on Mother’s Day, or you just want to take it easy listening to jazz, Hidden Villa of Los Altos Hills may be able to fill both needs.

Moms and their daughters are invited to challenge themselves on a ropes course held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday at the Moody Road preserve.

Calendar

Los Altos Senior Center, 9-3 p.m., Monday through Friday, 97 Hillview Ave., Los Altos.

Wednesday

Community Briefs

Residents are welcome to a Los Altos Hills family picnic, set for 1-4 p.m., May 21, at the Little League fields on Purissima Road.

The picnic includes chicken, veggie-burgers and hot dogs, cooked by fire department volunteers. Participants also will be able to make their own ice cream sundaes.

Police Report

May 5, 12:53 a.m., Miramonte Avenue and Alegre Avenue: Police arrested a 33-year-old man for reckless driving and driving under the influence of alcohol.

Possible fraud

Foundation realizing goals at Community House

An increasing number of non-profit groups are taking advantage of the Community House since members of the Los Altos Community Foundation opened the facility to public groups in November 1998.

Curtis Cole, events coordinator for the Community House, said numerous organizations are using the facility as a place to hold meetings.

Save The Date

Los Altos Village Art and Wine Festival, sponsored by the Los Altos Village Association, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., downtown Los Altos.

Nov. 26

Pages of the Past

The nation’s top radio shows are, “Stop the Music” with Bert Parks and “The Fred Allen Show.”

In Los Altos:The Clean Up Week committee of the Los Altos Beautification Council was caught completely off guard this week. To publicize the newly initiated event, councilmembers sought the aid of local school children who were to make posters to be placed around town in strategic spots to jolt residents of this community into action. When the Clean Up Week committee gathered up some 30 posters deposited at the San Antonio School by willing and cooperative students, they gasped. Every poster depicted a scene with downtown street clutter and debris being emptied into a trash can. But Los Altos had no downtown trash cans.

Lave, Mandle reap honors as 37th CSA winners

In an unprecedented move, the 37th annual Community Service Award was given to two longtime volunteers, Roy Lave and John Mandle.

Under this year’s theme “Volunteers With a Smile,” more than 150 attended the noontime event last Wednesday at Michael’s at Shoreline Restaurant. This year’s event was co-sponsored by the Los Altos-Mountain View District Council of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors and the Los Altos Town Crier.

Los Altos, Syktyvkar mark 10-year association with visit

It’s been 10 years since Syktyvkar became a sister city to Los Altos. Next Monday, a delegation of six Syktyvkar residents will help celebrate the anniversary. The group is scheduled to visit the area Friday through May 19.

The Russian visitors will celebrate the partnership with a social and friendly evening starting 6:30 p.m., Monday, in the multipurpose room at Hillview Community Center, 97 Hillview Ave.

Seniors News

Today: 9:30 a.m., board of directors meeting.

Friday: 1 p.m., “Armchair Travel to Scandinavia.” George MacFarland will offer a presentation.

Bonsai club plans spring exhibition

The Peninsula Bonsai Club will present its 47th annual Spring Exhibit Saturday and Sunday at the Palo Alto Buddist Temple, 2751 Louis Road, Palo Alto.

The exhibit will consist of more than 250 specimens of domestic and rare imported bonsaid. Admission is free. There will be 100 bonsai as free door prizes. Saturday hours are noon to 8 p.m. with a demonstration at 3 p.m. Sunday hours are 9:30 a.m to 5 p.m., with a demonstration at 2 p.m.

Library News

Winning art and essays in this year’s Growing Up Asian in America contest are on display during May at the Los Altos Library. Brian Ho, 14, a student at Egan Intermediate School in Los Altos, is the first-place winner for art in the sixth- eighth grade division. His colorful painting is titled “Me Between the Two Gates” or “Nahm-Dae-Moon & Golden Gate.”

LAHS girls use PE class to get prepared

Freshman and sophomore girls at Los Altos High School have spent the past four weeks learning how to take care of themselves through a self-defense course offered in their physical education classes.

Linda Sommer, the school’s physical education and health department coordinator, invited Bay Area Model Mugging, which uses a coach and a padded “model mugger,” to the classes after the group made a one-day presentation to her students last year.

St. Nicholas Science Fair project wins additional Silicon Valley honors

Eric Pelfry, a seventh-grader at St. Nicholas School, took an idea for his school’s science fair and ran with it - from Los Altos Hills to the Synopsys Silicon Valley Science Fair in San Jose, and possibly all the way to Washington D.C.

The project, titled “Inhibition of Lipid Oxidation by Antioxidants,” earned Pelfry an Honorable Mention at his school’s science fair in February.

Noteworthies

4.0 Students

Adriaenssens, Alice; Beckstead, Heidi; Birrell, Eleanor; Brentnall, Philippa; Bui, Chiara; Chang, Jonathan; Chang, Joshua; Chau, Toni; Chien, Emily; Chiu, Vivian; Civilini, Maria; Clark, Jeff; Cooper, Holly; Cruz, Jessica; Elchert, Samuel; Fenner, Nathan; Field, Teresa; Freret, Morgan; Ho, Brian; Huang, Vivian; Iu, Maria; Kalashnikova, Mariya; Kane, Todd; Kenworthy, Erica; Kline, Raquel; Koh, Diane; Kuo, Alex; Levin, Michael; Lippe, Amy; Liu, Tiffany; Liu, Wei-Wei; Lyon, Susan; Mandle, Aaron; Martin, David; McGillis, Rachel; Meyer, Susanna; Mlynash, Belana; Mo, Alexander; Newlon-Yafai, Acacia; Pan, Jennifer; Reid, Emily; Rossin, Maya; Russell, Christine; Saadeh, Sara; Sangster, Andrew; Serventi, Lisa; Shah, Samir; Sherrard, Christopher; Smith, Monique; Stevenson, Daan; Tarbell, Alison; Tillim, Sara; Tong, Amy; Tse, Kevin; Tucker, George; Vujkovic-Cvijin, Ivan; Wade, Bonnie; Wang, Albert; Wilcox, Stefany; Wong, Rachel; Yamada, Masayo; Yang, Jonathan; Yim, Charline; Zhang, Katherine; Zwarenstein, Zachary.

Athletes and organizers succeed at district-wide Junior Olympics

Elementary school athletes jumped, hurdled and dashed through a sunny Saturday, April 29, during the 41st annual Junior Olympics, held at Los Altos High School.

The event, organized by a team of parent volunteers, drew over 1,300 fourth- fifth- and sixth-graders from all six elementary schools in the Los Altos School District.

Community and staff offer goals for upcoming school year

A list of goals for the Los Altos School District board members hangs at either end of their meeting room as a reminder of their aims and priorities for the year.

Representatives from various school and district councils gathered at the regular meeting May 1 to discuss goals they would like the board to adopt for the coming 2000-2001 school year.

Japanese chorus visits Los Altos

The Hitachi Ladies Chorus from Japan will perform at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, at the Los Altos United Methodist Church.

The Chorus hosted the Main Street Singers from Los Altos High School when the group visited Japan in 1998.

High school leagues recognize top performers in winter sports

Boys Basketball

(SCVAL De Anza Division)

Locals excel at league track meets

Around The Track

None of the local high school track and field teams won their respective league championship meets last week. However, Los Altos, Mountain View and St. Francis highs each had several athletes place high enough in their events to qualify for Saturday’s Central Coast Section subsection meet.

Lancers enter WCAL playoffs with momentum on their side

Prep Baseball Report

Haunted by inconsistency for most of the year, the St. Francis High baseball team is starting to gain valuable momentum and confidence with the West Catholic Athletic League playoffs on the horizon.

Blach wins league titles in soccer, basketball

April was a banner month for Blach Junior High in Los Altos.

Blach’s seventh-grade girls basketball team and eighth-grade boys soccer team each captured Valley Junior High School Athletic League championships April 13.

USPTA tennis pro putting on free clinic for Blach students

For the past 10 years, Tina Matis has conducted a free tennis clinic in May at a private club to promote the sport and to kick off the spring tennis season.

This year, Matis will hold her clinic - sponsored by the United States Professional Tennis Association - May 20 at Blach Junior High in Los Altos.

On Deck:

Baseball

Today

Sports On The Side

Three CYSA boys soccer teams are looking for players. An under-10 team coached by Fra Drumm is holding tryouts from 1-4 p.m., May 20, at St. Nicholas School, 12816 S. El Monte Road, Los Altos Hills. Info: Becky Drumm at 941-4642 or Marian Keeth at 941-3377. An under-12 team for players born after July 31, 1998, is holding tryouts at 2 p.m., Sunday, at Los Altos High. The team is coached by Alberto Montoya. Info: Chris at 961-1565. A Class I, under-15 team for players born between August 1, 1985, and July 31, 1986, needs players for the spring and fall seasons. The team is coached by George Lamptey. Info: Mike O’Farrell at 965-0203.

Wedemeyer dinner

Owls tennis team captures NorCal crown; state final up next

Foothill Roundup

After breezing by Santa Rosa 5-0 May 3 to capture the Northern California championship at Mission College, the Foothill men’s tennis team faces a more daunting task this week.

Thompson hired as LA basketball coach

After serving as an assistant coach for two years, Tomas Thompson last month was elevated to head coach of the Los Altos High varsity boys basketball team.

The Eagles hope Thompson can improve a Los Altos team that went 7-17 last year under Bryan Beasley, who resigned in February after three years at the helm.

Mustangs sink Spartans at league swim meet; St. Francis High softball team rolls on

Softball

St. Francis remained perfect in the De Anza Division last Friday by beating Santa Clara 4-1.

Local gymnasts in regional meet

Avery Gee, Youlee Lee, Wendy Shue and Courtney Sinclair of Los Altos will join 11 of their Twisters teammates Saturday at the United States Association of Independent Gymnastics Clubs Regional Championships.

The competition, to be held at San Jose State University, is the final step toward qualifying for the nationals in June.

Four Los Altos High coaches honored by the CCS

Last week’s breakfast honoring the top spring coaches in the Central Coast Section had a distinct Los Altos flavor.

Four of the eight coaches receiving CCS Spring Sports Honor Coaches Awards oversee varsity teams at Los Altos High. This group includes boys golf coach David Blasquez, boys tennis coach Cuong Duong, gymnastics coach Ken Garner and softball coach Bernie Quintero.

Harvest Home Stores opens in Los Altos

Harvest Home Stores, new to downtown Los Altos, carries family-friendly furniture, made of pine for the bedroom, living room and the home office. Harvest Home can customize or sell items from its floor inventory.

Senior Partner Craig Miller started Harvest Home Stores in San Francisco 10 years ago with co-partner Karsten Iwers. The first store in San Francisco carried custom-made furniture for houses and apartments in San Francisco where the rooms were small. Growth has expanded the store inventory.

A 1/2 percent interest hike next week?

Stock Report

The stock market returned to an escalating mood last Friday, as investors overlooked a possible Federal Reserve’s half-percentage point increase in the interest rate at the Fed’s Tuesday meeting.

‘AFTA NAFTA’: Job losses in the U.S.

The airwaves are thick with presidential politics as candidates from both parties craft messages they believe we want to hear. Cynicism is always a part of the listener process but there’s always hope. Nevertheless, absent from the most recent dialogue is the issue of jobs.

The candidates are looking at the unemployment numbers and can tell there appears to be little profit in banging away at this subject. There are too few voters out of work and the media’s attention has drifted elsewhere.

Organization can make moving easier

If moving is on your calendar, you don’t have to be told it’s a big job that most people dread.

The longer you have lived in a location, the more sorting, discarding and packing you will face.

AHA home tip-Should I sell or rent my home?

In today’s economy where job changes are commonplace, many homeowners come right up against a difficult decision: Should I rent or should I sell? It’s a real dilemma for homeowners who must take a long-term job assignment away from the home office.

“The renting vs. selling question is really two questions,” says Richard Roll, president of American Homeowners Association (AHA). “First, is it more financially advantageous to sell or rent? Second, are you prepared to be an absentee landlord?”

Pool service owner’s tips on pool maintenance and safety

The first time John Rangel spent the day taking care of swimming pools, he knew he’d found his niche.

“I had spent two years attending the San Jose Police Academy, but I just fell in love with my work. I love the outdoors, dealing with people, and especially working with water,” he said.

Transactions

7625 Erin Way - Y. Fan to J. & J. Lee for $500,000.00

10175 Orange Avenue - M. Burns to AKVW Investments for $800,000.00

Business Briefs

Kathy Levinson, president and chief operating officer of E*Trade Group Inc., will welcome female students as well as parents and educators to a mini-conference, “Making Technology Work for Girls,” 12:30-4:45 p.m., May 20, at De Anza College, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino.

The conference, presented by the Los Altos-Mountain View branch of the American Association of University Women, De Anza College and the Career Action Center, is designed for girls in the fourth, fifth and sixth grades, and will feature tours of the Advanced Technology Center, Hands-on Workshops and Tech Talk for Girls.

Cultures collide in PA Players’ ‘Godspell’

Theater review

Right on the heels of Easter comes Palo Alto Players’ production of Stephen Schwartz’s “Godspell,” a collision between two time segments and two cultures.

Entertaining with style

San Francisco chef shares make-ahead menu

Pernot-scented asparagus soup

Rosemary - an herb for all seasonings

The Year 2000 is the year of rosemary. The International Herb Association named this popular herb “Herb of the Year” for 2000 for its broad spectrum of uses, many of which are related to health and well-being.

People have used rosemary in cooking, medicine and cosmetics for thousands of years.

Lightly oil food without aerosol sprays

Time Savers

“Time Savers” reviews kitchen gadgets and other techniques that will help readers save time in the kitchen. It appears monthly in the Town Crier’s Food & Wine section.

Special sweets for Mom

Simple French Toast

This French toast recipe is quick and easy enough for children to put together for a special Mother’s Day breakfast.

The glassy-winged sharpshooter, superman of leafhopper insects

There is a nasty new bug coming to town. It is a leafhopper named the Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter. It is a threat to all the grape vines in the state. The grape industry, just now recovering from the scourges of Phylloxera, has to be on guard again.

The Sharpshooter is proceeding our way. His big threat is that he feeds on plants that carry a bacterium that causes Pierce’s Disease. The insect carries the bacteria for life and infects everything he bores into. Pierce’s destroys the vine’s water and nutrient-conducting tissues causing the plant to wither and die.

Food Bites

Sunset Magazine will hold its annual celebration of Western living from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., May 20-21, at its headquarters, 80 Willow Road, Menlo Park.

“Summer Pleasures” will feature interactive and hands-on activities to teach visitors how to garden, grill and improve their home and yard.

Le Boulanger adds pizza to its Main Street menu

A group of Town Crier staff restaurant reviewers, known as The Lunch Bunch, descends upon unsuspecting local lunchtime haunts once a month to critique their offerings in the Food & Wine section. The Lunch Bunch visited Le Boulanger in Los Altos recently.

Town Crier Staff Report

Wedding & Engagement

Fiona Sander and Joseph Digiovanni were married March 11 at Mission Santa Clara.

The bride is the daughter of Mona and Gerhard Sander of Los Altos Hills. She graduated from St. Francis High School and earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Santa Clara University.

Obituaries

Charles Frank Banfe Sr. died March 17. A native of Chicago, he was 82.

Mr. Banfe flew for Pan American Airways for 37 years, based out of San Francisco. He also flew with the RCAF and the famous Eagle Squadron of the RAF. He was one of the youngest captains with American Overseas Airline. He circled the globe solo in a single engine aircraft in 1958, establishing a world record. While still flying, he taught at Stanford University for 20 years in the Graduate School of Business and received an award for his class, “Entrepreneurship in High Technology.”

Births

A daughter was born Dec. 15 to Kate Disney and Robert Burdick of Los Altos.

A son was born Dec. 16 to Tammy Jean and Michael Stuart Pixley of Mountain View.

Whitson to lead PACO this Saturday at Spangenberg

Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of founder and music director William Whitson, is set to perform at 8 p.m., Saturday, in Spangenberg Theater at Gunn High School, 780 Arastradero Road, Palo Alto.

The program includes works by Telemann, Vivaldi and Breval. Soloists are Alexandra Hawley, flute, Rufus Olivier, bassoon, and Catherine Ro, violin.

Bus Barn ‘On the Verge’ of play opening

Bus Barn Stage Company presents Eric Overmyer’s “On the Verge or The Geography of Yearning” this Thursday through June 10 at Bus Barn Theatre, 97 Hillview Ave., Los Altos.

Limber Linguistics and time-warped adventure meet on a mirthful safari embarking in Africa and trekking to Terra Incognita.

CYS to perform Sunday at Flint

The award-winning California Youth Symphony, conducted by maestro Leo Eylar, is scheduled to perform at 2:30 p.m., Sunday, in Flint Center at De Anza College, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino.

The program will include solo performances by orchestra members Michael Chang, clarinet, and Peggy Liu, cello. Both are high school seniors who were recently named the winners of the CYS’ Senior Soloist Competition.

Nova Vista closes season Saturday

The Nova Vista Symphony’s final concert of its 34th season is set for 8 p.m., Saturday, in the Smithwick Theater at Foothill College, 12345 El Monte Ave., Los Altos Hills.

The concert, featuring works all written in the 20th century, will be conductor Emily Ray’s farewell performance with the symphony. She has been Nova Vista’s conductor and music director for the last 15 seasons.