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Archives » 2001 » Volume 54 , Issue 25, Published on Wednesday, June 20, 2001NewsJudge looks to help
Charles Hayden says rehab aids drug offenders, saves tax money Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Charles W. Hayden calls himself a conservative Republican. Yet the way he has traditionally dealt with drug offenders in his court might be considered liberal by some. His approach - rehabilitation as opposed to jail sentences - amounts to common sense, the way he sees it. Council looks at city’s basement lawLos Altos Hills The Los Altos Hills City Council is scheduled to vote on the adoption of a revision to the town’s basement ordinance Thursday evening. The revised ordinance, if adopted, would define the kinds of basement construction allowed on residential lots, as well as which types of basements count as floor and development areas. It would not, however, expressly forbid the planning commission from allowing construction of basements, bunkers or cellars not located directly under a home. News BriefsA group of 350 Rosita Park neighbors, calling themselves the Rosita Neighborhood Coalition, asked the Los Altos City Council last week to postpone the environmental study scheduled for the three-pool swimming complex slated for the Rosita Park until one year after Covington School reopens and to form a task force to study the noise and traffic impacts various park uses would have on the neighborhood. The council agreed to move forward with a scaled-down pool complex last month after neighbors expressed concerns over the size of the proposed Los Altos Community Aquatics Center. If the pending environmental study shows no negative impact and the council approves the project, construction could begin as early as next summer. Police reportJune 14, 10:03 a.m., Jordan Avenue and El Camino Real: A caller lodged a complaint about a day worker, police said. Hotel defeats theater in close decision by councilPlans to place a boutique hotel on the city-owned lot at the corner of First and Main streets in downtown Los Altos beat out the proposal for a six-screen movie theater last week, putting to rest the tug of war between the two proposed land uses that has divided the community over recent months. The Los Altos City Council voted 3-2 during a standing-room- only meeting June 12 to began negotiations with developer Roxy Rapp/Innkeepers Associates to build a hotel on the .78-acre site. The council required that Rapp scale the proposed project down from three stories to two, provide 75 public parking spaces and work with neighboring Safeway on possible parking expansion. Foothill College renovations jeopardized by earthquake faultSchool officials from the Foothill-De Anza College District scrapped renovation plans for Foothill’s student center recently after discovering an earthquake fault alongside the building. Cleary Consultants, Soils Engineers, located a fault running under much of the Los Altos Hills campus last month during a preliminary study for the $248 million campus construction and renovation project funded by Measure E. CommentDiversity is the way of tomorrowReflections When we drive through our state, I am always impressed by its size, its changing vistas and its ability to offer visual treats. Looking at the map of the entire country, it’s easy to understand the impact California has on the rest of the nation. We really encompass several states in one: the farmlands, the deserts, the mysterious distant mountains, the turbulent urban centers, the quiet rural areas with grazing animals, the miles of water canals as well as the tiny blue lakes. We are so fortunate. It’s no wonder that we Californians have a love of the road where we can gaze at the swiftly passing landscape or decide to meander down a road totally new to our experience. OpinionLetters to the EditorLeslie Friedman’s review of the June 1 performance of West Bay Opera’s “Tales of Hoffman” makes me wonder if we saw the same performance: “Weak singing, act reversal plague ‘Hoffmann’” Baloney! What weak singers? Friedman has only compliments for the singers who were in excellent voice and good actors, too. EditorialNaturally, those interested in a theater-condominium mix for the city-owned property at Main and First streets went home disappointed. We have maintained all along that while we support a theater somewhere downtown, the 3-story condo/theater project proposed for this small site was too large, too dense with too much traffic. There was nothing reassuring about a preliminary consultant report that traffic would not be a problem. For a theater to succeed, there was only one scenario ahead for the intersection of Main and First streets: gridlock from 5-8 p.m. every night. One could argue the city was premature in approving any development since the city has leases on the property with the consignment store and dry cleaners running through 2006. Others pointed out the city was putting the cart before the horse by requesting development proposals without first querying residents on what kind of development would best fit the site. Plenty of changes with local papers - for the better?Media Watch Add the San Francisco Chronicle to the bigger Bay Area media players who have recently redesigned themselves. ‘Glorious 4th’ celebration planned for Shoup ParkThe sponsors of “Glorious 4th”, Los Altos’ annual Independence Day celebration, are ready for the annual day of food, music and entertainment scheduled 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., July 4, at Shoup Park, 400 University Ave. Ye Olde Towne Band will begin playing at 10:30 a.m. CommunityArts & Wine fest showcases area’s best food vendorsAre the handmade sausages from Lockeford Sausage Co. a favorite with you? These will be grilled at two locations at the Los Altos Arts & Wine Festival, to be held July 14 and 15. Or do you favor the Earthly Delights Italian Garlic Chicken Sandwiches and Belgian Fries - a version of the venerable french fries that are served in a rolled paper cone for you to carry around? Community BriefsThe Palo Alto Concours d’ Elegance is scheduled for Sunday at Stanford University. The annual car show will be held outside Stanford Stadium along El Camino Real. Proceeds benefit Lion’s Club charities and Stanford athletics. The event expects to draw some of the finest restored automobiles in the country, spanning every era from brass-radiator cars built before World War I to the muscle cars of the 1960s and ’70s. Several Los Altos and Los Altos Hills residents plan on showing their cars at the concours. Marjolaine reopens under new ownership
Town Crier Correspondent Marjolaine Bakery and Cafe in Los Altos was closed only one week before it reopened June 6 under the ownership of Vinnie and Kara Gasca, owners of Marjolaine Bakery in Saratoga. LAHS student has art displayed in nation’s CapitolArt has opened many doors for Linette Park of Los Altos, including the opportunity to have her art hung in the capital in Washington, D.C. Park won the 2001 Congressional Arts Competition for high school students for the 14th district. This is the 20th year of the competition. “I really never thought that I could win an award for art,” Park said of her honor. “I got an invitation to go to the Capitol on June 19th and a nice letter.” SchoolsSports On The SideLos Altos High is looking for several coaches for the next school year. The Eagles need a girls varsity basketball coach, a junior varsity girls water polo coach and assistants for varsity football (line coach) and track and field (shot put/discus). If interested, call athletic director Monica Lodge at 960-8857. Sports cars SportsSt. Francis High names Houlihan new athletic directorSt. Francis High announced last week that Tim Houlihan will takes over as the school’s athletic director on July 1. Houlihan, the former director of development at St. Francis, replaces Steve Filios. MVHS grad coaches UCLA to water polo crownIt would be hard to imagine Adam Krikorian’s first season as head coach of the University of California at Los Angeles women’s water polo team going any better than it did. The Mountain View High graduate guided UCLA to an 18-4 record this season, which culminated with a 5-4 win over host Stanford in the NCAA championship game on May 13. Pitching problems lead to Oaks’ back-to-back losses to YanksThe Palo Alto Oaks were less than pitcher-perfect last Sunday, allowing a total of 17 runs in dropping a double-header to the Maxim Yankees. The Oaks, a Stan Musial League baseball team that includes graduates of Los Altos and Gunn highs, fell 11-9 and 6-5 at Baylands Park in Palo Alto. The Yanks had 17 hits in the first game. Cannon continues mastery of MetroStarsThe New York-New Jersey MetroStars must cringe when they see Joe Cannon in goal for the San Jose Earthquakes. The Los Altos Hills resident last Saturday posted his fourth straight shutout against the MetroStars in a game that ended in a scoreless tie. Springer student Gloski helps Jr. Sharks claim NorCal crownTroy Gloski, a fifth grader at Springer School, recently helped the San Jose Junior Sharks win the Northern California Youth Hockey Squirt A championship. The Junior Sharks beat the Tri-Valley Blue Devils from Dublin in the title game, played in San Jose. Peterson finds Europe to his likingNo one seemed more surprised with Adam Peterson ’s performance at the Amsterdam Cup, his first international diving competition, than Peterson himself. The Los Altos resident beat out an old rival to win the Group A boys 1-meter competition on June 1 in Amsterdam. Local jr. highs close out tennis seasonsThree local schools recently completed play in the Midpeninsula Tennis Patrons’ middle school tennis program. Blach Junior High and Egan Intermediate School of Los Altos placed fourth and sixth, respectively, during the regular season, while Pinewood School of Los Altos Hills finished eighth. When it comes to basketball, Karr delivers
LA mail carrier leaving prep ranks after 17 seasons of coaching girls In all likelihood, Robb Karr won’t be coaching high school basketball next season. The Los Altos mail carrier, considered one of the top girls coaches in the Central Coast Section, is looking to jump to the college ranks. ‘Gee-whiz’ flying machine becomes reality with LAH man’s SoloTrekAs an adolescent in the early 1960s, Michael Moshier became fascinated with the concept and the crude prototypes of the rocket belt, frequently predicted to be the personal transportation mode of the future. The passenger could simply strap it on and then fly to his or her destination. “It was a gee-whiz machine,” he said. “People would see it … and we would envision ourselves (in one) … ‘We’ve got to have one! That’s the future!’” Don’t count on encore of 1970s economySteve Zeller Remember the 1970s? Sonny and Cher had a hit television show. Bell-bottom pants were the rage, and Richard Nixon was in the White House. Many economists remember the 1970s for stagflation, an economic condition that combines a weak economy with persistent inflation and high unemployment. BusinessCompany reconciliations take courage, confidenceJean on the Job Companies turn around. Bosses do get the message. Employees do change. Customers come back. These reconciliations happen more times than you can imagine. If you are faint-hearted, a “ship jumper,” as I call you, you may not even be planning for this possibility. This second, third effort takes guts, courage, confidence. Okay. So you don’t believe reconciliations happen. Then don’t read this. But if the big IF happens, please run back to these words. We can save your business relationship, or better yet, your business, by urging you to read this. Business BriefsSPAUG (The Stanford Palo Alto Users Group for the PC ) regular monthly meeting will be 7:15 p.m., June 27, at the Elks Lodge 4249 El Camino Real, in Palo Alto. Regular monthly meetings are on the last Wednesday of the month. All guests are welcome, and the meeting is free to all first-time guests. Clean out disk detritus to get your PC working fasterTech Talk This biweekly column offers solutions to personal computer problems submitted by readers. Neither the author nor this newspaper endorses products or companies mentioned. Transactions1214 Bubb Road - M. & M. Cox to W. & J. Lu for $800,000.00 10515 Madrone Court - O’Brien Group to D. & R. Freudenstein for $272,500.00 Balance restored to Northern California housing marketBy Fred Hibbert and George Monaco In what many see as an overnight softening of the market, Northern California real estate has successfully moved from one of the strongest seller’s markets of this generation to a healthy dose of “back to reality.” No suitable venue found for day workersIn late July 2000, a no-solicitation ordinance was passed by the Mountain View City Council to break up the congregations of day workers lining El Camino Real in search of employment. There still seems to be no clear solution to the problem. When the Mountain View ordinance was approved, it followed a similar one set up in August 1999 by the Los Altos City Council. The laws converted a long stretch of El Camino Real around San Antonio Road into a no-stopping, no-soliciting zone. Special SectionInstructor experiences the culture of CubaMountain View resident Ellen Murray had long wanted to visit Cuba. An instructor of English as a second language for Mountain View-Los Altos Adult Education, she said she admired the many Latino immigrants she taught. She loved Cuban music and really enjoyed teaching Latin dance in the adult ed program as well. She was also a fan of New York Yankees pitcher Orlando Hernandez, “El Duque,” a Cuban native. On May 26, Murray was able to fulfill her dream. She and 13 other Americans embarked on a weeklong tour of the Caribbean island, which is just 90 miles off the U.S. coast. BriefsFrank Schiavo, lecturer in Environmental Studies at San Jose State University and a solar home designer, discusses the latest advances in environmentally responsible living at the Technology and Society’s Committee’s next luncheon. The talk is set for 11:45 a.m., Tuesday, at the Golden Wok Restaurant, 895 Villa St., Mountain View. Lunch is $7.50 for TASC members, $8.50 for nonmembers. For more information, call Bob Kirby at 969-7215. Learn about int’l adoption MV meets New Orleans in Shoreline eventThe 13th annual New Orleans by the Bay celebration will kick off the summer concert season, from noon to 7:30 p.m. June 23-24, at Shoreline Ampitheater in Mountain View. “It’s modeled after Jazz Fest New Orleans,” said Lance Cutler of Coats Public Relations, which is handling public relations, for the event. “It’s a Bill Graham Presents idea. Mick Brigdon (of Bill Graham Presents) fell in love with New Orleans and thought it was a good idea for a concert.” MV could house Olympic Village in 2012 - plans under wayMountain View may soon earn worldwide recognition for something other than being a hub for high-tech industry. If the Bay Area Sports Organizing Committee has its way, Mountain View will be home to the Olympic Village in 2012. PeopleObituariesAlbert Jackson Sehorn Sr. of Los Altos died May 9. A native of Portland, Ore., he was 84. Before his retirement, Mr. Sehorn was president of International Paint Company and Carboline Chemical Company, Marine Division. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. Stepping OutWestern Ballet reaches new heights with ‘Beauty’Ballet review With each production, Mark Foehringer’s Western Ballet, the resident company at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, rises to greater heights. It has clearly become a formidable presence on the San Francisco Bay Area ballet scene. ‘Summer’ arrives in Mtn. ViewTheatreWorks this week opens its 32nd season with the West Coast’s premiere of “Summer of ‘42″, a musical that aims to evoke nostalgia for a bygone age of innocence and rekindle the magic of first love. “Summer” previews today through Friday and opens Saturday at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts., 500 Castro St. It closes July 15. Naylor bringing jazz trio to Borders in Palo AltoBay Area jazz performer Jacqui Naylor will play with her trio at 8 p.m., Saturday, at Borders Books and Music, 456 University Ave., Palo Alto. Naylor is coming off a three-month tour of Japan She has also performed at San Francisco’s Plush Room, Oakland’s Yoshi’s and The Hollywood Cinegrill, plus Seattle’s Bumbershoot Festival, San Francisco’s North Beach Jazz Festival and San Jose’s Jazz Festival. Palo Alto Players ‘Breaking’ in new playPalo Alto Players closes its 70th season with Tom Dulack’s comedy “Breaking Legs,” which opened last week and runs through July 1 at the Lucie Stern Theater in Palo Alto. The play gets its name from mixing two common expressions. In the theater world, “Break a leg!” means good luck. In the underworld, however, it has a much different meaning.. Your HealthHealth Briefs“The Feminine Artist” features meditations and fun to open up a woman’s creative energy, 1-5 p.m., Sunday, at the Center for Healing and Wellness, 2235 Grant Road, Suite 6, in Los Altos. For information, call 625-1987. Alzheimer’s disease research update Cancer therapy can cause oral problemsOf the more than one million Americans who will be diagnosed with cancer in the next year, about 40 percent will develop serious oral complications as a result of their treatment. Now an educational arm of the Academy of General Dentistry is launching a campaign to educate physicians, nurses, dentists, medical and dental technicians, and patients about the treatment benefits of preventive dental care. Suffering in silence: untreated hearing loss can lead to bigger problemsAudiologist People with good hearing take for granted the soft sounds of everyday life - from the pitter-patter of rain to a bird’s song or a child’s whisper. Get healthy, locallyLos Altos area offers variety of fitness facilities, classes Where you can work out Wide variety of resources available on cancer diagnosis, treatmentWhen individuals and families are faced with the daunting news of a cancer diagnosis, they need resources to help them understand the diagnosis and treatment options. The Health Library has a wide variety of these resources, and among them is a new series of patient-centered guides from O’Reilly & Associates publishers. These book are available without charge on The Health Library’s Web site and they may be checked out for 72 hours. The E-Books Link on the home page will take you to the search screen on the netLibrary collection where you can search through 560 health related topics. For those familiar with other O’Reilly publications, these new books provide the same consistently high level of information and clear writing, which make the subject accessible and comprehensible for the reader. These deal with cancers other than those most commonly captured by the media. A new weapon in the fight against lung cancerWhile breast, prostate and colon cancers continue to be major public health concerns, the No. 1 cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S. is lung cancer. Attributed mainly to smoking, lung cancer claims more lives each year (an estimated 160,000 Americans) than the other three cancers combined and has now surpassed breast cancer as the No. 1 cancer killer of women. Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the most common type of lung cancer, accounts for 75 percent of all cases. It occurs mainly in people between the ages of 50 and 60 who have a long history of smoking. Persons with previous or pre-existing lung diseases or conditions, former smokers and those exposed to second hand smoke or radon also are at risk for developing this disease. Why seniors are healthier today than years agoTown Crier Correspondent People 65 to 74 are doing much better today than in the past financially, and they are healthier. Those facts are taken from the Bureau of Census and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Not always harmful for kids to have two working parentsKeys to Parenting Question: I keep up with the shifting winds of thought on the pros and cons of two working outside-of-the home parents versus one parent working. I’m just not convinced that it’s a bad thing for children to see their parents working for a goal of a bigger and better car or a bigger and better home. Do you really think that two parents working outside the home is a bad thing? Oral contraceptives deplete nutrients such as zinc, folic acid and magnesiumThe Corner Pharmacist Dear Mary, Santa Rita contributes coins to the Red CrossAt Santa Rita Elementary School’s International Day, children in grades K-6 donated 28 boxes of coins to the American Red Cross. The coins were collected in large ice cream containers in each classroom. “We heard stories of how children were looking through the house - under the couch cushions, the rug and even the car - to find coins that they could bring in,” said Dorothy Dickson, an ESL teacher at the school and coordinator of International Day and the “Coins For Kids” drive. “Some children put up signs outside the school and people came in and emptied their pockets of all the change,” she said. “We also saw kids who couldn’t afford it, bring money in - so it was very touching.” Head-to-toe summer skin careIt’s time to adjust your beauty ritual for the warm weather ahead. Here, from Dr. Diane Berson, a New Your City dermatologist, are tips to breeze through the scorching months of the year looking better than ever. Drink plenty of H2O. A steady intake of water, eight or more glasses a day, will replace fluids lost due to perspiration. |
In Our OpinionLetters to the Editor
Leo Long earns local honorsIn the April 30 issue of the Town Crier, you were right to congratulate and thank Dick Henning from Foothill College for four decades of service to the community. I met him at Foothill as student body president more years ago than I’ll admit. Great guy. |
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