LAH council sets April 3 hearing for debate over Adobe Creek restoration

The Los Altos Hills City Council will be meeting residents at an April 3 public hearing as it mulls over proposed improvements to Adobe Creek, plans that have proven highly controversial.

At issue is work targeted for a quarter-mile section of the creek near Fremont Road and Edith Avenue. Santa Clara Valley Water District officials want the council to approve two easement transfers so they can rebuild the Edith bridge, add concrete reinforcement and widen the creek bed. The district’s goal is to accommodate the possibility of a 100-year flood - a flood of such magnitude that it occurs on the average of once every 100 years.

Small school preps students for the big league

When it comes to education, smaller is sometimes better. Pinewood School, a non-profit, independent college prep school in Los Altos Hills, is a case in point. Pinewood is fully enrolled, with 600 students in grades K-12, yet student-teacher ratios are impressive at 8:1 in kindergarten and 20:1 in the largest high school classes.

Diminutive in size but not stature, Pinewood boasts a track record of 100 percent college matriculation. The school was recently granted the highest level accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, and its rigorous curriculum is certified by the University of California.

Pool fund-raising campaign to continue during studies

Pool proponents have continued fundraising for the community-pool center slated for Rosita Park despite a judge’s recent ruling to halt the project until the city conducts more detailed environmental studies.

“The lawsuit … is not about whether a pool will or will not be constructed at Rosita Park, but about whether the California Environmental Quality Act was followed,” said Kathy Englar, spokeswoman for the fund-raising group SPLASH. “The Parks & Recreation Commission performed a careful study of all available public land and determined that the Rosita site was the best location for a pool.

Los Altos Hills officials unveil four new town hall designs

After more than a year of planning and hearing from concerned residents, Los Altos Hills town officials last Tuesday presented four new designs for town hall.

The designs were unveiled at the town hall committee meeting, allowing residents a first glimpse before voting in a new poll to be distributed next month. All residents will have a chance to vote on one of the four styles.

Telephone technology to warn residents of emergencies, crimes

An automated telephone call could alert Los Altos residents the next time a neighborhood crime or disaster is in progress through a new high-tech emergency system scheduled to be in place this spring.

Los Altos-based Teleminder last week awarded the Los Altos Police Department a $25,900 automated telephone emergency alerting system during the company’s annual state law enforcement technology grant giveaway.

Woman out $250,000 in real estate scam

A man posing as an investment advisor from Canada bilked $250,000 from a 79-year-old Los Altos woman last week by convincing her to invest in an out-of-state real estate deal that would allegedly generate millions of dollars. Police said the property was worthless and the alleged investment advisor was part of a telephone scam targeting senior citizens.

Sgt. John Hughmanick said police are working with Federal agents to locate the scam artist but chances are unlikely that the woman will recover her money.

New LAH council off to good start

Kerr and Warshawsky, both elected in a landslide last November, are keeping campaign promises to undertake a more democratic process for choosing a design for town hall. This is because the previous council had come up with a mission-style design that suited council members fine, but not the residents.

Many citizens took issue with the design and cost involved. In addition, it appeared that, while town committees were in on the process early on, residents at large were left out.

LETTERS OF MARCH 5, 2003

As a parent of school-age children in Los Altos, and as a swimmer, I highly encourage the city council to continue its efforts toward building a community pool in Los Altos.

OBITUARIES FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 5

who was a 38 year resident of Los Altos, passed away on February 21, 2003. She was 97.

Born and raised in Chicago, Louise spent her life entertaining people from the piano. She and her late husband, Gladstone Phillips, loved to travel and experience new people and cultures.

Weddings

Send your wedding, engagement or anniversary announcements to Richard Billings at the Los Altos Town Crier, 138 Main St., Los Altos 94022.

Photos are welcome. If you want your photo returned, include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. For more information, call 948-9000, ext. 318, or e-mail

SPARC hosts Duf Sundheim, new chairman of California GOP

George (Duf) Sundheim of Palo Alto, recently elected chair of the California Republican Party, speaks March 12 in Los Altos Hills. His subject: “Status of the California Republican Party: Strategies for Winning in 2004.”

The event is sponsored by the South Peninsula Area Republican Coalition (SPARC) from 6 to 8 p.m. at the home of Bob Fenwick, 28011 Elena Road, Los Altos Hills. The meeting includes a brief annual membership meeting to elect the SPARC board of directors. Non-members of SPARC may attend. The cost is $25 for members and $30 for non-members. Reservations should be made by calling 650-917-9125

Community read, discussion of Murguia’s book, ‘This War Called Love’

Members of the Mountain View, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills communities are invited to read San Francisco author and San Francisco State University professor Alejandro Murguia’s new collection of stories, “This War Called Love,” and then participate in facilitated discussions at Los Altos High School March 20.

For the discussions, readers should meet at 7:30 p.m. in the new library, where they will be organized into groups led by Los Altos High School teachers.

High school students converge on Capitol to protest the state’s proposed budget cuts

A spirited discussion in Tim Farrell’s Leadership Class at Mountain View High School led more than 1,500 local high school students to a Feb. 25 trek by bus, car and Amtrak to the California State Capitol in Sacramento.

The discussion focused on Rich Fischer of the Mountain View-Los Altos Union School District warning that Gov. Gray Davis’ “unprecedented raid on local property taxes … will devastate our district’s educational program if it is enacted (by the Legislature).”

Homestead guitarist plays at the Grammies artists

Homestead High School senior Brady Cohan of Los Altos had an up close and personal view of the Grammy Awards last week. Cohan was selected as lead guitarist in the Grammy High School Jazz Ensemble, sponsored by Gibson Guitars, Baldwin Pianos and the Grammy Foundations in partnership with the Recording Academy.

Auditioning via videotape, Cohan was selected along with 23 other students representing 23 cities in nine states. He earned an all-expenses-paid trip to New York City, host of the 45th Grammy Awards ceremony.

St. Joseph earns honors in academic competition

St. Joseph Catholic School in Mountain View placed second out of 22 schools in the Junior High Academic Decathlon Competition held Feb. 22 at St. Francis High School.

The team comprised sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders Stanley Chung, Jared Hetrick, Charles Gao, Matthew Aquino, Rosanna Lim, Marie Bruno, Jonathan Davidson, Danielle Davila, Daniel Nguyen, Nicole Lata, Nikhil Murthy, Mary Kay Knight, Kaitlyn Garcia, Carly Barden, Casey Lawson, Valerie Somoff and Christopher Woytowitz.

Follow the yellow brick ‘test prep’ road to Spartan Theater

Mountain View High School faculty member Tim Farrell spends his educational day teaching intense and important civics lessons to advanced placement U.S. and world history classes, motivating students to apply this information through his Leadership Class.

But after hours, mild-mannered Farrell roars like a lion — well, a cowardly historian who sounds suspiciously like a familar cowardly lion.

Lancers silence Saints in CCS final

Fortified by a rock-solid defense, with an assist from a rock-hard playing field, the St. Francis High girls soccer team bounced its way back to the top again.

The second-seeded Lancers took advantage of two fortuitous bounces of the ball, both resulting in scores after being misplayed by the opposing goalie, to upset No. 1 Santa Teresa 3-0 last Saturday for the Central Coast Section Division I title.

Panthers, Lancers move on in CCS

The possibility of a championship showdown pitting one local girls basketball power against another has moved closer to reality.

By capturing quarterfinal games last weekend in San Jose, Pinewood School and St. Francis High are each a win a way from playing in Saturday’s Central Coast Section Division II final at Santa Clara University (6 p.m.).

Investors buoyed by better-than-expected readings on economic growth

The S&P 500 index advanced 0.5 percent Friday but still finished the week down 0.8 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up slightly with a 0.1 percent gain. Investors had some good news with better-than-expected readings on economic growth, Midwest manufacturing and consumer confidence. But oil prices reached a frenzied $39.99 per barrel in intra-day trading. That level of oil prices was almost double the long-run average, which is a basic indicator of a bubble. A protracted waiting period for a resolution to the Iraqi problem may leave oil prices at these higher levels for a few months and will likely effect spending and the economy across the board.

Market participants are weighing the uncertainty of pending war against the certainty of a tyrant with lethal weapons ready to rein them down indiscriminately. Post cold war was a special time that opened up markets worldwide with very little concern for danger. The economy can prosper, however, even in tougher political times.

Midge Fly Shop marks 20th anniversary

When asked about the inspiration behind his store’s name, David Beronio, owner of Midge Fly Shop on State Street, Los Altos, said, “A midge is a little fly. A dinky little fly for a dinky little store.”

But beneath its cozy proportions — and the owner’s modest depiction — the fly fishing retailer has become a Los Altos landmark. Opened on March 1, 1983, the store celebrated its 20th anniversary Monday, making it one of the longest standing businesses in the downtown area.

On the lookout for tooth decay

Why is it important to brush right after eating candy? Why is flossing such a big deal?

Kids in Karen Foley’s second-grade class found out when dentist Sandy Arita and four dental hygenists from the Foothill College Dental Hygiene program visited their Bubb School classroom last Friday.

A hair-raising experience

As soon as young customers enter Just Kids Hairstyling, they can tell there is something different about the Loyola Corners shop.

The traditional barbershop chairs are conspicuously missing. Instead, customers can sit on carousel-style plastic horses, toy tricycles or a mock tugboat. All of those seats are facing a television set showing a special feature of the Disney hit “Monsters, Inc.” In the back of the shop, nimble-fingered children can play Sega Genesis or Sony PlayStation while they get their hair cut.