The Cupertino Courier
News
City staff takes on bigger role in planting in Cupertino
By Cody Kraatz
The city's parks and recreation department is taking a larger role in Mayor Kris Wang's beautification program after council members Orrin Mahoney and Dolly Sandoval voiced concerns about a lack of detail about the program.
About 25 volunteers are expected to plant colorful groundcover at the Cupertino Senior Center on March 17, with planting expected to start at 9 a.m. At the council's direction, the city has required the volunteers to sign liability release forms, and two city staffers will supervise the planting.
"Everything's on track; the event is a go," said Therese Smith, director of parks and recreation.
The city considers the day a pilot project.
Parks and recreation is spending $5,000 from its normal maintenance budget on the materials for the replanting at the senior center, which Smith said needs to be done anyway. The plants will be low-maintenance and drought-tolerant.
Also, high school service club members are expected to plant flowers on 4,300 square feet at Monta Vista High School and 2,000 square feet at Cupertino High School, said Angela Tsai, a volunteer recruited by Wang to coordinate the projects. Fremont Union High School District grounds staff will supervise the students. Homestead High School was cut from the plans because it could provide only 108 square feet for planting, said Tsai.
"There has to be some sort of supervision, and we're going to provide that to make sure that the areas we've talked about will be planted and it's done in such a way that there isn't any damage," said Ray Ramsey, FUHSD manager of custodial and safety services.
The city will give $3,000 from a discretionary fund to each school if they request it, said David Knapp, city manager.
"The idea is something that would be really, really public. With $3,000 maybe we can get some things done. It'll be eaten up pretty quickly," said Ramsey.
The day was originally billed as the first in a series of citywide beautification days, and Wang's original program scope included providing planting materials to neighborhood groups so they could spruce up their yards together.
However, Sandoval voiced opposition to spending city money for people to plant flowers in their own yards. While expressing support for the community-building concept at that meeting, she also called for liability waivers and asked for greater detail in future program proposals.
"The scope of what we're doing is clearer to me now. I think neighborhood plantings will work much better folded under the grant program," said Sandoval. "That program is not, as far as I know, for private use. If there is a community benefit, then it is worth the money."
Mahoney said he was satisfied with the additional information.
"The point is to get neighborhoods together," and that can be accomplished through the grant program, said Mahoney.
Cupertino High School Interact club co-president Sushma Umesh said she has not received very much detail from Tsai about what her club is being asked to do, but she would like to pitch in.
