Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Editorials

Bocce ball approval returns a tradition

When the Los Gatos Town Council overruled the Planning Commission and approved a plan to create bocce ball courts at 565 University Avenue, councilmembers rationalized that their decision would preserve a piece of Los Gatos history.

The Planning Commission, on the other hand, had taken a stand for zoning integrity. A recreational facility doesn't belong in an area zoned for industrial use, commissioners argued.

Never mind that Tom Albanese, who proposed the bocce ball courts, is the only prospective buyer in three years willing to preserve the building, which is "historic" by virtue of its having been built before 1941.

In this particular case, the structure in question, a warehouse with corrugated metal siding, has fallen into disrepair. Originally, it was the Puccinelli Dehydrator Factory; later, it became El Gato Building Materials. What purpose it once served is irrelevant, however. The council approved the bocce ball use because the courts could be created without destroying the building.

Whether the building was worth preserving is arguable. But for those who really care about town history, the council's decision should be greeted warmly. The new courts will be located within a block or two of where, according to Pictures from the Past columnist John Baggerly, "Bocce ball was popular with Italian gentlemen before Oak Meadow Park preempted their court at the corner of University Avenue and Blossom Hill Road."

One opponent of the new bocce ball courts told our reporter that she had no desire to see the "leisured class" move into her neighborhood.

Still, there does seem to be a bit of poetic, as well as historic, justice to the decision. The return of gentlemen rolling bocce balls on a leisurely afternoon seems to hark back to the town's history more meaningfully than does a dilapidated eyesore of a warehouse.

Not so serene

What has become of the serenity in Monte Sereno? It used to be so quiet in that sleepy little city that a political cartoonist could refer to it as Monte Snoreno without fear that the humor would be lost on anyone.

These days, there are battles over historic preservation, cows, unfilled ditches, general plan revision and what some believe is too much government. The former city manager seems ready to duke it out with the current city manager.

While many of the recent squabbles have lacked decorum, who can argue that they have also breathed life into the community and its politics? In that sense, the lack of serenity in Monte Sereno may actually be healthy.

What's not healthy for the city's serenity is the recent rash of pipe bombings in mailboxes. A battle of words can clear the air. An exploding mailbox might be a big joke to those with a warped sense of humor, but pipe bombs aren't a joke.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms calls pipe bombs one of the deadliest type of bombs. Anyone who finds a pipe bomb or who knows anything about who is behind this sick joke should notify the Los Gatos Police Department immediately. Lives could depend on it.