Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Letters

Community left footprints on the family's hearts

On behalf of my family, we could not be more proud that organizations such as the "Outhouse" teen center, the Teen Counseling Center and, of course, CASA would collaborate for the first time on a fundraiser honoring the memories of Jim, Jill and Jeff by generating much-needed funds to benefit the youth of Los Gatos.

We are so very grateful to the many sponsors, donors, participants and volunteers who contributed to the success of the wonderful event. The impact of having 30 Delta Gamma Sorority sisters and the Davis track team participate in Jill's memory only added to the magnitude of the relay.

Two very amazing women deserve special recognition for making their vision and dream a reality. Joanne Rodgers, a co-founder of CASA, and Lisa Richardson, a professional fitness trainer, combined their commitment to community service and dedication to youth to create this tremendously fun relay collaboration. It was organized to perfection!

There is an inscription on the Peckler memorial plaques that we want to share with you: "Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some come and stay for awhile, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never ever the same."

To all of you who have supported us, and the youth of Los Gatos, in any way, please know that your footprints will forever echo in our hearts.

Judy, Jana & Jennifer Peckler
Los Gatos

Those who bought in district had to give up a lot

The school redistricting proposal at first seems logical. It is unfortunate that the school boundaries as originally drawn do not match the town boundaries of Los Gatos and Saratoga. However, the school redistricting scenario that would match the school districts' boundaries with the towns' is fraught with excessive risks for parents and homeowners within the Los Gatos and Saratoga school districts, and I urge all who live within the school district boundaries to vigorously oppose [any plan that would call for] redistricting.

The high quality of schools in the Los Gatos and Saratoga school districts is the single most important reason that these are such highly sought-after places to live relative to neighboring communities.

The redistricting proposal, as analyzed by the outside consultant hired by the Santa Clara County Committee on School District Organization, will likely result in excessive overcrowding and shifting of students away from their current schools. This poses a significant direct risk on the quality of the schools in the Los Gatos and Saratoga school districts.

With that risk comes the very real threat that the communities within the school district boundaries will no longer be as in demand as they once were. In other words, the property value that premium buyers are willing to pay for within these communities (which currently averages 21 percent relative to neighboring communities) will likely be significantly diminished.

Just like everyone else who has bought a home in the Los Gatos/Saratoga/ Monte Sereno area, my wife and I earlier this year seriously weighed the pros and cons of purchasing a house within the Los Gatos and Saratoga school districts. We could have saved more than $100,000 by purchasing a house outside the districts. However, we decided that for our soon-to-be-born son, we would pay more than we had originally wanted to, cut back on entertainment, eating out, new cars, travel, etc. and make an investment in our son's education by buying a house within the Los Gatos school district.

Proponents of the redistricting plan could do the same and buy any of the many houses that are currently for sale within the Los Gatos and Saratoga school districts. Or they could funnel their energies into improving their own schools. Instead, they are choosing to focus on getting something for nothing, with the unfortunate risk that those of us who live within the district boundaries will end up with reduced school quality and, hence, lower property values.

Yes, it's a shame that the school district boundaries don't match the town limits. But we all faced this fact when we chose where to live, and we should not be willing to put our schools or our property values at risk for the sake of those who want to profit from the higher premiums the rest of us have paid.

Eric Gonzales
Los Gatos

Arts Commission seeks support

On behalf of the Town's Arts Commission, I would like to ask those organizations which are related to the arts to identify themselves (please call the community services department at 354-6820). We are hoping to collaborate with those groups, where appropriate, to achieve mutual goals in bringing art to, and making the community at large more aware of, all aspects of art in Los Gatos.

The commission has had a master plan in place which includes identifying appropriate public spaces for art, as well as loaned artwork to place in those spaces for its Public Art Program; identifying appropriate space to house live theater (and other related performing arts); making the public aware of the rich cultural opportunity that Art in the Council Chambers provides; hosting an Arts Awards Evening; developing an Arts Guide for the Los Gatos area; and finally, bringing the very popular Music in the Plaza series to the community each summer.

We would also like to extend an invitation to members of the community who are interested not only in beautifying the downtown area but in art in general.

The problem is that there are only nine of us, with limited time to achieve all the goals of our master plan. Consequently, some of the items keep "getting put on the back burner," which brings me back to our invitation (I'm hesitant to say plea) to the to the community to volunteer for some of these tasks. The help we are most in need of includes making phone calls, placing fliers, doing mailings, etc.

Each of us has a passion for art and feels that Los Gatos is the ideal place for a rich arts program. We suspect the community agrees and look forward to hearing from a large number of its citizens.

Mary Tomasi-Dubois
Arts commissioner

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