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Saratoga Stereopticon
A heritage orchard? How very provincial
By Willys Peck
Today's quiz: Which of the following has the greatest potential for survival?
(a) A man directly in the path--but totally unaware--of a massive boulder falling from a great height;
(b) A car in which a lighted match is being dropped into the gas tank;
(c) A novice swimmer who dives off a boat at the Farallones, hoping to make it to San Francisco;
(d) An orchard in Saratoga?
If you checked (a), (b) or (c), then you have a sufficient grasp of reality to go out into the real world. If you checked (d), then you need more therapy.
OK, so color me cynical. Cynicism, while it may not be a virtue, can be extremely useful in fields like journalism and law. And yes, I'm talking about Saratoga's Heritage Orchard, whose mouth-watering possibilities inspire major salivation on the part of those who think in terms of new homes, commercial uses, schools or playgrounds. This whole area has been given over to--trees? How provincial!
I'll have to admit that I haven't discussed with anyone in city government Nick Streit's "hub" ideas, but I gather that the concept doesn't include saving the orchard in its entirety.
In the words of a recent letter writer to the Saratoga News, that's an expensive piece of heritage to maintain, which raises the question: Is it worth it?
This may come across as sheer mossbackism, but allow me to submit a minority report to the effect that it IS worth maintaining, except for the portion that will be required for necessary expansion of the Community Library.
Without an asset like the Heritage Orchard, Saratoga is just another rich man's town. Hillsborough South. Beverly Hills North. Darien, Conn., West. If you've seen one, you've seen 'em all.
But Saratoga is different. Consider the approach to town along the Saratoga Avenue Heritage Lane.
Here's the Community Library, looking entirely indigenous against a background of the blue hills, the Sierra Azul of the Spanish explorers, with an orchard in the immediate foreground and oak trees arching protectively over the highway farther on down. These aren't simply views, these are an essence.
These are what Saratoga is all about, or was when it inspired a generation of poets, artists and writers.
So, you might ask, how integral to this essence is the Heritage Orchard? Nick Streit has obviously factored it into the hub concept, and I look forward to discussing this with him and others involved with city planning. Meanwhile, excuse me while I look after the dorsal bryophytic growth. That's what makes me a mossback.
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In a previous column, I picked up on Edgar Allan Poe's reference in "The Raven" to "many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore," mentioning that I was well supplied with same. One such that comes to hand is Eugene T. Sawyer's 1922 "History of Santa Clara County, California" that has some interesting descriptions of Saratoga.
A sample: "Aside from the perennial beauty of the hills, Saratoga's next claim to distinction lies in her country homes and the friendly folk who have made them. A gracious and sincere hospitality seems to pervade the neighborhood, from the little inn with its rose-embowered gateway to the stately home of Senator Phelan, or the scores of cozy country homes, whose latch-strings hang waiting the pull of the ever-welcome guest. ... The reason for Saratoga's untiring hospitality may be found in the fact that, like the spider in the old nursery rhyme, "We've so many pretty things to show you while you are here."
OK, folks, stand by for latch-string inspection. It could have a bearing on your property tax.
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Saratoga, California Since 1975
