I am a second-year student at West Valley College. I am also a pitcher on the Vikings baseball team. Next year I will transfer to a four-year university.

My professors and the coaching staff have been great and I know I am receiving an excellent education, but the classrooms are old and rundown and a lot of the other facilities need work. Some of the student areas are badly overcrowded and sometimes we are hampered by a lack of modern technology. In fact, my art history class this semester can't show slides of artwork because the projection equipment is too old. Students I talk to from Mission College have the same problems with overcrowding and portable buildings and lack of repair.

Please vote for Measure H, our college district's bond measure. It will allow Mission and West Valley colleges to bring their facilities up to the level of the faculty and the students.

Kraig Bailey

San Marcos Road

There's a good reason
students attend WVC

A letter from James Burke (Oct. 13) complains that students who live outside the West Valley­Mission Community College District are attending classes at these two colleges and that local homeowners in the district should not be taxed for them.

The reason students are choosing to attend West Valley College in Saratoga and Mission College in Santa Clara is the quality of education. WVMCCD offers many specialized programs that are not offered at other community colleges, including fire fighting, paralegal, specialized health care courses, court reporting, park management, administration of justice, web design, and interior and fashion design. The faculty has earned an international reputation for these specialized vocational fields that students pay thousands of dollars for at private institutions.

Conversely, students in this district attend other neighboring community colleges that have programs not offered by WVMCCD such as dental technician and hygiene. And all of those other districts have passed bond measures to improve and update the facilities that serve our residents as well as their own. Both West Valley and Mission are aging and the West Valley­Mission district is the only district in the South Bay that has never passed a bond measure.

In California, the state Legislature determines our fee structure and even with our fee increase of $26 a unit, community colleges are one of the least expensive higher education institutions in the world. And community colleges educate more Californians than all of the UC and state universities combined.

With Mission and West Valley colleges, we are fortunate to have two of the very best community colleges in the state here within our communities. That is why it is so important that we vote yes on Measure H, the district's bond measure, on Nov. 2.

Wendie Weisman

Squirrel Hollow Lane

Separating Measure V
truths from half-truths

It is election season and therefore difficult to separate truths from half-truths and sometimes downright mistruths. I'm going to ask you to support the 4 percent utility tax measures named V and U, and tell you why. There are two reasons to support the tax. First, the city does need the money. Second, this specific type of tax is the best approach in raising funds.

We can argue at length about the specific policies of this or past city councils, but the plain truth is that the city population and services have stayed constant since 1990, but the city revenue (adjusted for inflation) has significantly declined during that same period. The general fund revenue for the city was $6.9 million in 1990 and $8.9 million going into 2005. Adjusted for inflation, that is a 19 percent drop in revenue.

The council has done a good job of maintaining services during this period, but it is now clear that additional revenue is needed to maintain basic services and infrastructure. All other issues simply cloud this simple long-term financial problem, which was created by the state's ongoing year-after-year raids of local city and county revenues.

Several arguments have been made that we should dip into our reserves and/or sell the North Campus. I am against using general reserves to handle day-to-day operations. That is simply not a wise or fiscally conservative course. Doing so will place the city into permanent deficit spending. We do have reasonably good reserves, but they are not there to pay for ongoing maintenance, roads or the Sheriff's Department. When appropriate, reserves should be used only for one-time purchases or emergencies and then built back up as quickly as possible.

As for the North Campus, whatever your position on this property, it is still unwise to spend one-time money on day-to-day operations. If sold, the money should go back into reserves for future councils to use for emergencies or one-time opportunities needing a large capital outlay and not for day-to-day operations.

The utility tax is the best method for achieving a financial balanced budget for the city. As a small-business owner in Saratoga I will actually be hit twice, at work and at home. I am not exactly happy about this, but I intend to implement some minor changes at home and at work to reduce my utility bills by a minimum of 4 percent. In doing so, I will void the effects of this tax.

Some might not be able to reduce their use by 4 percent, but any reduction will reduce the tax to a very small fraction of their utility bills. Other forms of taxes, including bonds and parcel taxes, are either inappropriate, cost too much in interest, or are unfair to large segments of our community.

So cutting through the silly political season's hype, the city honestly needs the revenue to maintain a limited set of services, and the utility tax measures U and V are the best methods of doing so. And, yes, we will continue to argue about specific policies well into the future. And that's OK. But for the sake of the financial well-being of the city, let's put it on a sound financial foundation for whoever wins those policy battles.

Norman Kline

Saratoga city councilman

The tax man will be
watching if V passes

Morning, noon and night the Saratoga Tax Man will be watching; that is, if Measure V passes. This measure is a particularly insidious one as it taxes virtually every activity in our daily lives. Whether taking a shower, doing dishes, watering your flowers, watching TV, reading a book or talking to Grandma on the telephone, the tax meter will run.

Aren't we taxed enough already? Over the recent past, we have approved five major bonds for the city, including three for schools, one for a new library, and one for a new fire station. Just look at your property tax bill and you will see the impact to your checkbook for these projects in addition to other obligations that were passed previously.

Now the city council thinks that we need another tax, and they promote this proposal on the basis of increasing costs and the implication that since other cities have a utility tax, we need one, too. The fact of the matter is that we don't need another tax, as property taxes should be sufficient to fund the city's needs.

Keep in mind that even with Proposition 13, property assessments rise annually—and at a rate that is greater than the rate of inflation with higher re-assessments as property transfers take place.

I suggest that the city council curb its spending enthusiasm by not purchasing any more skateboard structures to be sold to another city for pennies on the dollar, or using our tax dollars to subsidize a clothing store, or spend money on decorations, or holding costly special elections in order to pass two bond measures on separate ballots (library and fire department) in the same timeframe.

Proponents of Measure V tout the sunset clause after 10 years. A previous city council demonstrated that they could not be trusted to abide by sunset clauses. Many in Saratoga will recall that we had a similar utility tax in the city, and when it came time for the sun to set, the city council members in power at the time took it upon themselves to extend the tax without a vote from the citizens. They only relented when legal action was threatened.

Why did the council craft this Measure V tax as a utility tax—a tax that is not deductible for federal or state tax purposes—rather than a parcel tax that would offer some tax benefits? It appears to me that the council figured out that this insidious utility tax would be easier to pass as it only requires a simple majority versus a two-thirds super majority for other tax measures. I recommend that the city learn to live within a budget just like the rest of us.

Phil Gluckman

Tricia Way

Voter doesn't have the
whole utility tax story

On Nov. 2 we will be asked to vote for or against a 10-year utility tax for all households and businesses in Saratoga. After reviewing the information that appears on the city of Saratoga website, I am perplexed because I don't have the whole story.

What is the city budget? Where does it go? Where is the money that was intended as deferred maintenance on our roads? What are the viable alternatives to this tax? Why 10 years? Since I do not have the whole story, I will vote no on the utility tax.

John DePalma

Sobey Road

What's at stake
with Measure V

No one wants to pay more taxes. It is the last resort in a bad situation. But as a current finance commission member, I can tell you that the need for Measure V has been years in the making, and since that time, in my opinion, the Saratoga City Council has acted with fiscal responsibility. Without the revenues Measure V will bring, there will be a tangible and direct impact on every person in our community.

When it became clear in 2003 that the city would be losing major sources of revenues—primarily a result of the state's confiscation of vehicle license fees and redirection of revenues to the education revenue augmentation funds—city leadership began enacting measures to freeze or reduce spending levels. When supplemental funding from the VTA was lost, the city was forced to make a dramatic 46 percent cut in the street maintenance budget. An additional $18 million of needed capital improvements have been deferred indefinitely.

The result has been a steady deterioration of streets and buildings, which now receive a fraction of the attention they need. As a rule of thumb in the long run, the cost of deferring maintenance on roads is exponentially higher than keeping it up to date. Roads require maintenance every year, and though they may look good today, come rainy season, the neglect will become apparent.

Unless a new revenue source like that provided by Measure V is found, the inevitable result will be cracked and potholed roads, city buildings in disrepair and home values that suffer as a direct result. Opposing Measure V for political expediency is cynical, shortsighted and deceitful. Vote yes on Measure V. We cannot afford the consequences of inaction.

Ajay Narain

Arbolado Way

Too many tax increases
on the Nov. 2 ballot

When it comes to increasing taxes, politicians certainly have become creative—and numerous! I just completed reading my sample ballot, and count no less than eight propositions which hope to relieve my family of income that we sorely need right here at home.

Let's begin with the local taxes: L wants $98 per year for high schools; O wants $98 per year for elementary schools. Can't these districts combine, save money on administrative costs, and do a better job with the already high tax dollars received? And why is it just property owners that are being hit up? Don't renters utilize these schools as well? Shouldn't everyone have to be robbed equally? Then the community colleges want to take a bite as well.

Measure V wants to tax all my utilities—including phone (all types), PG&E, cable, and water—at another 4 percent (and my water and PG&E bills seemed enormous this summer; I shudder to think what they will be this winter).

Then we have Propositions 61 and 71, which are bond measures. Don't be fooled, people. These bonds are not "free" money; the debt has to be serviced, for many years to come. We are mortgaging our children's futures for special-interest groups that taxpayers should not be supporting.

Then there's Prop. 67. This one is another phone tax, this time a 7 percent surcharge (on top of Saratoga's 4 percent). And finally, while it doesn't affect most of us, Prop. 63 wants to add an additional 1 percent on the incomes of those earning over $1 million (and it's so easy to gore someone else's ox, isn't it?).

If you add this all up, it amounts to—enough is enough! We taxpayers are not an endless source of revenue. We have to work to earn our income; we can't go back to our employers when we overspend and demand an increase because we didn't budget correctly. Neither can government. It's time to call a halt to all this constant theft of our incomes by insatiable government entities (and you'd think they could at least coordinate their attempted heists so that they don't all come on the same ballot; it really shows them to be the greedy—and stupid—politicians that they really are).

It's time for those whose pockets are attempting to be fleeced to stand up and just say no!

Nancy Leasia

Beauchamps Lane

Voter will support
Ann Waltonsmith

Saratoga's current mayor, Ann Waltonsmith, deserves re-election.

Ann played a key role in forging a permanent settlement of the West Valley College stadium issue. That is the biggest single political achievement in many years in this community.

Ann has supported the merger of the Saratoga Fire District with the Central Fire District, a process that is still under way but appears to be another win-win for this community. Her efforts to promote Saratoga's retail business areas have also been very successful, from bringing Patrick James Menswear to the Village to the physical improvements under way in the Gateway shopping area. Based on their actions, this current city council may be the most pro-business council Saratoga has had in many years.

Ann was also central in beginning the Montalvo shuttle and in resolving the expansion issues with the Mountain Winery. She has done wonders with parks and trails issues and supported neighborhoods and neighborhood traffic mitigation efforts, and she had the vision to vote to acquire the city's North Campus at a below-market price to accommodate future city services.

As a council member and mayor, Ann has been smart, well prepared, respectful of others and extremely hard-working.

Jeffrey L. Becker

Aloha Road

Saratoga should spend
money more cautiously

The issue Saratoga is facing is not decreasing revenues, but expenditures increasing faster than revenues.

And, of course, those against Measure V are not saying that roads and bridges should not be maintained. On the contrary, our priorities would be to spend dollars first on necessary maintenance of bridges and roads and on maintaining a low-crime environment.

But instead, the city council spends millions of dollars on lavish fixtures and fittings, babysitting, giveaways to their friends (concertgoers, business property owners, Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, etc.) and on facilities that the city doesn't need. If voters were told Measure V was for luxuries, giveaways and unnecessary property, it wouldn't get many votes.

Please vote no on Measure V and write and tell the council to spend your tax dollars on bridges, roads and police first. Then we can discuss what else they want to spend money on.

Pieter Kaempf

Allendale Avenue

Waltonsmith cartoons
were uncalled for

I don't mind the DeCinzo cartoon at my expense (Saratoga News, Oct. 21). Steven DeCinzo is very talented and very funny, and all of us in public office should know it will be "our turn in the barrel" sooner or later.

I do object to Andrew Barnes hiring a cartoonist and publishing distorted caricatures of Mayor Ann Waltonsmith three weeks in a row in full page ads in the Saratoga News. There is an important difference between editorial cartoons and "bought and paid for" caricatures used in a political campaign as character assassination.

Andrew Barnes has three full-page ads in the Saratoga News this week, in addition to the two he published the last two weeks. Perhaps next week he will have bought the entire newspaper. Each and every one of the five full-page ads Barnes has run includes major factual errors. Barnes' campaign literature is similarly full of substantial misstatements about the city's expenses, income, reserves, etc. His signs say "No taxes" but he says he endorses Measure H, the West Valley­Mission bond measure. Mr. Barnes has failed to correct any of these mistakes as the campaign goes on; they are replaced with new misstatements.

On several occasions Mr. Barnes has spent time with city staff discussing city finances and receiving detailed financial data. Then Mr. Barnes either ignores or doesn't understand the information he has received and publishes financial data bearing no relation to the actual situation. The city of Saratoga is not well served in this election by having its fiscal status and issues grossly distorted.

Kathleen King

Saratoga vice mayor

Barnes' 'gutter politics'
not good for Saratoga

I can't remember the last time I opened the Saratoga News and was not greeted by an Andy Barnes slime-ad featuring some unfair (and

poorly done) caricature of Ann Waltonsmith. Even if I had never met Ann, this would make me want to see Andy Barnes defeated. Ironically, his stupid little attack-toons take up more space than he dedicates to telling us what he's actually for. I guess the message is vote for Andy Barnes if you like gutter politics and not much else.

Ann Waltonsmith has my vote. She is a longtime member of this community and conducts herself in a courteous and professional manner. I encourage everyone to vote for Ann and reject the kind of rancor and division that has poisoned national politics. There is no room for this kind of trash in Saratoga.

Paul Pelton

Oak Street

Supporting Rossi for
high school board

There are five candidates running for two positions on the Los Gatos­Saratoga High School board, all with varying degrees, experiences and expertise. The candidate with the most "in-house" experience and local knowledge of the high school issues is Rosemary Rossi. She has been co-president of the PTSA in 2003­04, and held several positions before that on the board. Rosemary served on the school site council for four years, and was a parent representative for the state evaluation of the high school serving on the WASC committee. She has learned what the strengths and weaknesses of the high schools are, and the concerns of parents, teachers, and students, by her involvement.

Her firsthand knowledge of the issues has prepared her to ask the hard questions.

Donna Guldimann

Via Regina

Supporting Barmeier
in high school race

We urge the voters in the Los Gatos­Saratoga Union High School District to vote for Carol Barmeier for the governing board. Carol has been actively involved in the Saratoga schools since she and her family moved here in 1996. She has an excellent professional background, and we have come to respect her leadership and judgment. She values the excellence of our high school district, but is open to making changes for the benefit of all students.

We think it is time for some fresh thinking on the high school district board, and we want to make sure there is a board member who is familiar with the unique qualities and issues of Saratoga High School. This is the seventh consecutive year that one of Carol's children has been a student at Saratoga.

Maya and Ken Baba

Portos Drive

Mark and Roberta Linsky

Barksdale Court

Lisa and Bill Liu

Merrick Drive

Emily and Patrick Lo

Lanark Lane

Charlotte and Michael Sparacino

Lutheria Way

Measure C handcuffs a supervisor's ability

Never in my 24 years of service have I seen one measure that could handcuff a supervisor's ability to make fair decisions.

Measure C's binding arbitration proposal, put on the ballot by a select group of government attorneys, correctional officers, and a nurses' union, is estimated to cost taxpayers more than $100 million over the next five years. And if some unions insist on taking more than their fair share, the county budget will suffer.

During the last 10 years, government attorneys alone have received 69.4 percent in salary increases, and county nurses 57 percent. If some employees continue to take an unfair chunk of the budget, it will lead to more layoffs and a reduction in programming like the Children's Health Initiative and senior services.

But on the other hand, Measure A amends the county charter to ensure fair wage comparisons by comparing employee wages and benefits to other public employees, not the private sector. And Measure B offers a safeguard to Measure C by giving voters veto power over any binding arbitration agreements that are too costly.

By voting no on Measure C and yes on Measures A and B, voters will help preserve fairness.

Blanca Alvarado

Santa Clara County supervisor

Signs lost in 2002
council campaign

As I was reading the article "Vice mayor caught in the act of arranging campaign signs" (Oct. 20), memories came back to me about my own run for city council in 2002. My campaign put up 400 signs the month before Election Day. When it came time to pick them up at the end of the campaign, only about 100 could be retrieved. Often, we would put up a sign on Monday only to see it ripped down by Wednesday.

During this campaign, two Andy Barnes signs have been stolen from the front of my house. I call on those candidates (you know who you are) whose surrogates are stealing signs to eliminate this practice from your campaign strategies. It is cheating and sends a horrible message to Saratoga's youth.

When I first read that article, it angered me that the people in power will do anything to keep that power. But then I realized that it is the people of this great city that have the power. On Election Day, it is your turn to take your city back and restore responsibility and integrity.

Neil Malhotra

Candidate for city council, 2002

What are Boxer's
accomplishments?

For two terms Barbara Boxer has claimed "she works hard for the citizens of California." May I ask, "Doing what?" I am unaware of any accomplishments attributable to her.

W.E. Sirvatka

Glasgow Drive