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They call themselves the Gardening Guerillas. And it's the mission of these guerillas to clean the sidewalks of downtown Saratoga, get rid of weeds, plant flowers and make the area more attractive to visitors.
Leading the group is Jill Hunter, planning commissioner and president of the Saratoga Business Development Council, recently renamed the Saratoga Village Development Council.
Hunter and her team meet at a downtown coffee shop once a week.
On the rain-drenched morning of March 29, only a handful of people showed up at the International Coffee Exchange for the weekly meeting.
"This is only the beginning. The rain has kept people away," said Hunter.
She hopes that as news about the group spreads, more and more people will sign up.
"Some people have told me that they do not like our name. We might call ourselves the Saratoga Gardeners," Hunter said.
Armed with some improvised garden shears, Hunter and Dr. John Marian of Big Basin Chiropractic walked around, talking to business owners and pulling overgrown weeds and plants from flowerbeds near the sidewalk. They were joined by Dorothy, Marian's mother.
In a few weeks, the guerillas will be wearing matching aprons as they walk about downtown Saratoga. Other plans include decorating some of the Village alleyways with arches. "We might buy some overhanging flower-pots," Hunter said.
Hunter has ambitious plans for the Village. "It's easy to criticize the city or knock the Village. My first priority is to have no negativity," she said.
Barely an hour before the meeting at the International Coffee Exchange, Hunter had presided over the meeting of the Saratoga Business Development Council, at which the group decided to rename itself the Saratoga Village Development Council and concentrate on business development in downtown Saratoga.
At the meeting, Hunter said that the group would soon request the city to put up a sign near Highway 85 that indicated a historic downtown with shops and restaurants in the vicinity.
Bill Cooper of the Bella Saratoga restaurant said that he hopes to have some of the faded American flags removed from the Village and replace them with spring flags.
"I know that the city has spring flags available," he said.
Cooper is working with other Village merchants so that they can ask the city to fund the Village shuttle program again. The program started last year and took concert-goers from the Village to Montalvo for free for those dining at a city restaurant or staying at a Village hotel.
For more information on the Gardening Guerillas, call Jill Hunter at 408.741.1213.
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