Saratoga News

Letters & Opinions

Speak Out

Celebrate Saratoga!
needs some changes

After reading Michelle Tjin's article ("Celebrate Saratoga! a success, maybe a little too successful," Oct. 2), I couldn't help but wonder how it is that we measure success these days. Certainly one measure might be some kind of new record for the number of drunk/inebriated people I saw walking down the middle of Saratoga Avenue around 10:30 p.m. that evening as I attempted to return to my home on Oak Place.

They were old and young (some seemingly well below the legal drinking age) and seemed totally oblivious to the traffic on the street. I was saddened to think of the poor example some of the adults were setting for their own children. Even more, I was horrified to think that most of these people were stumbling toward their cars parked further down the street and would soon be behind the wheel.

As I rounded the corner on Oak Place, I was greeted by the sight of a man unabashedly urinating in my neighbor's hedge. I could barely get into my own driveway because of the cars parked on both sides of the narrow street--it would have been difficult, at best, for an emergency vehicle to pass through, had it been necessary.

I understand that the Chamber of Commerce needs creative ways to raise money. I also understand that much of the money that is raised at Celebrate Saratoga! might be through alcohol sales. Some might think me crazy to suggest a totally alcohol-free zone. (Although, why not? Think of all the successful "First Night" New Year's Eve events around the country that are alcohol-free.) I just know that there must be some better alternative, perhaps starting with limiting the number of drinks. Whatever happened to the family-friendly Saratoga Street Dance, where booze was not the primary emphasis? Next year, let's try to get back to celebrating Saratoga and the best of what it has to offer, and leave the rest for somewhere else.

Anita Schiller

Oak Place

Support merchants
at sidewalk sale

This coming week, Friday through Sunday, Oct. 12-14, many of the merchants in the Village of Saratoga will be participating in a sidewalk sale. Please come down and support our local Village merchants in their efforts!

Two and a half years ago, volunteers came into the Village not only on Tuesday mornings to garden but on other days as well to tend to the flowers that were planted. Due to the generosity of many, Saratoga Village is a far prettier place today than it was in the past. In addition, many volunteer residents are organizing and staging events for all to enjoy. Lantern Walk, two weeks ago, was run by 45 residents to familiarize families with the Village. Witchy Walkabout, on Saturday, Oct. 27, from 2 to 4 p.m. is another example of a resident-run event in the Village.

Saratoga can be truly proud of the enthusiasm and goodwill that has been generated in the last years. So come on down and enjoy our historic Village, the heart of Saratoga!

Jill Hunter

Lomita Avenue

Street dance may
be out of control

The Celebrate Saratoga! street dance seems to be getting out of control. Several people told me about certain disturbing things they witnessed at this year's event, including multiple fights (one car confrontation where a hammer was used on another individual), open drug use (teens walking around with bongs) and girls exposing themselves to the cheers of boys in the crowd. One attendee told me the atmosphere toward the end of the evening reminded him of Fort Lauderdale during spring break.

While the celebration is an overall fun and fine event, it seems to cater to or at least encourage a younger crowd, given the bands that are booked to perform. There needs to be a proper balance to ensure all attendees, including those with children, can have fun without being subjected to the type of atmosphere that seemed to be prevalent this year.

Bob Bossi

Saratoga

Herriman job needs
to be done properly

The restriping work on Herriman Avenue is now in progress. It appears that the solution to the problem that caused the accident at Lexington last year is to add a sidewalk to the south side of the road and to remove the parking strip from the south side. All of this is at the other end of the road to where the accident occurred.

This apparently addresses a problem on the south side, where there are less than 200 yards of the road where children needed to walk in the bike lane. Unfortunately, it adds back more than 500 yards on the north side where there is now no protected place to walk.

Children entering Herriman from Lanoy, Beaumont and Saratoga Vista as well as those who live on the north side will now need cross Herriman Avenue at unmarked and unsafe crossing points in the middle of the road where traffic is moving fast and visibility is compromised by hills and bends in the road. The alternative is for them to walk in the bike lane on the north side, which is what the restriping was intended to prevent other children from doing on the south side. Many more children enter Herriman from the north than from the south. Previously children entering from the south previously had a safe walkway in the parking lane far from moving traffic to a marked crossing where they could cross safely.

This seems like a net loss in road safety for a project that was intended to make our children safe.

I hope that my fears on the dangers of this solution are unfounded, and that the council will allocate funds in the next year's budget to do the job properly and restore safety and parking to residents on the north side of the road.

Ray Glasstone

Herriman Avenue

Letter of support
for Ballingall

I am writing to applaud Brigitte Ballingall for her Sept. 18 Speak Out letter, and to acknowledge her refreshing humanity and honor. I had the pleasure of working with Brigitte in various community and school volunteer efforts before she began working with the Traffic Safety Commission, and so was not surprised by her letter, which characteristically displays her courage and integrity.

It could not have been easy for her to publicly apologize and accept responsibility for her inadvertent slip-up, but from what I've observed of Brigitte, there is no other way she would have handled it. She has worked selflessly the last 15 years devoting herself to this community, and there is no doubt she did not mean what apparently came out. What happened could have happened to any one of us.

Brigitte Ballingall is a town treasure not just because she's enriched Saratoga immensely with her hard work, but also because of her humility and honesty.

Charlotte Sparacino

Lutheria Way