Whatever happened to the old-style street lamps that were promised to the neighbors on the 500 block of Frances Street? The city promised these lights to this "historic" neighborhood, along with some "old-style" street signs, many years ago.

The street signs appeared. The lights didn't. And the 500 block remains very dark as the old "pole" lights are living inside the city's liquidambar parkway trees.

Maybe these old-style streetlights are the ones that appeared in front of all those empty new buildings on the 100 block of Mathilda Avenue.

Anyway, every time I contact Sunnyvale's public works, I hear: "We'll look into that" or "That person retired, and I don't know what you're talking about." They never get back to me.

To the city, I ask: What happened to the promised "old-style" streetlights?

Tom Costa

Sunnyvale

Sunnyvale Nursery up
and left without a word

I left for vacation on Aug. 30, and all seemed well with my local nursery. But then I returned on Oct. 10 to find the gates locked, the plants all gone and the place deserted. What happened?

Truthfully, I want to say that I wish the owners had given me a warning, time to say good-bye, to offer my condolences after 36 years of gardening delights.

I must have spent thousands of dollars over the years, and my garden has vines, trees, and perennials from that nursery. I got attached to the convenience of picking up a six-pack of impatiens whenever I needed some color or a pot of cyclamen for a gift.

I also wish I'd been able to wander at will and pick out a few pot-bound or unwanted plants as a thank you for my patronage.

But they just locked the gates, not even a sign to explain the exit.

Where did they go?

Beverly Ainscow

Sunnyvale

The Sunnyvale Nursery gave at least two week's notice to the public before closing in August.

— Editor

Nationwide search won't
guarantee good manager

The Sun's Nov. 10 article, on the appointment of Amy Chan as city manager, stated that county assessor Larry Stone said the city should have done a nationwide search for a new city manager.

I could not disagree more.

It's been my experience and that of many other people who have hired employees that it is extremely difficult to forecast how a new person will perform. More often than not a person, who you think will be an outstanding performer turns out to be average and a person who you expect will be an average performer turns out to be an outstanding performer.

It makes no sense to spend tens of thousands of dollars to do the search and pay moving expenses when you have an outstanding candidate on the staff with a proven long-term track record who has demonstrated her abilities to do the job and do it well. The council made the right decision.

Werner Gans

Sunnyvale

School turns a negative
cartoon teaching tool

I am writing regarding The Sun's coverage of Cumberland Elementary School's recent mock election for three reasons. First, I appreciate the coverage, as we at Cumberland couldn't be prouder of our librarian, Lisa Atkins, creator of this outstanding lesson in democracy. The Sun's article was quite complete in its discussion of how Ms. Atkins facilitated the mock election by registering our students to vote, reading to them about the election process and building a realistic polling center complete with private voting booths and a ballot box in our library. The children also had to wait in line before they voted (perhaps the truest dose of reality) and were given "I Voted" stickers and bookmarks after they cast their ballots. We also couldn't be prouder of how seriously our students took this lesson and how enthusiastic they were to participate in all aspects of the election process.

My second reason for writing is to express my deep disappointment at turning the page after reading about the mock election and then seeing DeCinzo's cartoon satirizing it. While it appears that this cartoon was meant to be a statement on the alleged truths of the American election process as a whole, I am concerned that the cartoon, by naming Cumberland specifically, reflected negatively on our school. Whether by intention or not, the cartoon could be taken to cynically imply that Cumberland's kindergartners through fifth-graders are already jaded and that they took part in an election where votes were cast as a result of intimidation while our staff and parents uncaringly looked on.

My third reason for writing is to let you know that instead of sheltering our students from the reality of political satire and canceling our subscriptions to your paper, we at Cumberland will take the opportunity this cartoon has provided us to teach our older students a lesson on political satire and freedom of speech. DeCinzo's inappropriate and negative usage of our school's name will be transformed into a "teachable moment" at Cumberland, and I couldn't be prouder of that either.

Laura Healy

PTA President, Cumberland Elementary School

Recent editorial on corn
syrup is just right

A big bouquet of roses to Moryt Milo for her editorial in the Oct. 6 issue of the Sun on high-fructose corn syrup. This stuff really is garbage and is condemned by some really noteworthy health authorities.

I was shocked to discover that it is the No. 1 ingredient in a very popular brand of barbecue sauce I have been using. By becoming a label reader, I found another brand (a store brand) that doesn't even contain it. The fact that high-fructose corn syrup is much more dangerous than sugar should not be ignored by anyone, that is if you want to maintain your health.

Robert Smith

San Jose