The Crimson Crusaders answers the latest questions and concerns
from local readers.
IS FIOS EVER COMING? Â “I heard that Verizon is bringing their new fiber optic television and Internet service (FIOS) to our area, but I can’t get anyone to give me a timeframe when this might happen. Maybe the Red Phone can find out when we will have this service in Morgan Hill?”
RED PHONE
Caller, Verizon’s FIOS television and Internet service has been highly praised by electronic retailers and is rapidly becoming a household name. After talking to many Verizon representatives, Red Phone has learned that residents in Morgan Hill will have to wait a few months while Verizon scans the South Valley area for a place to dig a hole to set up a FIOS receiver. Verizon couldn’t give us a specific timeframe but expects the Morgan Hill area to be FIOS-ready by this fall or late this year.
QUACKERY
“Since early December we have been hearing a constant and incredibly loud commotion of duck ‘chatter’ emanating from the greenhouses on the eastern end of San Pedro Avenue, between Hill Road and Murphy Avenue. I have tried to locate the ducks but they appear to be trapped deep within the property, not visible from the main road. As county land, we understood that this area was dedicated to a wholesale flower industry. Are the property owners now raising ducks for restaurant consumption? If so, is any outside county agency responsible for overseeing the proper care of the ducks and the maintenance of the facility, as well as ensuring that community noise ordinances and guidelines are met?
“Thank you for investigating this for us.”
RED PHONE
According to a few families that run the greenhouses over on San Pedro Avenue, ducks migrate there to prey on snails and worms that nest in the area’s rich soil. Also, the ducks like the wet and moist land, especially since the weather has gotten hotter. Furthermore, they have made it clear that they are not raising ducks for restaurant consumption. You can contact several county and non-county animal-control agencies that can look into the treatment of the ducks and see if they can control the noise over there.
MEMBERSHIP WOES AT THE CRC
“I recently joined as a member of the Centennial Recreation Center on Edmundson Avenue. It is a great facility and I enjoy visiting whenever I go.
“My concern is that the Recreation Center has very limited options when it comes to paying the membership fees. There are two choices. Members can either pay for the entire year or have monthly withdrawals made from their checking accounts. I do not like either one of these options. Why can’t we just get billed monthly? Can you find out why there are so few choices?”
RED PHONE
Caller, according to recreation supervisor Chris Ghione, the community center’s main reason for billing customers with a one-time yearly fee or a monthly bank draft is to save members money. The center has more than 2,000 members and billing them monthly by credit card would cost the center more money to take the charges, which would result in higher membership fees. Also, the center uses the monthly bank withdrawal to hold off on hiring more employees to make up a membership fees department which would be responsible for collecting payments from members. The staff upgrade would contribute to higher membership fees. However, the center is still evaluating its billing process and these two methods of payment are not set in stone. The center is making an effort to keep costs down for members and encourages them to be open about any concerns to continue to improve the facility.
