Morgan Hill Resident Dies in Highway 280 Accident
A Morgan Hill resident was killed in a single-car accident Thursday afternoon in San Jose.
According to the California Highway Patrol report, Charles Camilleri, 71, of San Jose was driving a Ford Windstar southbound on I-280 south of Seventh Street.
At approximately 12:05pm, the van, which had been traveling at 65mph, left the roadway, driving over the right shoulder and down a dirt embankment.
The van’s right side smashed into a tree, causing major head trauma to the right front passenger, Carl D. Houser, 80, of Morgan Hill. He was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency personnel.
Camilleri and passenger Ernie Robles, 70, of San Jose received cuts to the head. Passenger John Robles, 62, of San Jose was treated for a compound fracture of his right leg, while David Reisner, 67, of San Jose was treated for hip and back pain.
All the passengers and the driver were wearing safety belts, according to the report.
No arrests were made and the investigation is ongoing.
Special Morgan Hill Unified School Board Meeting
With the only regular meeting this month scheduled for March 14, the Morgan Hill School Board has called a special meeting today at 6pm at the District Office, 15600 Concord Circle.
Trustees will conduct a public hearing on student calendars for the next three school years, 2006-2007 through 2008-2009. The Morgan Hill Federation of Teachers sets these calendars and votes as a group to ratify them before bringing them to the board.
The 06-07 calendar moves the start of school to a week earlier, Aug. 22, so that high school students may take their first semester exams before the winter break at the end of December.
This year, the first day of school was Aug. 29, and students at Sobrato High and Live Oak High took their first semester exams during the second week of January after returning to school Jan. 9 from break. The change in calendars would be instituted during the coming school year, without a year of adjustment for families who may have already made vacation or camp plans.
Also on the agenda for Tuesday night is a resolution to put a school parcel tax on the ballot for the June 6 election.
Superintendent Alan Nishino has said the tax, which would be approximately $120-150 per parcel, would be used for technology and other programs, including music, athletics and agriculture.
County Looking for Cheaper Employee Healthcare
Santa Clara County Supervisors voted Tuesday to support the Health Benefits Coalition, a regional collaborative approach to reduce the cost of providing health care benefits to public employees and improve the quality of those services.
“The cost of providing health care benefits to public employees continues to escalate beyond the ability of local government agencies to pay,” said Supervisor Jim Beall, Chair of the County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors. “We have to find ways to achieve purchasing efficiencies, while ensuring that the quality of health is improved.”
The Santa Clara County Schools Insurance Group has voted in favor of a similar resolution and has authorized a $2,000 contribution to match the county’s investment.
Santa Clara County Approves E-waste Policy
Santa Clara County Supervisors have approved a new policy for the handling and disposal of e-waste.
The policy creates standards for the purchase, management and disposal of equipment such as computers, fax machines, printers and telephone equipment, helping to minimize the environmental impact.
The new policy will be incorporated into how the county does business with its vendors.
The policy criteria will be written into the county’s request for proposals, requiring contract bidders to address “take back” of electronic equipment for reuse, recycling and/or disposal.
The county will encourage a “reuse” of equipment that is in good repair, a strategy that provides those products to groups such as schools or nonprofits.
