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Starting Jan. 1, 2016, Santa Clara County will become the first county in California to raise the age to purchase tobacco and electronic smoking products from 18 to 21.The ordinance, approved by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors in June, applies to 17 retailers, markets and convenience stores in unincorporated areas of the county. Five of the affected tobacco retailers are located in South County. Retailers within the city limits of Morgan Hill or any other city in the county are not affected.The purpose of the ordinance is to curtail youth smoking and prevent children from becoming addicted to tobacco at an early age, according to county staff.“Our county continues to be a national leader in protecting the health of our residents, particularly our children and youth, from the harms of tobacco,” said Supervisor Ken Yeager, who initiated the county’s smoking, tobacco and e-cigarette product ordinances.  “The new tobacco purchase age of 21 clearly puts the health of our youth before any special interests.”In July, the Santa Clara County Public Health Department began notifying tobacco retailers of the new requirements that prohibit the sale and distribution of tobacco and electronic smoking products to anyone under age 21, and more recently through in-store education with store owners and/or employees in partnership with the Department of Environmental Health, county staff said.Ordinance requirements of the county ordinance beginning Jan. 1:• Retailers are required to post a notice of minimum age for the purchase of tobacco products and electronic smoking devices at each point of purchase. The notice will state that selling tobacco products and electronic smoking devices to anyone younger than 21 is illegal and subject to penalties;• Positive identification will be required for purchases. No retailer shall sell or transfer a tobacco product or electronic smoking device to another person who appears to be younger than 30 without first examining the customer's identification to confirm that the customer is at least the minimum age required to purchase and possess the tobacco product.“Tobacco use is still the number one cause of preventable death in the United States, killing more than 480,000 people and costing about $170 billion in health care expenses each year,” said Sara Cody, M.D., County Health Officer and Director of the Santa Clara County Public Health Department.“Tobacco and e-cigarette use among teens and young adults remains a critical public health concern.”It is estimated that 90 percent of tobacco users start before the age of 21, according to county staff. Roughly 80 percent of smokers first try tobacco before age 18, and 75 percent of teen smokers continue into their adult years. A recent report by the Institute of Medicine predicts that raising the minimum age for the sale of tobacco products to 21 may, over time, reduce the smoking rate by about 12 percent and smoking-related deaths by 10 percent.Any store that violates the ordinance by selling tobacco or electronic smoking products to customers younger than 21 could be subject to fines and penalties established in 2011, county staff said. A first violation can cost a retailer $100 in fines and result in a suspension of their tobacco permit. The cost of fines and the length of license suspensions increase with each subsequent violation.The following retailers in South County will be subject to the new ordinance:• Coyote Discount Bait & Tackle,  8215 Monterey Rd., Coyote;• Mama's Market, 13305 Sycamore Ave., San Martin;• Old Gilroy Service, 2035 Pacheco Pass Highway, Gilroy;• Rocca's Market, 13335 Monterey Rd., San Martin;• San Martin Gas & Mart, 13235 Monterey Rd., San Martin.In 2010, the board of supervisors adopted three tobacco prevention ordinances to reduce and prevent tobacco use among youth and others, and reduce exposure to secondhand smoke, county staff said. One of the ordinances, the Tobacco Retailer Permit Ordinance, requires all retailers in the unincorporated areas of the County to obtain and maintain an annual permit to sell tobacco products. The ordinance also restricts future retailers from operating within 1,000 feet of a school or 500 feet of an existing retailer.In 2014, the county amended the current tobacco prevention policies to incorporate restrictions related to the use and sale of electronic smoking devices.Most recently in February 2015, the county’s ordinance code provision prohibiting the sale of flavored tobacco products went into effect.

Before the early days of spring begin to quickly change to the scorching days of summer that will host the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open in San Martin, tournament organizers—along with one of the biggest names in the golf media world—invited a small group of guests to see up close the venue that will be crawling with thousands of spectators for an entire week.The U.S. Women’s Open will take place July 7-10 at CordeValle golf course. While this venue is no stranger to professional-level, star-studded competition (Tiger Woods played in the 2012 Frys.com Open there), the U.S. Golf Association’s annual women’s open is a special event, according to organizers.“For women’s golf, this is the pinnacle,” 2016 U.S. Women's Open Vice President and CordeValle Director of Sales and Marketing Jeff Holland said at the resort for the March 28 preview.CordeValle has been working with the USGA for about seven years to attract the U.S. Women’s Open, Holland said. “This is the biggest event the club has ever undertaken. A USGA championship is what we’ve been after.”Joining tournament officials for the March 28 preview of the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open course was Mitch Juricich, founder and writer of the popular “Hooked On Golf” radio program, podcast and website.“We have a big major championship coming, right here in our own little backyard,” Juricich said.U.S. Women’s Open Creative Director Ian Long said an event like the one coming in July happens only “once in a generation” in a locale such as San Martin and South County. “Champions play here,” he said.The tournament officials gave a brief tour of CordeValle’s grounds and how they will accommodate the thousands of visitors expected to descend on the course in July. A key site is Clos La Chance Winery, where the outdoor patio and terrace—where the general public is invited when the tasting room is open or for outdoor concerts—overlooks CordeValle. “Upgraded ticket” holders will have access to a restaurant and bar on the winery grounds.Guests were also invited March 28 to play the exact 18-hole layout that the top USGA women will play in July. Measuring more than 6,800 yards, the length alone—combined with CordeValle’s deviously cunning and abundant placement of sand traps throughout the fairways and protecting the greens—is enough to challenge the best amateurs, be they men or women.The early spring greens at the San Martin course are as immaculately groomed as the rest of the course, and as consistent as one would expect at a championship caliber venue, even though they weren’t lightning fast. But CordeValle Caddie Quin Boulger said that will change by July 7.On March 28, Boulger said the greens were rating about a nine on the “stimpmeter” (a device that measures green speeds on golf courses). During the U.S. Women’s Open, which will take place in the middle of a likely dry summer, he expects that number to climb to 11 or 12—about the maximum recommended by the USGA.CordeValle hosted the Professional Golf Association’s Frys.com Open from 2010 to 2013, bringing such golf stars as Tiger Woods, Ernie Els and more to South County for the October event. In 2014, that tournament moved to Silverado Country Club in Napa.Organizers estimated that the Frys.com Open brought millions of dollars into the local economy, and they expect the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open to have a similar impact.Another event to help promote and celebrate the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open is coming up April 6-10, with “San Pedro Putt Putt” set to take over San Pedro Square in downtown San Jose. The six-hole pop-up golf course will be open for everyone to experience “the fun of golf in a family-friendly, easily accessible format at no cost,” reads a statement from organizers. Scorecards and equipment will be provided. Photo opportunities will be available.The putt putt event will be open 4 to 9 p.m. April 6-9, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. April 10.

Nearly four months after forming a bipartisan select committee and two hearings later, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas announced legislation Feb. 15 to combat shoplifting and organized retail theft—just beating a legislative deadline to introduce new bills. The Hollister Democrat joined Democratic Assemblymembers Rick Zbur of...

Drug convictions riddle the rap sheet of the driver who cut

Three teenagers who lost a close friend to a violent death last year have channeled their grief into action, launching a scholarship fund in her memory that aims to support local students who have faced foster care, domestic violence or other serious hardships. Marissa DiNapoli,...

The Jewish High Holidays begin at sundown Wednesday, Oct. 2, with the onset of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. It continues until sundown Oct. 12, with the conclusion of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.  While we value all of our senses, we have...