Letters to the Editor

Dem FUNdraiser a Success Thanks to Community

Dear Editor,

The Aug. 19 South County Democratic FUNdraiser at the Country Park in San Martin was a huge success due to the many volunteers and generous community donations. I would like to mention first and foremost the wonderful customer service we received from South Valley Disposal and Monica Villasenor, Julie Alter and Victor Sid in getting our recycle bins to us on Friday afternoon after I had carelessly forgotten to order them. What great customer service, well above the call of duty!

I also wish to thank the following businesses and individuals for their contributions to our silent auction and in general donations: Rosy’s at the Beach, Cherisse’s Hair Salon and Day Spa, Kathryn Kennedy Winery, Omar Bibi and Bruce Tichinin.  

Another big thank you goes out to Assemblywoman Anna Caballero and Assembly District 27 candidates Bill Monning, Emily Reilly and Barbara Springer for their informative speeches and to Gilroy Independence Developer Chris Cote for his demonstrative speech regarding “green” housing in Gilroy.

Our special guests for the afternoon included Mayor Steve Tate and his wife Jennifer and Mary McNerney, wife of Congressman Jerry McNerney.

Events like this are only possible through team work and great volunteers, as well as the generosity of our community. So thank you to everyone involved for a wonderful day of barbecue and Democratic friends.

Swanee Edwards, Morgan Hill

South County Democratic Club

Constitution Guarentees Freedom of Religion

Dear Editor,

Thank you Lisa Pampuch for an editorial which very precisely and concisely argued the point that the constitutional rights of “free speech and freedom of religion” are for ALL citizens and residents of the United States of America.

Over the years, I have had people wanting to know more about my culture and religion. Through the Islamic center, we Muslims can show our real tradition of hospitality and peaceful living with neighbors and prove that we, for the most part, are friendly, fair and productive.

The Islamic center/mosque will be an addition to the wonderful, warm and peaceful area of the South County. It will be open to all peoples for discourse and understanding, to extend help to neighbors in need and to celebrate our differences and similarities.

Nuzhat Alavi, Morgan Hill

Proposed Mosque, Center to Benefit Area

Dear Editor,

As an ex-resident of Gilroy and one of the ex-members of South Valley Islamic Community Center board of directors, I would like to share my experience with the Muslim community in that area.

When I moved to Gilroy from San Jose to work for Gilroy Foods, I was provided with so much love and affection by the community that for the next three years I never thought for a day that my family was not with me. Though I moved out of that locality a few years ago, I still consider myself as part of the Gilroy-Morgan Hill community.

The Cardoba Center project is going to open new avenues of learning in that area in general and for the local community in particular. It will not only serve the Muslim community, but will provide a huge learning experience for the people belonging to any religion. As Islam gives huge emphasis on learning – I strongly believe that all of us should support this Cardoba project initiative by the Muslim community.

Arshad Abbasi, Ontario, Canada

Jackson Oaks Trails Folks Are Not ‘NIMBY Whiners’

Dear Editor,

I am responding to the Aug. 24 Morgan Hill Times story titled “Trails Plan Divides Commission.” As written, the article like other earlier articles dealing with Jackson Oaks residents’ objections to placing trails in our open space areas makes us sound like NIMBY whiners who want to have our cake and eat it, too. 

It states that the city spends $38,000 per year to maintain publicly owned open space to which there is no public access. Most of that “maintenance” is annual weed abatement, primarily disking fire breaks. The purpose of those fire breaks is to prevent the spread of a fire (the avoidance of which is one of our primary reasons for opposing the trails in the open space).

It is true that the open space is “publicly owned” land. It was originally paid for by us homeowners (or our builders) when we bought our lots or homes, then it was deeded to the city. As to there being “no public access,” there are at least two dozen easements leading to the open space, many of them clearly marked with a sign stating “no motorized vehicles,” further emphasizing the fire hazard that we are so concerned about. 

The several million dollars in property taxes that Jackson Oaks property owners pay every year is many times the $38,000 the city pays for weed abatement. That is not a lot of money, especially when you consider that there are no city parks in or even close to Jackson Oaks. Nor does the city maintain any sidewalks in Jackson Oaks (there are none). Even some of our streets (all those called “lanes”) are not maintained by the City.  

Nearly every house fire we have had in Jackson Oaks has been a total or near-total loss. Why? The response time from the nearest fire house on the valley floor is just too long to get there in time.

The open space is already accessible to the public. Most (if not all) of the money the city is spending to “maintain” the open space is for fire control.  Jackson Oaks is not asking for or receiving any special treatment. Eliminating us from the trails proposal would avoid worsening our already unacceptable fire situation and save the city money in the process.

Although we hope that our city council will recognize and respect our wishes to eliminate Jackson Oaks from the trails proposal, if they were to decide otherwise, they need first to provide adequate fire response before putting any trails in Jackson Oaks.

Tom Berghoff, Morgan Hill