Guest View

High Speed Rail is moving ahead much more quickly than anyone anticipated. The decision on the preferred option through or around Morgan Hillis going to be made this fall by the HSR Authority, within the next month and a half.The California HSRA has currently identified four different options.Option 1: The “at grade” option adjacent to the Union Pacific line Monterey Road corridor.It is important to understand that the “at grade” proposal is not what you imagine based on the name.The tracks through Morgan Hill would be located on a berm with a retaining wall on both sides, up to 14 feet tall.That would place a 14 foot wall that divides the community. In areas where there is a concern about additional noise (i.e., adjacent to residential structures or other locations) there could be an additional 12 foot high sound wall.In addition, the wall may be located at up to 102 feet from the existing Union Pacific tracks, eliminating hundreds of homes and businesses on the east side of the UP tracks.  If you can imagine a three-story building with no windows, activity, ornamentation, or life extending all the way through the community, from north of Cochrane to south of Tennant Avenue, you can visualize how the potential divide will impact the community.Option 2: The aerial approach adjacent to the Union Pacific line Monterey Road corridor.The aerial approach is a monorail-like structure with two tracks up to 50 feet wide. This would be substantially higher than Option 1, at a minimum of 30 feet and up to 60 feet above the area to the east of the tracks through the city. There may also be a 102-foot setback from the UP lines.This option would impact hundreds of new residential units, existing housing and businesses, and create a huge visual and sound division.  Option 3: Along the east side of 101.The focus of option 3 is to shift the entire HSR to the east side of 101. The impact on the homes and businesses on that side is clear, especially considering the HSRA would need to cross the freeway twice, at minimum.Option 4: Along the west side of 101.The most recent option, and the one that seems to make the most sense, calls for an aerial approach that would come down Monterey Highway and then, to the north of Sobrato High School, angle off toward 101. HSR would then parallel 101 through Morgan Hill and, after passing Tennant Avenue, would return to connect again with the UP alignment and continue south to Gilroy. This option disrupts the least number of businesses and residents and co-locates noisy activities, freeway and train.We need to tell the HSRA our preferred option now! If we don’t weigh in, we will be completely disregarded by the HSRA.  According to the HSRA timeline, by fall of 2016 (yes that's this year), their intent is to have selected two options to take through the environmental review process.It is important as a community that we immediately come together in a way that clearly identifies our preference. Option 4 may not be perfect, but it avoids channeling the HSR through the main part of town, and clusters like functions together.Use the High Speed Rail Comments form on the city website morganhill.ca.gov/forms.aspx?FID=212 to tell the HSRA your preference for the HSR route through Morgan Hill.Lesley Miles is co-owner of Weston Miles Architects in downtown Morgan Hill.

The Morgan Hill City Council voted to ignore a lawful petition signed by more than 10 percent of the registered voters in this city demanding that the city council either reverse its proposed zoning amendment (proposed Ordinance No. 2131-NS) that would unnecessarily further deplete our already disappearing industrial land, or else put that question on the ballot for the voters to decide in a referendum election.  The right to decide questions of public interest in a democratic vote is guaranteed under the California State Constitution and built into the very fabric of our elections laws. It is the reason that most ordinances do not go into effect for at least 30 days after they are approved by the city council. This is the time period during which concerned voters can file their objections to a proposed ordinance, but this city council is trying to deny our citizens their constitutional right to vote on this issue.The Morgan Hill Hotel Coalition works hard to make the hospitality industry better for all. The hotels and motels in Morgan Hill, many of which are family owned businesses that span generations, have generated approximately $10 million in transit occupancy tax over the past five years. The Coalition welcomes all who care to join the hospitality industry on a level playing field.The Coalition publicly supported both the Stone Park Capital hotel project (La Quinta Inn) and development of a new downtown boutique hotel. Each of those projects are situated on lands that were zoned for commercial use (which allows hotels) when the projects were proposed. These two projects alone will increase our city’s available higher end hotel room inventory by nearly 40 percent.We advocate for sustainable growth so our local economy is less susceptible to boom/bust cycles that have crippled us in the past.Industry means jobs—good paying, manufacturing jobs that will benefit the citizens of our community as a whole, now and in the future. So we need to carefully protect our industrial land to make sure that there will be a place for people to create jobs when our children become working age.  According to the City of Morgan Hill’s own statistics, there is only about a 19-year supply of industrial land remaining within the city and there is currently a miniscule 3 percent industrial property vacancy rate in Morgan Hill.The Morgan Hill Hotel Coalition objected to the proposal to take industrial land and convert it to commercial use just so an out of town developer can build another hotel. More than 2,000 voters in Morgan Hill agreed and showed their support by signing the petition demanding that the city council repeal the proposed zoning change or put it on the ballot for the voters to decide. The city council should have allowed the voters to decide.Asit Panwala is a spokesperson for the Morgan Hill Hotel Coalition. His father owns Comfort Inn on Condit Road in Morgan Hill. The MHHC has started a group on Facebook titled "Morgan Hill Speaks," which encourages residents to become more involved in important land use issues and other local government business. 

Are you wondering how to spend the Fourth of July weekend? Why not stay in Morgan Hill, our “Home, Sweet, Home”? This is the theme of Morgan Hill Freedom Fest’s annual Fourth of July Celebration. Why not stay close to home and experience events which will rekindle your patriotism, make wonderful memories and honor this amazing country of ours? All events are free to the public.This year, our Parade Grand Marshal is none other than Eddie Bowers. This Live Oak High School graduate is a champion for veterans’ causes. Because of Eddie, Morgan Hill has its own Veterans Memorial Square located in downtown. Many of you gather there on both Veterans Day and Memorial Day as we remember those soldiers from Morgan Hill who have lost their lives serving this country.As Chairperson of the 28th annual Patriotic Sing, I would like to take this opportunity to invite members of our community, families and friends to this year’s performance at 6 p.m. on Sunday, July 3, at the Morgan Hill Amphitheater. Angeline Madriaga will sing the National Anthem.The event will feature children of our community singing songs of our country, essay contest awards and a chance to celebrate America’s birthday.Special guests include the South Bay Chapter of the Blue Star Moms. Our soloist, Catherine Connor, will be singing “I’ll Be Seeing You,” honoring past Mayor Dennis Kennedy and William Brown—two men who worked tirelessly to make Morgan Hill what it has become today and who passed away this year.We extend a special invitation to those who have served or continue to serve in our armed forces. Please consider wearing your service uniform.Following the sing, walk over to the Family Street Dance.Then, on Monday, start your Fourth of July off by watching or even participating in the Freedom Fest 1 Mile Walk or 5K Walk/Run.Later, grab a seat along the Parade route for the Car Cruise ‘n Show, beginning at 9:30 a.m.Then just stay where you are: you’ll be ready to cheer as bands, floats and equestrians pass by in our annual Parade at 10 a.m.One event remains: the Freedom Fest Fireworks with a Splash at the Morgan Hill Outdoor Sports Center, on Condit Road between Tennant and San Pedro avenues. Entertainment begins at 6 p.m., with fireworks at dusk.As I mentioned in my opening paragraph, Fourth of July in Morgan Hill is an example of what makes this community our “Home, Sweet, Home.”Karen Ann Crane is Chair of the 2016 Freedom Fest Patriotic Sing and Essay Contest.

Music brings people together. With the holidays now in high gear, the South Valley Symphony welcomes everyone in Hollister, Gilroy, San Martin and Morgan Hill communities to celebrate the joy and cheer of the season with festive symphonic music at the “Holiday Panorama” concert at the Gavilan Community College Theater 4 p.m. Dec. 13.At this concert, we will honor the victims of the terrorist attacks in Paris with a special piece composed by Sobrato High School graduate Christopher Niemann. The young man's piece is very poignant and personal, and I feel amazed that something of this quality was composed in a few days. Niemann told me he needed to write something to use music as healing for what happened in Paris. In a matter of days he completed a full-orchestral piece as a remembrance of those who died in Paris.The symphony made the decision to have the orchestra perform the new piece at the winter concert because the holiday season is a “season of giving” and the music can help people heal after a tragedy.A 2013 graduate of Sobrato where he first developed his talent in music composition, Niemann, 20, said he hopes the audience will feel motivated to move on from this tragedy after hearing the composition.“Being barely old enough to remember the 9/11 attacks and living through the aftermath, I remember the sensation of being extremely helpless,” he said. “Everyone from around the world watching such terrible events happen through the news and wanting to help when all you could do was watch. I never thought that I would have to experience that feeling of helplessness again. The idea to create a piece in honor of the victims came through the feeling of helplessness; because it’s very hard to just sit and do nothing when people around you are suffering.”Niemann has composed and conducted several pieces performed by the South Valley Symphony, including at the Oct. 10 concert a special composition called “In the Halls of the Overlook” based on the Stephen King novel “The Shining.”The selection of other pieces at the concert will give the audience a festive feeling for the holidays. Top billing at the concert will go to two guest artists—soprano Milena Georgieva who will sing Mozart’s “Exsultate Jubilate” and soloist Greg Chambers performing John Williams’ “Escapades for Saxophone & Orchestra.” The orchestra will also perform selections from Tchaikovsky’s ballet “Sleeping Beauty.” Leroy Anderson’s “Christmas Festival” will complete the concert with a medley of songs taking the audience into the festive spirit of the season.Greg Chambers is a music teacher at Sobrato High School and a master of the saxophone. The solo “Escapades” that he will perform is based on Williams’ film score for the 2002 Steven Spielberg movie “Catch Me If You Can.”Along with the Mother’s Day concert at the San Juan Bautista Mission, the symphony’s holiday concert is so popular that it usually sells out, so buy your tickets early online on the symphony’s website atsouthvalleysymphony.org or at Morgan Hill’s BookSmart store, Gilroy’s Porcellas Music and First Street Cafe, Hollister’s PostalGraphics or San Juan Bautista’s The Mission Gallery.We encourage families to share the festive fun of the holidays by attending the upcoming concert. Children can attend for free with accompanying paying adult (but the child must get a ticket to be admitted). Students with identification can also attend the concerts for free. During the intermission, I invite children on the stage to learn about the various instruments.The South Valley Symphony is a family, and we welcome everyone to celebrate the season at our Holiday Panorama concert this Sunday.Anthony Quartuccio is the Music Director and Conductor of the South Valley Symphony.

I am responding to your guest view by Sen. Bill Monning, Jan. 22. The discussion of homelessness and mental illness has been a perennial discussion. There have been calls for affordable housing, an end to homelessness, and support for mental illness for as long as I can remember. Monning’s guest view is no different.Today we put way too much credit in the opinions, suggestions and programs pushed by politicians. Based on the continuing nature of the problem, the suggestions and work of the politicians and the government has been ineffective. I recall an essay by Bertrand Russell, “An Outline of Intellectual Rubbish.”It is an essay that should be mandatory reading by anyone that is concerned with the operation of government.“As soon as we abandon our reason, and are content to rely on authority, there is no good end to our troubles. Whose authority?” Russell writes.He was referring to people’s practice of relying on scripture. I choose to believe that he would also consider the reliance on the words of a politician, as if they were scripture, as almost the same thing. Mr. Monning is pushing the same old, but repackaged, ideas as solving a problem that has yet to be solved. His conclusions are optimistic at best and unfounded at their worst.  They are based on anecdotal evidence and wishful thinking. He ignores criticisms of his ideas. There is not unanimity in the arena of affordable housing, homelessness or mental illness that promotes a one-size-fits-all solution.One-size-fits-all solutions come part and parcel with politicians like Mr. Monning. It gives them access to lots of money handed out by the federal government. It also allows them to pretend that they lead solutions, which supports their reelection.“Politics is largely governed by sententious platitudes which are devoid of truth.” Those words by Russell still ring true today:“The power of governments over men’s beliefs has been very great ever since the rise of large states….But the power of governments over belief in the present day is vastly greater than at any earlier time. A belief, however untrue, is important when it dominates the action of masses of men.”Russell was referring to war, but it could easily reference any effort by government and politicians to influence belief.  He laments:“No one can deny, in the face of evidence, that it is easy, given military power to produce a population of fanatical lunatics. It would be equally easy to produce a population of sane and reasonable people, but many governments do not wish to do so, since such people would fail to admire the politicians who are at the head of these governments.“I am persuaded that there is absolutely no limit to the absurdities that can, by government action, come to be generally believed. Give me an adequate army, with power to provide it with more pay and better food than falls to the lot of the average man, and I will undertake within 30 years to make the majority of the population believe that two and two are three, that water freezes when it gets hot and boils when it gets cold, or any other nonsense that might seem to serve the interest of the state.”It should be understood that the essay was written six decades ago. He continues with some additional important observations that you can read for yourself.It is worthy to think of ways to help the homeless and the mentally ill. I choose to reject the ideas that come from politicians or government. Clearly these solutions have proved ineffectual by the persistence of most of the problems. Claims of success are either wishful thinking or out and out lies.The involvement of government has been counter-productive. Government programs do not solve problems because problems are generally complex and defy central planning. Flexible and innovative approaches tried by a host of problem solvers will always outperform top-down government and political solutions.So by all means address the plight of mentally ill and homeless. Just don’t count on government or politicians to do it. So maybe government and politicians should step back and not lead.  Rather they should listen to quiet voices that speak and advocate for real solutions.Mike Brusa is a retired Morgan Hill resident and an avid reader of history, politics and economics.

For many Californians, the term “Honor Roll” conjures up images of academic excellence and the proud feelings associated with seeing your name included on a prestigious list. For those of us in law enforcement, the “Honor Roll” is not a list on which we want to find our names. Although this list also gives rise to feelings of pride, it is the list of California peace officers killed in the line of duty. So far this year, 33 names have been added to the Honor Roll nationwide.Each year, the California Peace Officers’ Memorial Foundation holds a ceremony to honor the men and women in law enforcement who have made the ultimate sacrifice and joined the list that year. The numbers vary from year to year, but since 2001, the names of 159 California Police Officers have been added to the Peace Officers’ Memorial Monument in Capitol Park in Sacramento. Those names are also included in the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., and are joined by thousands of others. These brave men and women are honored each year in our nation’s capital during National Police Week in May. This year, May 15 will be recognized as National Peace Officers Memorial Day.Those of us who chose law enforcement as a career start each day with a desire to serve and protect our communities by putting the safety of others before our own. We are husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, brothers and sisters. We are coaches, counselors, mediators and mentors. We dedicate ourselves to fighting crime and drugs to create a safe community for those we serve. We help at-risk youth in schools as well as parents in crisis, and connect the homeless and mentally ill with services. We show up when you call 911 to help you in a time need or an emergency. We do these things with the understanding that it’s part of our job and we are proud to serve our community.The men and women of our department care deeply for Morgan Hill and demonstrate that care through various community engagement efforts—often on our own time. We also strive to decrease crime and ensure a high quality of life through proactive and intelligence based policing strategies.We are grateful to serve a community that supports its police department. I encourage you to show your support during National Police Week, the week of May 15, by shining a blue light to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service to their community and to show your local heroes how much they are supported by those we serve.On behalf of the men and women of your Morgan Hill Police Department, thank you for the opportunity to partner with you to provide a safe environment in which to live, work and play.David Swing is the Chief of the Morgan Hill Police Department.