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Police are looking for a Morgan Hill man who allegedly assaulted his neighbor with a baseball bat last week.The bizarre incident—which at one point was reported as a possible suicide threat—started about 12:45 p.m. Dec. 9. At that time, officers from the Morgan Hill Police Department responded to a call of a fight in progress between two men on the 200 block of Oak Grove Court, according to a Dec. 14 press release from MHPD.Initial reports suggested that one of the men used a baseball bat to assault the other, police said. Shortly after the first call, police received a second phone call reporting that Mark Weber, 47 of Morgan Hill, had killed his neighbor with a bat.Officers responded to the scene and eventually located the victim, who was not dead but was suffering from major injuries inside his home, the press release states. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was treated for possible life threatening injuries.Officers searched the area for Weber throughout the evening Dec. 9 but he fled the scene before police arrived. Weber remains on the loose.MHPD and police from multiple other agencies were stationed in the Oak Grove Court neighborhood, near the intersection of Wright Avenue, for several hours Dec. 9 as they attempted to make contact with the resident at the scene of the assault. Police at the scene that evening said at least one call reported it was a possible suicide scare, but the Dec. 14 statement does not reference such a circumstance.The police statement also does not include details about Weber’s motive or the origin of the initial dispute.Authorities caution that Weber is considered armed and dangerous, and any witness who sees him should not approach him, the press release states. Anyone who sees Weber should call 911 and provide their exact location and a physical description of Weber, police said.Anyone with other information about this incident can call MHPD at (408) 779-2101 or the anonymous tip line at (408) 947-7867.

The sub-par state of at least one section of Morgan Hill’s roads proved injurious and costly when a bicyclist crashed after hitting a pothole or bump on East Dunne Avenue in January 2014, according to court records.The Morgan Hill City Council on Dec. 7 approved a $250,000 settlement with Yong Sohn, who suffered “sustained multiple, permanent and severe personal injuries” due to the Jan. 18, 2014 accident, according to a claim he filed with Santa Clara County Superior Court.Sohn was riding his bicycle down a steep section of East Dunne Avenue, near the intersection of Hilltop Court, when he hit the bump in the road, described in his complaint as a “height differential or deviation or bump or buckling or heaving or abrupt change in the elevation of the traveled portion of the downhill lane,” according to the complaint. This road defect—termed a “concealed trap” in the roadway in the complaint—caused Sohn to lose control of his bicycle, resulting in a crash and injuries.The claim further alleges that the city knew about the damage to the roadway before Sohn’s accident, but failed to address the safety hazard or post warning signs advising approaching travelers to beware the bump.Among the injuries suffered by Sohn are five rib fractures, scapular body fracture and clavicle fracture, his complaint continues. Sohn filed the claim for damages in superior court Nov. 21, 2014. The “full extent” of his damages was not known at the time of the filing.Also named in Sohn’s lawsuit are the county and the Santa Clara Valley Water District.Sohn’s claim also cites damages related to loss of wages, hospital and medical expenses, property damage and loss of household services.Morgan Hill City Attorney Don Larkin said the council’s approval of the settlement with Sohn on a 4-0 vote (Mayor Pro Temp Rich Constantine was absent from the Dec. 7 meeting) does not mean the city is accepting liability for the accident.“The lawsuit was alleging the bump was a dangerous condition on public property that caused these injuries,” Larkin said. “It was a compromise settlement. There is no admission of liability, but we acknowledge there was a bump in the road that may have caused the accident.”The city’s deteriorating streets and other public infrastructure have been a frequent topic of discussion among city councilmembers and residents. The five-member council has repeatedly warned of a $20 million backlog of “deferred maintenance” costs for streets, parks and public facilities, with no source of regular funding to make the repairs.Late this summer, the council considered placing a local tax on the ballot, with revenues dedicated largely to this infrastructure maintenance backlog. However, the body declined to put the question to the voters after polling results showed a sales tax or bond issue was unlikely to pass on Election Day.Mayor Steve Tate said the city has enough funding from existing sources to make street repairs that pose a safety hazard. However, the bump on East Dunne Avenue somehow was not addressed before Sohn ran over it in 2014.Tate suggested the city has learned a lesson from the case.“We have enough money to take care of safety situations, and we should have taken care of that one,” Tate said. “(The bump) was there for too long and we should have known about it. You learn and put procedures in place, and make yourself aware of where safety problems exist.”With the success of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s Measure B countywide sales tax in the Nov. 8 election, the city will at least gain some new funding that will help get caught up on infrastructure repairs, Tate noted. This measure will, in part, provide the City of Morgan Hill with $800,000 annually over the next 30 years to fix potholes and fulfill other street repairs.That sum will bring the city’s annual street repair budget up to $1.8 million, Tate said.The city will pay for the first $100,000 out of the $250,000 settlement from the “liability fund” within the city attorney’s office budget, Larkin said. The remaining $150,000 will be paid out of the city’s insurance risk pool, the Association of Bay Area Governments plan.

The South County Outlaws competed in the 7-on-7 Braveheart Tournament in Salinas, playing well against Monterey and Menlo/Atherton. Ben Ledwith led the team in points with 4 Goals and 5 assists. Conner Berlin, Ryan Forbis, and DJ Henry each had 3 goals. JD Rosyski, Isaac Stephens and Henry Stephens also scored twice. Luke Richey, Ryan Bays and Colin Fisher also scored. Lukas Marcheshi led the team in saves while in goal.

With our 5-year-old granddaughter in tow, we recently visited Casa de Fruta, an eclectic experience that combines fun for both adults and children, all in one venue. Casa de Fruta offers a casual restaurant, 3-star lodging, amusement rides for children, a huge fruit stand, a candy shop and a wine tasting room. Because granddaughters always take precedence, we started out on the miniature locomotive and Venetian carousel ride. While my husband watched her play at the children’s playground, I ventured across the parking lot over to their wine-tasting room.

Sobrato needed one half to score what St. Francis-Watsonville did in three quarters.

A developer who promised nearly five years ago to build 13 affordable housing units as part of a 131-unit residential complex was able to get out of their commitment by paying the City of Morgan Hill a cash settlement.City officials say the settlement amount of $2.75 million, paid by developer Monterey Dynasty LLC, will in fact allow the city to leverage enough funding to build up to 40 affordable, or below-market-rate (BMR) homes.They also noted at the Dec. 7 city council meeting, in support of the settlement proposal, that Monterey Dynasty’s project—known as Diamond Creek—is highly “complex,” and forcing the developer to build the affordable units they promised would make things even more complicated for the city and the builder.The council approved the $2.75 million settlement Dec. 7 on a 3-1 vote, with Councilman Gordon Siebert in dissent. Mayor Pro Temp Rich Constantine was absent from the meeting.Siebert said he voted against the settlement, which city staff and the developer have been negotiating for several months, because he thought the city should have gained more out of the deal.“I thought we should have negotiated for more money, or for some of the units” originally promised by Monterey Dynasty, Siebert said. “This was a good chance to get some units and money.”Under the city’s Residential Development Control System, developers have to compete for a limited number of annual housing allocations. They do this by adding features to their projects that add points to each development proposal under an established RDCS scoring system. The higher the points, the more likely a project will gain allocations.One area where developers gain points in the RDCS is by promising to build BMR units (15 points) as a portion of the total units, paying a $300,000 fee per-BMR (12 points) or paying a $150,000 per-BMR fee (6 points). The fee options are paid instead of building the BMRs, and developers can choose which option to submit for competition.Shortly after Monterey Dynasty submitted its plans for Diamond Creek in 2008, the developer promised to build 13 BMRs (about 10 percent of the project) to gain the maximum points in the BMR category, Morgan Hill Housing Manager Rebecca Garcia told the council Dec. 7.Diamond Creek, 15685 Monterey Road, when fully built, will consist of 102 rental units and 29 for-sale townhome units. Under the original agreement with the city (from 2013), 10 of the rentals and three of the for-sale units were designated as BMR, according to city staff.“The project is complicated by the design of ownership, whereby the project requires 102 units to remain rental units for only a period of 10 years,” reads the city staff report.Diamond Creek began construction in 2010, at a time when the city offered to cut the $150,000 BMR opt-out fee in half due to the recession. Diamond Creek was eligible for this $75,000 per-unit rate at the time, but missed the deadlines, Garcia said.The first phase of the project is complete, and construction is expected to be finished on the second and final phase by August 2017, according to Richard Liou of Monterey Dynasty.Under the settlement approved by the council Dec. 7, Monterey Dynasty will now pay almost $212,000 for each of the 13 BMR units they initially promised.Councilman Larry Carr noted this fee would have given the project only six points under the RDCS scoring system, but instead they gained 15 points by committing to build the BMR units—a commitment the $2.75 settlement erases. Carr asked if Diamond Creek would have scored high enough to gain the allocations if they had paid the lower-scoring fee instead, but city staff didn’t have an immediate answer at the Dec. 7 meeting.Garcia noted that with the $2.75 million, the city can leverage funds from outside sources—such as state tax credits, the county’s new Measure A affordable housing bond, community development block grants and others—to build about 40 BMR units elsewhere in Morgan Hill.Furthermore, the settlement relives the city of ongoing “monitoring and compliance” of any BMR units that would have been built at Diamond Creek, Garcia added. That’s helpful due to the “complexities of this project given that it consists of four types of units”—a mix of market-rate, BMR, ownership and rental homes that would have varying restrictions and covenants under the original development agreement.“Having $211,000 in our housing dollars is a very good thing for us,” Carr said just before the council voted to approve the settlement.

If anyone in the packed Dec. 7 Morgan Hill City Council meeting chambers was against efforts to preserve a small parcel on the lower eastern face of El Toro Mountain, they didn’t say so.What many of the 100-plus residents in attendance for the public hearing on the property purchase disagreed on was whether the site, and even the mountain as a whole, should be opened up for public recreation—a situation some fear will bring bigger crowds and associated litter, fire hazards, crime and too much traffic to their neighborhoods.After hearing from more than 20 residents during the public hearing, the council voted 4-0 to partner with the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority to purchase the property, which is located at the end of West Main Avenue. Mayor Pro Temp Rich Constantine was absent from the meeting.The city and OSA will share equally in the $1.51-million cost of the 6.6-acre property, while the OSA will manage it for conservation and, eventually, recreational facilities for the public. This will likely include, at minimum, a trailhead to provide hikers access to trails on El Toro properties already owned by the city and OSA.The next steps in the process will be to determine—with public outreach—exactly what type of access should be developed at the West Main site, and to improve an existing one-mile fire road on El Toro for use as a hiking trail, according to OSA Assistant General Manager Matt Freeman.Freeman told the council that the purchase of the West Main property from the Pravettoni family “aligns perfectly” with OSA’s mission: to protect open space and to provide people with opportunities to “connect with nature.”“This project has tremendous merit, and provides community benefit precisely because of its urban access,” Freeman said, noting that hundreds of residences are located within a short walk from the site.He predicted, despite what some residents fear, that the trailhead would be a mostly local—rather than regional—attraction due to the El Toro preserve’s small size. In recent years, the city and OSA combined have acquired or gained access to 120 acres of El Toro Mountain.Freeman also explained the planning for the new trailhead will consider at least three scenarios of varying invasiveness to the West Main property and surrounding homes: pedestrian access with bicycle parking; a vehicle drop-off area and limited or disabled parking; or a larger parking area for general visitors. Each scenario could also include picnic areas and interpretive signage throughout the site.The proposed trail network will not yet reach the top of El Toro, as that property is privately owned. Freeman explained, after further discussions with these owners, the OSA could end up building a fence to keep hikers off the private lands.A long-term goal of the OSA is to establish new trails all the way to the top by purchasing more private properties on El Toro, including some on the “back side” that faces away from Morgan Hill, Freeman said.Many residents who spoke at the Dec. 7 meeting wore buttons that read “Save El Toro” and live in neighborhoods that butt up against the mountain. They said their streets are already overrun with speeding traffic, unsavory loiterers and crime. Some recounted recent burglaries of their homes. They feared that inviting more people to the neighborhood by opening a public trail would bring more unwanted activity.“We’re very concerned with the risk of fire, the risk to our children,” said Joe McMorrow, who lives at the foot of El Toro. He started a petition on change.org to halt the development of a trailhead on West Main Avenue, which gathered more than 350 signatures before the Dec. 7 council meeting.Others spoke in support of a trailhead at the Dec. 7 meeting. Some confessed to having hiked El Toro trails many times in the past, as the site has become a popular destination for illegal hiking over the years.“I think we can plan this in a way that keeps all the parking out of the neighborhoods,” said Rich Bergin, who used to live in one of the neighborhoods at the base of El Toro.Ron Erskine, who lives at the foot of El Toro (also known as Murphy’s Peak) and is in favor of a trailhead, noted that people will continue to hike up El Toro whether it is open to the public or not.He said residents need more opportunities to connect with nature. “I think too often our experience with nature has become the television or through the car window,” Erskine told the council.Land acquisition woesA trailhead and related public amenities accessing El Toro Mountain have been part of the city’s long-term trails plan since 2007. In February 2015, the council approved an El Toro strategy that prefers a “primary trailhead” to the south of the West Main property, closer to the intersection of Spring and DeWitt avenues.OSA General Manager Andrea Mackenzie said OSA has negotiated with property owner West Hills Community Church near this intersection in an effort to purchase or gain an easement to their land for El Toro parking. After four years of negotiations—which included an offer by the OSA to buy the property at fair market value—the two parties have been unable to reach an agreement.Council members pointed out that everyone who spoke at the Dec. 7 meeting agrees that El Toro should be preserved from residential or commercial development, and that’s why the city and OSA should purchase the West Main property. They urged residents in attendance to take part in the OSA’s upcoming planning process for a new El Toro trailhead, so they can help determine how much public access the mountain will see.“This is an opportunity to save more of El Toro, which is what everybody wants,” Mayor Steve Tate said.The eastern portion of the 6.6-acre property contains a home, which Freeman said the OSA would sell as soon it acquires the site. The western portion of the property is vacant open space.The “highest and best use” for the site is for residential, as Freeman noted another buyer would be able to develop up to two more houses on the property if the OSA doesn’t acquire it.

Auto burglaryA thief or thieves broke the rear window and entered a gray Scion parked on Cochrane Road. The incident was reported 9:02 a.m. Nov. 25.A thief or thieves broke into a 2014 Ford Escape and stole paperwork and a gift card. The crime was reported 10:32 a.m. Dec. 3.Stolen vehicleSomeone stole a 1990 Nissan Sentra from a location in Morgan Hill. The crime was reported 4:09 a.m. Nov. 27.A thief or thieves stole a silver 2009 Toyota Corolla from a parking spot on the 2800 block of Vista Del Val. The crime was reported 8:19 a.m. Nov. 27.Grand theftThe exhaust system was stolen from a white 2012 Dodge 3500 pickup on the 17000 block of Condit Road. The crime was reported 3:47 p.m. Dec. 1.Petty theftA man and woman tried to steal merchandise from Staples, 1023 Cochrane Road, by concealing the items in an oversized bag. Police arrived and arrested the thieves before they could leave the store. The crime was reported 8:29 p.m. Dec. 1.Vehicle stopPolice tried to make a traffic stop on a silver BMW 5 series in the area of Monterey Road and Dunne Avenue, but the driver refused to yield to officers’ commands and lights. Officers pursued the vehicle south and onto westbound Middle Avenue in San Martin, then to Santa Teresa Boulevard southbound. The chase eventually turned back around to northbound Monterey Road, and police caught up with the BMW on West Edmundson Avenue in Morgan Hill where a patrol car overtook the vehicle with a PIT maneuver. At times, the chase exceeded 90 mph. The driver of the BMW was arrested on a DUI warrant, and on suspicion of evading police, among other offenses. The chase began 12:16 a.m. Dec. 3.  DisturbanceA witness reported a man and his pit bull dog were “terrorizing” feral cats on Digital Drive. The man would use a laser pointer to lure the cats out from a dark corner so that his dog could attack the felines. The disturbance was reported 11:10 p.m. Dec. 4.All subjects are innocent until proven guilty. Information is compiled from public records.

Sometimes it just takes a little patience and one pass to win a soccer game.