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As the days get cooler and the nights start earlier, thoughts drift to autumn flavors, like the indomitable pumpkin spice, nutmeg and cinnamon that perk up our coffees and desserts.

With the passing of Propositions 55, 51 and 58 in the Nov. 8 election, State Superintendent Tom Torlakson commended voters for helping to improve California’s education system.

The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Agency’s Measure B, a half-cent sales tax to fund transportation improvements, surpassed the two-thirds majority it needed to pass.

The City of Morgan Hill’s long-standing growth control policy was never under threat of dying at the polls Nov. 8, as Measure S was resoundingly supported by 77 percent of those who cast ballots.

After all the candidates rested from their election viewing parties throughout downtown Morgan Hill, final vote tallies show political newcomer Rene Spring besting the field of five candidates for two city council seats.Incumbent Larry Carr, vying for his fourth four-year term on the council, came in second place with 26 percent, or 4,546 votes cast, according to the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters. Spring topped the field with about 31 percent, or 5,441 votes. These top two vote getters won the available seats.In the race for mayor, incumbent Steve Tate won election to his sixth term in office, which he has said will be his last. Tate received about 63 percent of the total votes, compared to 24 percent for Kirk Bertolet and 13 percent for Joseph Carrillo. Tate was the top vote getter among all candidates for city offices, with a total of 6,882 ballots cast in his favor.Spring, a city planning commissioner since 2012, thinks the results placing him in the lead for the council race are a referendum on the current administration, while Tate and Carr naturally see the election as a validation of their many years in local office.“I really think people wanted some change,” Spring said the night of Nov. 8, while drinking pints of beer and eating pizza with his supporters at The Running Shop and Hops. “A large segment of our city feels (the council) doesn’t represent them anymore. I want to bring in a different perspective to the council that has been missing at times, and it looks like many residents of Morgan Hill like that.”Carr said he’s ready to continue to work on some “big regional issues” that will have an impact on Morgan Hill in the next four years—namely the state’s High Speed Rail project and “how the growth of Silicon Valley and housing to the south of us have greatly impacted transportation in Morgan Hill.”“I’m glad the mayor was re-elected so I can continue to work with him on regional issues,” Carr added.Incumbent Marilyn Librers, seeking her third term on the council, came in third place in the voting with 18 percent or 3,182 votes. She was followed by candidates Armando Benavides (13 percent) and Mario Banuelos (12 percent).Carr and Tate joined dozens of supporters at Rosy’s At The Beach restaurant in downtown Morgan Hill to watch the returns roll in the night of Nov. 8.“I think I have a lot of experience, a lot of networking capability, and I’m familiar with the issues,” Tate said while surrounded by supporters and eating bruschetta from a smorgasbord of hors d'oeuvres displayed at a nearby table. “And I don’t think I’ve done anything to screw up.”The race for council and mayor, at times, played out like a referendum on the growth of Morgan Hill, with Spring, Benavides and Bertolet advocating substantially lower growth rates than currently in place and proposed in Measure S, which also won at the polls Nov. 8.Carr, Librers, Tate and Banuelos agreed the city needs to slow down the growth, but they felt existing policies, and those proposed under Measure S, were appropriate.One of Tate and Carr’s supporters at Rosy’s was Laura Gonzales Escoto, who took the opportunity to emphasize the importance of local politics shortly after she lamented the televised national results that showed Donald J. Trump in the lead for the presidential race.“We can have the most impact in our daily lives by being involved in local government,” Gonzales Escoto said. “That’s what builds community: involvement, engagement and connection.”Varela keeps water district seatAlso at Rosy’s the night of Nov. 8 was Santa Clara Valley Water District John Varela, who won his race against challenger Tom Cruz. Varela received 58 percent of the vote, or 31,393 votes.“It’s always good when your message resonates with the voters,” Varela said.Varela was appointed to the district’s board of directors December 2015, after former Director Dennis Kennedy resigned due to health reasons. Varela was appointed to complete Kennedy’s unfinished term, which expires after the November election.

Describing Donald J. Trump’s presidential victory as “the most incredible political feat I have seen in my lifetime,” Wisconsin State Senator Paul Ryan shared similar sentiments as many local residents who were still stunned the morning after the next president elect was named.

Police arrested a couple after a Gilroy man stabbed an employee at Wal-Mart in Morgan Hill Nov. 8, according to authorities.MHPD officers responded to the store located at 170 Cochrane Plaza about 9 p.m. Nov. 8 on a report of a possible stabbing that had just occurred in front of Wal-Mart, reads a Nov. 9 press release.While responding to the call, police learned a man and woman fled the scene in a small silver SUV, and were last seen traveling south on U.S. 101, police said. The information was broadcast to surrounding law enforcement agencies.During the investigation, police determined a man and woman had entered the store and were acting suspicious while selecting store merchandise, according to police. The store’s loss prevention officers suspected the two subjects were preparing to leave the store without paying for the items.A loss prevention officer and the assistant store manager contacted the couple as they left the store, police said. The man pulled out a small knife and stabbed the assistant manager on the forearm, causing a non-life threatening injury. The man and woman then fled the area.Meanwhile, Gilroy police called MHPD to advise they located the suspect vehicle in the city of Gilroy, where officers detained the suspects, according to the press release. MHPD officers arrived in Gilroy with the victims, who positively identified the man and woman as the suspects involved in the incident at the Morgan Hill Wal-Mart.A search of the suspects’ vehicle turned up a knife and property stolen from Wal-Mart, police said.The suspects were identified as Noel Calderon, 31 of Gilroy, and Kimberly Angeles, 22 of Morgan Hill, police said. They were booked at Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of robbery, possession of stolen property, conspiracy, assault with a deadly weapon and possession of illegal drugs and paraphernalia. Calderon also had a $50,000 warrant on suspicion of robbery out of San Jose.Anyone with information about this incident can contact MHPD at (669) 253-4964, or the anonymous tip line at (408) 947-7867.

Live Oak’s offense fed off the effort the defense put on the second half to cruise by Willow Glen on a 56-28 win Friday night.

As the California High Speed Rail Authority finalizes its plans to bring the train through, around or above Morgan Hill, city officials have a list of questions about the project and how it will impact local residents and businesses.City Hall is thus asking the community for input on this massive project before the City Council considers sending the HSRA a “scoping letter” on the locals’ preferred alignment later this month, according to city staff.“Regardless of the alignment that will ultimately be decided by the Authority, there are many questions that the city council and community must have answered prior to any decisions being made,” reads a Nov. 7 press release from city staff.The HSRA’s staff and consultants are currently considering four alignment alternatives for the train that will zoom through Morgan Hill at speeds faster than 200 mph. The HSRA board will choose its preferred alignment option by spring of 2017, after which will follow an environmental review and public comment period.The four alignment options are described as:• At grade, on a berm, along Monterey Road or adjacent (on the east side) of the Union Pacific Railroad tracks;• Elevated, in a viaduct, along Monterey Road or adjacent (on the east side) of the UPRR;• Elevated in a viaduct along the west side of U.S. 101;• Elevated in a viaduct along the east side of U.S. 101.The viaducts in the elevated options would rise 30 to 60 feet above the ground.While the City of Morgan Hill has “no legal authority to determine the future of the project,” the council hopes to work with the HSRA to influence the project so it “minimizes impacts on the community while developing the best project through/around Morgan Hill,” the city’s press release states.At the Nov. 16 meeting at council chambers on Peak Avenue, the council will discuss issues and questions that should be addressed in the final draft of its scoping letter to the HSRA.City staff have posted a draft list of questions for the HSRA on the city’s website. These include:“Will the HSR project have lighting for safety?”“What is the main safety mechanism if the train is derailed?”“How does noise change at different speeds?”“Will the Morgan Hill segment begin construction independent of progress in San Jose or Gilroy?”Residents can view the full list of questions and submit their own by visiting the city’s website, morganhill.ca.gov/1552/High-Speed-Rail.When completed, HSR will take travelers from San Francisco to Los Angeles in two hours, 40 minutes. The total budget of the statewide rail project is about $65 billion, which will be financed by a voter approved bond, federal stimulus grants and cap-and-trade funds, according to HSRA staff.Construction is already underway on the HSRA section that goes from Fresno to Bakersfield. The San Jose-to-Merced section—the one that will pass through Morgan Hill—is expected to be operational by 2025, planners said.Stations are planned in San Jose and Gilroy, among other locations throughout the project.The project will require the HSRA to acquire private residential and commercial properties that currently stand in the way of any alignment option.

Painting and wine tasting has become a popular trend. Getting groups of people who have never held a paintbrush to come away with a framable piece of artwork while enjoying the best of Santa Clara Valley wines was the goal at a recent Paint and Sip party at Seeker Vineyard in San Martin.