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With a cousin like Troy Tulowitzki no wonder that Kayla Tulowitzki is a natural at throwing and hitting a softball.

The developers of four key downtown properties presented the details and motivation for their plans to bring new business and residential opportunities to the neighborhood at a June 30 “visioning summit” held by city officials.Dan McCranie, owner of Ladera Grill restaurant, revealed his concept for a three-story mixed use project that will bring “classic retail” and rooftop dining to his property at Second Street and Monterey Road.The project, which he plans to name the Edes Building, aims to “connect fine art, fine dining and fine wine,” with a focus on the history of Morgan Hill, McCranie told the audience at the Community and Cultural Center.McCranie spoke as a member of a panel of developers at the June 30 summit, which also included fellow downtown developers Frank Leal, Ken Rodrigues and Lesley Miles.Straying from the downtown norm, McCranie plans to develop the restaurant/lounge portion of his project on the top floor of the new building. The restaurant will include seating for up to 120 diners, and Morgan Hill’s first rooftop dining experience with a late-night lounge.On the 10,000-square-foot first floor will be an art gallery and wine bar, that will be “physically interconnected.”The second floor of the new project will house office and gallery space, McCranie added.Working with the Morgan Hill Historical Society, McCranie also plans to re-create an approximately 100-year-old sign that used to identify the previous building on the site as the Edes Brothers hardware store. McCranie found the sign in the old South Valley Bikes building before he demolished it in April. Tim Edes, who still lives in Morgan Hill, now has the sign in his possession, but McCranie plans to recreate it in a modern panache on the rear wall of his new building.The property, temporarily now the home of the city’s pop-up park which is immensely popular among small children and their parents, is recognized as one of the downtown’s most historically significant. The Edes family ran their shop there starting around 1910.McCranie purchased the site in 2012, after it had been vacant for several years. The last occupant before McCranie purchased the building was South Valley Bikes.His new project also hopes to capitalize on the growth of Morgan Hill as a dining destination for out-of-town visitors. He noted that his restaurant Ladera Grill, just a block down the street on Monterey Road, gains about 60 percent of its weekend revenue from customers who travel from outside South County.He hopes to begin construction on the Edes Building by the first quarter of 2017, and finish by the end of the year.The June 30 summit was organized by the city’s economic development staff in an effort to present the big picture result of years of planning that culminated in more than $25 million worth of infrastructure upgrades, and the awarding of titles, permits and development agreements to private developers.A second panel at the summit focused more on public art, recreation and transportation. These panelists were Michael Mulcahy of SDS NextGen Partners; Timothy Rood of Community Design and Architects; public artist and creator of two pieces prominently displayed on the new downtown garage Gordon Huether; and Morgan Hill Community Services Director Chris Ghione.Leal brings ‘home base’ to MHVintner and hospitality guru Frank Leal told the crowd that his two upcoming projects in downtown—the Granada Hotel and the re-conceptualized Granada Theater—will aim to complete the experience that visitors to his properties and the existing downtown vibe are looking for.The four-story Granada Hotel—to be built where the vacant Downtown Mall currently sits—will consist of a steakhouse, floral shop, market hall and lobby with a wine bar on the first floor. The second floor will house conference and banquet space, a pool and spa. The third and fourth floor will each house 30 guest rooms.Shops on the first floor will also complement Leal’s existing hospitality enterprises. These include his first venture, Leal Vineyards in Hollister, as well as Willow Heights Mansion in west Morgan Hill. These sites are popular event venues, especially for weddings and nonprofit events.His goal is to make downtown Morgan Hill his “home base” for his hospitality ventures.The Granada Theater is under extensive remodeling as an event venue that provides flexibility for a variety of uses, tailored to the customers’ needs. He plans to bring a “polished, Rat Pack feel” to the venue.“You can walk in, check your coat, grab a cocktail and forget where you are,” Leal said.To the rear of the two adjacent properties, the existing parking lot will be replaced with a landscaped courtyard with an olive grove and herb garden, Leal said.Demolition of the Downtown Mall began July 6 in preparation for the hotel project. As a result, the parking lot behind the Granada Theater and Downtown Mall are closed permanently. ‘The Granary District’Lesley Miles of Weston Miles Architects presented plans for her firm’s “Barley Place” residential and retail project. This development consists of 16 condominiums on the corner of East Main Avenue and Depot Street; the Running Shop and Hops retail store, which will sell up to 50 varieties of craft beer when it opens in August; a wine and cheese shop; and a restaurant.The development, along with the existing Granary building that Weston Miles redeveloped in 2008, will form the “Granary district” neighborhood, Miles explained.Weston Miles has already developed a number of key sites in and around the downtown. These include the Skeels building on the corner of Third Street and Monterey Road (which houses Ladera Grill on the ground floor), the train depot which is the home of Jonty’s restaurant and the Cornerstone building (across the street from Skeels).The focus on these projects has always been to promote community living, where residents and workers can walk or bike almost everywhere they need to go, Miles told the summit audience.Walkability key to futureArchitect-turned-developer Ken Rodrigues, partnering with Don Imwalle, touted his upcoming project at Third Street and Monterey Road as an effort to “activate the street” with extensive outdoor patio dining with four restaurants that take advantage of the area’s temperate climate.Rodrigues and Imwalle will bring four restaurants owned by the Opa! Group to the half-acre site: Opa Greek restaurant, Tac-Oh!, Willard Hick’s steakhouse and Mo’s Burgers and Breakfast.The developers of this property—the former site of Simple Beverages liquor store—plan to start construction this summer, according to city staff.The Simple Beverages, Downtown Mall and Granada Theater properties were purchased by the Morgan Hill Redevelopment agency in 2008 and 2009. The RDA, run by the city council, purchased the properties in an effort to bring the type of mixed-use projects now envisioned by their current owners.McCranie said and other developers agreed, in response to a question from the audience, that Morgan Hill is becoming more of a walking community. This aspect of the growing city is highlighted in the developers’ and the city’s vision, which includes more housing downtown.“More housing makes this a 24-hour downtown,” Rodrigues added.Not represented at the June 30 summit was City Ventures, who will develop the Depot Center property (also known as the BookSmart center) on Depot Street between Second and Third Streets. City Ventures is planning a 29-unit housing project with 8,500 square feet of condominium/retail space facing Third Street. Demolition on that project is expected to begin this summer, according to city staff.Morgan Hill Economic Development Manager Edith Ramirez said these property owners will spend more than $50 million on the downtown projects.

San Martin—Sandra Angulo Minarro approached the tee box on the 8th hole during her practice round on Wednesday.

Morgan Hill Unified School District’s Board of Education will have three open seats to fill in the November 8 election. The City Council has two open seats, and the mayor’s spot up for grabs in the same election. The city clerk and city treasurer’s seats are also up for election.

Two young boys—a 13-year-old and a 6-year-old—were sent to the hospital July 4 with “critical injuries” after they were struck by a vehicle while using the Fourth Street crosswalk in downtown Morgan Hill, according to police.

Two children were transported to the hospital after a vehicle hit them in a downtown Morgan Hill traffic accident the evening of July 4, according to police.About 9:10 p.m. July 4, Morgan Hill police were dispatched to a report of an injury collision at Monterey Road and Fourth Street, police said. While responding to the call, officers learned a white Jeep traveling northbound on Monterey Road had struck two juvenile pedestrians crossing the roadway.Upon arrival, police located the involved parties and assisted the injured pedestrians. According to a July 5 press release from MHPD, it appeared both juveniles were crossing eastbound on Monterey Road, in the crosswalk. On of the children was riding his bicycle and the other was riding a scooter. Neither was wearing a helmet at the time of the collision.One of the juveniles was trapped under the vehicle when police arrived, and had to be extricated by Fire/EMS personnel, according to police. MHPD Sgt. Bill Norman said at the scene that both children suffered “critical injuries.” They were transported to Valley Medical Center.The female adult driver of the Jeep, who was not hurt in the accident, remained on the scene and cooperated with authorities, police said.At the time of the collision, there were no signs the driver was driving under the influence of alcohol, police said.The accident is under investigation by MHPD.Anyone who witnessed the collision can call MHPD Cpl. Scott Silva at (408) 779-2101or the anonymous tip line at (408) 947-7867.

The Morgan Hill Shetland 1 All-Stars won the 2016 Sectional Tournament held at Britton Middle School this week, surviving a come-from-behind effort from Blossom Hill 1.

Final touches to Cordevalle are being made ahead of next week’s U.S. Women’s Open set to begin July 7 marking the first time the prestigious  golf tournament in the Bay Area.

Dear Red Phone,Wasn’t the parking lot at the old liquor store downtown supposed to be closed to the public several weeks ago so the owner could begin construction on a new project? I know the pop-up park that used to be there has moved, but cars are still parking in the lot.Dear Caller,The parking lot at the corner of Third Street and Monterey Road, in front of and next to the former Simple Beverages building, was indeed supposed to be fenced off May 6 so that developers Ken Rodrigues and Imwalle Properties could begin construction. However, city staff said they have run into some “snags” in transferring the property to Rodrigues/Imwalle. The new owner is likely to close on the purchase of the site and begin construction in early July.The city council and planning commission have already approved the proposed development on the site—a complex of four restaurants owned by a small South Bay chain—but the last step they needed was an exception to floodplain construction requirements. That variance was granted by the Morgan Hill Planning Commission on a 5-2 vote June 28. The city’s “flood damage prevention” section of the municipal code requires most new construction to be built at least 12 inches above the base flood elevation in a flood zone. The property at Third Street and Monterey Road sits within a 100-year floodplain.However, city staff recommended the Rodrigues/Imwalle project be granted an exception to this requirement so that it would fit with its commercial neighbors. Morgan Hill Public Works Director Karl Bjarke noted that under existing regulations, the floor of an elevated restaurant on the site would rise about five feet above that of Trail Dust restaurant next door on Monterey Road. The city will still require the new project to be build just above the base flood elevation, but not as high as the regulations state.Assistant City Manager Leslie Little added that Rodrigues/Imwalle are scheduled to close on the .42-acre site July 6, and they could begin fencing off the parking lot the following day.Rodrigues/Imwalle purchased the property from the City of Morgan Hill (acting as Successor Agency to the Redevelopment Agency) in 2015 for $525,000. The Morgan Hill RDA purchased the property in 2009 as part of its effort to revitalize the downtown.Rodrigues/Imwalle plan to build four establishments owned by South Bay restaurant group The Opa! Group. These restaurants are Opa Greek restaurant; Tac-Oh! Mexican restaurant’ Mo’s…the Breakfast & Burger Joint; and Willard Hicks (steaks and American food).As you have likely noticed, the pop-up park that used to be at that site has been relocated to the corner of Second Street and Monterey Road.

The City of Morgan Hill continues to have a hard time finding landscaping contractors for public properties who can perform the work expected of them, and at least one council member thinks the bidding and qualifying process could use some improvements.