August 14, 2008

NEWS BRIEFS

Music Festival scheduled for Aug. 23

The first annual New Almaden Music Festival is scheduled to take place on Aug. 23 from 2 to 9 p.m. at the New Almaden Community Club, 21727 Bertram Road.

The festival includes four bands, Chile Juice, Another Drummer, Corduroy Jim and Taboo Voodoo. There is a $10 donation at the door.

Raptor program scheduled for Coyote Lake

Coyote Lake Sr. Park Ranger, Chris Crockett, in cooperation with the Wildlife Education & Rehabilitation Center (WERC) in Morgan Hill, presents “Raptors of the Coyote-Bear” on Saturday, Aug. 16 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Explore the anatomy of a raptor. Find out what raptors inhabit the park. See mounted specimens, and real-live birds (subject to change.) Find out what it’s like live like a raptor.

Come on down for a fun, educational, and awe-inspiring morning, under the “old valley oak” at the Coyote Lake Ranger Station & Visitor Center, with some of nature’s truly regal creatures. For more information call Ranger Crockett at (408) 842-7800, or e-mail: chris.crockett@prk.sccgov.org.

Metro ed to hold cool season gardening workshop

Learn about “Cool Season Gardening” at Metropolitan Adult Education Program’s (MAEP) World Garden Workshop on Sept. 13, at the Erikson Adult Center located at 4849 Pearl Ave.

Master Gardener Karen Schaffer will teach gardeners of all skill levels the basics of cool season gardening. Learn about growing a variety of vegetables in northern California’s cool climate. Schaffer will talk about site preparation, cultivation, variety selection and harvesting.

The free workshop will be held from 10 a.m. to noon, in the Erikson Adult Center auditorium. The World Garden is located on the southwestern edge of the Erikson Adult Center campus. Look for the redwood trees and the greenhouse roof after entering the fenced parking lot on Minas Drive, off Pearl Avenue.

To register for the free workshop, call (408) 723-6450 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday and ask to have your name added to the September World Garden Workshop list, or e-mail your name and phone number to ritab@metroed.net. Sign-up early, space is limited.

County to hold open houses for Fairgrounds development

The county will host a community meeting to present a preliminary vision for residential, commercial, retail and public use development at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds. The meetings will include brief presentations every half-hour from staff, and an opportunity at each presentation for questions from the community.

The Aug. 21 meeting will include representatives from San Jose as well as Santa Clara County and the proposed developer Catellus. It will be open from 5 to 7 p.m. with presentations at 5:15, 5:45, 6:15 and 6:45 p.m. at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, 344 Tully Road.

The open house public meetings are a preview of the Aug. 26 board workshop and the formal community outreach program. Public participation is encouraged in this first opportunity for public discussion on the proposed development before the formal public outreach process is initiated by the city of San Jose.

The County Fairgrounds property is comprised of 150 acres of land, consisting of 136 acres for the Fairgrounds proper and 14 acres across the street from the Fairgrounds proper, known as the Fairgrounds Tully Road Parking Lot.