In October BPA held a community meeting and invited residents to hear presentations from developers for two projects on El Camino. About 50 Barron Park residents attended the meeting and gave input to the two developers and the BPA Board.

Fred Barez, a first time developer, presented his plans for a mixed-use development at 4131 El Camino, next to the Little Garden Restaurant. His original proposal to the Architectural Review Board (ARB) was downsized from four to three stories. He now proposes a project that would contain one level of underground parking, about 4,500 square feet of professional offices on the ground floor facing El Camino, and two stories of two-bedroom apartments above.

Palo Alto developer Jim Baer presented a project he is working on with Pinnacle Properties for 3606 El Camino, commonly referred to as the Goodwill trailer site. They propose to build a three-story extended-stay hotel and a separate two-story building with 12 studio apartments. A small ground floor retail space would face El Camino. Parking would be located both in a parking lot and underground parking structure.

For both projects, community members expressed concerns about how the projects would look and fit in with Barron Park, as well as increased traffic, density, and impact on the neighborhood. We greatly appreciated the comments of everyone who attended the meeting and hope to have such a high level of involvement at future meetings to discuss development along El Camino. Fred Barez is currently working with an architect to prepare new plans which he will review with the BPA before they go to the ARB. Jim Baer recently submitted revised plans to the ARB for a preliminary hearing. The Board will review the plans for both projects and provide input to the City including comments from the community meeting.

After sitting vacant for over a year, renovations should begin soon for the old All American Market. Blockbuster received approval from the ARB last month after recommendations from BPA to make the project more pedestrian friendly and appropriate for our neighborhood. They plan to occupy half of the building, with Foodini¹s setting up in the remaining half. Foodini¹s is operated by Chevron and will feature prepared food items for customers to take home and eat.

Residents on La Jennifer Way were successful in obtaining City Council approval for a single-story overlay for their neighborhood. They asked for this amendment to the zoning code to restrict the construction of two-story houses in order to preserve privacy and the feel of their Eichler-designed houses.

The Zoning and Land Use Committee is going to begin monthly meetings in January. If you are interested in becoming involved in discussions about new development and revitalization along El Camino, please contact ZALU chair Maryanne Welton at 493-3035 or quigleynor@aol.com. We want your input on ways to attract the types of retail uses that would benefit our neighborhood.

The new school year is off to a great start. Most of the furniture and supplies have arrived, the PTA is now an official organization, and students and staff are settling into the first semester of learning and activities.

This spring the school will host a fifty year anniversary of the its creation. We are looking for stories, pictures, or anything else associated with the school during the last fifty years. If you, your children, or neighbors attended the school, please let us know. We want to involve this year¹s students in putting together the school¹s history and would appreciate your input. The anniversary celebration will be open to alumni and friends.

One of our school goals is to create connections with the community. Every Monday we sponsor noon art activities. We would greatly appreciate assistance from Barron Park residents who can help the children create art projects from 12 to 1 on any Monday, especially rainy days. We also welcome volunteers who want to read to our younger students.

Please call principal Cathy Howard at 858-0508 if you can volunteer or provide information for the fifty year celebration. Current TB vaccinations are required for all school volunteers.

Dorothy works at Stanford University in the University Data Warehousing Services group and has been a resident of Barron Park for over 20 years. Her two children have attended Ohlone, Juana Briones, Jordan, JLS and Gunn High Schools. (Her daughter attended Stanford and her son is a student at Arizona State.)

Dorothy's been active on a number of volunteer boards and projects, including Palo Alto Community Child Care, YMCA, Palo Alto School Board and City Council elections, and campaigns addressing major developments in the community. She's also worked as a fund-raiser for the Page Mill Y to start a Y in East Palo Alto. She is currently working with people from other neighborhood associations to develop an online neighborhood conferencing system.

Dorothy would love to see El Camino change to provide local retail stores and outdoor areas to serve the residents of Barron Park. She has observed traffic congestion increase in her neighborhood and has joined the BPA's Zoning and Land-Use Committee, chaired by Maryanne Welton, to better understand some of the future development issues being planned for El Camino.

Dorothy hopes other people interested in issues affecting the Barron Park community will join the association, join a committee (e.g., Beautification, Seniors, Toxic Safety, Flood Issues, Events, Emergency Preparedness, Neighborhood Safety, Newsletter, Traffic, Zoning and Land-Use) and attend board meetings (held on the 3rd Tuesday of each month.) Please call Will Beckett (494-6922) in advance if you plan to attend a board meeting.

Public Safety Building

On October 31, 1998, a public information meeting on the proposed new Public Safety Building was held at the Palo Alto Cultural Center. This facility is to be used by both the Police and Fire Departments. The Fire Department Administration will be housed there, and all of the Police Department operations will be contained in this building. This will be a modern, up-to date facility to replace the present crowded and inadequate quarters. The current facility was built in 1970 and was not designed to essential facility standards and prior to the more recent technological advances.

The Beautification Committee (BPA) will hold its 4th House and Garden Tour in 2000. Other projects will be undertaken in 1999. Mini tours are to be initiated for the coming year. Watch for posters for dates and starting points.

The committee has decided to devote the coming year to replanting and maintenance of various locations throughout Barron Park. The last two winters, flood control work and road repair have made inroads in our neighborhood. In conjunction with this project, the committee will plant a memorial tree in the name of Erna Amanda Glanville. Erna was Chairperson of the Beautification Committee which she served devotedly for several years. (See Erna Glanville article below)

As a second project, the Beautification committee will give special attention to Barron Park properties which it and our residents judge worthy of merit awards, designated as ³Home of Distinction². Signing recognizing these outstanding properties will be awarded to owners and renters based on the following criteria: pleasing landscape design, excellent plant selection, arche-type of attractive fencing, entryways, walks or driveways, aesthetically pleasing remodels and consistent good maintenance which preserve the image of Barron Park.

This project will also include special commendation to specific residents of Barron Park who freely volunteer their time to improve the public environment of our neighborhood. Our first award goes to Louis E. Olave, Jr., 849 Los Robles Avenue. Louis fought the litter battle while Montage Apartments at El Camino Real and Los Robles were under construction. He regularly does the junk patrol on Barron Park streets hauling significant amounts of refuse dropped by motorists and pedestrians. This acknowledges our appreciation for his many hours of cleanup activities freely given to improve the appearance of Barron Park. This is a heads up reminder to our resident families that trash discarded on our streets doesn¹t magically disappear into thin air. It causes many hours of work by other citizens of our community.

We invite all residents to voice their appreciation to other residents for the Star Volunteer Award, or the ³Home of Distinction² award. The form above is provided for your personal nomination. Several awards will be made during the year and featured in the BPA Newsletter quarterly.

Hi -- It's me again!

Several things on my mind this issue:

1) I'm sure many of you have heard about SCC changing it's name to "Avenidas." This has raised much confusion and many questions, and I will try to answer a few of them:

What does it mean?
"Avenidas" means "avenues" in Spanish, a language that is part of our heritage.
Why did the agency decide to stop using Senior Coordinating Council of the Palo Alto Area (SCC)?
This was a well-considered decision made by the agency's Board of Directors over a two-year period. There were several reasons:

• The SCC name is long and unwieldy; people often shortened it to "Senior Coordinating Council," of which there are several in Santa Clara County alone
• The name did not reflect the audiences or the geographic area served by the agency. For many, "senior" was a barrier to using the agency's services, since they did not identify themselves as seniors. In addition, the name was often truncated to "Palo Alto" instead of "Palo Alto Area." The agency has always served the broader Mid-Peninsula community, but the name often gave the wrong impression that it served only Palo Alto.
• People in the community are often unaware that various services, such as RSVP, the Computer Learning Center, Senior Home Repair Service, and the Health Library for Adults over 50 are part of this agency's services. With a new name, that is shorter and more interesting, we hope that there will be a better connection of the services with the name.
Why did the Board choose "Avenidas"?
There were many reasons why the agency's 30-person Board unanimously chose "Avenidas" and believes that it is a strong name:
• The agency believes that there are many "avenues" or paths available to older adults and that the new name reflects that fact to the community.
• The services we provide, Enrichment Services and Individual & Family Services, help older adults discover the avenues or paths best suited for them.
• The name reflects the area's Spanish influence.
It's new, it's different, it reflects changing times but in time we'll get used to it -- we're flexible!

2) The BPA Emergency Preparedness Committee is compiling a list of neighbors who might need help during an emergency -- i.e., disabled or bed-ridden, or otherwise handicapped folks. If you can help us with this project, please mail me the info at 524 Chimalus Dr., and include their name, address and brief description of the problem, such as "uses walker." Or you can phone me -- 493-8023, and leave a message on my machine. This will be a tremendous help.

3) If you have Senior-related questions, ask, and I will try to find answers for you. Also, if you have things you'd like to see addressed in the Newsletter, let us know -- we'll try!!

4) Thanks to those of you who responded to the request for volunteers for the literacy program in our schools -- still room for more!!

So, what's on YOUR mind?? Let us hear from you.

On that note -- Have a Wonderful Holiday Season, stay well, and See You Next Year!

Katie

In a morning of sweat and laughter, more than 70 volunteers planted 30 new street trees in the west neighborhood on November 21.

The planting culminated six months of groundwork by the Beautification Committee.

Special thanks in the final push to Maryanne Welton, Elaine Kearney, Terry Achelis, and Billie Bennett, who took the job of tree ambassador to new heights. The utility maps, the species lists, the needs and hopes of the various tree hosts‹these women handled it all, and more.

Thanks also to the city for providing the trees, and to Dave Muffley and Debbie Mytels from Canopy: Trees for Palo Alto for more than anyone wants to read about.

There are still about a dozen trees to be planted‹we hope to hold another planting in February.

Preserve Your Oaks
from Canopy: Trees for Palo Alto

Things you can do now to keep a mature oak healthy for decades to come:

1. Check your sprinklers to make sure no water falls within 10 feet of the trunk.
2. Remove any soil around the trunk to expose the three buttress roots one foot away from the trunk.
3. Remove ivy or other plants that are vining up the trunk.
4. Remove any grass planted or sprouted within the drip line of the tree.
5. Inspect your tree for signs of decline or decay:
   • thin, sparse foliage (once the new leaves are out on a valley oak)
   • yellow, undersized leaves
   • dead branches in the upper canopy
   • wilted, brown leaves in spring and summer
   • many short shoots growing on the trunk and branches
   • mushrooms at the tree base or on the roots
   • cavities in the trunk.

The Barron Park Donkeys Need Your Help!
Our two beloved donkeys, Perry & Miner 49er, are pastured on land belonging to two Barron Park residents and faithfully tended by nine devoted volunteer handlers, who work in all weathers and conditions for the love of these two beautiful (in all senses of the word) animals.

In addition to twice daily care of the donkeys, the handlers hold weekly (9:30 - 10:30 a.m. on Sundays) community playtime sessions, in which Perry and Miner 49er interact with their admirers (humans - three months to 90 years, dogs and assorted other playmates) one-on-one. The donkeys with their handlers, meet on an ongoing basis with the Barron Park School kindergarten classes, to the joy of all.

Perry is the model for a donkey in a forthcoming animation film -- more about that when the film is released.

Perry was a faithful companion to Mickey in his last days, often laying down next to him to give him comfort and companionship. Perry missed Mickey a lot, but now by example, is training Miner 49er to lick dogs¹ faces and to turn on that donkey charm to small children as well as adults. We all miss Mickey's loud braying. Until recently Perry was totally silent, but now both donkeys are receiving daily performance encouragement from their own favorite retired Stanford music professor!

HELP REQUESTED:
The donkeys belong to the neighborhood and ALL costs (food, farrier and vet bills) are paid out of donations collected from friends and neighbors of our Barron Park donkeys. At the present time, particularly since Mickey's death, they are leading a hoof-to-mouth existence. We would like to set up an endowment for them to take care of this permanently, but currently any type of financial help would be deeply appreciated. Please send all donations to the Barron Park Association Foundation/Mickey fund, c/o K. Tani, 701 Kendall Ave., Palo Alto CA 94306. All donations are tax deductible. If you would like your donation to become part of the endowment, please state this.

ENDOWMENT:
Collecting money for an endowment of $40-50,000 will take a lot of work. If you would be willing to assist, please call Inge at 650-493-8146. Also, please contact her or any of the handlers with ideas to generate money for the endowment. The handlers (in alphabetical order) are Jim Bronson, Inge Harding-Barlow, Mary Jane Leon, Steve Luce, Doug Moran, Pat Rogow, Edith And Leland Smith and Ted Thomas.

Perry and Miner 49er wish you one and all, an abundance of the precious things of life: Health, Happiness and Enduring Friendships.

I am looking for Barron Park families that eat food and would like to support our neighborhood schools and PTAs without spending a dime!!

Scrip dollars are like Monopoly money that really works at Safeway, Lucky's, Co-op, Piazza's, Mollie Stone's, Draeger's, Andronico's and Costco. When you buy scrip dollars from the PTA you pay and receive full face value, but your grocer donates 2-6% of your purchase to the Juana Briones or Barron Park PTAs!

A Scrip family spending $400.00/month on groceries will be donating up to $240.00 a year to our schools without spending a dime.

We'll make it easy for you to try Scrip....

• Select from any of the grocers listed above
• You can pick up or receive free home delivery
• You may order by phone (493-1782)
• It costs you nothing!
• Satisfaction guaranteed!!!
• Scrip is also available for other stores and restaurants (Chevy's, Fresh Choice, Chili's, Macy's, Gap, Sears, Pizza Chicago, etc.)

For more information call Debbie Sutherland at 493-1782.

You can designate which school receives proceeds from your scrip purchase or if not indicated, proceeds will be split between the schools.

It was fitting for all who knew Erna Glanville the day of her memorial service, November 20, was a beautiful day with blue skies and the trees bedecked in glorious red, orange, and yellow foliage.

Erna had been the Chairperson of the Beautification Committee of the Barron Park Association from 1995 to 1997, and CO-Chairperson in 1998. Erna¹s mission in Barron Park was to instill a real sense of pride in the upkeep and consistent maintenance of the residences and public throughways. She was the driving force for getting the lovely plants placed in the median strips in the Barron Park/Ventura corridor of El Camino Real. The weed pulling and planting done in the street tree wells along El Camino Real in 1997 and 1998 was an Erna instigated project. During her chairmanship the House & Garden Tours were initiated. She was always an avid gardener and had enlisted her children through the years to lay brick patios and planters at her home. She acquired the nickname of ³Sarge² by her children during these projects, and used these skills to motivate like minded residents of Barron Park.

Erna and her husband James Glanville built a new two bedroom home on 771 Encina Grande through the GI Bill in 1948. Their house was the third house built on this new street set among the apricot orchards. As their family included seven children, new additions were made to the 1948 residence to provide a wonderful family environment with the outside gardens visually blending to the inside.

Erna was born in the German community of Elberta, Alabama located near the Gulf. Her grandfather built the house where they lived and it is still in use today. The family farmed with their primary crops of pecans and potatoes. All was lost during the Depression when her father sent off the crop on the train and it was spoiled in transit. The family moved to Menlo Park when Erna was 16. She attended Sequoia High School. She worked in a drapery shop prior to marrying. When her family of seven were finally all school age, Erna worked in the drapery and decorating section of Sears. Later, she worked at Bank of America retiring after ten years. She and James enjoyed a retirement home outside of Arnold, CA.

Erna is survived by eight grandchildren and her children, Kathleen LeVain, James Glanville, Melinda Burnham, Ross Glanville, Robert Glanville, Mark Glanville. All of her children attended Barron Park, Terman, and Gunn High School. Her two oldest children attended Cubberly High School prior to the opening of Gunn. A brother Edwin Schreck, sister Loretta Hipp, and in-laws Paul and Pat Glanville also survive Erna. She was preceded in death by her husband James and her eldest son Terrance.

The Beautification Committee will be initiating an Erna Glanville Memorial Cleanup Weekend in November 1999 and a tree will be planted as a living memorial.

Memorial contributions are suggested to: Paralyzed Veterans of America, 3801 Miranda Avenue, Bldg. 101 -- Mailing Code 816, Palo Alto, CA 94304. The reason for this charity is due to her eldest son¹s wounds received while serving in Vietnam. Terrance died in 1970. Messages of condolence are to be directed to: The Family of Erna Glanville %Kathy LeVain, 1565 Stanford Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94306.

The Juana Run, a footrace through the streets of Barron Park, will be held this winter on Sunday morning, January 17.

The five-mile race begins at 8 am; children's half- and quarter-mile races begin at 10; and the one-mile race begins at 11. Streets on the courses will be closed from about 15 minutes before the start of each race until all runners have passed. Orme Street, much of Amaranta, and one block of Los Robles will be closed all morning.

The Juana Run is a benefit for our two local elementary schools, Juana Briones & Barron Park. Pre-registration is $20 for adults, $13 for children under 12; race-day registration is $24 adults, $15 children.

Creekside Inn

Family & Friends Coming to Visit for the Holidays?
Have them be our guest at the Creekside Inn
Enjoy Tranquil, Creekside Gardens and the Comforts of Home.

• Palo Alto's only smoke free hotel
• Standard, deluxe & superior rooms
• Refrigerators, hairdryers, in-room coffeemaker, iron & ironing boards, robes in rooms
• Free local shuttle service
• Heated pool & "state of the art" fitness center
• Kitchenettes available

Barron Park Friends and Family receive special Holiday Rate
$65.00 (Deluxe Room)
December 18 -- January 04 (based on availability)
(650) 493-2411 (800) 492-7335
email: (deleted) -- 3400 El Camino Real, Palo Alto