pleasanton weekly 11.23.2012 - section 1

WeeklyPleasanton

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INSIDE THIS WEEK

■ NEWS: Council to vote on downtown guidelines 5

■ NEWS: Former cop charged with elder abuse 5

■ LIVING: Home ec teacher has recipe for success 15Arts & Entertainment

TRI-VALLEY LIFE

BUSINESS NEWS

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Pleasanton Weekly November 23, 2012

Two news reports in recent days dampened a bit of the holiday spirit in my

household where Hostess-brand Twinkies and Ding Dongs used to be a favorite in our younger days. Then I learned that News-week, which I carried for years in my college backpack and later my briefcase, is also exiting the market, or at least its print edi-tion is at the end of the year. Perhaps it’s a case of advanced nostalgia, but there’s something sad about seeing old friends dis-appear. As for Twinkies, the demise of the Hostess products probably has more to do with healthier eating habits today than because of a strike against the company by the Bakery, Confectionery, To-bacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (a mouthful in itself), which is getting the blame. We haven’t had a Twinkie in our house for years. Still, just as we keep an empty box of Mar-shall Field’s chocolate mints in the cupboard, a Twinkie or two would be something to treasure if only to show the grandchil-dren what truly unhealthy (but terribly tasty) treats we used to eat. When the news broke, we dashed over to the Hostess out-let store in Dublin, only to find it closed already. The shelves still marked with Hostess brand price tags at Safeway and Target were also bare. Trying online, we found the demand for Twinkies was especially brisk with, at one time, more than 17,000 active listings for Twinkies and prices varying widely. In the end, we took a pass, leaving the Hostess treats to the memory books. Not so for Newsweek, though. Although my subscription lapsed long ago as the weekly magazine lost its zest for timely global news reports, I wanted a copy for old time’s sake to keep on the shelf along with old copies of publica-tions such as the Christian Sci-ence Monitor that also have gone all-digital. There’s a difference between keeping newspapers and magazines compared to storing

them “in the clouds.” It’s hard to spread a digital publication out on the kitchen counter and leaf through the pages, ads and all. Of course, we all read off our Smartphone, iPad and laptop screens now, including the daily online reports by the Pleasanton Weekly and its sister publications covering Dublin, San Ramon and Danville. It’s just that for a career newspaperman like me, there’s still the leisurely pace a reader finds in the feel and content of a magazine like Newsweek. Both Hostess and Newsweek leave a lot of history -- and em-ployees -- as they go. Roughly 18,500 workers will be out of work when Texas-based Host-ess Brands finally shuts down. Investors may buy some of the assets in the coming bankruptcy sale, but Twinkies, Sno Balls and Ding Dongs might be gone. Other iconic brands, such as Wonder Bread and Dolly Madison, may find new bakers to use the popular brand names, but the workforce at Hostess’ wholesale bakeries and its retail outlets are already mostly gone. As one blogger put it, the baker’s union, in refusing to end its strike and accept lower wages and benefits, “gave 18,000 people an opportunity to find another job” in a still troubled economy. Far fewer employees are af-fected by Newsweek’s decision to end its print edition on Dec. 31. The magazine has lost circulation and reduced staff since restructur-ing under the ownership of the Washington Post in 2008. It lost $11 million in the first quarter of 2010, alone. Most newspapers and magazines today, including this one, are moving forward with online editions that have broad appeal to the new digital genera-tion. In Newsweek’s case, however, the decision is more of a last gasp, a sad ending for a once-great na-tional magazine.

AROUND PLEASANTON

BY JEB BING

Saying goodbye to 2 old friends

About the CoverThese community leaders were honored Monday night with the first-ever Tri-Valley Heroes awards presented by the Pleasanton Weekly and its sister online publications — Dublin Tri-Valley Views, San Ramon Express and Danville Express. From left to right, they are Chris Miller, Bob Tucknott, Cynthia Ruzzi, San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District Chief Richard Price, Jeff Seaberg, Cassandra Bankson, Claire Williams, Sandra J. Wing and Darlene Gayler. Photo by Jay Flachsbarth. Design by Trina Cannon.

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StreetwiseASKED AT HANDLES

What does turning 40 mean to you?

Lisa Cole Mom, teacher, and 40th birthday girl

It sounds so cliche to say that you are as young as you feel, but I’m finding that it is true. Turning 40 is less about a number and more about living in the moment, being my best self and having gratitude for the abun-dance of blessings in my life.

Barrie ShafferAccount executive, loving life in her 40s

40 is foxy! It’s the best time of my life; I’m enjoying my family and friends, and I appre-ciate things more. I’m more confident, and feel younger and healthier than ever.

Colleen KinneTeacher; 40, fun and fabulous

Forty parties in a year, baby! I just turned 40, and I’m going to celebrate all year. I went into it a bit frightened, but it’s been great. I am trying to take better care of myself by eating well and exercising, and in my head and heart I still feel young.

Lisa GuerreraTeacher on leave, 40-year-old rockstar

I’m hoping it’s the new 20! I was a little ner-vous about my 40th birthday, because of the “over-the-hill” mentality. My husband and I turned 40 within a week of each other, and we celebrated with back-to-back trips. We went to Hawaii with our family, and then flew to Cancun with friends, where I proved that I still have it. 40 is just a number.

Julie CastilloTeacher, happily approaching the big 4-0

According to Pit Bull, 40 is the new 30. I think women are just coming into their own at 40; they are smart, strong, have dealt with husbands and children, and are simply awesome and beautiful.

Have a Streetwise question? E-mail [email protected]


The Pleasanton Weekly is published every Friday by Embarcadero Media, 5506 Sunol Blvd., Suite 100, Pleasanton, CA 94566; (925) 600-0840. Mailed at Periodicals Postage Rate, USPS 020407. The Weekly is mailed upon request to homes and apartments in Pleasanton. Print subscriptions for businesses or residents of other communities are $60 per year or $100 for two years. Go to www.PleasantonWeekly.com to sign up and for more informa-tion. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Pleasanton Weekly, 5506 Sunol Blvd., Suite 100, Pleasanton, CA 94566. © 2012 by Embarcadero Media. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited.

—Compiled by Kerry Nally

WEEKLY MEETING NOTICES

The above represents a sampling of upcoming meeting items. For complete information, please visit

www.ci.pleasanton.ca.us/community/calendar

ALL MEETINGS ARE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC AND PUBLIC COMMENT IS WELCOME

City Council Special MeetingTuesday, November 27, 2012 at 6:00 p.m.Council Chamber, 200 Old Bernal Avenue

Planning Commission

Council Chamber, 200 Old Bernal AvenuePUD-93, Bruce Myers, Danville School Street Investment

P12 1693, Arun Pai, General Contractor

P12-1731, Jeff Schroeder, Ponderosa Homes

P12-1744, Dusty Cars/John Omar Suer

P12-1753, City of Pleasanton

PUD-87, Sares Regis/E&S Ring – Auf der Maur/Rickenbach Property

Energy & Environment Committee

Bicycle, Pedestrian & Trails Committee

East Pleasanton Specific Planning Workshop

Commissions and Committees RecruitmentThe City of Pleasanton invites applications for the following commissions and committees:

Applications are available at the City Clerk’s Office, 123 Main Street, or on the City’s web site at www.cityofpleasantonca.gov

For additional information, contact the Office of the City Clerk at (925) 931-5027

Applications must be received no later than 4:00 p.m., Monday, December 3, 2012.

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NewsfrontSend us your Santa photos Are your kids planning to visit Santa? If you have a photo you’d like to share, send it to us at [email protected]. Please write “Santa photo” in the subject line, and we ask that photos be at least 500K. Also send the names of the children in the photo, the names of the parents, where you ran into Santa, where you live, where the children attend school, and anything else you think might be interesting in the caption. We plan to use the photos in our Dec. 21 issue. And, yes, we are also interest-ed in photos of pets with Santa.

City provides free sandbags With the rainy season upon us, the city of Pleasanton re-minds local residents and busi-nesses that free sandbags are available to those concerned about flooding. Residents can pick up free sandbags at the city’s Service Center, 3333 Busch Road in Pleasanton. The sandbags are located in the parking lot under a brown tarp and can be picked up at anytime. The sandbags are not available to contractors seek-ing sandbags for work sites. City crews cleared culverts and drains ahead of the rainy sea-son, and residents are encouraged to clear leaves from neighbor-hood drains. Report flooded areas between 7 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. weekdays to the Operations Ser-vices Department at 931-5500. Report flooding to the Police De-partment at 931-5199 on week-ends, holidays and between 3:30 p.m. and 7 a.m. weekdays.

BART plans for holidays BART is operating longer trains this week the day before Thanksgiving and on Sunday to help passengers get to and from the airports and is significantly increasing the number of seats today, Nov. 23, for shoppers to carry their new purchases on-board. For Christmas travelers, from Saturday, Dec. 22, through Wednesday, Jan. 2, BART will make 475 additional parking spaces available for airport/long term parking reservations. Cus-tomers must get to the parking lot before 10 a.m. to be guar-anteed a spot. Visit bart.gov/parking for more information or to make your reservation.

CorrectionsThe Weekly desires to correct all significant errors. To request a correction, call the editor at (925) 600-0840 or e-mail: [email protected]

DIGEST


BY JEB BING The Pleasanton City Council will consider new rules governing entertainment in Pleasan-ton’s downtown district at a special meeting it has called for next Tuesday. If adopted, the proposed Downtown Hospi-tality Guidelines will be one of the last actions taken by the current council before two new council members and a new mayor are sworn into office Dec. 4. The council’s action also would wrap up near-ly three years of bickering among businesses and regulators over how much more sizzle bars and restaurants should be given to attract late night revelers to the downtown. Up to now, business-es had to seek special use permits to stay open after 10 p.m., often with different decisions and time limits from the regulators. The new guide-lines would move permitted operating uses to 11 p.m. with no permit required. The new guidelines call for two new zoning dis-tricts: a downtown central core area that mostly fronts on Main Street and a few side streets where

late night entertainment would be allowed, and a transition area where business would still need to seek permits to operate late into the night. Noise limits also would be raised in some areas with more freedom by business owners to monitor noise levels without more strict moni-toring equipment. The city Planning Commission approved the new guidelines a week ago. As proposed, the new hour, noise and opera-tion requirements would apply throughout the downtown district from the Arroyo del Valle Main Street bridge on the north to Bernal Av-enue on the south. Businesses on both sides of Main Street would be included in the core area with those fronting on Peters Avenue to be part of the transition zone. Although there has been little opposition to the new entertainment guidelines, some whose homes are close to downtown establishments sought assurances that noise levels would stay controlled. The Planning Commission held a public field

trip downtown last month with a noise consultant who used a noise meter to record sound levels at such locations as Handles Gastropub on Main Street, Fernando’s Mexican Restaurant on St. Mary Street and at the intersection of St. Mary and Peters Avenue, where a number of homes are located. At each location, the recorded noise levels met the allowable residential noise level require-ments, with some exceptions when a car, bus or train passed by. Another concern of both downtown businesses and homeowners dealt with loitering, especially noticed after businesses have closed for the night. The Planning Commission, however, determined that Pleasanton police actively patrol the down-town and effectively deal with loiterers. The new guidelines, if adopted by the council, would lock in the new core and transition zon-ing districts. New businesses seeking to offer late night entertainment would have to abide by those restrictions in seeking downtown locations. The City Council meeting will start at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Civic Center, 200 Old Bernal Ave.

Council to vote on downtown guidelines TuesdayBars, restaurants could stay open later, offer more entertainment

Former police officer charged

with elder abusePleasanton police arrest man;

wife turns herself in

BY GLENN WOHLTMANN A Pleasanton man and former police officer has been arrested and his wife has surrendered to police in a scam that involved taking advan-tage of an 82-year-old Pleasanton woman. Matthew Messier, 36, of the 400 block of Neal Street was arrested Friday on charges of grand theft, three counts of attempted grand theft, four counts of elder abuse, one count of forgery, one count of criminal conspira-cy, one count of registering a fraudulent document and a count of practicing law with-out a license. Police say Messier, a for-mer police commander with the Pinole Police Department, used his position of authority to gain the trust of the vic-tim, who put his entire estate under the control of the pair. Messier was still with the Pi-nole Police Department when the initial complaint surfaced, according to a news release. Messier was arrested at his home Friday morning and booked into Santa Rita Jail. His wife, Elizabeth Regala-do, 30, was initially reported at large, but turned herself in at the Hayward Police De-partment later Friday. Police describe the arrests as the culmination of a months-long investigation that began with a report by Alameda County Adult Protective Services. Pleasanton police Sgt. Kurt Schlehuber said the victim was placed under conservatorship by a public guardian due to the fact she is suscep-tible to undue influence. A complaint was filed by the Alameda County District Attorney’s office and two warrants were obtained for Messier and Regalado’s arrest.

The city of Pleasanton will host the annual Hometown Holiday Celebration from 5-7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, on Main Street. The community-based parade will be fol-lowed by the lighting of a holiday tree in front of the Museum on Main. High school marching bands will kick off the parade, followed by dozens of holiday inspired entries including the Pleasanton Weekly’s Holiday Fund car, the Centerpointe Presbyterian Church’s men’s club’s Balloon Platoon, a horse-drawn wagon carrying the Pleasanton City Council, hundreds of Cub

Scouts and Brownies, local car clubs and dog clubs, and much more. Main Street will close to traffic at 4 p.m. for the parade. Volunteers are still needed to help with the parade. Those interested can register at www.hometownholiday.com. In the event of rain, a parade cancellation telephone hotline will be implemented and updated each hour after 2:30 p.m. on parade day. The cancellation information phone line is 931-5352.

—Jeb Bing

Hometown Holiday parade set for Dec. 1

Tree lighting to follow in front of Museum on Main

JEB BING

Saying goodbye to Santa are Mayor Jennifer Hosterman and City Council members Cindy McGovern and Matt Sullivan who will step down from their positions due to term limits just four days after this year’s Dec. 1 Holiday parade and tree lighting. Together for the last time are (from left) mayor-elect Jerry Thorne, McGovern, Councilwoman Cheryl Cook-Kallio, Sullivan and Hosterman.

Matthew Messier

Elizabeth Regalado


BY JEB BING Another in a series of developers interested in building affordable high density apartment complexes in Pleasanton had a favorable re-ception from the city’s Planning Commission last week in its bid to build a 168-unit, three- and four-story structure on West Las Positas Boulevard near Stoneridge Drive. Mike Serpa, a consultant with St. Anton Partners, said the Sacramento developer is seeking a permit to build the apartment complex on a 5.6-acre site at 5729 West Las Posi-tas, property that was first devel-oped in 1983 for Hewlett-Packard. The site is a mile from the West Pleasanton BART station and is next to a two-story office building used by the ValleyCare Health System. It is one of nine sites included earlier this year when the City Council rezoned 73 acres in vari-ous parts of the city to accommo-date high-density housing follow-

ing the settlement of a law suit by Urban Habitat, an Oakland-based affordable housing coalition. The apartment complex would include three residential buildings with a clubhouse, leasing office, swimming pool and even open space for a community vegetable garden. Two U-shaped buildings would be three stories tall with 38 apartment units in each and would front on Las Positas, with a four-story, 115,000 square-foot building to the rear, overlooking Tassajara Creek and containing 39 units. Serpa said the residential de-velopment would accommodate mixed-income groups distributed throughout the complex. Access to the apartments would be off West Las Positas with 268 parking spaces to be provided for tenants and guests. But the chairman of the nearby Verona Homes apartment complex notified the Planning Commission

that his group opposes the “luxury, multifamily community” planned by St. Anton Partners. “Most of us in the Verona complex do not want it to happen,” Robert Plemmons, chairman of the Verona Home Owners Association, stated in a Nov. 5 letter to Associate Planning Director Rosalind Rondash. “When we purchased our homes, we under-stood (the property) would always be zoned commercial. We understand the owner can do what they want to the property, but we do not have to like it or welcome it.” The Planning Commission, meeting in a workshop format, took no action on the St. Anton Partners plan, which is expected to be heard by the commission of-ficially in December. Serpa said that if the plan gains the approval of both the Planning Commission and then later the City Council, construction could begin next spring.

NEWS

Advocates for people with dis-abilities filed a lawsuit last Thurs-day accusing Alameda County of engaging in systematic discrimi-nation against inmates with dis-abilities who are incarcerated at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. The lawsuit was filed in Alame-da County Superior Court and is brought by Legal Services for Pris-oners with Children on behalf of themselves and their members and two taxpayers. It alleges that “the

jail’s inhumane conditions and dis-criminatory treatment of people with disabilities denies these people the basic rights to appropriate facili-ties for simple human necessities.” The suit says such necessities include toilets and showers and access to educational and reha-bilitation programs that can reduce the jail sentences of inmates with disabilities. Disability Rights Advocates at-torney Stuart Seaborn, one of the

lawyers representing the plain-tiffs, said the suit seeks no mon-etary damages but aims to compel Alameda County to stop using tax-payer funds to further the allegedly illegal and discriminatory condi-tions at Santa Rita Jail. Seaborn said the suit alleges that the county has a systemic practice of housing men and women with disabilities at Santa Rita Jail in cells and housing units that lack wheelchair accessible toilets, show-

ers and visiting areas. He said the suit also claims that the jail segregates certain people with disabilities from the gener-al population by housing them in the Outpatient Housing Unit, also known as the infirmary, which oper-ates similar to solitary confinement. Seaborn said conditions at that unit compromise the health and welfare of men and women with disabilities and result in the denial of access to critical rehabilitative

programs, religious services and outdoor exercise. He said that without wheelchair-accessible toilets that have grab bars, people with mobility dis-abilities cannot transfer themselves from a wheelchair. Alameda County Sheriff ’s spokesman Sgt. J.D. Nelson said he couldn’t comment on the suit at this time because the Sheriff’s Of-fice hadn’t seen it yet.

—Bay City News Service

Alameda County Registrar David Macdonald reported this week that final results of the Nov. 6 election show that the hotly contested Measure B1 transpor-tation tax lost by a fraction of a percent in a final tally of all votes cast. Macdonald said that the mea-sure received 350,899 Yes votes, or 66.53% of the votes cast on the measure, against 176,504 votes, or 33.47%. The measure needed a two-thirds majority vote to pass, or 66.6%. The measure would have dou-bled Alameda County’s transpor-tation sales tax to a full 1 cent, adding a half-cent to the earlier voter-approved transportation tax of a half-cent that was ap-proved in 1986. It also would have made the full 1-cent tax permanent with a provision that it would come again before vot-

ers in 20 years, but would re-quire only a majority vote to be continued in perpetuity. It would have raised addi-tional tax revenue to increase spending on roads, freeways, public transit, bicycle and pe-destrian improvements and transit-oriented developments, proponents said. Opponents said in their bal-lot argument that the measure would be “a massive tax in-crease” that would dispropor-tionately harm working families because a greater percentage of their income goes to sales taxes. Analysts also said that a re-count is unlikely since that ef-fort is costly and there’s no clearly identified group, such as a political party or candidate, who would step forward to pay the bill.

—Jeb Bing

New apartment complex planned for West Las Positas Boulevard

Affordable housing structure would have 4 stories, 168 units

Lawsuit: Santa Rita Jail discriminates against people with disabilitiesJail lacks access to toilets, showers, educational and rehabilitation programs, suit says

B1 transportation sales tax measure loses by fraction of percent

Final count shows measure failed with 66.53% favorable votes, just short of 2/3rds needed

The city of Pleasanton is asking that a federal lawsuit against the Police Department and one of its officers be dismissed. In a lengthy rebuttal to a recent lawsuit filed by Brian Lancaster, the city names dozens of undocu-mented claims in the suit, which names the Police Department in general and Officer Tim Martens in particular. Specifically, the request that the lawsuit be dismissed questions claims surrounding a Jan. 16 traf-fic stop by Martens. “The stop resulted in a search of the Plaintiff’s car, but the com-plaint does not tell us why,” the dismissal motions states. “This search resulted in contraband being found, but the Complaint

does not tell us what, or where. Martens is alleged to have ar-rested the Plaintiff following this search; but the complaint doesn’t tell us what the Plaintiff was ar-rested for.” The rebuttal offers a half dozen reasons for the suit to be dis-missed, and cites federal and state law, although much of its argu-ment seems to be about gaps in the original suit. The request for dismissal also cites as a precedent a federal ruling stemming from a lawsuit filed by one of the men held in the Guan-tanamo Bay detention camp. The suit is set for a Dec. 18 hearing in U.S. District Court in San Francisco.

—Glenn Wohltmann

City fights federal lawsuit against Police Department Cites dozens of questions about circumstances

TAKE US ALONG

Kiss, anyone? Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce members (l-r) Larry Davis, Judy Davis, Lety Hyde, Ron Hyde, Mi-chelle Oliveira and Karen Carlson pose with their Weekly at the Barney Stone in Ireland.


Business News Edited by Jeb Bing, [email protected]

Lawrence Livermore National Security, the contract manager for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, has announced the re-cipients for the 2012 LLNS Com-munity gift program that totaled $100,000. LLNS received 66 applications totaling more than $636,000 in requests. Twenty-six applications totaling $100,000 were selected for awards through a committee review process. The majority of these awards serve children in the Tri-Valley area and San Joaquin County, with a focus on science, math education, engineering and cultural arts. “It is our privilege to be able to contribute to the enormously worthwhile efforts of these agencies and their impact in science, educa-tion and the arts in the commu-nity,” said Parney Albright, LLNS president and LLNL director. “We thank them for their hard work and their dedication in helping the community we share.” Pleasanton’s Amador Valley High School and Fairlands Elementa-ry School were among the award recipients, with two awards also going to Dublin High School and another to Las Positas College.

Amador Valley’s Molecular and Cellular research class was named a recipient for providing students who have excelled in science a forum and equipment to do col-lege-level research. At the same time, the school’s biotechnology class with its Ther-mal Cycler-Polymerase Chain Reac-tion was also awarded a grant for offering students exposure to the business and technical aspects of biotechnology while participating in hands-on identification of DNA sequences. Also selected for an award was the Fairlands Elementary School’s PTA for its Outdoor Science Class-room, which provides enrichment opportunities to children through its outdoor science classroom. Las Positas College received an award for promoting a “culture of scientific research in its under-graduate Science Research Poster project that “provides educational opportunities to meet the academ-ic, intellectual, technical, creative and personal development goals of its students.” Dublin High School received two awards and the Dublin School District a third. The high school’s “Construction in Algebra provides

students hands-on experiences that connect pure math to the field of construction through engaging les-sons,” the Lab’s review committee said. Its Polymerase Chain Reaction for Research in High School won an award for introducing students to biotechnology, utilizing labs and techniques that can be applied to college and beyond. The school district received an award for its Engineering and De-sign Academy with a Pathway pro-gram of study that promotes STEM (science, technology, engineering and/or mathematics) education to Tri-Valley students with both the academy and its feeder schools. Other recipients of the 2012 LLNS Community gift program were:■ Faith Network of the East Bay Inc. Science Horizons Program supports the teaching and learning of fourth- and fifth-grade science in the Oakland Unified School Dis-trict.■ Give Every Child a Chance, STEM in the After School Program provides assistance/mentoring to children in after-school programs as well as supports activities aimed at improving their confidence and skill level in STEM.

■ Livermore-Amador Symphony, Livermore-Amador Symphony Or-chestra Club at Junction Avenue K-8 School presents musical pro-grams of cultural and educational value for the benefit of the com-munity.■ Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District, 2012-13 Teach-ing Opportunities for Partners in Science (TOPS). Program pro-vides hands-on activities for ap-proximately 5,500 elementary and middle school students in science education. Funds will be used to maintain and expand the program.■ Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District, Granada High School, Bio-Rad Gel Doc EZ Sys-tem and Electophoresis Supplies designs coursework to give stu-dents the needed laboratory skills to prepare them for college or to enter the workforce.■ Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center, Sponsorship for Professor Smart’s Fun with Physics Show op-erates a performing arts center that promotes and encourages the pre-sentation and creation of visual and performing arts, including those bringing science to life.■ San Ramon Valley Unified School District, Summer Engineering Lab

offers students enrichment courses during summer, including an engi-neering lab to explore circuits and electricity.■ Title VII American Indian Educa-tion Program, LVJUSD, “American Indian Education in the 21st Cen-tury” Title VII Tutoring Program provides for the educational and culturally related academic needs of students of American Indian heritage in the Livermore Valley.■ Tri-Valley Haven for Women, Tri-Valley Haven Food Pantry provides essential nourishment by distribut-ing food to Tri-Valley residents in need.■ Windermere Ranch Middle School, STEM Q&A: K-12 Science Trivia Program encourages students interested in STEM by providing a computerized trivia program re-warding students for correct an-swers.■ World of Wonders Science Muse-um Inc., Outreach Hands-on Edu-cational Programs offers hands-on science exhibits and programs to stimulate the discovery of science for all ages. For more information about the LLNS Community Gift Program, go to the www.llnsllc.com/communi-tyGiving/llnsgift.

Amador Valley High, Fairlands win Lab awardsCommunity gift program totals $100,000 for 2012


Growth impacts schoolsDear Editor, Please help the community to understand the impacts of unmiti-gated growth. There is no one standing up for Pleasanton on this. My concern is not affordable hous-ing, it is all of the housing that is forced upon the city without allow-ing for mitigation. The state school mitigation fee is grossly inadequate for all new construction. Residents should be concerned. Low income housing does not allow Pleasanton to collect adequate fees to mitigate the need for more space in the schools. All Pleasanton schools are already overcrowded so any new growth will dramatically impact the quality of life for existing residents. Pleasanton Unified School District will be coming to the com-munity for a bond as well as a parcel tax to pay for new growth. New growth does not have to be bad if it pays for itself, but this does not and will hurt Pleasanton. Besides the new apartments being built in the Hacienda Busi-ness Park, there will be thousands of additional housing units built in what is now being discussed for the Eastside plan.

Julie Testa

On high speed rail

Dear Editor, With 43 grade crossings and many unprotected trackside sta-

tion platforms, Caltrain tracks are far too dangerous for high speed trains. Better, safer and much less costly would be to have high speed rail Santa Clara via Mulford to Oakland and Sacramento, the route long used by Amtrak. Route Capitol Corridor trains this way also. Grade separate, multi-track and fence this UP line in stages. Add an intermodal transfer sta-tion in Oakland, where BART crosses over the UP near I-880 and Seventh Street. (BART trains from there run every few minutes to eight San Francisco and the many other Peninsula and East Bay stations.) Also, we should prioritize BART around the Bay, enlarging it or forming a new five-county agency to complete BART construction now under way to Berryessa in San Jose; re-do planning for ex-tending that line further to Santa Clara; and plan to grade separate and convert Millbrae-Santa Clara Caltrain to BART. A plan balanced among the five counties would also extend BART to the Golden Gate and Carqui-nez bridges, to Brentwood, and over the Altamont. Adjusted for inflation and the five-county population, a bond issue like that for BART in 1962 per capita would raise about $16 billion today.

Robert S. AllenBART Director (1974-88);

Retired, SP (now UP) Western Division Engineering/

Operations

LETTERS

Opinion

Congratulations to the Pleasanton Downtown Associa-tion and the city’s Economic Vitality Committee for their three years of work in developing new guidelines for mak-ing downtown Pleasanton more attractive to nightlife and entertainment. Mired in outdated regulatory rules limiting nighttime operating hours to 10 p.m. without special, costly and time-consuming permits, revelers have increasingly been taking their business and money to nearby communi-ties that seemed more inviting. The new guidelines, which already have the approval of the city’s Planning Commission, are expected to gain another and final OK Tuesday from the Pleasanton City Council. To capitalize on the natural attraction of Pleasanton’s down-town and increase its economic vitality, the PDA launched the Downtown Hospitality Task Force in early 2010. Its mission was to research ways to enhance the experience of visitors to our downtown, to increase the number of patrons and to encourage evening vitality. A Downtown Hospitality Steering Committee was formed and asked to lead the task force through the pro-cess of developing a downtown hospitality plan. It noted that a hospitality district is a cheerful place, safe and inviting, with an active street life that welcomes people to shop and visit, and offers attractive private dining and entertainment venues. The steering committee brought together 30 individuals from the different stakeholder groups affected by downtown activity, including restaurant owners, nearby residents, police officers, city planners, property owners, business owners and employees, entertainers and many others. Jim Peters, founder and president of the Responsible Hospitality Institute (RHI), was brought in to develop strategies for moving forward. His is a national organi-zation that advises cities and business districts on creative ways to increase vitality and minimize potentially adverse effects. The demographics are changing in the Tri-Valley with an increased number of people in the bookend generations of Baby Boomers who are now between 46 and 66 and the young adults under 30, the Gen Ys and Millennials, These groups are prime visitors to hospitality districts as they have leisure time and disposable income. When considered from a hospital-ity perspective, Peters and his RHI organization characterize the users of hospitality services as singles, who are generally young; mingles, which are social groups and clubs, families that desire day and early evening type activities; and jingles, who are business travelers, employees from nearby businesses and empty nesters with available time and money. The hospitality steering committee also addressed job patterns in the Tri-Valley, which today are less confining than traditional 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedules. More people here are working part time, flexible hours or telecommuting, giving them more time to go out during the day and later in the evening. Most people today also prefer a hospitality zone that is closer to home so they have less distance to walk or drive to get there. Those looking to move want to live near a place where there’s some local street activity and entertainment as a lifestyle choice. In proposing its new guidelines, the PDA and its steering committee recognized, too, that much like the retail and res-taurant sectors, hospitality has become more competitive as cities like ours realize the benefits of supporting safe, inviting public spaces and private venues throughout the day and evening. According to RHI, the most successful cities start with a “how can we help you?” approach to make hospitality work. That’s the essence of the new guidelines for Pleasanton that will make our town a competitive center for daytime and nighttime dining, shopping and entertainment.

Competing for entertainment

EDITORIAL THE OPINION OF THE WEEKLY

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The Pleasanton Weekly encourages comments on our coverage or is-sues of local interest. Submit letters to the editor of up to 250 words and guest opinion pieces up to 500 words with a short bio to [email protected]. Include your name, address and daytime phone number so we can reach you. We reserve the right to edit contributions for length, objec-tionable content, libel and factual errors known to us. Anonymous let-ters will generally not be accepted. Submitting a letter to the editor or guest opinion constitutes a grant-ing of permission to the Pleasanton Weekly and Embarcadero Media to also publish it online, including in our online archives and as a post on Town Square. For more information contact Editor Jeb Bing at (925) 600-0840.

YOUR TURN


Trio plunders Via Peralta home

Three men are believed to be responsible for a Nov. 13 daytime burglary at a home on Via Peralta. According to one of the hom-eowners, neighbors spotted two men outside the home between 9 and 10 a.m. The pair appar-ently entered the back yard of the home, entered the garage through a back door and opened the ga-rage door for a third man who was driving a truck. The three then closed the garage door and entered the home through its connection with the garage. The trio stole almost all of the electronics in the house: TVs, lap-tops, two gaming systems and all the games. They removed a pillow sham from the bed and loaded it up with all the homeowners’ jewelry. The homeowner said they must have been startled, because they left abruptly, leaving a computer partially removed. They also left a duffel bag containing a number of items in the garage. A neighbor saw the garage door open at about 10 a.m.

In police reports:

were stolen from a home in the 500 block of San Miguel Court between 8 and 11:30 a.m. Nov.

made through an unlocked sliding glass door.

-land, was arrested at Penney’s in the 1500 block of Stoneridge Mall Road for shoplifting two watches

-sion of burglary tools, and for having wire cutters. Police also confiscated nine caps worth a total

warrant out for his arrest from the

for a prior shoplifting.-

in the 800 block of Main Street for felony fraud for attempting to pass seven counterfeit travelers

was arrested for entering the hotel with the intent to pass the checks,

also had an outstanding warrant for forgery.

-ark was arrested on a felony war-rant at about 3:05 a.m. at the intersection of Black Avenue and

a controlled substance for sale and transporting a controlled sub-stance. Alcosbia was wanted on a warrant from the Alameda County

miscellaneous tools were taken in a Nov. 18 burglary. Under the law, those arrested are considered innocent until convicted.

POLICE BULLETIN POLICE REPORT

The Pleasanton Police Department made the following information available.

Nov. 14

Theft

■ 9:05 a.m. in the 7300 block of Foothill Road; fraud

■ 10:24 a.m. in the 4100 block of Moller Drive; fraud

■ 6:39 p.m. in the 6200 block of Hopyard Road; auto theft

Vandalism

■ 9:47 a.m. at the intersection of Oak Creek Drive and Foothill Road

Drug/alcohol violations

■ 6:42 a.m. in the 7300 block of Tulipwood Circle; possession of methamphetamine, parapher-nalia possession

■ 11:47 a.m. in the 5800 block of Owens Court; public drunkenness

Nov. 15

Theft

■ 2:10 p.m. in the 7200 block of Valley View Court; fraud

■ 5:34 p.m. in the 1000 block of Stoneridge Mall Road; auto theft

Burglary

■ 11:40 a.m. in the 500 block of San Miguel Court

Auto burglary

■ 1:58 p.m. in the 3800 block of Vineyard Avenue

Battery

■ 8:58 p.m. in the 3800 block of Stone Pointe Way

Vandalism

■ 10:07 a.m. in the 500 block of

Kottinger Drive

■ 11:09 a.m. at the intersection of Valley Avenue and Paseo Santa Cruz

Public drunkenness

■ 10:33 p.m. in the 5200 block of Hopyard Road

■ 11:12 p.m. in the 1800 block of Santa Rita Road

Nov. 16

Felony shoplifting

■ 3:23 p.m. in the 1500 block of Stoneridge Mall Road

Vandalism

■ 10:13 a.m. in the 6700 block of Hansen Drive

Public drunkenness

■ 6:46 p.m. in the 3300 block of Harpers Ferry Court

Nov. 17

Fraud

■ 10:44 p.m. in the 800 block of Main Street

Burglary

■ 5:50 p.m. in the 4500 Rosewood Drive

Vandalism

■ 6:06 a.m. in the 5500 block Springhouse Drive

Alcohol violations

■ 1:39 a.m. at the intersection of Pleasanton Avenue and St. Mary Street; DUI

■ 2:02 a.m. in the 1800 block of Santa Rita Road; public drunk-enness

Nov. 18

Theft

■ 5:58 p.m. in the 4700 block of Willow Road; theft from structure

■ 9:06 p.m. in the 2500 block of Santa Rita Road; bicycle theft

Burglary

■ 10:48 p.m. in the 7000 block of Commerce Drive

Vandalism

■ 4:45 a.m. in the first block of California Avenue

Alcohol violations

■ 12:55 a.m. in the 4100 block of Hopyard Road; public drunken-ness

■ 2:02 a.m. at the intersec-tion of Santa Rita Road and Stoneridge Drive; DUI

Nov. 19

Theft

■ 7:40 a.m. in the 4400 block of Black Avenue

Burglary

■ 8:32 a.m. in the 1000 block of Serpentine Lane 43035

Auto burglary

■ 10:53 p.m. in the 4700 block of Willow Road 43130

Vandalism

■ 10:41 a.m. in the 5800 block of Parkside Avenue

■ 12:10 p.m. in the 4300 block of Black Avenue

■ 12:33 p.m. in the 600 block of Junipero Street

Public drunkenness

■ 7:48 a.m. in the 5500 block of Springdale Avenue

Sharry Bautista

Dec. 25, 1942-Nov. 10, 2012

Sharry Bautista passed away on Nov. 10, 2012. She was born on Dec. 25, 1942 in Valentine, Nebras-ka to Joy and Orville Greene. Her sister Donna was born 3 years later. Sharry married her former husband in 1961 and had 2 daughters, Kelly and Stacy. She was very active in her community for many years: serving 14 years on the Castro Valley Board of Fire Commiss ion-ers, volunteer-ing at Laurel Grove Hospital, serving as Aux-iliary president for 2 years and serving 1 year on the Alameda County Grand Jury. In 1987 she met and married the love of her life, Joe Bautista. They moved to Pleasanton in 2000 into a home that Joe built. They loved to travel, especially cruising. They had been on 25 cruises, visited more than 80 countries, 6 continents, and had

planned to go Antarctica in Feb. They belonged to Castlewood Country Club where she played golf. She also had a great passion for gardening and spent many hours nurturing the plants in her yard. One of her favorite times of the year was football season where she would attend Raiders home games and watch the Nebraska Corn-huskers play college football. Sharry loved her family and her step family. She is survived by her loving husband, Joe; 2 daughters, Stacy (Darryl) Chambers and Kelly (Perry) Johnson. She also leaves her 5 grandchildren, two great grand-children, 2 nieces; as well as her step children; Jim (Lori) Bautista, Steve Bautista, and Joy (Tony) Littman, 5 step-grandchildren and 5 step great-grandchildren. Preceding her in death are her mother, father and sister. Please join our family for a Cele-bration of Life at Castlewood Coun-try Club, Pleasanton, Nov. 25, 2-4 p.m. Sharry requests that donations be made to Hope Hospice, ARF, SPCA, or any animal shelter.

Robert Walter Decker

May 26, 1950-Oct. 21, 2012

Bob Decker passed away unex-pectedly at home in Pleasanton, Calif. of heart failure on Octo-ber 21, 2012. Born in Pittsburg,

Penn., Bob’s family moved to the Bay Area in 1959 and he was a resident of Pleasanton for the last 35 years. He worked in the gro-cery business for 40 years, the last 25 at Sara Lee. Bob is survived by his wife Janice, son Stephen of Livermore, son Kristopher (Jen-nifer) of Castro Valley, sister Arlene (Gene) of Reno, Nev., brother-in-law Mark Anderson of Alexandria, Va. and grand-daughter Hailey Decker. He is preceded in death by his parents Florian and Herman Decker, mother-in-law Marilyn Anderson, and father-in-law Harry Ander-son. He enjoyed many outdoor activities, but his latest passion was duck hunting with his long time friend Alex. A celebration of his life will be held on Monday, November 26th, 5 p.m. at St. Elizabeth Seton, 4001 Stoneridge Dr., Pleasanton. Donations can be made to the American Heart Association or a charity of your choice.

OBITUARIESPAID OBITUARIES

POLICE BULLETIN & LOG ● OBITUARIES ● BIRTHS & WEDDINGS

Community Pulse ● Transitions

BY GLENN WOHLTMANN Pleasanton police have identified a suspect in a Wednesday night

-ments in the 3800 block of Vine-yard Avenue. The stabbing victim has identi-fied the man who stabbed him as

a police news report. The report was forwarded to the

one count of attempted murder. A no-bail warrant has been issued for Serpa’s arrest. Police arrived on the scene at about 9 p.m. Wednesday after re-ceiving several 911 calls about a stabbing at the complex.

men began arguing with each other

course of the fight the suspect produced a knife and stabbed the victim once in the chest, then fled on foot.

-

Medical Center for the treatment of his injury, which is non-life threatening.

male adult with black hair and brown eyes, ap-proximately 5 feet 11 inches tall and about 180 pounds.

a black shirt or jacket and blue jeans. While police say the two men knew each other,

they have not been able to deter-mine what led to the fight. Police were still searching for Serpa as of Tuesday. Anyone with information re-garding this investigation or the

-aged to call the Pleasanton Police

Cops seek stabbing suspectMan stabbed in chest at Las Ventanas

apartment complex

Jesse Serpa


Gary & Nancy HarringtonSponsor, Arts & Culture award

Presenting our Tri-Valley Heroes

Families, supporters jam Hilton for presentations by Pleasanton Weekly, online publications

Thank you to our Heroes Sponsors

A special thanks to all our Supporters

and Partners. We appreciate your support.

You are a true believer in the value of public art.

Since the conception

of the Harrington Art Partnership in 2010,

12 pieces of public art have been installed in

Pleasanton, “Pleasanton Public Art Walk”

brochure created, 8 monthly

Pleasanton Art Walks given, and a new

Harrington Art Partnership website created.

It’s fabulous!

Your continued support and the support of

so many new art lovers, will make 2013

an even more successful year for

the Harrington Art Partnership.

Thank you again for all you have done.

The Public Art Collection of Pleasantonis ever expanding.

All Supporters can become a Partner.Visit www.harringtonartpartnership.org

BY JEB BING

The Pleasanton Weekly and its sister online publications — Dublin Tri-Valley Views, San Ramon Express and Danville Express — presented their first-ever Tri-Valley Heroes awards Monday night at the Pleasanton Hilton Hotel as nearly 100 family members and community supporters cheered those receiving the special honors. Gina Channell-Allen, president of Embarcadero Media’s East Bay division and publisher of the Pleasanton Weekly, said the awards were a salute to the community members “whose dedi-cation to bettering the lives of local residents has helped make the Tri-Valley the special place it is today.” “After fielding over 75 nominations, our panel of ‘hero’ judges bestowed awards in eight separate categories,” Chan-nell-Allen said. The Tri-Valley Heroes 2012 “Lifetime Achievement” award went to Robert “Bob” Tucknott of Pleasanton, a well-known Ro-tarian who has served as a community leader and past captain of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Air Squadron helping support law enforcement. He also is a pilot with Angel Flight, which arranges free air transportation via private aircraft for those in medical and financial need so they can travel to access healthcare. Others honored at the Tuesday night ceremony, by cat-egory, were:

and children’s theater teacher.

Military Families founder and veterans’ advocate.

which offers support to Tri-Valley cancer residents.

Encourages sustainable programs that support a healthy qual-ity of life and a strong local economy.

Conceived of and piloted the PulsePoint cell phone applica-tion, which alerts CPR-trained residents when a person is suffering from sudden cardiac arrest nearby.

-lied as a child because of her extreme cystic acne, and now a professional model, Bankson is helping others who suffer from acne to look their best.

Read-to-a-Teen program, in which teen volunteers help young students become more confident in their reading ability and build comprehension skills. Two Heroes will be profiled each Friday, Nov. 23 to Dec. 14, in the Pleasanton Weekly and Embarcadero’s online publica-tions serving Danville, Dublin and San Ramon.


Your Hero of the Tri-Valley

If you’ve noticed the yellow banners on Main Street or joined with hundreds of others in welcoming Pleasanton military men and women back home from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, then

you must know Chris Miller, a retired lieutenant colonel in the Army, a Realtor in Pleasanton and the man behind all this patriotism.

Miller was born on the Fourth of July and it seems like destiny that he’s become a super patriot for his country and in the city of Pleasan-ton where he’s also known as a veterans’ veteran. Pleasanton Weekly’s “Man of the Year” in 2009 and the recipient of awards from military and community organizations, Miller is now being honored with the 2012 Tri-Valley Heroes Community Spirit Award by the Pleasanton Weekly.

A veteran of the early days of the Vietnam War, Miller later flew commercial helicopters out of San Francisco for 11 years. He regularly saw returning Vietnam War veterans as they came through SFO and also back to the Bay Area and saw them treated “awfully and with disrespect” by their fellow American citizens.

At that time, he made a mental note that if American armed forces personnel were ever sent off to combat again, he would do all in his power to see that they, and their families, were respected and com-forted while they were serving in harm’s way and then to make sure that they were honored and appreciated when they came home.

After the first Gulf War occurred, Miller, with the help of Marine mom Alice Johnston, formed and co-chaired the first Pleasanton Military Fami-lies Support Group in 1991. The organization held meetings Tuesday nights at Johnston’s home and when the local troops came home, they welcomed them on the court where the Johnstons lived with cheering, flag-waving crowds Vietnam veterans never saw. Civic and city leaders joined in, and Miller was given permission to post American flags and yellow streamers on Main Street light poles, with each streamer listing the name, rank and branch of service of someone in the military serving in the war zones.

As a result of the organized and popular tributes, the entire Tri-Valley turned out for a welcome home parade in Hacienda Business Park when the Gulf War ended.

After the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, and with the Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (Iraq) wars under way, Miller started up the Pleasanton Military Families again in 2003 and it’s been going ever since. It was tough at first as a large number from Pleasanton volunteered to serve, including many right out of high school, and the PMF took on increased responsi-bilities for maintaining contact with those in remote battlefields and their concerned families here at home.

The group now consists of about 180 families, meeting once a month and also responsible for welcome home events, where soldiers return to their hometown amidst a motorcycle convoy, flag waving, and friends, family and neighbors. Miller continues to work with the group in comforting those with sons, daughters, husbands and wives still serving, packing kits filled with supplies needed by those in the field, sending letters and building new and what have become lifelong friendships.

Miller’s activities are not limited to love for country and support of the military. He is active in the Rotary Club of Pleasanton, several veterans groups and is a fixture at high school sports games and the Pleasanton Farmers Market.

Miller met his wife Marty, in San Francisco and the two have lived in Pleasanton since 1971. They have three sons, Christian, Jason and Mike.

Although Miller has stepped down as chairman of Pleasanton Mili-tary Families, he continues to take responsibility for the Yellow Banner Project on Main Street. In addition to updating ranks and replacing weathered banners, Miller personally delivers banners to the families of soldiers no longer in combat. It’s this kind of personal touch that is the hallmark of Miller’s service in the community.

“It was never too much for him to make that phone call or just go over,” said Pat Frizzell, who now co-chairs the Pleasanton Military Families group. “Those are the things that just come natural. He never looks for the praise. He just does it because it is the right thing to do. When you have a passion for things, which he certainly does, that’s what you do.”

CHRIS MILLER

▲ Miller and his wife Marty have three sons. Christian, 41, lives in Carmichael and is a project manager with ATT Wireless. Another son Jason, 38, a Reservist at a unit at Travis AFB with 19 years of service, works in Information Technology at Cummings West in Hayward. A third son Mike also is a Reservist in the 301st Airlift Squadron at Travis and is a firefighter/paramedic with the Foster City Fire Department.

▲ Miller’s most recent contribution was to help in the Pleasanton Military Families’ Christmas Pack Out to Pleasanton troops deployed in Afghanistan last weekend, where 260 boxes filled with non-perishable foods and personal necessities were packed, sealed and sent to those in the combat zones.

▲ Miller flew U.S. Army helicopters in Vietnam in 1963-64, finished his service in 1965 and moved to San Francisco where he flew commercial helicopters from 1965-1976.

▲ While a commercial helicopter pilot, he regularly saw returning Vietnam War veterans as they came through SFO being treated “awfully and with disrespect” by their fellow American citizens, prompting him to vow to never let that happen again if the U.S. engages in combat.

▲ He organized the Tri-Valley’s welcome home parade in Hacienda Business Park when the Gulf War.

▲ He co-founded the Pleasanton Military Families organization to help those with sons, daughters, husbands and wives serving in harm’s way, packing kits filled with supplies needed by those in the field, sending letters and building new and what have become lifelong friendships.

▲ Miller’s yellow banners fly on Pleasanton’s Main Street, which he updates regularly and clusters in family groups, with brothers, husbands, wives, and others grouped around the same pole. He personally delivers banners to the families of soldiers no longer in combat, a personal touch that is the hallmark of his service.

▲ Hero FYI

Community Spirit

by Jeb Bing

SHERRY WIGGINS

Chris Miller joins veterans in parade on Main Street Nov. 4.


Jeff Seaberg loves live theater — the chemical reaction when you put actors and an audience together. The Danville actor definitely elicits

a reaction onstage, whether he’s the Broadway scam artist in the title role of “The Producers,” as he was with Pleasanton’s Tri-Valley Repertory Theater, or performing in Danville’s zany cabaret comedy, “Wigged Out.” “I was bit by the stage bug at age 15,” said Seaberg, 54, “and have not sought out the cure.” But it’s in his role as a teacher that he is making even a greater difference in the Tri-Valley. When the Town of Danville was looking for someone to create a chil-dren’s theater program 10 years ago, he jumped at the chance. “I put together a proposal and have been doing it since 2003,” he said. KAOS (Kids Acting On Stage) drama camp for ages 7-14 runs for three two-week sessions in the summer, each ending with a production and a mini-movie. This year had its highest enrollment at 150. “We had 50 kids per session maximum, split into groups,” he said. “One week of camp is at Hap Magee Ranch, then we’re at the Village Theater. And the first week we do a mini-movie.” His after-school program, Theatre Performance Workshop, is also in its 10th year. “It’s not a star-making program, it’s an experiential program,” Seaberg said. “It covers the nuts and bolts involved in putting a production to-gether — auditioning, rehearsing and performing.” He noted that the class teaches life skills, including the ability to speak in public. It’s a safe place for shy children to come out of their shell. Other students are already outgoing and charismatic; they learn discipline. Now his theater group is preparing for a holiday production, written by Seaberg, “A Very Jingle Town Christmas,” which will play at the Village Theater, 233 Front St. in Danville, on Dec. 14-16. “It’s called a world premiere,” Seaberg said with a laugh. “There are some Christmas carols, some bravely doing solos.” He writes and publishes such plays as an inexpensive resource for other after-school programs, and said he’s improved his skills at populating his stories with in-teresting characters and dialog as well as good plots. “I appreciate existentialism but I like to know the journey is going to be completed,” he says. “I have 20-30 characters with a journey.” He tries to strike a balance with all these activities. “I love to perform, I love teaching and working with the kids, and direct-ing and being involved with productions,” he said. Seaberg majored in theater and English at North Central College in Na-perville, Ill., plus earned a teaching credential. By the age of 30 he’d mi-grated to the Bay Area to pursue his love of theater and teaching. He made a name for himself locally when he landed a role in “Reel Blondes,” and directed it as “Wigged Out” for 13 seasons. “Reel Blondes” was revived in the spring and preparations for the 2013 season are under way. “Three or four of us do most of writing,” Seaberg said. “We come up with a gazzilion ideas, then thin it down to a million, then take out ones that aren’t that funny.” But first Seaberg will have a leading role in Pleasanton at its Hometown Holiday Celebration on Dec. 1 as Santa Claus, which he says lets him feel “the rush of being a superstar.” “It’s really cool, but I can’t take it lightly,” Seaberg said. “I’m on my best behavior with the kids.” Seaberg recalls a crossroads in his life in 2003. Goodspeed theater in Connecticut, where many Broadway professionals got their start, called him for an audition. But the performance dates interfered with the chil-dren’s program he’d just proposed for the Town of Danville so he can-celled the audition. “I cancelled the audition,” he said. “My friend was aghast.” “It was a fork in the road but I knew I was right,” he added. “I’ve been very, very content with that decision. My life has been impacted, and hun-dreds of kids were equally impacted.”

JEFF SEABERG

▲ Jeff Seaberg’s earliest dra-matic role came as a young boy at his parents’ cocktail parties where he would circulate with a tray, dramatically posing the question: “Would you like an hors d’oeuvres?”▲ He was voted Class Clown in the eighth grade.▲ He played Riff in “West Side Story” at this high school; he later directed the musical in Alameda.▲ He received a prestigious Shellie Award as best actor in 1992 for his rendition of Bill Snibson in the Diablo Light Opera Company’s “Me and my Girl,” a role he’s done five times with four different the-ater groups.

▲ His original children’s plays include fairytales in his Gran-ny’s Bedtime Stories; his “Cap-tain Cool and the Righteous Dudes” series tells tales of su-perheroes.▲ Seaberg says it isn’t easy being an actor. “Theater peo-ple have to wear their hearts on their sleeves, from high to low, and be convincing — while being even-keeled in life,” he said. “That’s why a lot of actors are basket cases.”▲ What touches Seaberg most is when he is making a curtain call and the audience rises to its feet to applaud. “It almost moves me to tears,” he said.

▲ Hero FYI

Arts & Culture Award presented by Harrington Art Partnership

by Dolores Fox Ciardelli

Your Hero of the Tri-Valley

Gary & Nancy Harrington

COURTESY JEFF SEABERG

Actor, writer, producer and teacher Jeff Seaberg has been assisted at KAOS Camp and Theatre Performance Workshop during the last seven years by Stephanie Lauck.


Make your decorations special this yearReflect your personal taste and style on your tree, mantle and more

BY DOLORES FOX CIARDELLIWhere does one begin to deco-

rate for the holidays when we have so many choices at our fingertips? Not only do downtown specialty shops and department stores offer Santas, snowmen, stars, trees and all the glitters and glistens, even grocery stores and gas station shops have something to offer.

Maybe this year it’s time to take advantage of the wide range of selections and do something dif-ferent. If you usually just decorate a tree with your beloved old orna-ments, try changing it up, or add decorations to the mantle, the cof-fee table or elsewhere. Although traditions are important at this time of year, it’s also the time to try something new — if it works, make it a tradition, too.

Holiday decorations don’t just arrive on the scene via Santa and his elves. Merchandizers comb the

world all year for new tips and techniques to deck the halls and trim the perfect tree. “So many people settle for sim-ply hanging ornaments on their trees, but there is so much more you can do by adding fillers that really reflect your own personal taste and style,” said John Griffith, a merchandiser for Replacements Ltd. “Mixing in ribbon, fabrics, florals, feathers and other natural elements create flair and personal-ity. Adding extra flourishes in the right places can make the differ-ence between a pretty tree and an extraordinary tree.” Griffith says the hot colors for holiday 2012 range from soft pas-tels to rich jewel tones. Popular ornaments this season reflect the Victorian era, with glittering gem-stones and rhinestones being ex-tremely popular. Don’t be afraid to forgo the tra-

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ditional tree topper, he advises. Instead, consider using twigs or other natural elements arranged out of the top of your tree. Grif-fith has even strategically placed a tree beneath a chandelier for extra glow.

If you want to add another, smaller tree, try a corner tree or the flatter profile tree. Or, Griffith suggests, you may want to go in an entirely different direction.

“I am into repurposing and recy-cling, so I took the branches of an old artificial tree and wired them together to create swags, and then decorated those with combina-tions of fabrics, bows and orna-ments,” he said. “You can hang swags on a mantel or place them on top of a door frame. They’re a fun family project, and you can even create them with different color stories or themes for each room in your home.”

Tree ornaments are a subject in themselves, and the options are endless. Many people collect their ornaments for years, and viewing their trees is a trip down memory lane. Some friends have annual

ornament exchanges, resulting in eclectic collections. Ornaments can be gathered around the world to reflect differ-ent cultures; a tree’s decorations may stick to materials such as all wood, colors such as red or gold, or a theme such as angels or snowmen or even animals of Africa. In the 1950s it was de rigueur for Christmas trees to be deco-rated with fragile red balls, fat teardrop-shaped colored lights and silvery icicles to reflect it all. The next trend was to provide il-lumination with a spotlight with a color wheel trained on the tree. Then along came flocked trees, and those with metal branches. Now, most popular for their ease and practicality, are the artificial trees with build-in lights that fold up like umbrellas. From olde worlde decorations to sleek and modern, the impor-tant thing is to have fun with the season and make your home comfortably festive in a way that fits yourself and your family. DOLORES FOX CIARDELLI

This family of snowmen at Clover Creek downtown would brighten any home for the holidays.


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Bring Home the Holidays

The Pleasanton Weekly Holiday issues will feature articles dedicated to helping you make the holidays a sweet and joyous

time full of fun, family and friends.

November 30 - Holiday Happenings - Family and friends enjoy outings together

December 7 - All that Glitters - Light up your holidays

December 14 - Holiday Magic - Young eyes sparkle with excitement

December 21 - Peace and Joy - Special holiday memories

December 28 - Ring in 2013

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Welcome guests with a holiday wreathe

The front door is often the focal point of a house and the welcoming committee to guests as they approach your home. A great addition to any door is a beautiful wreath — either decorative or seasonal — to greet your guests and neighbors. Wreaths have been around a long time and were used in ancient Greece in har-vest rituals. In ancient Rome the wreath was a sign of victory. They were also used by pre-Christian Germanic people who would gather wreaths of evergreen and light fires to remind them of the hope of the approaching light of spring. By the 16th century, Christians were using the wreath to celebrate Advent and their hope in Christ, the everlast-ing light. The traditional Advent wreath has four candles nestled in a circle of evergreens with another candle in the middle. They are lit each week of De-cember leading up to Christmas, light-ing the inside candle on Christmas Eve. But for the last century, “wreath” has come to mean a ring of evergreens with a big red ribbon hung on the front door at Christmastime. Swags of greenery are also traditional. Although a lot of readymade wreaths are available for sale, it’s easy and fun to create a unique one for your front door. Visit a hobby shop for inspiration and raw materials. You can buy a basic circle and decorate it with almost anything —

ribbons, tree ornaments, greenery from your own garden, cutout snowflakes, pinecones, corks or candy canes. The list is endless. Artificial greenery gets more realistic looking each year as do pine sprays to provide the aroma. Don’t forget to put a big bow on the wreath as the finishing touch. The color — whether red, white or gold — can pull it all together.

You can’t go wrong with an old-fash-ioned evergreen wreath. The only problem is, they may not stay fresh throughout the entire season. Add a few pinecones and a big red bow and visitors will enter into the spirit of the season even as they ap-proach your home.

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Smuin’s ‘Christmas Ballet’ is this weekendSanta and sweets to follow matinee performance of sass and sizzle

Acclaimed dance company Smuin Ballet’s annual holiday extravaganza, “The Christmas Ballet,” will feature three world premiere works when it opens with three performanc-es this weekend at the Bankhead Theater in Livermore starting tonight. The Tri-Valley is the first stop for this Bay Area favorite, a daz-zling combination of classical ballet and rol-licking character numbers filled with all the sass and sizzle that has made San Francisco’s Smuin Ballet famous.

After the matinee performance tomorrow,

Smuin’s special “Santa’s Sweets” program will offer an extra treat for young people with Santa Claus waiting to greet members of the audience with complimentary sweets.

The evening performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. tonight and tomorrow. The Sat-urday matinee is at 2 p.m. Tickets for all performances are $14 for students and range from $43 to $63 for adults. Go to www.bank-headtheater.org or call 373-6800.

“The Christmas Ballet” was introduced in 1995 and is split into two halves, Clas-

sical Christmas and Cool Christmas. Music from traditional Bach and sacred carols, to klezmer, gospel, holiday standards and even a touch of Elvis, accompanies dances that range from classical ballet to true Broadway tapping.

The 2012 edition will debut three world premiere works including one for Classical Christmas, choreographed by Smuin artist Jane Rehm and set to the Canadian Brass version of “Here We Come-a-Wassailing.” Cool Christmas will feature “All I Want for Christmas,” choreographed by former Smuin artist Darren Anderson, and “No Christmas for Me,” set to music by Malaysian singer-songwriter Zee Avi.

In addition to the new works, the 2012 edition of “The Christmas Ballet” will wel-come the return of past favorites plus a piece choreographed by the late Michael Smuin to a majestic classical recording of “Ave Maria.”

Dancer and choreographer Michael Smuin formed Smuin Ballet in 1994, combining classical and contemporary dance elements. The Smuin Ballet will return to the Bankhead Theater in March with “The Best of Smuin Ballet.”

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HOLIDAY FUND

BY DOLORES FOX CIARDELLI All the talk is turkey these days at Open Heart Kitchen, which provides fresh hot meals in the Tri-Valley every weekday. “Now through Dec. 25 we need frozen turkeys,” reads a plea on its website. “Lots and lots and lots of turkeys!” Open Heart Kitchen needs one thousand turkeys for the holidays as it continues serving free hot meals five days a week to individuals and families in need. It depends on food and cash donations from individuals and campaigns such as the Holiday Fund. “We survive just by the generosity of the community,” said Executive Director Linda McKeever. The Holiday Fund money goes di-rectly to the programs, which served 237,000 meals in 2011, including hot meals alternating at sites in Pleasan-ton, Dublin and Livermore five days a week and meals for low-income seniors at Ridge View Commons on Case Avenue in Pleasanton. “This year we’re already at that number,” McKeever said. “We’re looking at a growth of 15%.” And this is after a surge during the last two years due to bad economic times. In 2010, Open Heart Kitchen served just under 217,000 meals, while in 2007, it served 161,000 meals. McKeever said they have also seen a greater need for their children’s box lunch program, which provides weekend meals for low-income chil-dren at their school sites. “We just started in the Pleasanton schools last year, and we will be add-ing more within the next month or so,” said McKeever. “We give them nutritious lunches for the weekend, and we also include younger sib-lings.” “We also are seeing an increase in the seniors’ need,” she added. “We now have a new program in Dublin where we deliver box lunches for low income seniors. And also we see more seniors at both meal programs. It’s a little harder for seniors to make ends meet right now.” Open Heart Kitchen serves anyone who walks in the door -- no ques-tions, no qualifying -- and everyone is welcome. There is a form, which is voluntary, so Open Heart Kitchen can know who it is serving. “Our guests are incredibly helpful with all of the process,” McKeever said. “It does help us to fill out the form, and they know that.” The guests can eat their meals at the tables set up by the volunteers or they can take their meals to go. “A lot of times one family member can come and get meals for the entire family, maybe they have someone working part-time,” McKeever said. “Our goal is to make sure the whole family is fed.” Guests include low-income fami-lies struggling to make ends meet; the unemployed and underem-ployed; seniors on fixed incomes; and the homeless. Open Heart Kitch-en serves as their safety net. Meals are planned weeks ahead of time by a nutritionist, each with pro-tein, starch, vegetable, green salad, fruit salad, bread, milk, coffee, tea

or juice and dessert. The food is prepared by volunteers, who do all the shopping, cooking, serving and cleanup. They must also be prepared to switch gears at a moment’s notice as sites can serve anywhere from 200 to 700 meals per day. Large dona-tions of perishables can change the menu at the last minute. “We’re predominately a volunteer organization and we’re very, very community friendly,” McKeever said. “A lot of people in the community are involved on the volunteer side and helping us do anything.” Volunteers range from individuals to those who join with others from their school, community and church. Some groups of friends come to help with a lunch. Open Heart Kitchen also works with Alameda County Community Food Bank, Axis Com-munity Health and other community groups whose aim is to promote nu-trition and feed those in need. Still there is always a need for vol-unteers, especially after the holiday season and throughout the year. “People are still hungry in the summertime,” McKeever noted. Last week Tri-Valley food pantries opened their new refrigeration and freezer storage, just in time to ac-commodate turkeys donated for the region’s hungry this holiday season. The new refrigeration/storage unit was made possible through a col-laboration of corporate, government and local nonprofit agencies, McK-eever said, plus the city of Pleasanton is providing a secure and centrally located site for the storage unit. Learn more at ww.openheartkitchen.org or call 580-1616.

Open Heart Kitchen feeds hungryNeed for meals in Tri-Valley is up 15% over last year

Dinner is served

■ Mondays, 4-6 p.m.: Crosswinds Church, 6444 Sierra Court, Dub-lin■ Tuesdays, Wednesdays, noon-6 p.m.: Asbury United Methodist Church, 4743 East Ave., Liver-more■ Thursdays, 4-6 p.m.: Vineyard Christian Fellowship, 460 N. Liv-ermore Ave.■ Friday, 4-6 p.m.: Trinity Luther-an Church, 1225 Hopyard Road■ Seniors (62-plus): Ridgeview Commons Senior Center, 5200 Case Ave., Pleasanton, 4-6 p.m. every weekday. Optional donation of $3.

SUE EVANS PHOTOGRAPHY.

Open Heart Kitchen has an enthusiastic corps of volunteers that shop, cook and serve meals, plus clean up afterward.

Scheduled to receive 75% are:

■ Axis Community Health■ Open Heart Kitchen ■ Pleasanton Partnerships in Education (PPIE)

Foundation■ Valley Humane Society■ ValleyCare Health System■ Hope Hospice

Receiving the other 25% are:

■ Pleasanton Cultural Arts Council■ REACH (Resources Education Activities Com-

munity and Housing) for special adults of the Tri-Valley

■ Sandra J. Wing Healing Therapies Foundation■ Senior Support Program of the Tri-Valley

The following agencies will be supported by the Holiday Fund.


ON THE TOWN

FundraisersHOLIDAY FOOD DRIVE Pleasanton CPA firm, JL Consulting, is coordi-nating a holiday food drive to ben-efit people in need served by the Alameda County Community Food Bank. Donations of nutritious non-perishable foods can be dropped off 9 a.m.-5 p.m. now through Friday, Dec. 14, at 1024 Serpentine Lane, Suite 105. Call 846-1859 or email [email protected].

TOY DRIVE FOR CHILDREN FIGHTING CANCER Downtown Pleasanton-based Wealth Management Associates is collecting new, unwrapped toys, books, games and art supplies for The Nicholas Colby Fund through Wednesday, Dec. 19 (http://www.nicholascolbyfund.org/Home/tabid/2285/Default.aspx). Donations can be made at the WMA offices, 400 Main St., #200, 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. For details, call Erin Haubner at 462-6007.

Holiday‘HOLIDAY SONGS OF JOY’ Valley Concert Chorale will present “Holiday Songs of Joy” at 3 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 2, at Trinity Lutheran Church, 1225 Hopyard Road. Joining the Chorale is the Tri-Valley’s Cantabella Children’s Chorus. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door; high school and college students, $10; free for children under 12. For tickets, call 866-4003 or visit www.valleyconcertchorale.org.

HOLIDAY TEDDY BEAR TEA FEATURING THE SNOW FAERIE Soroptimist International of Pleasanton Dublin is hosting a Holiday Teddy Bear Tea Party from 2-3:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 1, at the Highland Oaks Clubhouse, 4530 Sandalwood Dr. Girls should bring their favorite teddy bear to enjoy a lovely tea party with holi-day treats. And all the way from the North Pole, The Snow Faerie is planning a special visit to delight

you with her special magic and sing along. Cost: age 10 to adult, $20; and 5-9 years, $15. Visit www.si-pleasantondublin.org.

SEND THEM ‘HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS’ All the cats and dogs at the Valley Humane Society, 3570 Nevada St., want to be home with YOU for the holidays. Find yourself a warm and fuzzy critter to snuggle with and enjoy discounted adop-tion fees. “Home for the Holidays” runs through the month of December, during normal adoption hours. Closed Tuesday, Dec. 25. For details, call 426-8656 or visit www.valleyhumane.org.

LecturesTRI-VALLEY GRANT APPLICATION WORKSHOPS Livermore and Pleasanton will co-sponsor two appli-cation workshops for several 2013-14 grant programs, including Housing and Human Services (Pleasanton and Livermore), and Youth/Civic

Arts (Pleasanton). The first work-shop is 10 a.m.-noon, Tuesday, Dec. 4, at the Pleasanton City Council Chamber, 200 Old Bernal Ave. The second workshop is 2-4 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 6, at the Livermore City Council Chamber, 3575 Pacific Ave., Livermore. To RSVP, contact Terry Snyder at 931-5343 or [email protected].

Live MusicLIVERMORE-AMADOR SYMPHONY ‘CELEBRATING 50 SEASONS’ Dr. Arthur Barnes and the Livermore-Amador Symphony opens its Golden Season - the 50th - with music from Darter and Brahms that powerfully celebrates the orchestra’s half-century of musi-cal achievement. The music begins at 8 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 1, at Bankhead Theater, 2400 First St., Livermore. Tickets are $10-$29. Call 373-6800 or visit www.mylv-pac.com.

AMERICAN

Eddie Papa’s American Hangout

4889 Hopyard Road, Pleasanton, 469-6266. Winner of The Pleasanton Weekly’s Reader Choice Awards for “Best American Food,” “Best Meal under $20” and “Best Kid Friendly Restaurant,” Eddie Papa’s American Hangout celebrates the regional food and beverage cul-tures of America. Bring the whole family to enjoy iconic dishes from across the United States, Old World Hospitality, and hand crafted artisan cocktails. www.eddiepapas.com.

BY GLENN WOHLTMANN For most of Pleasanton, Village High School home economics teach-er Kit Little’s reputation precedes her. Anyone who’s tasted the food she and her classes create knows why. Little has been slowly and quiet-ly building her own food network, using a simple recipe. “I don’t do any advertising or marketing other than good food at a reasonable price and having standards that shine,” Little said.

She’s also got a knack for net-working, building relationships with everyone from Terra Bella Family Farm and other vendors to those who hire her and her stu-dents to cater their events, like the Rotary Club of Pleasanton. The home ec teacher was hon-ored — again — by the Pleasanton School Board at its latest meeting. That’s the latest in a long series of awards that began in 1976, when she won Home Economics Student Teacher of the Year from San Jose State University for her work at Foothill High School. She went on to win both district Teacher of the Year in 1995 and Alameda County Teacher of the Year in 1996. Despite winning the San Jose State award, Little wasn’t hired at Foothill

that first year, losing out to a teacher with more experience. The school was brand new at the time and out of 28 places she’d considered, it was the place she wanted to work. “I was distraught,” she recalled. But she did land a fulltime job with Dublin High, which was part of the Pleasanton district then, in 1978. By 1979, she was teaching home ec at Foothill. Little has been at Village for 11 years, but she said she was dubious when first invited to move to the district’s alternative high school. Foothill’s assistant principal Sheila Flynn was moving into the princi-pal’s job and wanted Little to move her program there. “I’d never seen Village and didn’t think I wanted to work there,” Little said. She was willing to listen, though, and went on a tour led by Flynn. “What did it was a student I’d had at Foothill that I’d tried every-thing with and just couldn’t reach. I walked into class and she was smil-ing and she was interacting, and I said, ‘This could be the place,’” Little said. She was unhappy with what the district had planned for Village’s home economics space, however, and spent the weekend drawing plans on graph paper. After a meet-ing with district officials that began a bit contentiously, those officials agreed with her. Little said the space was built “exactly according to that graph paper.” She teaches two catering classes that operate Village Catering, the school’s in-house business that gives students real world experience; two classes called Good Eats, which focus on preparing meals that are “nutri-

tious and delicious”; and a fifth class, which is work experience. Although Little offers her stu-dents from Village opportunities to get jobs in the food service industry — she has job postings on a wall of her classroom — only a half-dozen or so have made that their careers. That’s OK with her. She recog-nizes that the business is a tough one requiring people to work long hours including nights, weekends and holidays. “What I think is more important is to teach transferable skills. Lots of people get the wrong idea from the Food Network,” Little said. “I see the food as a vehicle for what I teach: organization, time manage-ment, teamwork, problem solving. All those transferable skills are re-ally important.”

Little runs a tight ship. Last week, while preparing Village High’s an-nual turkey feast — an annual meal served to all Village students, and for some, the only Thanksgiving they’ll have, according to Little — student and adult volunteers listened to an impromptu homily about safety. “These knives were sharpened this morning,” she told the dozen or so volunteers.

That didn’t stop a couple of minor cuts, which were quickly patched up and covered by plastic gloves. Village Catering is gearing up to do the Pleasanton Rotary’s an-nual holiday party. Last year, after hearing the Rotarians laughing and singing, one of her students ap-proached her and asked if that was what adult parties were like. When she said it was, that student said he couldn’t wait to be an adult. And, after spending 14 hours on their feet, another student told Little that she felt “exhilarated.” “’I’m always so hard on myself to do a good job,’” Little said the stu-dent told her. “’We did a good job.’” The Rotarians have decided to donate $1,800 to replace an indus-trial dishwasher. Little is now considering another big move. The bakery that provides bread for Terra Bella Family Farm recently went out of business and the owner approached Village ask-ing if Little would be willing to take on the task of baking for the farm’s weekly distribution to its members. She and her students just might rise to that opportunity.

TriValley LifeWHAT’S HAPPENING AROUND THE VALLEY — MUSIC, THEATER, ART, MOVIES AND MORE

PEOPLE AND LIFESTYLESIN OUR COMMUNITY

Food networkingHome ec teacher feasts on sharing culinary skills

GLENN WOHLTMANN

Clockwise from above: Kit Little instructs a team of volunteers who came to slice birds for Village High’s annual turkey feast; a quesadilla platter, and chocolate strawberries, both made by Village Catering.

Special Awards and Accomplishments

1976 San Jose State University Home Economics Student Teacher of the Year

1995 Teacher of the Year, Pleasan-ton Unifi ed School District

1996 Teacher of the Year, Alameda County

1996 CA Department of Educa-tion, Selected One of Top 10 Teachers in California

2000 National Leavey Award for Private Enterprise Education

2006 Community of Character Award, 2006 (City of Pleasan-ton & Chamber of Commerce)

2007 Food Service and Hospitality Exemplary Program, Continu-ation Educators Association

2008 Dream, Dare, Do Award (Home Economics Teachers of California)

2012 Tri-Valley YMCA Martin Luther King Legacy Award

2012 PUSD Certifi cate of Recogni-tion for the Village Catering Program

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560 Employment Information

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from Home! No Experience Necessary! Call our Live Operators Now! 1-800-405-7619 EXT 2450 http://www.easywork-greatpay.com (AAN CAN)

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placement assistance. Computer avail-able. Financial Aid if qualified. SCHEV authorized. Call 800-481-9472 www.

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Driver: Choose Hometime $0.01 increase per mile after 6 months and 12 months.$0.03 Quarterly Bonus. Requires 3 months recent experience. 800-414-9569 www.driveknight.com

Drivers: 12 Needed Apply Now! T 5% Pay & Late Model Equip. Guaranteed Home for Xmas, Need CDL Class A Driving Exp. 877-

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EARN $500 A DAY Airbrush & Media Makeup Artists

For: Ads - TV - Film - Fashion Train & Build Portfolio in 1 week

Lower Tuition for 2012 AwardMakeupSchool.com

Help Wanted!!! Make $1000 a week mailing brochures

from home! FREE Supplies! Helping Home-Workers since 2001! Genuine Opportunity! No experience required.

Start Immediately! www.mailing-usa.com (AAN CAN)

NEW inventions and Product IDEAS WANTED!

Free info & confidential consultation on your idea at DAVISON. Call toll free at 1-800-428-5116 Today. Fee-based

service.

Corner Bakery Caf√© - NOW HIRING!

NOW HIRING FOR A CORNER BAKERY CAF√â DECEMBER GRAND OPENING!!

Buon Hospitality is opening its first Corner Bakery Caf√© new location in Pleasanton, CA! We are hiring for all

positions, including Cashiers, Kitchen Staff, Line Cooks, Catering Drivers, and

more! Corner Bakery Caf√© opened its first location in 1991 and now oper-ates 124 locations across the country. Known for its innovative menu featuring a wide variety of egg scramblers and oatmeal for breakfast, flavorful sand-

wiches and signature panini, homemade soups, signature salads, fresh baked

goods and an extensive catering menu, CORNER BAKERY CAF√â has been

delighting guests nationwide with fresh, made-to-order meals in a welcoming and cozy atmosphere for 20 years.

We are looking for people who have a passion for food, retail and customer service! Our ideal candidate will be a self-starter, motivated, dependable,

and have the ability to work in a fast-paced environment. To be successful in this position, you must have strong

communication, interpersonal, and cus-tomer service skills. Restaurant/food service experience preferred. Under

the supervision of a focused and driven management team, you will have many opportunities for career advancement!

Buon Hospitality employees receive out-standing benefits, training and develop-ment! To apply, go to our website www.Work4PCandF.com or call 1-855-4-PCF-Jobs! If you have a love for the restau-

rant industry and customer service, this could be the career for you!

*Resumes submitted through this ad will not be considered*

Buon Hospitality is an EOE (Equal Opportunity Employer).

BUSINESSSERVICES

615 ComputersMy Computer Works

Computer problems? Viruses, spyware, email, printer issues, bad internet co nections - FIX IT NOW! Professional, U.S.- based technicians. $25 off ser-

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(Cal-SCAN)

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645 Office/Home Business Services

Classified Advertising The business that considers itself immune to advertising, finds itself

immune to business. Reach Californias with a Classified ad in almost every

county! Over 270 newspapers! Combo~California Daily and Weekly Networks. Free Brochures. elizabeth cnpa.com or (916)288-6019. (Cal-

SCAN)

Classified Advertising Advertise in 240 California newspapers

for one low cost. Your 25 word clas-sified ad will reach over 6 million+

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Display Business Card Ad Many a small thing has been made

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card sized ad in 140 California newspapers for one low cost. Reach over 3 million+ Californians. Free bro-chure [email protected] (916)288-

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HOME SERVICES

751 General Contracting

NOTICE TO READERS >It is illegal for an unlicensed person to perform contracting work on any project val-

ued at $500.00 or more in labor and materials. State law also requires

that contractors include their license numbers on all advertising. Check

your contractor’s status at www.cslb.ca.gov or 800-321-CSLB (2752).

Unlicensed persons taking jobs that total less than $500.00 must state

in their advertisements that they are not licensed by the Contractors

State License Board

A NOTICE TO READERS: It is illegal for an unlicensed person

to perform contracting work on any project valued at $500.00 or more in labor and materials. State law also requires that contractors include their license numbers on

all adverti ing. Check your contrac-tor’s status at www.cslb.ca.gov or 800-321-CSLB (2752). Unlicensed persons taking jobs that total less than $500.00 must state in their advertisements that they are not licensed by the Contractors State

License Board.

809 Shared Housing/Rooms

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www.Roommates.com. (AAN CAN)

825 Homes/Condos for Sale

Oceanfront Condos Luxury 2BR/2BA was $850k now

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800-511-2430, x 440.

LEGALS

995 Fictitious Name StatementFOUNDATION REPAIR OF CA FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT File No.: 471427 The following person(s) doing business as: Foundation Repair of CA, 2174 Rheem Dr., Ste. A, Pleasanton, CA 94588, is hereby registered by the fol-lowing owner(s): SMP Construction & Maintenance, Inc., 2174 Rheem Dr., Ste. A, Pleasanton, CA 94588. This business is conducted by a Corporation. Registrant began transacting busi-ness under the fictitious business name(s) listed herein on June 1, 2012. Signature of Registrant(s): Mark Phelps. This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Alameda on Oct. 31, 2012. Pleasanton Weekly. Published Nov. 16, 23, 30 and Dec. 7, 2012.

fogster.com THE TRI-VALLEY’S CLASSIFIEDS WEB SITEPLACE AN AD IN FOGSTER ONLINE - fogster.com E-MAIL - [email protected] PHONE - (925) 600-0840

Twinkle, Twinkle

Twinkle is a 2-year-old, domestic longhair, white and brown tabby female. “Twinkle’s name really matches her personality,” say the volunteers at the East Bay SPCA’s Dublin Adoption Center. “She is a little gem with beautiful markings, big soulful eyes and lovely spirit. She is a true love bug who is happy to be stroked while she purrs or kneads in your lap. If you are looking for a cat that enjoys togetherness, come meet Twinkle.” The center is located at 4651 Gleason Drive in Dublin. To see other animals available for adoption, visit www.eastbay-spca.org or call 479-9670.

PET OF THE WEEK

PLACE AN AD

ONLINEfogster.com

E-MAIL [email protected]

PHONE (925) 600-0840

Fogster.com is a unique Web site offering post-ings from communities throughout the Bay Area and an opportunity for your ad to appear in the Pleasanton Weekly.

Now you can log on to fogster.com, day or night and get your ad started immediately online.

So, the next time you have an item to sell, barter, give away or buy, get the perfect combination: print ads in your local newspa-pers, reaching more than 35,000 readers, and unlim-ited Web postings reaching hundreds of thousands additional people!

INDEX BULLETIN BOARD100-155

FOR SALE 200-270

KIDS STUFF 330-355JOBS 510-585 BUSINESS SERVICES 600-690HOME SERVICES 700-799 FOR RENT/ FOR SALE REAL ESTATE 801-860 PUBLIC/ LEGAL NOTICES 995-997

The publisher waives any and all claims or consequential damages due to errors. Embarcadero Publishing Co. cannot assume responsibility for the claims or performance of its advertisers. Embarcadero Publishing Co. reserves the right to refuse, edit or reclassify any ad solely at its discretion without prior notice. ANTIQUE RESTORATION

“A Labor of Love” Impeccable Quality

Integrity of Workmanship 925-462-0383 or 925-216-7976

All inclusive License #042392

REAL ESTATETO RESPOND TO ADS WITHOUT

PHONE NUMBERS GO TO

FOGSTER.COM



Real Estate OPEN HOME GUIDE AND REAL ESTATE LISTINGS

BY JEB BING Favorable home prices and record-low interest rates, combined with high demand and a severe shortage of available housing, have created a highly competitive housing market in California with nearly six in ten home sales receiving multiple of-fers. In its “2012 Annual Housing Mar-ket Survey,” the California Associa-tion of Realtors reports that 57% of home sales received multiple offers in 2012, the highest in at least the past 12 years. Each home received an average of 4.2 offers, up from 3.5 offers in 2011. Lower priced homes, typically real estate-owned (REO) or short sales, attracted more multiple offers than equity sales. Seven of 10 REO sales and short sales received multiple of-fers, while only half of equity sales received more than one offer. “Well-qualified buyers are recog-nizing the once-in-a-generation op-portunity to purchase a home in California and are jumping into the market,” said CAR President LeFran-cis Arnold. “However, the fierce market con-ditions have forced many buyers

to compete with all-cash offers and investors, setting off multiple offers and bidding wars, making it even more difficult for first-time buyers to become homeowners,” he added. The competitive housing environ-ment led to more properties being sold at or above the list price, with 41% of homes selling without a markdown from the asking price, the highest since 2005 and up from a long-run average of 32%. Additionally, homes sold faster in 2012, with equity sales selling in 32 days compared with 67 days in 2011. REOs took 30 days to sell compared with 50 days in 2011, and short sales took 90 days compared with 141 days in 2011, reflecting the still-difficult process. Other key findings from CAR’s “2012 Annual Housing Market Sur-vey” include:■ Nearly one-third (30%) of all home buyers paid with all cash in 2012, more than triple what it was in 2001, when nearly 9% of buyers paid all cash.■ Demand for investment properties and second homes remained strong in 2012. Sixteen percent of sales were to investors, and 7% were to

buyers who purchased a second or vacation home. The remaining 77% purchased the home as a primary residence.■ International buyers made up 5.8% of sales in 2012, relatively unchanged from 5.7% in 2011. Buy-ers from China, Canada, India and Mexico made up the vast majority of international buyers at 39.1%, 13%, 8.7%, and 8.7%, respectively.■ While still below the long-run av-erage of 39%, the share of first-time buyers rose from 34.2% in 2011 to 35.8% in 2012, thanks to improved housing affordability resulting from low interest rates and affordable home prices.■ First-time buyers were attracted to distressed properties because of their lower price point. Forty percent of all first-time buyers bought either an REO or short sale in 2012, down from 44.3 in 2011. The decrease was primarily due to a shortage of inven-tory of distressed properties.■ Reflecting tighter lending stan-dards, very few home buyers have a second mortgage. The share of home sales with a second mortgage has fallen dramatically from a high of 43.4% in 2006 to 1.8% in 2012.

57% of homes on market now getting multiple offers High demand, shortage of homes making California housing more competitive

HOME SALES

This week’s data represents homes sold during October 2012

Dublin8098 Brittany Drive J. & T. Petero to P. Balakrishnan for $790,000

11598 Estrella Court K. Tipton to E. Ricci for $585,000

3616 Finnian Way A. Chan to T. & H. Van for $370,000

6020 Hillbrook Place F. Montifar to T. Tramblie for $480,000

4978 Houlton Court P. & M. Bamford to J. & C. Levalley for $731,000

3374 Monaghan Street P. Messier to A. Singh for $350,000

4793 Perugia Street Sorrento at Dublin Ranch to S. & C. McRee for

$562,500

4837 Perugia Street Sorrento at Dublin Ranch to N. Chan for $447,500

4436 Roscommon Way HPROF Limited to K. Chitrapu for $722,000

4866 Shelton Street M. Milz to L. Ruan for $690,000

Livermore5403 Carnegie Loop J. Grammatica to B. & G. Williams for $765,000

1446 Chateau Common #204 L. Dagosta to L. Abad for $157,500

1887 Corte Cava S. & M. Hashimy to A. & J. Liu for $363,500

5726 Edelweiss Way B. & G. Williams to Bauer Trust for $596,000

523 Heligan Lane #4 T. Vargas to D. & C. McLaughlin for $512,000

290 Jami Court W. & M. James to J. Choate for $510,000

1141 Meadow Drive S. & K. Kanaparthy to Y. Hu for $370,000

1879 Meadow Glen Drive F. Dickey to R. Bozinoski for $565,000

950 Norfolk Road E. Corsi to S. Moppin for $381,500

See SALES on Page 23


258 North M Street Desai Trust to A. Jain for $200,000

1828 Pepperwood Common JP Morgan Chase Bank to B. Ghafoor for $440,000

2192 Percheron Road A. & D. Dieckmann to B. Fletcher for $440,000

3943 Stanford Way L. Perez to M. & L. Hughes for $299,000

907 Via Seville P. Nunes to J. Long for $415,000

Pleasanton2158 Arroyo Court Ann Apartments to P. Wong for $228,000

5090 Blackbird Way Kelley Trust to S. & S. Stenning for $737,000

4368 Diavila Avenue K. & C. Resinger to S. Kesavalu for $625,000

3019 East Ruby Hill Drive C. & E. Beltran to M. & J. Lau for $1,435,000

4275 Holland Drive A. & M. Amiri to F. Sandico for $530,000

4697 Klamath Court Furrer Trust to Y. Zhang for $695,000

3364 Ledgestone Court Nicholas Trust to I. Harrosh for $1,655,000

5419 Montalvo Court Reichling Trust to D. & A. Johnson for $490,000

6785 Paseo Catalina T. Loo to V. & N. Divakar for $710,000

3541 Pimlico Drive D. Timblin to J. Jose for $549,000

2461 Romano Circle Bklg Trust to S. Prathnadi for $1,209,500

2730 Spinosa Court A. & Y. Sudra to C. Yan for $710,000

2308 Via Espada Goon Trust to C. Pang for $752,000

3837 Vineyard Avenue #B Federal Home Loan Mortgage to Y. Mino for $100,000

4862 Woodthrush Road Cummings-Davidian Trust to D. & M. Cavander for $795,000

apr.com | PLEASANTON 900 Main Street 925.251.1111

Sylvia DesinDirect: 925.621.4070Cell: [email protected]# 01280640

Sold

Sold

Sale Pending

Sold

Sale Pending

147 Ramona Road, DanvilleStunning, brand new custom home on a quiet street, yet just blocks from Danville’s charming downtown. Huge lot, gorgeous hardwood fl oors, incredible chef’s kitchen. Represented Buyer. 4 bedrooms, 3 baths. Sold for $1,130,000.

1063 Crellin Road, PleasantonBeautiful home in Vintage Hills. Private yard with pool and spa, vaulted ceilings, light and bright home with 2 master suites, including 1 on the main level. Represented Buyer. Sold for $720,000.

80 Cherry Street, ChicoDarling income property, across the street from the Chico State campus. Ideal for the parent investor. 2 bedrooms, 1 bath. Offered at $200,000. Representing buyer.

861 Chateli Court, PleasantonGorgeous tri-level on a court in the desirable Vintage Hills neighborhood. Large private yard with a pool, gleaming hard wood fl oors, remodeled kitchen and baths. 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths. Sold for $800,000.

762 Bonita Avenue, PleasantonCompletely remodeled beauty in Pleasanton Heights. Wood fl oors throughout, gorgeous kitchen and baths, sparkling pool and spa. Pending with multiple offers. 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths. Offered at $819,000.

Inventory in the Tri-Valley is extremely low, and there are

plenty of motivated buyers. Multiple offers are once again

becoming the norm. If you are considering selling your home,

give me a call for a free, no obligation market analysis.

apr.com | PLEASANTON 900 Main Street 925.251.1111

Anni Hagfeldt925.519.3534

[email protected] | annihagfeldt.com

“I work for you…it’s that simple!”

Recently Sold Homes

4246 Remillard Ct., Pleasanton $1,324,000

2541 Corte Bella, Pleasanton $1,086,000

4014 Jackie Ct., Pleasanton $560,000

168 Gillette Place, Livermore $346,000

The Real Estate Market is continually changing, now more than ever it is

important to contact a professional Realtor. If you or someone you know is thinking

of buying or selling a property, I would be happy to provide them with my personal

and professional service.

Wishing you all a wonderful Holiday Season

Represented Buyer!

REAL ESTATE

OPEN HOMES THIS WEEKENDPleasanton5 BEDROOMS

3273 Novara Way $2,925,000Sun 1-4 Fabulous Properties 980-0273

Source: California REsource

Visit pleasantonweekly.com/realestate for sales information, current listings and open homes.

For marketing opportunities call Dana Santos at 600-0840, x110.

SALESContinued from Page 22

5994 W. Las Positas, Suite 101, Pleasanton | www.KWTrivalley.com | 459 Main Street, Pleasanton Broker License #01395362

925.463.0436 www.SoldinaFlash.com

REALTORS®, GRI, CRS, SRES

Understated elegance and breathtaking views from this custom home in Grey Eagle Estates. 4 bedrooms, 2 dens and a media room that could also be a wonderful in law set up or guest quarters. Grand marble foyer entrance with old world woodwork and dramatic spiral staircase. Large gourmet granite kitchen with stainless steel appliances and stunning hardwood floors! Offered at $1,690,000 4 Grey Eagle Court, Pleasanton

[email protected] | www.teamsanch.com

Personalized service is always in season

Cristin Kiper Sanchez925.580.7719

DRE #01479197

Now is the time to explore your real estate options.

Let me put my knowledge to work for you today.

Gail BoalREALTOR®DRE # 01276455

925.577.5787www.gailboal.com

4571 Mohr Avenue

Gorgeous remodeled home! All the bells and whistles! Just move in!

Offered at $699,000

MULTIPLE OFFERS AND SOLD IN ONE WEEKEND!

Ingrid Wetmore, Natalie Kruger& Lisa Sterling-Sanchez

Keller Williams Tri-Valley Realty925.918.0986 | 925.847.5377 | 925.980.9265

DRE 00923379, 01187582, 01012330

Cindy and Gene WilliamsREALTORS® DRE # 01370076 and 00607511

925.918.2045www.williamsteam.net

89 Terra Way, South LivermoreGreat home for entertaining! 3325 sq ft, four bedrooms plus loft (5th bedroom option), gourmet kitchen, tons of upgrades, 3-car garage, low-maintenance backyard and courtyard. Offered at $875,000

PENDING!

Uwe MaerczREALTOR® DRE # 01390383

925.360.8758 www.realestatebyuwe.com

831 Bricco Court, Ruby Hill Mediterranean elegance with expansive, main level casual living areas open to one another, incl. a huge kitchen. Formal living room with cof-fered ceiling, cast-stone fireplace, built-in cabinetry and faux wall finish. Lower level built to entertain pool table & movie theatre, wine cellar and more. $3,499,000 www.831BriccoCourt.com

Melissa PedersonREALTOR® DRE # 01002251

[email protected]

www.melissapederson.com

1817 Spumante Place, PleasantonExquisite French country estate on a one of a kind lot in Ruby Hill w/5 BD, 4.5 BA, 6,374 sq. ft. The gourmet kitchen features top of the line appliances, granite counters, maple cabinets & hickory floors. Spectacular view lot w/black bottom pool, rock waterfall and spa. Offered at $2,600,000

DeAnna ArmarioREALTOR® DRE # 01363180

925.260.2220 www.armariohomes.com

4444 Foothill Road, PleasantonShort sale. 4 BR and 2.5 BA. 3507 +/- sq. ft. Absolutely stunning! Completely rebuilt in 2005, this custom, single story home offers a view from every window, including Mt. Diablo and the surrounding hills. Beautifully updated throughout with fantastic gourmet kitchen. Huge 2.26 +/- acre lot includes an entertainer’s backyard with pool and spa. Offered at $1,650,000

Pending

3273 Novara Way - Pleasanton (Ruby Hill)

5 bed/4 full and 2 half bath, 7800 sq. ft. Grand French Estate on .6 acre

lot. Exquisite details include Brazilian Cherry and French Limestone

floors, beautiful gourmet kitchen, crown molding and wainscoting. Golf

course view and rose gardens. Offered at $2,925,000

Open Sun 1-4

#1 Office in Pleasanton

in Volume and Sales

We’re grateful for all those special people and times that have touched a place in our hearts — thank you for selecting us as your real estate professional. We value and appreciate the relationships we’ve built.

From our family to yours, may this Thanksgiving & holiday season be one that memories are made of!

3 years in a row!

201020112012

pleasanton weekly 11.23.2012 - section 1

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