The state park’s Plover Watch volunteer program is seeking more volunteers to monitor and protect the snowy plovers and their habitat.  During the plover nesting season, from March to September, each volunteer spend at least four hours per month on the beach.  Volunteers receive ongoing natural history training, free passes for local state parks, and the satisfaction that they are helping preserve an important part of California’s natural environment. 

A free, one-day training workshop for prospective Plover Watch volunteers will be offered on two dates at the Half Moon Bay State Beach office located at 95 Kelly Avenue, in Half Moon Bay.  The workshop will be held on Saturday, March 15, and again on Saturday, April 5, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  To register for one of the workshops or for more information, call Ranger Nelle Lyons at (650) 726-8804, voice mailbox 7 #, or e-mail [email protected].

Along the San Mateo County coast, trained volunteers play a major role in protecting the Western Snowy Plover—a small shorebird that lays its eggs on the sand at a few California beaches every summer. 

The snowy plovers, which are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, may be found on several local beaches during the winter months.  In the spring and summer, the plovers congregate on the few beaches that can provide safe nesting sites, including Half Moon Bay State Beach—a busy recreational beach where a protected habitat is set aside for the plovers to nest.

The Midcoast Community Council will have an special meeting to discuss street access through the Seal Cove neighborhood due to the closure of Ocean Blvd. The meeting will be an informal discussion of alternatives, funding, assessments, and related issues. The meeting will be at Seton Medical Center Coastside, Marine Boulevard & Etheldore, Moss Beach. Take Highway 1 to Marine Boulevard and follow hospital signs uphill. MCC attendees must park in upper parking lot.

The Half Moon Bay Beautification Committee is accepting applications for their annual grants. The deadline is March 31.

Last year, the committee awarded $104,000 Coastside non-profits, educational organizations and municipal agencies. Funding for the grants comes from the annual Art & Pumpkin Festival, which is organized and operated by the Beautification Committee.

San Mateo County is offering anyone who lives or works in the County an opportunity to tour a jail, meet elected officials, watch a mock trial in a real courtroom and face the challenge of balancing a government budget by enrolling in the Spring 2008 Citizens Academy.

Forty participants will meet on eight consecutive Tuesday evenings and for two special Saturday field trips beginning April 1. More than 300 people have graduated from Citizens Academy since the Board of Supervisors launched it in 1999.

Each meeting will focus on a particular aspect of San Mateo County services. Presenters will include representatives from the District Attorney’s Office, Sheriff’s Office, Health Department, Human Services Agency, Planning and Building, Public Works, Library services and others.

Applications are due Friday, March 21. Click below for more information.

Comcast bused in thirty or forty paid seat warmers for an FCC hearing on network neutrality at Harvard University, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. Network neutrality is the doctrine that network owners (such as Comcast and AT&T) cannot discriminate against any content in favor of other content—such as content they own or have been paid to carry.

An official at Free Press, a nonprofit advocacy group that has criticized Comcast for limiting the amount of data some of its customers send over its network, accused the cable company of "stacking the deck" at the hearing with the 30 to 40 "seat-warmers." An official at Harvard said dozens of real participants were left standing outside the auditorium with placards.

"They were taking seats away from other citizens who had a right to be there," said Catherine Bracy, administrative manager for the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at the Harvard Law School. "It was a PR thing. [Comcast] wanted more people in the room who were sympathetic."

The FCC is considering holding another hearing at Stanford.

First Annual Camp Jones Gulch Open House
April 13, 1-3 p.m.

Camp Jones Gulch, a branch of the YMCA of San Francisco, a resident camp located five miles south of La Honda on Pescadero Road is holding an Open House event on Sunday, April 13 from 1-3 PM.

This is a great opportunity to see the camp facility, take a tour of the property, participate in activity areas and purchase a ticket to our Kids to Camp barbeque. Everyone is welcome to attend this inaugural annual event.

Camp Jones Gulch is home to a variety of YMCA led programs including summer and winter resident camp for youth ages 8-17, family camps, parent-child programs and community events.
 
In addition, it is the host site for the San Mateo and San Joaquin County Outdoor Education programs provide opportunities for 5th and 6th graders to participate in environmental education programs. Additional user groups include; scout troops and jamborees, youth-based organizations, music camps, 4-H, and tai-chi and yoga retreats.

For more information, to pre-register for the free Open House program or to purchase tickets to the Kids to Camp barbecue fundraiser, contact our front office at (650) 747-1200.

www.campjonesgulch.org

The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (MROSD) has selected Stephen E. Abbors as the District’s new general manager. Mr. Abbors will replace Craig Britton, who is retiring on April 11 after 14 years as general manager and 30 years of service to the district.

Abbors began his professional career as a naturalist with the East Bay Regional Park District, and in 1984 accepted a position with the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD). Since then, he has served in various capacities at EBMUD, most recently as Manager of Watershed and Recreation. Abbors will be responsible for day-to-day operations of the District’s nearly 56,000 acres of open space.

The district received 37 applications, reviewed a short list of 13 candidates, and interviewed five.

The Coastside County Water District board is holding a retreat Tuesday, March 4 at the Comfort Inn in Half Moon Bay from 8:30am to 4pm. Agenda items include getting better acquainted, rules of engagement, roles, SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats), and priority goals for the strategic plan.

Michael Niece, 65, director of Coastside Catholic Worker, plans to surrender shortly to the San Mateo County Jail for a ten-day sentence, reports the Chronicle.

"I’d rather get this over with now," Niece said quietly to his attorney after Judge Carl Holm of San Mateo County Superior Court gave him about a month to get his affairs in order.

Holm ultimately ordered Niece to surrender Saturday. He will be eligible for the sheriff’s work program, meaning he will probably serve his time picking up trash rather than sitting behind bars.

Niece was also given two years’ probation and was directed to continue counseling. The judge also told him to stay away from the victim.

Niece was taped offering a needy client $500 for sex. Coastside Catholic Worker is now closed.

Recent Half Moon Bay events and court cases are making national news.  After reading about the following land use decisions and transactions, one can make an interesting observation:

•  Wavecrest Partners sold 208 acres to Peninsula Open Space Trust for 13.1 million.  That’s $63,000 per acre.

•  Nurserymen’s Exchange sold 22 acres to the City of Half Moon Bay for $3.1 million.  That’s $155,000 per acre.

•  In the Yamagiwa lawsuit against the City of Half Moon Bay, Judge Walker’s decision awarded Yamagiwa $38 million for 24 acres.  That’s $1.6 million per acre – 1.6 million!

Judge Walker’s decision seems out of proportion to any sense of reality.  Land values aren’t rising that fast.

Gael Erickson
P.O. Box 2905
El Granada, CA 94018