The general population is invited to join us at Cunha for "Coffee With the Principal" on Friday, April 24th starting at 8:00 am and going for about 45 mins. It will be in the Community Schools Center in E Building where the old library used to be. It’s a great opportunity to meet Mr. Michael Andrews, Principal of Cunha, get your questions answered and see some of the new construction.
How Cuba Survived Peak Oil
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990, Cuba’s economy went into a tailspin. Imports of oil were cut by more than half and food by 80 percent. People were desperate!
The Power of Community shows how Cuba transformed itself from an imported oil glutton to a surprisingly resilient country with an economy rooted in localized food and energy production. "It shows a glimpse of what is possible when a community reinvests its financial, educational and social capital in its own people and the systems that sustain life - food, energy, and health care." Alisa Kane "We have a lot to learn from this unlikely role model!"
ARTE CUBANO: Contemporary Art & Culture In Cuba
Director Bob Freimark’s roadtrip movie focuses a spotlight on the art of contemporary Cuba. What he discovered was a exotic artistic landscape untainted by the market-driven forces that have shaped the work of Cuban expatriates. Who says a 50 year embargo can’t provide positive benefits?
Contemporary Cuban music before the screening
The Film Society’s own Warren Haack will introduce the films and play some contemporary Cuban music he collected last month when he was in Cuba.
For more info and a trailer see: http://www.HMBFilm.org
Fri. April 24, 7:30 pm (music at 7:00)
777 Miramontes, Half Moon Bay (Corner of Johnston & Miramontes)
$6.00 adults, $3.00 children
The Coastside Land Trust will hold a Francis Beach restoration event on Saturday, April 25, 12:30–3 pm.
The best time to remove spring non-native annual plants is before their roots are well-established and before they start to produce seeds. This Saturday, after a discussion of native and invasive plant strategies for surviving drought, we will identify non-native and native plants and selectively remove non-natives to help our natives thrive.
Please join us; children and families are always welcome. Check in at the Francis State Beach kiosk at Kelly and the Pacific Ocean, and proceed north on the maintenance road to the maintenance sheds. Our properties are on the east side of the maintenance road. Refreshments, California Poppy seeds, good humor and appreciation are provided for all ages and abilities.
Jo Chamberlain
Executive Director
Dick Conte with Laurie Antonioli, Susan Muscarella with Nicholas Bearde, Michael Longo Trio with Margie Baker. Three jazz piano trios with vocalists will perform in honor of the Jazzschool in Berkeley: the Dick Conte Trio with Laurie Antonioli vocals (4 to 5 pm); the Susan Muscarello Trio with Nicholas Bearde vocals (5:10 to 6 pm) ; and the Michael Longo Trio with Margie Baker vocals (6:30 to 7:30 pm). $30
Doors open at 3 pm for buying tickets and claiming seats. Members can make email reservations and receive priority seating $5 discount for those under 25; children free if they do not occupy a seat
The 37th Annual Wildflower Show, the premier botanical and horticultural event of the South Bay and Peninsula, will take place at Mission College in Santa Clara over the weekend of April 25-26, 2009, 10am to 4pm.
The Wildflower Show is a two-day expo showcasing the plant biodiversity of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. In April many native plants are in full bloom, providing a breathtaking display of natural beauty. At the show, over 400 species of wildflowers and native plants are displayed, each accurately labeled, many suitable for the home garden.
Many special activities take place in conjunction with the wildflower show. Free classes are offered on native plant identification and gardening with native plants. Knowledgeable botanists and gardeners are on hand to answer questions. Native plants, books, posters, seeds, note cards, and other wildflower-related items are available for purchase. There is a children’s activities table.
The Wildflower Show is a well-known and loved tradition in the South Bay and the Peninsula. Organized by the Santa Clara Valley chapter of the California Native Plant Society, this educational event is free and open to the public, and suitable for the entire family. Here one can learn about the breathtaking diversity of California’s native flora, and pick up ideas for the home garden.
The venue is the Mission College Hospitality Management Building, conveniently accessible from the Great America Parkway exit off Highway 101 in Santa Clara. Free parking is available in Lot C only. The Wildflower Show is sponsored by the Mission College Biological Sciences Department. For more information, visit www.cnps-scv.org,email [email protected],or call 650-941-1068
Erin Tormey is the director of the Coastside Farmer’s Market
We are only weeks away from Opening Day 2009, and boy, are my arms tired.
And they look great too, as a result of a flurry of activity that ranges from serious bouts of weed-pulling to double-arm, overhead waving at bureaucrats to high-five hijinks as one by one the requisite papers pile up in triplicate, trying to keep my hat on while planting and pruning in the wind, and returning the cheerful waves and hollers from across the street from many y’all asking when Opening Day is - so thanks, Marketeers, for the tony forearms and bulging biceps!
I am happy to report that we are on track to open the Season at 9 AM on Saturday, May 2nd in Half Moon Bay, and a subsequent wing-dang-doodle at 2:30 PM at Rockaway Beach in Pacifica on Wednesday May 6th, thanks to the generosity of our fabulous cadre of Market Sponsors, the newly formed and very much appreciated Friends of the Farmers Market, the nimbleness of soem very friendly though somewhat harrried City staff, and the Carrubba Family who are once again donating the space for the Half Moon Bay Market in Shoreline Station.
Fun news this season is that in addition to our long loved and hardworking stalwarts, there are several new organic farms emerging in our area which will be joining us this season including Fifth Crow from Pescadero, Potrero Nuevo from Half Moon Bay, GreenHearts Farm and this season we welcome C&MP farms, one of the few organic olive grower & bottlers in California, and the only one that grows the Kalamata type olives locally. They will join our Coastal Market Marvels from Giusti Farms, Tunitas Creek Ranch, Green Oaks Creek, Swanton Berry Farms, Coastside Flower Farms, Cypress Flower Farms, Harley Farms Goat Dairy, Irish Ridge Ranch , Ladybug Farms, Pacifica’s Triple J, and of course our own Farmer John, and our frineds the Cipponeri’s, the Busalaccis (with those amazing cherries) and yes, Santiago Marin will return with his top hat and songs about beautiful fruit for beautiful people, people, people.
The San Mateo County League for Coastside Protection greatly appreciates and thanks Senator Leland Yee and Assemblymember Jerry Hill for their efforts (AB/SB 650) on behalf of Half Moon Bay’s residents in trying to craft a solution to the city’s financial problems due to its ill-considered Beachwood settlement agreement. Besides expressing appreciation, we would like to offer a few ideas we think would help move their bill beyond the mounting opposition from various individuals and groups.
The most obvious problem stems from our legislators’ good intention in trying to obtain $10 million for the city with as few strings attached as possible. This could only occur absent an appraisal of the land’s worth, a nonstarter with the park and environmental folks: they object that this presents a potential abuse of Proposition 84 park bond funds, and we agree that this is problematic. However, there is another way to go that should garner less opposition from this quarter, and that is by reverting back to the funding source for Senator Yee’s previous bill, SB 863, which relied on Proposition 1C housing/park funds.
SB 863 foundered last year because of opposition from housing advocates who objected to the funds going solely to park development. They might well have become allies if housing, particularly lower-cost housing, was proposed on some of the property. Currently the city is updating its housing element and like much of the San Francisco Bay area, seeks to improve the potential for affordable housing. In 2001, the California Coastal Commission approved a Coastal Development Permit for houses on the southwestern portion of Beachwood where there are no wetlands. The city has an opportunity to close ranks and solve several problems at once.
We support limited building in non-resource areas on the Beachwood property as a way to accommodate an objective appraisal process – it is not conscionable that the property be acquired for more than it is worth, and its worth should be fairly determined by an independent agency, such as SB 863 anticipated in designating the Coastal Conservancy, the state agency that specializes in coastal property acquisition and administration. Finally, we believe that SB 863 correctly anticipated the city’s financial needs regarding park acquisition and development.
Respectfully submitted,
Dana Kimsey
Co-Chair, SMC League for Coastside Protection
Supervisor Rich Gordon will be keeping his monthly Coastside office hours Wednesday, April 22 from 10am until noon at the Sheriff’s Substation in Moss Beach.
The Ocean Shore Railroad operated for the first two decades of the 20th Century, bringing people to the then sparsely populated San Mateo coast and giving birth to the towns we know today as Pacifica, Montara, Moss Beach, El Granada and Half Moon Bay.
Although the Railroad is gone today, there is an area in Half Moon Bay called the Railroad Right-of-Way (RRoW) which is still vital to the town of Half Moon Bay. The RRoW runs from Kelly Avenue south to Seymour Street between the western edge of the Arleta Park and Alsace Loraine neighborhoods, and a pristine open space bluff top overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The Coastside Land Trust (formerly HOST, or Half Moon Bay Open Space Trust) worked with a group of coastside residents to raise the funds for the City of Half Moon Bay to purchase the RRoW from private owners in 2004. The Coastside Land Trust is the holder of the conservation easement over the RRoW and is sponsoring the April tour, which is designed to familiarize the local community with the history of the railroad, wildlife and native plants that are abundant in the area.
The tour will start at 10 a.m. across from the original Arleta Depot (which has been a private home for many years) at the corner of Poplar St. and Railroad Ave. in Half Moon Bay. Members of the board of directors of the Coastside Land Trust and Executive Director Jo Chamberlain will welcome participants and discuss the environmental significance of the RRoW easement for the coast. Native plant specialists Avis Boutell and Nancy Frost will speak about the California native plants found in the area. Gary Deghi, a professional biologist, will describe the wildlife that inhabit the area and highlight bird species of interest. Local historian Liz Allison will talk about the railroad’s history.
Participants will walk along the Railroad Right-of-Way with our native plant, wildlife and history guides who will tell us more about the richness of the area at each of the successive three "stops": Central Avenue and Railroad Avenues at 10:45 a.m; Miramontes Avenue and Railroad Avenue at 11:15 a.m.; and the bluff edge at 11:45 where we will view two endangered plant species, view ocean-dwelling birds and hear more about the Ocean Shore Railroad history. The event will conclude at 12:30.
Join us as we retrace the path of the famed Ocean Shore Railroad. Participants will meet at the Vallemar Restaurant (a former depot), 2125 Coast Highway in Pacifica, where we will view two models of the famed railroad and enjoy numerous photographs showing the Railroad and period coastal views. Following an overview of the railroad’s history by tour conductors, participants will drive to see one of the remaining railroad cars, which is housed in Pacifica, and several of the remaining depots in Pacifica, El Granada and Half Moon Bay.
Space is limited and pre-registration is suggested by visiting CoastsideLandTrust.org and making a $25 donation.
The Montara Beach Coalition is hosting a beach clean up for Montara State Beach and Grey Whale Cove in honor of Earth Day 2009. Earth Day falls on April 22nd this year but as that is mid week so we will hold the clean up on the weekend before on Sunday April 19th. Trash bags and gloves will be supplied we will meet at 9.30am in the Outrigger parking lot and plan to work through till midday.
There are several other coastside clean ups happening to celebrate Earth Day hosted by The Pacifica Beach Coalition and Surfrider to name a few. I encourage anyone who cares about our planet and our beautiful beaches to join us on this day to pick up trash and clean up the environment in some way, even if you can’t make one of the scheduled events you can help by picking up trash on your own street or neighborhood. For more information visit www.montarabeach.com or www.earthday.net. You can also join The Montara Beach Coalition group on Facebook to keep current with local events.
Hope to see you there.
Kevin Stokes
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