Mission: The Valley Women’s Club is dedicated to community action, awareness and leadership in environmental, educational, social, and political concerns that affect the health and welfare of the San Lorenzo Valley and our community.
Mission: The Valley Women’s Club is dedicated to community action, awareness and leadership in environmental, educational, social, and political concerns that affect the health and welfare of the San Lorenzo Valley and our community.
Board NewsSummer 2008 General Meeting a Great Anniversary Celebration!
After a welcome from VWC President, Michele Mosher, and the introduction of board members and officers, a fun overview of the thirty years was presented by two of our founding members, Mary Hammer and Nancy Macy. Members in attendance were asked to stand if, first, they had joined within the first ten years, then the second decade, and then the third. Remarkably, the groups were equally divided among those decades! Then Committee Chairs gave brief summaries of last year’s accomplishments and plans for 2008. It was announced that the VWC had donated $1,000 to the SLV Fund of the Community Foundation as a tribute to its founding members!
Meaningful and thoughtful proclamations followed, from Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, State Senator Joe Simitian with Assembly Member John Laird, and Fifth District Supervisor Mark Stone. Thoughtful and gracious presentations were given by Jonathan Allen (from Eshoo’s office) and, together, Maureen McCarty (Simitian’s) and Ali Spickler (Laird’s). Mark Stone presented the County Supervisors’ Resolution and then discussed some issues of importance to our community. These proclamations are very exciting to read and ponder. (We’ll be bringing them to the various events this year, so folks will have the chance to see them and enjoy them.) Many thanks to our elected officials and their talented representatives for their kind words. Before leaving, members were asked to write an “anniversary card,” with reflections on the past, present or future of the VWC. The cards presented a vast array of ideas…thank-you’s, fond memories, drawings, poetic thoughts, and specific suggestions for things to do. Like... Should we start a committee to focus on issues effecting senior citizens (Long Term Care, Alzheimers awareness, caregivers support)? How about a one-day Redwood Mountains Faire-type event at Roaring Camp? How to stimulate more local jobs? Sponsor a business mixer with Scotts Valley? Help get a dog park going in the SLV? Let us know what you think! (Call Michele at 335-1135 or Nancy at 335-3130.) And thanks were given for those helping with the event – especially Carol McQuillan, Senior Center President, who made sure that everything went smoothly – the Senior Center is he perfect venue for this event! And to Liz Faulk who provided childcare during the event; the children had such a good time that they didn’t want to leave. We are all grateful to those who came, and to those who have, over the years, participated in the Valley Women’s Club and its activities. This organization wouldn’t work without the effort and support of its members. VWC Endorses Measure R, plus a “No” on Proposition 98 and a “Yes” on 99 VWC Past President, Beth Benjamin, wrote a letter to our local newspapers explaining the VWC’s support for Measure R, which will guarantee our library system the funds required for operations, enabling the libraries to seek grants and other funds for capital improvements such as a new Felton branch. (See related article in Community Connections.) Also in the letter was the VWC’s support for Proposition 99, which will prevent eminent domain abuse, especially the taking of private property by the government and turning it over for private development. Eminent domain should be limited to legitimate public, community uses such as roads and utilities (such as bringing the Felton Water System into public control, not for shopping malls. The VWC urges a NO vote on Proposition 98, which would undermine the effort to remove the Felton water system from private ownership and putting it under public control; it would also undermine rent control.
This spring the VWC Membership Committee launched a challenge to current members to Invite a Friend to Join! We need your help! Community involvement here in the valley is a well-known phenomenon that truly improves and enhances our lives, and the VWC provides an important way for SLV residents to contribute to the welfare of their community. One way to stay current with issues and events is to read the quarterly Newsletter mailed to VWC members, or to check out the VWC website at www.vwcweb.org. Not only does this provide valuable insights into community activities; it allows members to look at ways to get involved. Many new members say that they’ve been looking for opportunities to give back to the community and they know that the VWC can provide that. The Newsletter and website provide numerous ideas for volunteer opportunities. It is critical to increase Club membership in order to continue with the work we do in the community. Your ongoing membership supports the Valley Women’s Club’s work in the areas of the environment, education, scholarships for continuing education, women’s issues, disaster preparedness planning, and community connections with other local organizations. One way to help build our organization is to invite more people into the circle. A membership can be a great way to offer a meaningful gift to a friend and we encourage you to gift a membership. Some members have given memberships to younger people as a way of encouraging the next generation to learn about the Valley’s history and to become a part of building the future, which is wonderful. I challenge each of you to find one friend to join the VWC. Together we can continue the work of building a brighter future for the San Lorenzo Valley and our community. For a membership brochure you can email me at or call 335-3130. You may also download a form here.
What fun it was to sit out in front of the Felton and Boulder Creek New Leaf Markets on Thursday, March 27th, visiting with shoppers and passersby, and letting folks know about the VWC and its 30 years of community service. We found many interested people, several of whom have joined. We are VERY grateful to New Leaf Market for providing “Community Day” each month for local non-profits. Along with providing the outreach opportunity, New Leaf donates 5% of the net profit for that day to the nonprofit chosen for that month. This resulted in a significant donation to the VWC (about $1,000)!! THANK YOU, NEW LEAF MARKET! Please help show our gratitude by shopping at New Leaf and letting them know you are a VWC member and grateful for their support.
The meetings often bring in outside speakers on topics of current concern, such as Christina Horvath, Director of BCRPD the upcoming visit of a member of the Regional Transportation District in July. For information, or to put something on the agenda, please contact VWC President, Michele Mosher (335-1135 or email).
The VWC is anxious to find a new Newsletter Editor to replace Nancy Macy who has served as Editor for thirty years and is ready to retire from the volunteer position. As Editor, Nancy gathers a wide range of ideas for articles, attends the VWC Board meetings to keep up on Board issues, and accepts articles from VWC Committees and members. As the deadline for publication arrives, Nancy chooses the topics, writes some articles and edits others. The articles are then submitted to Newsletter Graphics Artist, Laurel Becker; at the same time Membership Roster coordinator Shirlee Byrd is contacted to send the mailing addresses to the printer via email. Versions of the Newsletter go back and forth between Laurie and Nancy a couple of times, until finalized. Laurie then sends the Newsletter to the printer via the Internet. Nancy then goes to the printer to read the proof and make sure it is acceptable for printing. The printer produces the Newsletter, including addressing it, and then mails it. (That used to all be done by hand with peel and stick labels and a trip to the Ben Lomond Post Office.) Nancy (or someone else) picks up the extra copies and drops a few off at Shirlee’s for new members, and a few are left at each SLV library. The rest are saved for distribution at future events. It’s an exciting and interesting task to produce the quarterly VWC Newsletter and anyone who is interested in undertaking this is urged to contact Nancy for further information (338-6578). The VWC Board will then decide who will be the next Newsletter Editor. Willing to Take the Issue to Court At the May 13 meeting, the VWC Board voted unanimously to be the initial plaintiff in a lawsuit that the Sierra Club’s executive board was considering for a Writ of Mandate to compel the County to fulfill its obligation under CEQA regulations, regarding recently adopted zoning regulations, pending approval by legal counsel. The lawyer determined that the lawsuit was not strong enough, so it was decided not to file, but the concerns stimulating the vote are still valid. In a letter written to the Board of Supervisors, and in appearances during public hearings on the zoning amendments, The Valley Women’s Club expressed its concern that some of the changes designed to simplify zoning regulations for small-scale residential structures would have significant environmental impacts and fell well within the criteria for a CEQA* review. The Sierra Club and four water districts, including the SLV Water District, among others, shared our concerns. The VWC agrees with the Board of Supervisors that procedures should be streamlined and costs reduced for residents seeking to make improvements and changes to their homes and outbuildings. However, the changes would have codified a home, a granny unit, and two more habitable structures (and an unspecified number of non-habitable structures) on parcels of one acre or more. Toilets would have been allowed and the structures could have been over 1500 square feet. The potential for doubling, tripling or even quadrupling the number of residents on a parcel would put extraordinary pressure on water supplies, hence the concern of the water districts. We were concerned with the potential for significant expansion of the numbers and size of inhabited structures with insufficient environmental oversight and protection, both within and outside of riparian corridors. The increased impact on water usage and waste, roadways and impermeable surfaces, polluted runoff, traffic, seasonal and year-round waterways, and erosion, should have been far better defined, evaluated and disallowed or mitigated, depending upon the results of a CEQA report. The Board of Supervisors made some changes in the regulations and voted to accept the zoning amendments. They did not vote to do an Environmental Impact Report as requested, although the 5th District Supervisor Mark Stone and Supervisor Jan Beautz moved and seconded that one be done. The Board of Supervisors did direct the Planning Department to disallow toilets and to reduce the square footage for the two extra structures, which were significant improvements over the original recommendations. However, the structures will still have water (sinks), sheet rock and other improvements making them “habitable,” and usable --workshops, bedrooms, and studios, for example. There is great potential for abuse as property owners seek to gain income through renting out the units as dwellings, possibly adding toilets once the building inspections are completed. This can now only be addressed through enforcement procedures (inspections), which are highly controversial. There is already an enormous backlog of hundreds of complaints about illegal structures and housing which have not been addressed, so no one knows how extensive the current problem is. The new structures may add to the stresses on water supply and waste disposal, road use and erosion already impacting the watershed and the waterways of the county. And the SLV will undoubtedly feel the impacts. (*CEQA is the California Environmental Quality Act, which mandates environmental impact reports under certain circumstances. An example is the EIR for the proposed development of affordable housing in Felton next to Felton Faire, which will examine the land’s capacity for intense development, water use, septic capability, the impact on traffic and roads, and much more – enabling the community and its decision makers to determine whether or not it is a feasible project.) VWC’s New Leaf Outreach Brings in Members and Funds What fun it was to sit out in front of the Felton and Boulder Creek New Leaf Markets on Thursday, March 27th, visiting with shoppers and passersby, and letting folks know about the VWC and its 30 years of community service. We found many interested people, several of whom have joined. We are VERY grateful to New Leaf Market for providing “Community Day” each month for local non-profits. Along with providing the outreach opportunity, New Leaf donates 5% of the net profit for that day to the nonprofit chosen for that month. This resulted in a significant donation to the VWC (about $1,000)!! THANK YOU, NEW LEAF MARKET! Please help show our gratitude by shopping at New Leaf and letting them know you are a VWC member and grateful for their support.
Candidates’ Forum Had Record Attendance The VWC, as with past elections, sponsored a Candidates’ Forum allowing SLV and Scotts Valley voters to see and hear and question those running for Superior Court Judge, 5th District Supervisor and State Assembly, and to learn about Measure R, the proposal to extend the ½ cent sales tax providing operating funds for our library system. Co-sponsoring the event were the Press-Banner Newspaper and the League of Women Voters. A record number of people came to the forum, making it very worthwhile. The Candidates expressed their delight at having the chance to address so many voters directly, and the questions brought out many significant issues for each to speak to. Kudos are due to Forum organizer, Sherry Skold, for enabling the VWC to provide a significant service to the community.
It is well known that the SLV’s bus shelters have all been removed because they were in severe disrepair. Several of them had been built by private individuals and groups years ago. Shelter from rain and heat are not a high priority for the transit system because of its cost, and only the Felton Faire shelter is currently budgeted for replacement, leaving all the other SLV bus stops without shelter. (An alternative site for the Felton shelter is being sought because the owner of Felton Faire does not want the structure rebuilt in the parking lot.) The possibility of taking some action regarding this health and safety issue will be discussed at the VWC’s June 10th Board Meeting.
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Meeting in March was also the beginning of a year of celebration for the 30th Anniversary of the founding of the Valley Women’s Club. The Senior Center meeting room was full of flowers and balloons. The morning began with the beautiful music of Steve Abrams on piano, as members and friends arrived. The potluck was magnificent, with a variety and quality only seen in the SLV! (The cakes from Dessert First were delicious too!)
