Friends of Santa Teresa Park Meeting Summary for 9/2/04

  • Meeting attendees: 
    • Mike Boulland, Ronald Horii, Kitty Monahan, Mario Blaum, Holly Davis, Cynthia Greenblatt
  • Volunteer Hours:
    • Kitty Monahan: 3
    • Ronald Horii: 10
    • Mike Boulland: 5
    • Mario Blaum: 12
    • Holly Davis: 4
    • Dorothy Wuss: 3
    • Cynthia Greenblatt: 3
  • There was a problem with the fence around the ends of the Coyote-Alamitos Canal west of the Mounted Ranger Unit. The neighbors thought that the fence posts were supposed to be wood, but the fence contractors were installing metal posts with steel wire. Cynthia tried to stop them. She eventually called the police who told the contractors they needed to have permission from property-owners in order to be on the canal. Cynthia said the bid for the fence called for wooden posts. Joe Schultz said that the contractors had trouble with the soil getting the wooden posts in, so they put in metal posts. Joe said the fence is on park property. In any case, the fence can't be put up without a permit from the Water District. The Water District doesn't want to be in the middle of this issue. They won't issue a permit until it is resolved. Until then, the fence is only partially put up and is on-hold.
  • The question is whether the fence is even effective in preventing trespassing. There is a fence on the west end of the canal. People are still trespassing on the canal. Someone removed all the "No Trespassing" signs from along the canal. They pulled the signs out of the ground and removed the signs from the posts. There are bike tire tracks down the bottom of the canal. 
  • Joe Schultz said he would come to one of our upcoming meetings. We may need a special community meeting, maybe on a Saturday on-site.
  • Ron showed a slideshow. He showed pictures of some of the barbed wire fences around the park. The fences that are near trails should be removed, but others that are farther from trails should be a lower priority. He showed the fences around the canal by the Mounted Ranger Unit. He showed the new wooden fence at the Pueblo Area, the parking meter and the higher parking fees, new bark ground cover around the parking lots in the Pueblo Area, big cracks in the ground on park trails, the widening of the Bernal Hill Trail, rattlesnake warning signs at the Bernal Ranch, and rock piles on the hills. He showed the route to the Mine Trail and the removal of 2 of the signs pointing to Heaton Moor. There's still one sign at the top of the trail where it intesects the Bernal Hill Trail. 
  • Santa Teresa Community Fest is on Saturday September 18 from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm at George Page Park. Mike will be there all day. Setup will be around 9:00. He will bring the rancho display, flyers, and posters. Holly can come from 12-3. Ron will come and take pictures and help out. Mario can come in the afternoon for a couple of hours. Dorothy may be able to come in the morning and bring her memorabilia.
  • Treasurer's report (Holly): balance is $603.44.
  • The Mike, Kitty, and Ron went to the County Parks Commission meeting. They talked about restoring the old barn at the Bernal Ranch. They presented 3 options:
    • A: Restore the barn using as much of the existing wood as possible, using steel framing to reinforce it. 
    • B: Keep the outside wood, but rebuild the interior to look like the original barn. It would have to meet today's building codes.
    • C: Tear down the entire barn and rebuild the barn to be a replica of the old one.  It would have to meet today's building codes.
    The commission voted on option A.They still need to obtain funding. They thought they would have a better chance of getting historical preservation funding if more of the structure was original.The barn will be used for animals. We want to have a sprinkler system installed for safety.
  • Ron also spoke at the Parks Commisssion meeting. He said that the higher parking fees at the Pueblo Area had further reduced park usage. He suggested having a free parking week to allow more people to see what the park has to offer. The commission said there is a free "Get Out and Play Day," where parking is free at all county parks. We should find out when that is and publicize it.
  • Lydia, the caretaker at the Bernal Ranch, bought a new house, so she will be moving out. There's a person who wants to move in, but wants to have a horse there.
  • On 10/16, we want to have a BBQ and multimedia night at the ranch around 5:00. Ron can put together a slideshow. He needs power and a dark place to  show it, like the barn.
  • We have $170 for a native plant garden at the ranch. It can't be roses because they require too much care.
  • Scheduled Events
    • 9/11/04: New Almaden Days
    • 9/18/04: Coastal Clean Up
    • 9/18/04: Santa Teresa Community Fest at George Page Park. We need to put a table out.
    • 10/7/04:  Next FOSTP meeting.
    • 10/8/04: Santa Teresa’s Historic Bernal Ranch:  Owls on Silent Wings 6:30-8pm
    • 10/16/04: BBQ and slideshow at the BGJ Ranch.
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Created 9/23/04 by Ronald Horii, secretary of the Friends of Santa Teresa Park