Cheers for the County Fair
The following events, organizations and people deserve either a Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down this week.
THUMBS UP: For the 82nd San Benito County Fair at Bolado Park this weekend. The fair, with rides, hypnotists, friendly competitions and demolition derbies, is the kind of down-home tradition that makes this a wonderful place to live. It’s also a reminder of our strong agrarian roots as well as being a good time. So, go to the fair, have fun, eat too much, visit your friends and neighbors and relish the country atmosphere of our county. The gates are open today at 10am.
THUMBS UP: For progress on the Don Pacheco Y. Our supervisors and members of the San Benito County Council of Governments have endorsed the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s design to build a flyover at the notorious Don Pacheco Y – with conditions in place. What San Benito County would like to see is some money from the state and VTA to help alleviate traffic issues in the rest of our county. While dedicated to fixing the road, local officials worry that the VTA design will funnel more traffic into our county and we will be stuck paying the bill. But the truth is, any fix to the intersection that takes away the need to make a left turn across oncoming traffic will send more cars our way because drivers won’t have to take their lives into their own hands to come into our county. We welcome the progress in resolving the dispute over how to best fix the dangerous intersection, but we would warn our local officials not to be so demanding that they jeopardize funding for the entire project.
THUMBS UP: For San Juan Bautista City Manager Jennifer Coile’s plan to make San Juan Bautista a “Slow City.” The idea is to market the Mission City as a place to escape the frantic pace of modern life and slow down, enjoy good food and wine and decompress. Earning a Slow City designation – there is a network of more than 30 Slow Cities worldwide – would require San Juan to abide by the guidelines outlined in the Slow Food movement, which promotes taking time to eat well and emphasizes an interest in agricultural biodiversity, local wines and organic food. San Juan also would have to commit to preserving the local environment and work to capitalize on the city’s local heritage and natural landscape. Sounds like a perfect fit.
THUMBS DOWN: For District Attorney John Sarsfield telling the Board of Supervisors that he will close his office for a week this month because he is understaffed. While there is no doubt Sarsfield could use more bodies, we say show us a government agency in this county that doesn’t feel overworked and understaffed. Sarsfield clearly is playing a game of political chicken with supervisors at the expense of the taxpayers he is supposed to serve.
