by Clair Handy | Sep 2, 2022 | Events, Homes & Housing Market, Land Use, Los Gatos Government
If you want a say in shaping the blueprint of Los Gatos’ future, now is your opportunity to comment on the Housing Element.
If you’re reading this article, you probably live or work in Los Gatos and have a real interest in it’s future. Like much of California, Los Gatos has been in a housing shortage for decades. The Housing Element will determine how to meet the needs of the Town’s future, and engagement from locals will help direct how it meets the needs of the community.
Every 8 years the state requires each municipality to create a plan for future development, especially housing development, to meet the needs of current and future populations (read about it on the Town’s page on the General Plan). Back in March we shared information about one of the first community meetings on the Town of Los Gatos Housing element. As of late August 2022, the first draft has been published and is in the public review and commentary period.
To view the plan draft, visit EngageLosGatosHousing.com/. There you can find a copy of the plan as well as a timeline, scheduled public events, sign up for email updates, and even submit commentary on some of the selected sites. Read to the end of this article for a quick list of ways to engage, including in-person and virtual opportunities to ask Town staff questions about the plan.
Affordable Housing In Los Gatos
For this planning cycle, it has been determined that Los Gatos needs to increase housing by 1,993 units. Nearly 58% of that has been allocated to moderate and above moderate income housing and the other 42% is allocated lower income household. We need all of those homes!
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by Mary Pope-Handy, Clair Handy | Jan 5, 2022 | Events, Food & Drink, Irrelevant Fun, LG Lifestyle, Los Gatos Art & Entertainment, Los Gatos Events, Los Gatos Restaurants, Cafes, Bars, Wineries, Pampered in Los Gatos
While the annual CrabFest is postponed another year, the Rotary Club of Los Gatos is continuing a new tradition with their 2nd annual Virtual WineFest & Auction! Save the date for Saturday, January 29th at 5pm!
This year’s event centers around gourmet bites and Argentinian wines (or try the non-alcoholic selection) guided by sommelier Joe Chiodo. Tickets include a Wine Tasting Kit for 2 with curbside pick-up from Rootstock Wine Bar prior to the event. Evening entertainment includes a live performance by Lavender Fields.
And as always, the main event is the charity auction! Proceeds benefit the Rotary Charities foundations, and this year the “Raise the Paddle” auction item benefits Los Gatos House of Hope, West Valley Community Services, and Peninsula Food Runners to help fight hunger and food insecurity locally.
Virtual WineFest & Auction
For ticket sales, event details and updates, contact the event team, or donate directly check the Los Gatos Rotary website and Virtual WineFest & Auction event page. Each ticket is for a 2-person tasting experience at a cost of $150.
The event is also posted on the Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce event calendar with easy links to save the date on your virtual calendar and view a video promotion for the event.
by Clair Handy | Jun 28, 2021 | Downtown Los Gatos, Events, Food & Drink, Irrelevant Fun, LG Lifestyle, Los Gatos Art & Entertainment, Los Gatos Businesses, Los Gatos Events, Los Gatos Restaurants, Cafes, Bars, Wineries, Maps of Los Gatos, Pampered in Los Gatos, Shopping, Visiting Los Gatos
Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce poster for the Promenade!
The Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce invites the community to celebrate summer together with free live music all summer!
Thursday Promenades in Downtown Los Gatos
There’s a party in downtown every Thursday Promenade beginning this week! Every Thursday evening, 3pm to 8pm from July 1st to August 12th, the stretch of North Santa Cruz Avenue in downtown Los Gatos between Main St and Bachman (that’s from Dolce Spazio to Andalé for the foodies) will transform into “the promenade.” The street will be open to foot traffic, and two stages will bookend the promenade with live musical entertainment!
Bands will begin performances at 4:30pm on the North Stage (Bachman), and at 5:30pm on the South Stage (Main), with entertainment from a different group each week. See the lineup (and any changes) on the Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce calendar, the Thursday Promenades page linked above, or Camber of Commerce social media pages.
Drivers, plan to reroute around this stretch of N. Santa Cruz Ave on Thursday nights. While there is usually plenty of parking along the old rail line behind the shops, it tends to fill up with festival traffic, so schedule in some extra time for parking. If you’re coming for the event, consider traveling by bike, or using a ridesharing service if you plan on patronizing any of the bars or brewery!
As someone who regularly attends free summer concerts in Los Gatos, which were mostly canceled earlier this year (and the Fiesta de Arts / Wine Walk postponed until September), the Promenade is music to my ears!
So invite your friends to eat, drink, play, and stroll the night away!
Musical lineup, taken from the Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce Facebook page. Click to see the original post.
by Clair Handy | Sep 24, 2020 | Events, Los Gatos Events, Los Gatos Government
It’s an election year for the Town of Los Gatos! The Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce is hosting a virtual seminar for voters to meet the candidates. This is a free event, but you must sign up to receive the link to view. Public questions can be submitted at registration (one question per registration) and all questions will be curated for relevance to the topic of focus: local business and economy. This is not a town-hall style meeting, but a moderated forum presented in a Zoom webinar.
Wednesday, September 30th, 2020
7pm – 8:30pm
For information, changes, and registration, please go to the Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce page for this event, called Candidate Forum or through the URL listed below.
https://www.losgatoschamber.com/events/details/candidate-forum-14798
If you missed the League of Women Voters Candidate Forum for the Town of Los Gatos that happened on September 21st and you would like to view it, a recording of the session is available on the LWV Southwest Santa Clara Valley Youtube page through this link.
And remember to cast your vote on November 3rd or sooner!
by Clair Handy | Sep 16, 2020 | Events, Fire, Home improvement, Los Gatos Events, Safety
The Los Gatos Library will host an online class, Landscaping for Wildfire Protection
Coming up Thursday, September 24th from 6-7pm Pacific.
Does your garden fight fires? With fire season growing longer and fiercer each year with devastating losses, you might be wondering what you can do to lower risks and protect your property against wildfires. Especially if you live near one of the Bay Area’s beautiful greenspaces! Join the Los Gatos Library with speaker Barbara Hunt, UC Master Gardeners of Santa Clara County, to learn about how wildfires spread and how to landscape to protect your home, from hardscapes to fire-resistant plants. This is a free lecture aimed at California homeowners but open to all.
For more information and the Zoom link, please view the event page.
Join the event on Facebook and set a reminder.
Want to learn more about fire in Los Gatos? Check out some of my other posts on this topic:
Los Gatos Fire Risk
Wildfire Evacuation Route Signs Being Installed (2016)
Fighting Fire With … Wine
A History of Los Gatos Fires and the Los Gatos Fire Department
