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Jackling house settles into dust and debris JACKLING continued from page 5
The proposal might have advanced via an unsolicited offer of mediation by a program within the state appellate court in connection with Uphold’s appeal of Judge Weiner’s decision. The Yohos proposal could have been on the table, Mr. Carstens said. Uphold agreed to participate, he said. As for Mr. Jobs’ response, his attorney Howard Ellman had no comment. Moving parts of the house
Gordon Smythe, a Palo Alto venture capitalist and a fan of homes designed by George Washington Smith, offered in 2009 to salvage parts of the house and use them in a new house at an undetermined site in California. That three-way agreement included the town and was contingent upon Uphold ending litigation, which
did not happen in time. Uphold attorney Carstens noted that while it was true that Uphold did not drop its litigation, neither did Mr. Jobs sign the agreement. Mr. Carstens wondered why Mr. Jobs did not offer to consider the Yohos’ proposal in lieu of Mr. Smythe’s. Commenting on the Smythe proposal to re-use parts of the house, Uphold spokeswoman Luce said: “Smith was an artist, this is a work of very sophisticated architecture. If you smash a Faberge egg and pick up some pieces, what have you ‘saved’?” In a biography on the website architect.com, Mr. Smith is cited as “one of that rare breed of architects who was able to produce buildings that were both subservient to their environment and at the same time able to project strong, beautiful forms into the landscape.”
Photo by Michelle Le/The Almanac
It was a dark and stormy night A media van drives up Manzanita Way in Woodside while other reporters wait to get a glimpse of President Obama’s motorcade in Woodside on Thursday night, Feb. 17. See photo and story on Page 3.
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Beechwood School teacher honored for work in music and dramatics
Silicon Valley report suggests recovery
Emilee Getter, a music and drama teacher at Beechwood School in Menlo Park, has been named by the San Mateo County Arts Commission as “Art Teacher of the Year for Stage and Theater,” Beechwood principal David Laurance has announced. The award includes a cash prize and a donation to an arts organization of the winner’s choice. Ms. Getter will receive the award March 1 at the county Board of Supervisors meeting in Redwood City. Beechwood, located at 50 Terminal Ave., is a private, K-8, lowtuition school for families from East Palo Alto and the Belle Haven neighborhood of Menlo Park. “Serving these neighborhoods for the past 25 years, the school has a long-standing tradition of providing a broad-based education, including Mrs. Getter’s Music and Drama program,” Mr. Laurance said in an e-mail.
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She has been teaching music and drama at Beechwood for nine years. Every other year, a f u l l - s c a l e Emilee Getter musical is produced. “Choreography, set-design, acting, singing and costumes are all part of this massive undertaking in which about one-third of the students participate,” Mr. Laurance said. Last year’s production of “Aladdin, Jr.” played to packed houses and was a highlight of the school year, he said. In addition, Ms. Getter puts on smaller scale productions for each grade level, K-5, each year. Visit beechwoodschool.org or call 327-5052 for more information about Beechwood School.
Woodland students give to Second Harvest Students in Cypress House, one of four houses at Woodland School in Portola Valley, were winners in a year-end food drive for Second Harvest Food Bank, donating 986 pounds of food from 52 students in kindergarten through eighth grade. The school includes four houses: Cypress, Maple, Oak and Pine. As a long-standing tradition, each student is
assigned to one of the houses, where they take part in athletic, academic and teamwork competitions. Each quarter, one house plans a local or global service project. The entire school collected 3,249 pounds of canned food and other non-perishables, and donated $2,000 to Second Harvest Food Bank, says school spokesman Anita Grossman.
8 N The Almanac N February 23, 2011
INDEX
lowed by public assistance at 27 percent, Mr. Carson said. “We’ll have to look at a multiplicity of approaches for the new normal, have the tough discussions about, ‘Is it the youngest people we want to protect, or the oldest folks? Where do we really want to protect the environment — is it the water or the air?’ “We’re going to have to make
the region is up 5 percent and in certain sectors, such as information technology and telecommucity government — and people nications, by much more. such as the police chief of Half Patents emanating from the Moon Bay cutting back to partregion grew by 9 percent, outtime schedules, the public sector stripping the national growth of faces a looming crisis. 6 percent, he said. “You’re going to see huge layoffs And IPOs in Silicon Valley of staff and massive reductions rebounded to 11 last year — 6 in public services,” Silicon Valley percent of the nation’s total in a Community Foundaregion with just 1 pertion CEO Emmett Carcent of its population, son predicted at MonMr. Hancock said. day’s press conference. But some There is a stark dichotomy between the social indicators, “The question isn’t such local haves and the have-nots, noted how to avoid that. The as health-insurance and question is, ‘Are we havfood-stamp participaSilicon Valley Community Foundation ing the broader adult tion, were troubling, he CEO Emmett Carson. discussion about what said. kind of community The percentage we’d like?’” of Silicon Valley resiFederal economic-stimulus hard choices because we no longer dents with no health insurance funds, which cushioned the blow have the revenue streams for the rose from 14 percent to 18 percent, of public layoffs last year, have run world we used to have.” and those receiving food stamps out, Mr. Carson said. In the private sector, Silicon grew from 2.6 percent to 4 perAnd supposed silver bullets Valley added 12,300 new jobs over cent. such as reforming public-employ- the past year, Mr. Hancock said. Mr. Carson noted the stark ee pension costs — comprising Unemployment in the valley, at dichotomy between the local 10.6 percent of city-government 9.8 percent, is out of the double haves and the have-nots. expenditures and 7 percent at the digits and compares to a similar “On one hand we have Google county level — won’t begin to national unemployment rate and giving 10 percent across-thesolve the problem, he said. a 12.3 percent California rate. board raises ... and at the same Mr. Hancock and Mr. Carson The region had a net gain of time our unemployment continsaid their groups later this week 20,200 new business establish- ues to hover around 10 percent ... will offer up a “third path” to ments in the past year, he said. and one in 10 people gets (public new governmental efficiencies “Entrepreneurship is alive and assistance),” he said. through agency consolidation, well. In a difficult economy, “Everything’s wonderful here shared services and cross-juris- people are still coming to Silicon and there’s a hiring war going on dictional collaboration. Valley to start new companies.” if you’re in tech and you can write “We’ll propose this as a path After two years of falling, the app code. The sky’s the limit. Yet Silicon Valley really needs to con- region’s household income has there’s this other half ... that lives sider,” Mr. Hancock said. stabilized at an average of $79,999, in a very different world. Currently, the largest single with a median of $86,000 a year, “Where do these people come category of county spending is he said. together to even have a discusin public safety at 33 percent, folVenture-capital investment in sion?” A