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May 13, 2011
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Farmers’ Market signals spring TAMARA STEINER Clayton Pioneer
DAVE SHUEY
MAYOR’S CORNER Spring gets busy around Clayton Spring has sprung and summer is around the corner, filling parents with dread as they try and figure out what they are going to do with their kids until school is back in session. In the meantime, we can all enjoy all the benefits of living in Clayton, including our just restarted farmers market, music in the Grove and famous trails. The weather was perfect for
See Mayor, page 16
Tamara Steiner/Clayton Pioneer
Claytonians hungry for the first spring produce gathered early on May 7 for opening of the Farmers’ Market. By the time Mayor Dave Shuey and Councilwoman Julie Pierce cut the ribbon at 8 a.m., the tables were already piled high with the reds and greens of early spring. Clayton kids Ana Summers, 5, and her sister Sophie, 3, helped with the ribbon cutting before heading for the produce tables. Asked what their favorite vegetables were, the girls had quick answers. “Carrots,” Ana said. “Cookies,” said Sophie. The line was deep at the bakery booth where fresh baked apple turnovers and chocolate croissants, still warm from the oven, waited the early arrivals.
Garden Tour homes draw 300 Summer concerts get a helping hand from DVR THE PACIFIC COAST FARMERS’ MARKET OPENED FOR ITS FOURTH Saturday morning from 8 until noon through October.
PAMELA WIESENDANGER Clayton Pioneer
The 19th annual Clayton Historical Society Garden Tour drew nearly 300 visitors to six unique homes last weekend. The tour is the major fundraiser for the Historical Society each year. The gardens offered everything from tiki torches to handmade quilts. The Asian-inspired home at the corner of Mitchell Canyon and Pine Hollow Roads has piqued the curiosity of passersby since owners Lisa and Jon Van Brusselen began renovations in 1998. More than 100 swaying palms bring the sounds of the islands to Clayton. “We can’t live in Hawaii, so we brought it here,” Many locals remember the home as the house that former city councilman Pete Laurence grew up in. A quiet, zen-like feel greeted visitors at Diane and Martin Andrews’ home on Nottingham Circle. A rock garden tied together several different areas of the back yard – pergolas, statues and a
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID CLAYTON, CA PERMIT 190
See Garden Tour, page 2
DENISEN HARTLOVE Clayton Pioneer
The first concert of the 2011 season opened in the Grove last Saturday with a “lot of help
from our friends,” said concert chairman and Vice-mayor Howard Geller. “It takes dozens of volunteers to put these concerts on and the guys from the ranch
YEAR DOWNTOWN ON
MAY 7. The market is open every
See Farmers’ Market, page 2
show up every time to help. It would be tough to do this without them.” The “ranch” is Diablo Valley Ranch, a men’s residential alcohol and drug rehabilitation center in the hills between Marsh Creek Road and Morgan Territory. The men of the ranch are often quietly behind the scenes at community events, setting up and tearing down and helping with clean up.
For the residents of DVR, hope can be found everywhere: in the white rocks arranged on the nearby hillside to spell out the word “hope,” in simple conversations with Clayton residents and in volunteering at civic events downtown. The 40 or so men sent there by families, friends and sometimes the criminal justice system have the opportunity to get their lives back on track. In return, some give back to the communi-
ty that hosts them. Julio is a former ranch client who now serves as foreman. His family emigrated from Nicaragua when he was 7. However, the promises of a new life that drew his single mother and two siblings to the United States turned out to be threats. “Growing up in the projects of San Francisco was pretty rough,” Julio said in one of his
See DVR, page 9
Grant buys three new bikes for Clayton PD bicycle patrol unit Tamara Steiner/Clayton Pioneer
RESIDENTS FROM THE DIABLO VALLEY RANCH REHABILITATION CENTER see community service as a key to recovery. Zack, Rob, Jim, Carlos and Ray (kneeling) were on hand last Saturday to set up the band tent for the first summer concert. In keeping with the AA tradition, the men use only first names.
City supports charter school in concept TAMARA STEINER Clayton Pioneer
A movement to convert Clayton Valley High School to a charter school gained momentum last week when the Clayton City Council voted to support
the teacher-led effort in concept and encourage the school district to cooperate. A majority of teachers must support the conversion from a Mt. Diablo Unified School District school to an independent
See Charter School, page 4
What’s Inside Around Town . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Book Review . . . . . . . . . . .15 Car Tunes . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Community Calendar . . . .14 Concert Schedule . . . . . . . .2
TAMARA STEINER Clayton Pioneer
The Clayton Police Department rolled out three new bicycles last week, just in time for the Clayton Art and Wine Festival. The bicycles were purchased with a $6,000 grant from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. The three Cannondales are top-of-the-line and fully equipped with lights and sirens. They replace the department’s decrepit 15-yearold bikes. Officer Allen White set the
See PD Bikes page 12 Directory of Advertisers . . . .5 DVMS Reporter . . . . . . . . .17 Fit with Levity . . . . . . . . . .16 Food for Thought . . . . . . .19 From the Chief . . . . . . . . .18
Tamara Steiner/Clayton Pioneer
OFFICERS RICH ENEA AND DAREN BILLINGTON patrolled the Art and Wine Festival on brand new bikes purchased with a $6,000 Bay Area Air Quality grant. Letters to the Editor . . . . .13 Mind Matters, NEW . . . .16 Obituary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Pets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Teen Speak . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Theatre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Weather Words . . . . . . . . . .8