THE LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE OF MORGAN HILL, GILROY & SAN MARTIN
A supplement to the Gilroy Dispatch & Morgan Hill Times
MARCH 1, 2019
The legacy of Pintello Comedy Theater
SOUTH VALLEY MAGAZINE INSIDE THIS ISSUE
LAUGHS FOR LIFE Pintello Comedy Theater makes a habit of laughter P2
SPRING PASSPORT P10 | BLACK ROCK FALLS P13
POLICE CALLED IN PETITION ROW P2 | LOHS ROBOTICS TEAM COMPETES P4 | STRONG SEASON FOR SOBRATO GIRLS P12
THE LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE OF SAN BENITO COUNTY
MARCH 1, 2019
A supplement to the Hollister Free Lance
San Juan Bakery and Grocer draws a crowd
SAN BENITO MAGAZINE INSIDE THIS ISSUE
ENCHANTED BAKED GOODS San Juan’s small-town bakery P2
SPRING PASSPORT P10 | BLACK ROCK FALLS P13
$1 • Friday, March 1, 2019 • Vol. 126, No. 9 • morganhilltimes.com • Serving Morgan Hill since 1894
Judge clears way for hospitals’ sale ATTY. GENERAL’S BID TO BLOCK SALE REJECTED Barry Holtzclaw Managing Editor
be able to keep these hospitals open to ensure access to healthcare for the residents of Santa Clara County.” The federal court decision ended nearly two months of anxiety for patients, staff and community leaders, especially in southern Santa Clara County, where for more than 100,000 people Saint Louise is the only local option for many healthcare services. Becerra had appealed a bankruptcy court’s December ➝ St. Louise, 8
File Photo
A U.S. District Court judge in Los Angeles rejected a bid by California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to block the purchase of two failing Verity Health System hospitals by Santa Clara County. The Feb. 22 ruling cleared the way for the county to close
its $235 million purchase of Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy and O’Connor Hospital in San Jose, plus the DePaul Urgent Care Center in Morgan Hill this week. County officials said they expected to close the deal Feb. 28, when a courtapproved purchase agreement expired, and take ownership on March 1. “We are pleased that the district court denied the stay, which will allow the county to complete its purchase of the hospitals,” said County Counsel James Williams. “We will now
SOLD Santa Clara County expects to be able to close on the purchase of St. Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy by Feb. 28.
Calm before the storm PARK LOVERS WAIT A FEW MORE DAYS FOR DRY WEATHER Michael Moore Editor
Since the end of this month’s first series of rainstorms that drenched the Bay Area, overflowed creeks and filled South County reservoirs beyond capacity, residents and visitors are flocking to parks and outdoor areas in Morgan Hill to enjoy the dry weather while they can.
Robert Eliason
COLD BUT DRY Bundled-up twins Caspian and Crimson-Kate Adams, 6, and their mother Shalea took advantage of the dry,
cool weather last Sunday, Feb. 17, to climb and play at the Railroad Park on Depot Street in downtown Morgan Hill.
Morgan Hill is host to a number of parks and playgrounds in the city’s downtown (Railroad Park, Hilltop Park, etc.) and in neighborhoods throughout town. You might have to wait a little longer for another dry spell, as the National Weather Service predicted high chances of rain Feb. 26-28, with another bout of showers expected this weekend. So far this winter, about 22 inches of rain has fallen on Morgan Hill, according to the Santa Clara Valley Water District’s website.
Teens blame district for sex abuse LAWSUIT: MHUSD TURNED BLIND EYE TO ABUSE BY KEVIN COLE Michael Moore Editor
The families of three teenage girls have filed court documents accusing the Morgan Hill Unified School District of negligence that allowed former drama production contractor Kevin Cole to sexually abuse the plaintiffs at various times in recent years on a local high school campus. The complaint, filed in January in Santa Clara County Superior Court, seeks an unspecified amount of damages from
MHUSD and Cole for “mental, physical and nervous pain and suffering” due to the abuse, and for costs associated with medical and therapeutic treatment of the girls’ injuries, reads the lawsuit filed by attorneys Robert Allard and Lauren Cerri of the Corsiglia McMahon and Allard law firm. Two of the girls’ families are also suing Morgan Hill-based youth theater company South Valley Dance Arts—which hired Cole for a show where some of the alleged abuse occurred—for negligence. Cole, 36, of Newark, was convicted last year of misdemeanor annoying and molesting a child in relation to an incident backstage at an SVDA production of The Nutcracker at Sobrato High School in Morgan Hill in late
2017. During the jury trial, six teenage girls testified that Cole had inappropriately touched and spoken to them during theater instruction or performances over the course of four years. The jury found him guilty in June 2018 of victimizing one of the accusers. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail, and is currently on probation for the criminal conviction, according to court records. He later filed a notice to appeal the conviction, which is currently under consideration by the courts. Cole could not be reached for comment on the recent lawsuit. During the 2017 SVDA production, Cole was accused of touching female performers on intimate body parts, over their clothing, while helping them
change backstage. A parent called Morgan Hill police, who arrested him as he was leaving Sobrato’s theater the night of Dec. 1, 2017. The victim of the crime for which Cole was convicted last year is not among the plaintiffs in the January lawsuit, which is in its initial litigation stages. Two of the plaintiffs are alleging that Cole’s abuse took place during the Nutcracker performance. In a previous unrelated case, the Allard firm in March 2017 secured an $8.25 million settlement from MHUSD on behalf of three young girls who were sexually molested by John Loyd, their fifth-grade teacher at Paradise Valley Elementary School. ➝ Lawsuit, 11