SLV History
Ben Lomond Yule Tree Blaze by Lisa Robinson In the 1930s, the San Lorenzo Valley took Christmas very seriously. In fact, so seriously that it had a lighted trees contest along San Lorenzo Valley Drive, now referred to as Highway 9, promoted and sponsored by the Big Tree Lighting Association. In 1938, there were ninety-four entrants; Ben Lomond must have looked grand with multiple large illuminated trees: “Ben Lomond Yule Tree Blaze” reported the Sentinel. The Ben Lomond Community Club decided that year that they would plant a permanent tree to be decorated annually. The tree was to be planted at the intersection of the highway and the north end of mill street on a triangular plot donated by George Guthrie. The intent was to make Guthrie’s Corner a park, and so the club appointed a Monument and Christmas Tree committee. They held a card party, playing bridge, whist, and pinochle, to raise funds. The twenty-five foot redwood tree was planted in mid-November and illuminated on November 30. The final touch, a star, was added the following day. They were not quite sure how they were going to place the star, but resident John Larson, an old-time sea-faring man solved the problem using a long ladder and “deftly thrown ropes.”
Formation Commission (LAFCO). This would likely take around 18 months and would include considerable public input.
The Ben Lomond school children erected a tree on the Stirling Point at the corner of Love Creek and the highway. The boys were given the task of getting the tree, and the ornaments were made by the girls. The Ben Lomond Fire Department also had a “so beautifully lighted” tree, which was first illuminated on Thanksgiving. But the largest, most spectacular and elaborately decorated tree, was the ninety-eight foot redwood tree of Big Tree Lighting Association located in the Brook Lomond tract. The high intensity mercury vapor and sodium vapor lamps to “bring out the natural green of the tree at night,” were shipped from the East and installed by Coast Counties Gas and Electric, with the transformer and cable being laid concealed underground. It was illuminated on weekends and holidays since the fireman’s dance at Halloween and would stay illuminated from dusk to midnight from December 1st through January. Winners of the lighting contest were awarded their ribbons at the Del Mar Theater in Santa Cruz at the end of December. The Ben Lomond School won first prize in the schools category and the Ben Lomond Community Club won first prize in the Senior Organizations category.
The individual category was won by Al Malone of Boulder Creek. He was awarded the “honor of outstanding achievement”. His display, although simple, gave a warm effect. It consisted of moss laid on the limbs of a fir tree, flooded with the light of a blue-cellophane covered floodlight.” This 1939 Standard Map shows “Guthrie’s Corner” and “Stirling Point” the location of two of the winning trees.
On the Water Front (November, 2021) by Mark Dolson Possible SLVWD Consolidation of Big Basin Water Company; SLVWD Master Water Plan. The November 4th SLVWD Board Meeting attracted more than 40 members of the public as District Manager Rick Rogers reported that the owners of the Big Basin Water Company (BBWC) had recently requested in writing that the San Lorenzo Valley Water District (SLVWD) explore possible consolidation with BBWC. BBWC is a private, family-owned water company that services roughly 500 homes north of Boulder Creek. Its infrastructure was seriously damaged by the CZU Fire in August 2020, and BBWC has attracted increasingly negative attention in recent months from both dissatisfied customers and concerned state officials. SLVWD Directors unanimously expressed a desire to help neighbors in need, but they also stressed their responsibility to protect SLVWD and its ratepayers from paying for the cost of a potential consolidation. SLVWD has already been providing emergency assistance on a limited basis to BBWC and its water customers (e.g., SLVWD supplied a repair crew on October 21st after a mainline break caused a system outage), but the BBWC letter was the essential first step for moving beyond this. An official consolidation would require that the District complete the formal local review process specified by California’s Local Agency
November-December 2021
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The public sentiment (both from BBWC customers and current SLVWD customers) at the November 4th Board meeting was strongly in favor of exploring a potential consolidation. People had questions about the ultimate cost for BBWC customers, but Rick Rogers said this would depend on the outcome of engineering studies and the pursuit of funding opportunities. He said that state funding is likely to be made available, but he also stressed that the active support and involvement of current BBWC customers would be a key factor in a successful consolidation. County Supervisor Bruce McPherson voiced his support as well, and the Board voted unanimously to move forward with further discussion between BBWC and SLVWD. The Board also received and approved an extensive and long-awaited report from Akel Engineering analyzing and identifying key issues with the District’s current infrastructure. The full document is known as the SLVWD Water System Master Plan and is available at: https://www.slvwd.com/sites/g/ files/vyhlif1176/f/uploads/2021_ slvwd_master_plan_final_report. pdf The report concluded that the current system is seriously undersized in many areas with regard to fire-flow requirements, and it used a detailed hydrologic model to assess performance across various scenarios. It prioritized upcoming infrastructure improvements and estimated spending requirements for capital improvement at between $3.3 and $4.2 million per year from 2021 to 2026 and between $2.1 and $2.8 million per year from 2027 to 2041. Potential strategies for funding these improvements will be discussed at future Board meetings. Meanwhile, the Board is holding a special meeting at 6:30 PM on November 10th to formally present the Water System Master Plan to interested members of the public (via Zoom). The next regular Board of Directors meeting is scheduled for 6:30 PM on December 2nd (still via Zoom).
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