Archive for the ‘Park Maintenance’ Category
27
Jan
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Adopt-a-Park, City of San Jose, Jeffrey Fontana Park, MFPA, Park Maintenance, Patrick Pizzo, PRNS, SCCAOR. Tagged: Adopt-a-Park, City of San Jose, Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden, Jeffrey Fontana Park, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, PRNS, SCCAOR. Leave a comment
On Saturday the 25th of Jan, with the help of over thirty volunteers and a their hard work, the Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden was pruned and weeded. Members of the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors (SCCAOR) provided most of the muscle along with other volunteers. Now the roses are all set for some beautiful blooms this coming season.
Linda Wilson, the President of the Martin-Fontana Parks Association, provided 10 bags of mulch and some rose food. MFPA member, Rosy Bowring brought along 2 dozen assorted doughnuts to feed the troops. Adopt-a-Park’s Sue Bowling was there with the Adopt-a-Park trailer and work supplies. Thanks also to Mollie Tobias, City of San Jose’s Program Manager for Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services for setting this all up.
Let us not forget who wasn’t there, Patrick Pizzo.
Pat was always there to show everybody how the trimming was done. We will miss seeing his smiling face and having him show us how to trim a rose bush Things just weren’t the same with out him being there.
A photo display of Pat was provided by MFPA member, Sunny Wagstaff, showing his many years of service and dedication in making our parks more beautiful with native plants.
8
Jan
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Butterflys, CA Native Plants, History, Jeffrey Fontana Park, MFPA, Our City Forest, Park Maintenance, PRNS, SCCAOR. Tagged: drought resistant plants, Jeffrey Fontana Park, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, Our City Forest, PRNS, SCCAOR, Tree planting. 2 comments
SCCAOR Sept 2014 work-party
Patrick Pizzo, a long time member and guiding light of the Martin-Fontana Parks Association passed away on the 2nd of January 2020 at the age of 75. If you look around our two parks, you will see many examples of his handy work. Pat was the brains & brawn behind all the native plant islands located in Jeffrey Fontana Park. His most extensive creation was the 5 Islands Project near Meridian Ave.
Here is a link to a 2017 article on Pat and his many accomplishments by Our City Forest: http://www.ourcityforest.org/blog/2017/1/4/the-remarkable-pat-pizzo?fbclid=IwAR0FxrzleTYiHR_K8EacOjotqX71Vqwz0FL73QNzDkcOXa7bj6GjCKz1pU8
To view a larger image please click on any photo below:
Island A Oct 2011
Native Plant Island C Construction Oct 2011
Restoration Committee Jan 2012
Bench Dedication Aug 2012
Earthday April 2013
Island A fence installation June 2013
Beautiful Day – May 17, 2014
Heart of the Park Sept 2014
Butterfly Garden planting Dec 2015
Island C fence installation Dec 2015
On Feb. 8th 2018, Patrick was awarded the status of “Park Heroes” at the State of the City address.
5 Islands Dedication May 2018
SCCAOR Jan 2019
SCCAOR May 2019
1
Dec
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Gophers, Jeffrey Fontana Park, Johnny Khamis, MFPA, Park Maintenance, PG&E, TJ Martin Park, Tree trimming. Tagged: Jeffrey Fontana Park, Johnny Khamis, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, PG&E, TJ Martin Park, Tree removal, tree trimming. 1 comment
21
Oct
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Jeffrey Fontana Park, MFPA, Park Maintenance. Tagged: Jeffrey Fontana Park, Martin-Fontana Parks Association. Leave a comment
Our storage shed, we call the “Surf Shack”, was burglarized Saturday night on the 19th.
Rich Grialou stands next to the shed
Rich using the GopherX machine
The GopherX,and the walk behind weed whacker were stolen. Nothing else appears to be missing and there was minimal damage to the shed. The Police Department have been notified and a Community Service officer was sent out and a report was taken along with photos. The GopherX is valued at $2000 and the Weed whacker around $700. Damage to the shed was around $50.
The shed is located just behind the Five Islands Project close to the intersection of Meridian Ave and Oakglen Way in Jeffrey Fontana Park.
Please let us know if you might have seen a vehicle near the shed Saturday night. It’s so disappointing to all of the volunteers who work so hard to keep our parks maintained. Our email address is:
SaveOurParkTrees@gmail.com.
21
Sep
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Park Maintenance, PG&E, Tree trimming. Tagged: PG&E, tree trimming. 1 comment
31
May
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in City of San Jose, Jeffrey Fontana Park, MFPA, Park Maintenance, PRNS, SCCAOR. Tagged: City of San Jose, Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden, Jeffrey Fontana Park, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, PRNS, SCCAOR. Leave a comment
Six years ago, Officer Fontana’s Memorial Rose Garden was adopted by the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors . They stepped up with grants to fund the upkeep of the garden on McAbee Road, and volunteered to work in the garden twice a year to help keep it maintained.
Saturday, May 25, the Realtors joined Martin Fontana Parks Association volunteers and two employees of San Jose’s Adopt-a-Park program, to weed, trim trees, remove plum tree suckers, and spread rose fertilizer and mulch over Jeffrey’s garden.
Linda Wilson signing folks in
Matt Mahan is digging it
Linda Opp feeding the roses
Pat Pizzo trys to move the boulder
Weeding & trimming
MFPA extends a big ‘THANKS” and job well done to Realtors Scott Raley, Doug Goss, Frank Cancilla and Neil Collins, assisted by MFPA members Linda Opp, Linda Wilson, Patrick Pizzo, Matt Mahan, and Chris Chen.
Thanks also to San Jose’s Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services for providing all the equipment needed.
*Wayne Opp, our new official MFPA photographer, aptly recorded the action.
Wayne Opp
Don’t forget, as you pass by Fontana Park on McAbee Road, to stop and smell the roses and appreciate the beauty of the garden.
9
May
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in MFPA, Park Maintenance, Scouting, TJ Martin Park. Tagged: drought resistant plants, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, Scout Troop 263, TJ Martin Park. 1 comment
Thanks to Scout Jason Graves and his Eagle Scout project, we will be seeing more beautiful native plants blooming under one of the electrical transmission towers in TJ Martin Park. This particular tower is located between two towers in the middle just across from Glowing Court and Oakglen Way.
Scout Jason Graves on the right along with fellow Scout Brian Zayas
On the left is Larry Sasscer, MFPA project coordinator
Tilling the soil
The finished project
Awaiting the blooms to come
Helping with the project is Martin-Fontana Parks Association’s Project Coordinator, Larry Sasscer.
Thanks to Scout Jason and his fellow Scouts and volunteers for doing such a wonderful job. We will be looking forward to seeing the fruits of all their labor in the years to come.
27
Feb
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Adopt-a-Park, CA Native Plants, City of San Jose, Heart of the Park, Jeffrey Fontana Park, MFPA, Park Maintenance, PRNS, Public Art, SCCAOR, TJ Martin Park. Tagged: Adopt-a-Park, City of San Jose, Heart of the Park, Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden, Jeffrey Fontana Park, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, PRNS, SCCAOR, TJ Martin Park. Leave a comment
Members of the Board
Attendees
Attendees
President Rod Carpenter called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm last Wednesday, Feb. 13, addressing an overflow audience of members and guests.
Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services Deputy Director, Justin Long, 
summarized some of the changes that are being made to improve the efficiency of park maintenance. A new “Activate San Jose” plan will be the new parks’ guiding document and should be in available to the public in June for community review. MFPA will alert our members when it is presented.
Mr. Long and Dan Greeley, 
our Maintenance District Supervisor, spoke about the rodent problem affecting many San Jose parks, including ours. They outlined the action that PRNS will be taking to alleviate the problem, and then answered questions from the floor.
Outgoing President, Rod Carpenter highlighted the achievements of MFPA during his two-year tenure:
- Completion of the native plant Five Islands Project
- Construction of the “Surf Shack” tool shed
- Repair of the Meridian fence at TJ Martin Park
- The Planting of over fifty new trees in both parks
- Completion of the “Beautility” Water Vault Painting project
- Partnership with PRNS Adopt-a-Park Program and Santa Clara County Association of Realtors, (SCCAOR), to maintain existing projects like the Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden
Perhaps the most significant achievement of Rod’s term was the completion of the “Right of Entry” agreement with PRNS allowing MFPA to hire qualified contractors to work in the parks on MFPA projects!
Outgoing Secretary, Rich Grialou 
was honored with the “President’s Award” and received a plaque in appreciation of his contributions to MFPA.
President Rod Carpenter 
was presented with a plaque honoring his dedication and determination to oversee the accomplishments of the last two years.
The new Board of Directors goals for the next year include:
- Ongoing maintenance projects with PRNS Adopt-a-Park and SCCAOR
- The annual Heart of the Park Celebration on May 18, 2019
- Continued collaboration with PRNS and the City to improve our parks
25
Jan
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Adopt-a-Park, City of San Jose, Events, Jeffrey Fontana Park, MFPA, Park Maintenance, PRNS. Tagged: Adopt-a-Park, City of San Jose, Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden, Jeffrey Fontana Park, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, PRNS. Leave a comment
Theresa Allen & Dave Walsh plug in the roses.
The Jeffrey Fontana Memorial Rose Garden is having a “Pruning Party” this Saturday, January 26 at the corner of McAbee and Golden Oak Way.
Join your park neighbors for Registration at 8:45, and Pruning from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. (or noon).
Try your hand at pruning roses, instruction provided for beginners, as we ready Officer Fontana’s Memorial Rose Garden for the spring awakening!
All tools, gloves, coffee, water, donuts are provided. Be sure to wear long sleeves and pants to keep the thorns at bay.
Sponsored by the San Jose Parks Dept. Adopt-a-Park program and the
Martin-Fontana Parks Association.
14
Dec
Posted by Martin-Fontana Parks Association in Jeffrey Fontana Park, Membership Drive, MFPA, Park Maintenance, PG&E, Public Art, Santa Clara Valley Water District, TJ Martin Park. Tagged: City of San Jose, Jeffrey Fontana Park, Martin-Fontana Parks Association, PG&E, PRNS, TJ Martin Park. Leave a comment
Our membership fees are only
$20 per individual or $35 per family per year
Martin-Fontana Parks Association needs your support. 2018 proved to be a milestone for our nonprofit group. We finally have written agreements that will allow us to hire contractors using MFPA funds to complete those projects the Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services cannot budget. The Five Islands project was completed with the construction of a decomposed granite pathway. MFPA invested $9,000 of your membership donations for this task. The last step will be the installation of informational signage about the native plants. Currently, Larry Sasscer & Richard Grialou are working on repairing the fence along Meridian at TJ Martin Park,
Richard Grialou & Larry Sasscer work on the fence
and exploring the possibilities of replacing a section of turf near the dog park. All 12 of the water vaults in TJ Martin & Jeffrey Fontana Parks have become works of art thanks to some great artists, District 10 Councilmember Johnny Khamis, Michael Ogilvie, San Jose’s Director of Public Art for the Office of Cultural Affairs, and the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD).
Our members’ support helped convince the City that our parks need better maintenance. This has led to some new additions to the maintenance staff and more work being done in TJ Martin and Jeffrey Fontana parks. However, after years of cutbacks in the budget and manpower, park users and supporters will need to continue to advocate for better park services.
Lastly, we have continued our dialogue with PG&E regarding the preservation of our parks most precious resource; our trees. In 2010 MFPA was formed to save the park trees from being removed by them. Today we negotiate annually to protect our trees. Your Membership affirms our community’s intent to PG&E that we are serious about them being respectful of these priceless resources. So far we have been consistently successful getting them to agree to prune rather than remove these trees.
That’s why your membership is sorely needed. We hope you will take this opportunity to become a member by filling out a membership form and mailing it to us with your check or you may choose to use Pay Pal at our website: https://martinfontanaparksassociation.blog/membership-3/. Your renewal is valid for one year. You may also choose to become a sponsor, with a family membership included in a sponsorship of $100 or more. All membership and sponsorship donations are tax-deductible. We are a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
With your support we will continue to advocate making our parks a better experience for all. We value your membership and thank you for helping to make a difference in our neighborhood! Please email us at SaveOurParkTrees@gmail.com if you have any questions or concerns.
