MONTCLARION: September 10, 2010

Are we becoming foodies, or what? We’ve got everything from dolmas to donuts in Montclair, along with two – count ‘em, two farmers markets. Yes – there’s the big one on La Salle every Sunday and a ‘mini market’ on Tuesday mornings (10 am) at Coldwell Banker. 

“It’s more like a bake sale/farmers market,” says realtor Kerry Seo, who says they raised $284 last week for Habitat for Humanity. “We had one bottle of homemade Lemoncello, two bottles of wine, homemade organic chicken and veggie soup, homemade cookies, a homemade pecan rum pie and more.”  The office staff must have been baking and brewing into the night to get ready.

     Nationwide, Coldwell Banker has been supporting Habitat for Humanity for 11 years with work parties and fundraisers. But the Tuesday morning Montclair market, held just through September, is a sweet way to raise money and have a little fun.

    Stranded students: You may want to have a back-up plan if your student is taking public transportation to school in Oakland. Montera Middle School parent Jane Nylund says AC Transit left her child stranded twice last week – once on the first day of school when the bus never came, and once when the bus broke on the route home. “It’s completely unacceptable that a public entity such as AC Transit has no issue with stranding children on the first day of school, she writes.” For their part, AC Transit has apologized for the disruption, which comes in the midst of an ongoing labor dispute.

     Email bag: It’s bad enough getting a parking ticket, but being dinged for not having a front license plate is really frustrating – especially if you’re disabled. Reader Maria Perpetuo says she was shopping in the Village, last week, when she returned to find a ticket for $90 pasted on her windshield. “I cannot believe that the city of Oakland is targeting Montclair and especially the disabled people,” she writes, saying her handicapped placard was in plain sight.

     And…reader Jonathan Taylor weighs in on the chatter over Montclair’s ‘garbage police’. He tends to like the fact that the City is enforcing the blight laws. “Agreed, it’s a challenge for some people to hall their trash cans in and out,” he says, “but I embrace the responsibility we each have to keep our neighborhoods orderly….”

     Goat call: It’s that time of year when the living lawnmowers come out and devour tall grasses and weeds. Look for large colonies of goats to spring up all over the hills, now that contracts have been resolved and fire season is in full swing. I especially like the black and white goats with the curious spots. I don’t know if they eat more, but they really stand out in the herd.

     Got news? You can reach Ginny Prior by phone at 510-273-9418, by email at ginnyprior@hotmail.com or on the web at http://www.ginnyprior.com.