The newest, swanky address in Silicon Valley is a few hundred square feet, with perches, play areas, a few cozy hidey holes and even a fancy water feature. If it was an apartment, it would probably go for $4,000 a month — even with just a netted roof.
But it’s not an apartment. It’s Kona’s Spot in the Sun, the new cat garden at the Humane Society Silicon Valley’s Peter Detkin and Michelle Oates Detkin Animal Community Center in Milpitas that was unveiled on a not-sunny Thursday afternoon.
The idea for the garden was conceived around three years ago, Humane Society Silicon Valley President Kurt Krukenberg said, and it was driven by a donation from longtime Humane Society supporter Suzanne Maas, who chose to honor the memory of her cat, Kona, with the space’s name. Maas has since moved to Santa Fe, but the new garden should have a big impact for Santa Clara County cats who are “semi-social,” outdoor cats that have some affinity for people but aren’t necessarily cuddly.
“She said every cat deserves a second chance to find a new home,” Becky Ranninger Owen, president of Humane Society Silicon Valley’s board of directors, said in passing along a message from Maas.
The only initial resident of Kona’s Spot is Izzy, a 5-year-old male black short-hair mix, who is described as “outgoing” but “does not have a positive history with other animals.” But Izzy seemed to have a good time cautiously exploring his new space, which is enclosed but has windows so visitors can peek in without making the residents feel threatened. Krukenberg said that potential adopters would be able to visit with Izzy and other cats inside Kona’s spot, too.
This is Humane Society Silicon Valley’s second cat garden at the facility at 901 Ames Road, following in the success of the Marilyn and Fred Anderson Community Cat Garden, which is aimed at “working cats” who tend to go after their own food and aren’t suitable for regular adoption into homes.
NEW VIEW OF SAN JOSE MURALS: A group at San Jose State has put together a bike tour of 10 murals in and around downtown on April 23 that has a very Silicon Valley twist. Bike riders are encouraged to download an app by Overly that will provide an augmented reality experience that explores the stories behind the murals they visit along the route. If you want to join the free, hourlong tour, meet at Crema Coffee Roasting, 1202 The Alameda in San Jose, at 11 a.m.
Lou Jimenez, an artist and teacher who is also majoring in art history and visual culture, learned about Overly’s AR app through her work with Local Color in San Jose and saw its potential. “This being Silicon Valley and home of the tech industry, using technology to shed light on our current community and visual culture, is more than right but it is overdue” she said. “I can see vast opportunities to encourage agency among San Jose inhabitants to want to be involved in their city and community.”
And speaking of murals with fascinating stories, a new one titled “Leyendas de San José” has an unveiling event April 23 at 10 a.m. at 19th and East Santa Clara streets, in the lot next to Wienerschnitzel across from Roosevelt Park. The mural by the Timeless Art Collective — a group that includes artists Steven Martinez, Arianna Hansen and Eduardo Herrera — features some legendary men of San Jose’s Latino history including playwright Luis Valdez, Lowrider magazine founder Sonny Madrid, and 1940s-’50s KSJO radio host Jesus Valenzuela.
CELEBRATING EARTH DAY: In honor of this year’s Earth Day — April 22 — Republic Urban Properties unveiled a vermiculture composting project that it funded at Cristo Rey San Jose Jesuit High School. The idea came from Republic intern Jackson Thompson, who reached out to Cristo Rey science teacher Richard Piland and the school’s Green Haven Club, which is led by senior Anahi Estrada.
The project includes educating students about what can be composted, putting receptacles around the school and then putting that waste on trays where vermiculture worms are ready to turn the food scraps into nutrient-rich compost. The goal is that the model will eventually, ahem, crawl its way to other schools looking out for the environment.
Source: www.mercurynews.com