On this Day in 1964

On Saturday, February 29, 1964, the new Santa Clara City Hall and Civic Center at Lincoln and Warburton Avenue was dedicated. This City Hall was built at a cost of $1,445,000 -- paid for from sales tax revenues. It replaced the old city hall at Franklin & Washington which had been in use since 1913. The dedication program, which started at 1 P.M., included music from the Wilcox High School Band and speeches by Mayor Frank Keller and State Senators Clark Bradley and Edwin Regan. Superior Judge Joseph P. Kelly served as master of ceremonies. Following the dedication open house tours were provided to the public.

Public tours concluded near the 79 foot Statue in front of the City Hall which was sculptured by artist Benny Bufano and depicted the concept of the Universal Child, however, the statue’s shape and lines were meant to represent the 1960s missile and space era. Read more about the artist in library books using this subject heading: Bufano, Beniamino, 1898-1970.

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Waterblogged

Water and paper don’t make the best combination. Much like a badly written noir, the results are generally an unreadable pulpy mess. But books featuring water are an entirely different story. That little trinity of hydrogen and oxygen has played a huge role between the covers of many a book… and also in our new book display.

What would Nemo (not the cute animated fish, but rather the somewhat unhinged submarine captain), Odysseus, Jack Aubrey, or Captain Ahab be without the seas? Jimmy Buffet would be out of business if there were no beaches for the beach bums. And seriously, what else can authors make characters stare into in order to have them seem lost in thought or deeply complex?

Take the rivers out of books and what happens to the fly-fishermen or the unlucky adventurers? You’ll need to write about oceans for a boat cruise to romance. And what is a more scenic place for authors to dispose of bodies?

Please visit our new book display on the first floor to find something that floats your boat.

posted by jw

Library Landscaping Project

A project to replace landscaping and irrigation around the perimeter of Central Park Library is currently underway. In addition to new plants, grass and shrubs, the project includes improved pathways from the surface parking lot to the Library. During this project, which is expected to be completed in April, surface parking spaces will be blocked for limited periods of time to allow equipment and landscape professionals access to the areas to be landscaped.

Can't find a place to park when you visit the Library? Spaces are usually available in the under-building parking garage. Parking for disabled persons is also available in the garage, with elevator access provided to the Library entrance.

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Gardening with Natives and Conserving Water

Learn how to garden with the beauties on the left at the 16th Annual
Water Efficient Landscaping Workshop Series presented by the Santa Clara Valley Water District, starting Saturday, March 1.

If you can't make these workshops, held at the Water District headquarters at 5700 Almaden Expressway in San Jose, join us at Central Park Library, July 23 for a talk and book signing by Alrie Middlebrook focusing on sustainable gardening methods to reduce water consumption. She will have her book available along with first hand information on gardening methods.

Here are some books to get you started: Designing California Native Gardens by Glenn Keator and Alrie Middlebrook, Native Treasures : Gardening with the Plants of California by M. Nevin Smith, California Native Plants for the Garden by Carol Bornstein, and others, Gardening with a Wild Heart : Restoring California's Native Landscape at Home by Judith Larner Lowry.

New Name for Investment Resource

Our Morningstar.com Library Edition electronic resource has been renamed. It is now Morningstar Investment Research Center. In additional to a new name it has a new interface and has added an industries section. This new section contains performance data for mutual fund categories, major stock and bond indexes, stock sectors, and industry sectors.

If you own a mutual fund, exchange-traded fund (ETF), or stock, try looking up an analyst research report for one of your investments. The reports contain Morningstar ratings of the investment's risk, return, and overall performance. They also recommend what role the investment should play in your investment portfolio.

For additional stock and mutual fund analysis, try our Value Line Research Center (VLRC) electronic resource. You can access VLRC within our Central Park Library whereas Morningstar Investment Research Center is accessible from both within our Central Park Library and Mission Library. You will find both of these electronic resources on our Research Databases Web page.

If you have a question or need assistance, come to the second floor Reference Desk or call (408)615-2900.

Learn About the Switch to Digital TV

You have one year left! By law, television stations nationwide must switch from the old

method of transmitting TV signals known as analog to the newer, digital television (DTV) on February 17, 2009. Beginning Feb. 18, 2009, those who do not own a digital set and get their programming via over-the-air antennas will no longer receive a picture. Viewers who have satellite or cable service will not need a box.

The converter boxes are expected to cost between $50 and $70 and will be available at most major electronics retail stores. Coupons for $40 off the cost of a converter are available from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Each household can get two coupons, just make your request at http://www.dtv2009.gov/. Feel free to come into the library for assistance finding the web site. Later this year we plan to have representative of the National Association of Broadcasters come and speak at the library. Watch for future announcements.

New Class Coming in April

New Computer Class: Using Google to search the Internet

Thursday, April 3 Noon - 2:00 pm

Learn how to use the Internet and Internet resources for schoolwork and home use. The 2 hour class is friendly and paced to your speed. The instructor, Daniel M. Russell is a research scientist at Google where he works in the area of search quality, with a focus on understanding what makes Google users happy in their use of web searches. He studies how people do their searches, trying to understand the most common traps and pathways to successful searches.

Come and bring your Internet search questions. It will be a fun 2 hour class! Hurry and Sign up at the Technology Center.