Last night we held our 2007 COTY dinner at the Villa Ragusa in downtown Campbell. The evening started with cocktails then we had a nice buffet dinner. As the evening progressed several past business owners and past citizens of the year were recognized. I was shocked to see how many remain active in the community and still attend the Campbell events. Matt Phipps, owner of Blendz received the business of the year award. It was my job to provide a skit that would reflect something about his business and entertain the audience at the same time. We came up with our version of how his business started. Frank Jewett of Window and Door Alternatives played the part of a "young" Matt Phipps. He did a fantastic job!
Carl San Miguel was the recipient of the Citizen of the year award. His favorite T.V. program is American Idol; therefore we built his skit around the show. Evan Low played Ryan Seacrest, Jim Free played Simon Cowell, Rob Pedersen played Randy Jackson, I played Paula Abdul and Ed Pansullo played Carl San Miguel. Everyone did such a great job, but Ed really stole the show. Carl is a former Marine. We had Ed sing the Marine Fight song as his song of choice for the competition. When the judges boo'd him, he started singing "Mustang Sally". The spot light hit Sally San Miguel, Carl's wife and the crowd roared. The skit ended with the judges leaving the stage and "Carl" running after us yelling, "you can't do this to me...I was the President of the Campbell Chamber of Commerce for four years...the President of the Santa Clara County Board of Realtors...for God sakes, I was a Marine".
The Country Woman's Club of Campbell recognized Bobbi Sheets for her dedication and service to the club and community as their "Volunteer of the Year". Sheldon Chang was named the Downtown Campbell Business Associations Honoree for 2007. The Kiwanis Club of Campbell selected Lois Gordon as the Kiwanis Honoree of the Year. The Campbell, San Jose West Rotary Club honored Jim Morelan as its Outstanding Community Service Club Member for 2007. West San Jose-Campbell Lions Club honored Ed Pansullo as the "Lion of the Year. Ed is also serving a second term as President for the organization as well.
If you've never had the opportunity to attend this yearly awards dinner, then you've really missed a great event! Congratulations to all the recipients and a big THANK YOU to all who made the event a success.
Past Citizens-of-the-Year
Pete Yerkovich and Dan Furtado
Drivers beware - we have a few new laws affecting what you do when you drive your car. These involve cars and smoking, cars and cell phones, cars and keys, and cars and gas...
As of January 1st 2008... Smokers-cigarette, cigars and pipe- are no longer allowed to smoke in their cars while driving, standing or parked with anyone under the age of 18.
The fine is up to $100, but can only be enforced if stopped for violation of another offense.
On July 1st 2008...teens cannot drive while talking on the cell phones. The same law pertains to adults unless they are using a hands free device.
Other driving-related laws include SB 1542 for replacement keys that have been lost, stolen or damaged. Automakers must provide the key codes to a licensed and registered locksmith for replacement keys for vehicles sold or leased in California on or after Jan. 1st2008. There are certain restrictions for automaker that sells less than 2500 cars and for Mercedes and BMW who make their own keys and must send a replacement key by overnight mail until 2013, when they too must comply.
Another law , AB 118, becomes effective July1st. It increases the smog abatement fee for newer vehicles and the registration fee from all motorists. It will fund various motorist and non-motorist purposes including research for alternative fuels and alternative fuel infrastructure, retro-fitting large truck engines and removing high-polluting vehicles. Car owners will contribute more than $150 million per year until 2016 when the law expires...
It's good to live in California!!!
Boundaries: North: Campbell Ave.| South: Bucknall Rd. | West: Quito Ave./Saratoga Ave. | East: Mayfield Ave.
Neighborhood Association History
Pete Constant, District 1 Councilmen, held a West San Jose Neighborhood Summit at the Moreland Community Center in April 2007. At this meeting he shared his experiences and benefits of organizing a neighborhood association. Kurt Schumacher decided to start one.
2008 Our Goals - What we want to accomplish
Get 70% of members to join yahoo groups forum
For more information on this Campbell neighborhood go to:
Mid-Month Posting, March 15th, 2008
Single Family Homes in Campbell for sale.
Lowest priced listing in Campbell
670 W RINCON AV, Campbell 95008
$529,000 Beds: 3 bed(s) Baths: 1 bath(s)
MLS: 761074
135 DOM
No Photo
The property is a Short Sale and was originally listed for $649,000.
Appointment only.
Median Priced Listing 
1315 OLYMPIA AV, Campbell 95008
$835,000 Beds: 3 bed(s) Baths: 1 bath(s)
MLS: 780166
DOM 20
Appointment only.
Highest priced listings in Campbell 
867 BRIARWOOD WY, Campbell 95008
$3,695,000 Beds: 5 bed(s) Baths: 4+ bath(s)
MLS: 771988
DOM: 61
Appointment only.
Townhouse/Condo listings
Lowest Price Listing 
185 UNION AV #00011, Campbell 95008
$284,000 Beds: 1 bed(s) Baths: 1 bath(s)
MLS: 778869
DOM: 28
The property is a Short Sale and was originally listed for $295,000.
Median Priced Listing
664 W SUNNYOAKS AV, Campbell 95008
$499,900 Beds: 2 bed(s) Baths: 1 1/2 bath(s)
MLS: 768783
DOM: 86
No Photo
The property is a Short Sale, property has not been reduced from original list price...
Highest Priced Listing 
2175 VIZCAYA CI, Campbell 95008
$925,000 Beds: 3 bed(s) Baths: 2 1/2 bath(s)
MLS: 749815
DOM: 192
Originally listed for $937,000
For more information on the Campbell or Silicon Valley real estate market, please contact me at: 408-761-1080 or email me at Dorene@DoreneShirley.com
The Campbell Planning Commission approved the construction of a new home in the San Tomas Area Neighborhood. The project is the demolition of a home built in the 1940s and building a two story, 4000 sq ft Mediterranean style house. This is a sensitive subject for me. It's true I do not live in this neighborhood, but it sounds like a similar situation I witnessed in Cupertino.
I was raised in tract home in the Garden Gate area of Cupertino. My parents still reside there. Over the past 10 to 15 years, the City allowed homeowners to build "monster houses" in my parent's neighborhood. The properties have almost no yards, it's fence to fence structure. Frankly the houses are nice, but the neighborhood looks bizarre. As you drive down the street you have such a mixture of housing structures. The city placed a moratorium on the building of monster houses several years ago. I believe it's still in place today. I hope we don't fall victim of this same type of inconsistencies.
Just an opinion...
Whether you are buying or selling property in the Silicon Valley area, my goal is to provide you with the resources and tools needed to make smart and stress free real estate decisions.
One of my favorite cities in the Silicon Valley is Campbell.
Campbell was founded by Benjamin Campbell, after whom the city was named. Campbell was officially incorporated as a city in 1952. The city then grew rapidly as orchard lands disappeared tract by tract.
Today, Campbell is a quiet suburban residential neighborhood in the southern part of the Santa Clara Valley.
Little known facts about Campbell:
Campbell is situated in the southern portion of the Santa Clara Valley. The historic downtown section sits just west of the railroad in the central area. The southwestern area of Campbell is known as the San Tomas neighborhood and varies somewhat from most of Campbell in the size of its lots and styles of housing. Hamilton Avenue is one the northernmost roads in Campbell.
Points of Interest and History 
Campbell Museum and Ainsley House
Welcome to your one-stop source for real state covering the Silicon Valley area. Real estate is one of the most exciting investments you can make, and it should be a fun and rewarding experience. Here you'll find everything you'll need to buy or sell a home, as well as learn about the market value of homes you may own in the area. it is my goal to provide you with superior service at all times, so please tell me how I can best help in your Real Estate needs!
Here are some of the groups I'm a member of...
Campbell Chamber of Commerce Board Director Campbell Museum and Ainsley House Board Director Fundraising Chairperson for the Carol of Lights Committee
I was referred to Dorene by a friend who Dorene had helped while going through a divorce. I was in the middle of a very nasty divorce. My ex-husband wanted more than I felt he deserved. Our divorce had been going on for 3 years when I finally called Dorene. I had a good pension and a decent amount of equity in my home. Because my husband had been physically and emotionally abusive, I felt he shouldn't get a dime.
My Attorney tried to explain how our laws work, but I was so caught up in the emotions, I just couldn't get past what I felt was the unfairness of it all. I asked Dorene to attend, what would turn out to be our last court date. After the session, I sat down with Dorene and my attorney in the hall of the court house. The opposing counselor and my husband were on the other side trying to submit another offer to settle.
I was very stubborn and refused to consider the settlement. Dorene helped start the negotiation process by explaining the financial side of my predicament. She explained the importance of moving forward and how the gap my husband wanted versus how much I was willing to settle for wasn't worth the stress. I agreed. The offer was accepted. Finally that man is out of my life. Things have improved immensely since Dorene entered my life!
Maria D, San Jose CA
When we were referred to Dorene our credit was in pretty bad shape. We had heard about credit repair companies. Once she explained we could correct the mistakes on our credit report ourselves, we decided this was the way to go. She also showed us how to increase our scores by running a credit analyzer. The credit analyzer showed us step-by-step what needed to be done for improving our credit. Once we improved our scores we were able to get approved for a mortgage loan. We can't thank Dorene enough for helping making our dreams come true. We tell everyone we meet to call Dorene when it comes to buying or refinancing their home.
Angelo & Karen - Sunnyvale CA
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