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City Planning Updates

Mayor's Proposal for Interim Housing within San Jose and Willow Glen

We are so appreciative of these founders and all the board members of the last 50 years which helped make the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association a vibrant neighborhood organization committed to beautifying and improving the life of residents in Willow Glen.

Willow Glen Neighborhood Association was founded by Dave Fitting, Jack Stallard, Hannah Kennedy, Becky Worsham, Margie Schumb, and Charlene Bunas in 1973.  "WGNA was formed to “fight city hall” and the plans to cut thoroughfares through the neighborhood just to improve access to the suburbs".

Carol Ditting, Dave Ditting’s wife remembers that “Dave & Jack were prepared to lie down in front of bulldozers should they have begun construction to further widen Cherry Ave”.

After WGNA’s founding in 1973, it became a thriving and integral part of the community with many accomplishments.

WGNA was instrumental in establishing the first Founder’s Day festival in 1983.

Then in 1984 WGNA was involved in the “Lincoln Avenue Study” taskforce.  The resulting Study has guided the street’s transition from “a commuter thoroughfare lined with second-hand shops” into the tree-lined shopping and dining destination it has now become.  The Study’s impact has extended for decades, influencing the designs of new buildings. 

WGNA was involved in the City’s 1985 General Plan, pushing against urban sprawl that would have spread city services too thin; and WGNA has remained involved in the subsequent General Plan updates

During the 1990s the board worked on the Mid-town project, fought a number of battles against 24hr drive-thru fast food restaurants, very late hours for bars along Lincoln and other proposed developments that would adversely impact our neighborhood.  

They also started a booklet about walks through Willow Glen.  They wanted it ready for Founder's Day in September and worked on it the summer before by walking around the neighborhood in the evening before garbage pickup day.  As folks put out their garbage cans, they would ask them about the history of their house. 

in 1993, Tiralisa Kaplow and the WGNA Board applied for and won a grant from the California Dept. of Water Resources to undertake the Los Gatos Creek Urban Stream Restoration Project.  They coordinated 200 volunteers to plant a thousand native trees and shrubs in 1995-1996.  It was one of WGNA’s most ambitious projects.  

In 2002, when the business association was unable to host Founder’s Day, WGNA stepped up and hosted it all by themselves. WGNA also gave guided walking tours during those festivals, and years later Joan Bohnett transformed the tour notes into the “Touring Historic Willow Glen: Ten Walking Tours” book.  

Since then, WGNA has organized a number of Beautification projects, candidate forums for state and local candidates and had a pivotal role in the downtown Willow Glen lane reconfiguration.  

More recently, WGNA hosted a very successful and one of the largest Neighborhood Night Out events to date, as well as the Illuminated Clock installation in DTWG, and 12 Art Box installations.  

WGNA has an amazing history with many accomplishments that will impact generations to come.

NATIONAL NIGHT OUT - AUGUST 1, 2023:

The Willow Glen Neighborhood Association celebrated the National Night out in Willow Street Bramhall Park.

Thanks for coming out and participating in our fun evening with:

• Music by The Breux Show
• Food Trucks from Cousins Maine Lobster, Mr Softee, Kona Ice, Old Greenwood BBQ and Three Brothers Kitchen
• Games with Willow Glen Cornhole, San Jose Lawn Bowls, Jumpy Slide, Sack Races, Football Toss & Hula Hoop Contest
• Free Face Painting, Willow Glen Garden Club
  
• Officers from the San Jose Police Department

Love Gardening?

Want to Meet neighbors?

Promote Kindness and Beautify our community?

Get Involved! Join us and help with our Garden Project at Wallenberg Park. 

Wallenberg Park is a City of San Jose park located at Curtner and Cherry next to Willow Glen High School.  We have adopted a plot of land next to one of the Community Garden entrances.

See below for more information.

We planted a xeriscape which is low maintenance and drought tolerant.  The goal was to have fun while creating a beautiful, self sustaining, organic garden bed.  The layout is holistic, natural, and will vary with plants donated and purchased throughout the year. We hope that eventually the garden area will rely on natural rainfall, will reseed itself, and require a minimum amount of maintenance.  We will used many native California plants and succulents.   Please see the transformation of the garden above and below. Before it was just a weed patch, now beautiful plants, kindness rocks, and bark have transformed the garden.  We are working on expanding our plantings.

We have a budget for plants through San Jose Beautify, but we will also be accepting donations of plants.  We hope that the community will donate drought tolerant, California native, and/or succulents that they have propagated.  This will add a special community touch to the garden area.  For a list of California Native plants for this area, click here.  Some suggested drought tolerant plants are Naked Ladies, Geraniums, California Poppies, Echivereas, and Sempervivums.  

The kindness garden part of the project was a huge success.  We have had a number of fun rock painting events at the park, as well as our annual National Night Out event in August.

Kindness rocks are hand painted rocks with kind words and pictures on them.  We are always collecting donations of flat river rocks, acrylic paints, gesso/primer/sealer, and brushes.  We will continue to host events for community volunteers to paint the rocks. 

We get together to have fun and maintain the garden each month.  Time will vary with the season.  Summer is usually earlier so it is cool, and winter late morning so it is not as cold. 

Sometimes we will provide beverages and snacks!

If you want to volunteer, have questions, comments, suggestions, please email [email protected].

Before photos:

After photos:

August 2024

Christmas in the Park 2022

Our dedicated board members spent countless hours making Willow Glen themed ornaments for our Christmas in the Park Tree.

We are so happy with the results.  If you would like to help in 2023, please volunteer!

October 28th, 2022 we participated in WGBA Trick or Treat on the Avenue and gave out over 1,400 Trick or Treat bags.

National Night Out 2022
Posted by De Anna Mirzadegan · October 05, 2022 8:33 PM

National Night Out on August 2, 2022 at Bramhall Park

National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. 

Our Generous Sponsors:

Cindy Adams

BIO:

Cindy’s art interests are varied.  She enjoys painting, quilting, and photography.  She’s figured out a way to combine all three of her passions. Using her original photos as inspiration, she creates art quilts; painting the fabric and quilting to add detail.  She was honored to have her quilt, “Adonis” (a bald eagle from the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center) accepted and exhibited in the Mancuso World Quilt Show in 2019.

After 25 years in education as a school secretary and one-on-one aide, Cindy retired this summer.   Being around children, watching them learn and grow and develop a love of reading is near to her heart. This was the inspiration for her art box design.

As a resident of San Jose since 1968, Cindy has been involved in her community in a variety of ways.  She has directed children’s choirs, painted murals in a variety of locations (teen group homes, women’s shelters, children’s Sunday school rooms in a variety of churches, etc.), and many other outreach services for the disadvantaged members of our community.  She loves teaching adults and children and has conducted classes in Tole Painting, quilting, as well as a variety of other crafts.

Art Box located at Minnesota and Hicks:

Cindy supporting WGNA at National Night Out with a Rock Painting Project:

Other Incredible Art Work:

Dianna Bernal-Tuyor, Artist and Willow Glen Resident

Art Box Location: Bird and Minnesota

As a 20-year Silicon Valley engineer and practicing post-impressionist artist, Dianna Bernal-Tuyor is adept at blending the structure of composition with the beauty of broad, uninhibited stroke patterns. Her work is bright and reflective. It calls upon Van Gogh as its influence - emanating emotion, honesty, and brilliant color. Employing oil as her favored medium, Dianna’s paintings speak to the calm we find in nature and the uniqueness we find in one another.
 
Dianna’s work has been showcased across the Bay Area, including SF Mission District, Santana Row’s Gallery 85, Ay Dios Mio Art Boutique in San Jose, Willow Glen's Flour-Flower and the Napa Farm House Inn. She has used her art to promote non-profit organizations as well; working with Children’s Musical Theatre in San Jose to provide artistic services as a Costume Designer and Prop Master. Additionally, she donates original artwork to support fund raising efforts for mental health through Valle Monte League, and Sabor del Valle, where she sits as the Chairmen of the board. She is the owner of Its a Vibe paint party, where you can find her sharing her art at the Wheel House in Willow Glen!
 
Dianna’s passion is to create artwork that inspires reflection and offers inspiration. She travels the world studying great artists, and continues to garner inspiration from the community in which she resides. Today, Dianna loves working with children to share what she has learned, and desires to help each one find their own creative genius.

Stacey Houghton, Artist 

Art Box Location: Foxworthy and Cherry

BIO:

Valerie McNeal, Artist and Willow Glen Resident

Art Box Location:  Lincoln and Coe

BIO: Valerie McNeal is a northern California artist in Silicon Valley who makes her living as a muralist and gallery and restoration artist for domestic and international clients. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Masters of Science in Therapeutic Recreation from San Jose State University.

Valerie was born and lives in San Jose, California. She is  a fourth-generation California native and grew up in the Bay Area. She  was a decorative mural artist and  for high-end residences during the DotCom boom

Valerie uses creativity in art and dance movement for therapeutic and transformative healing for herself and others.

www.valeriesart.com

https://www.facebook.com/ValerieMcNealArtist/

Email: [email protected]

Susan Butler Graham, Artist and Willow Glen resident

Art Box Location:  Curtner and Cottle

BIO:  

Susan grew up drawing and painting with her artist father and sisters. For her, painting is a way to practice mindfulness and share her love of nature with others. Her work ranges from simple line drawings and still life and animal studies to plein air landscapes and abstract creations. 

Susan studied Art and Spanish at Muhlenberg College in the 1980s. After retiring from teaching elementary school, she began painting in earnest in the spring of 2017. She is a member of the Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Association, Los Gatos Art Association and the California Watercolor Association.

She tries to emphasize shapes and colors in realistic and abstract compositions in her watercolor paintings. She is constantly sketching and painting and honing her skills. She also works in collage, drawing, mixed media, mosaic, and quilts.

Susan's Progress on her Art Box located at Curtner and Cottle

More of Susan's beautiful art:

Michelle Smith, Artist and Willow Glen resident

Art Box located at Curtner and Booksin 

In Process Pictures:

BIO:

Michelle has always been considered artistic. In terms of creativity, she studied and gained her B.A. at UC Davis in English with a focus on Creative Writing. In fact, she has two multi-cultural books on the California Department of Education website and has written two additional books. In terms of art, Michelle did not fully pursue art until she became an adult.  In her thirties, her husband encouraged her to increase her natural artistic abilities and study painting. For two years, Michelle studied under world acclaimed Malaysian artist, Lucy Liew.  After two years, Lucy convinced Michelle that, aside from having garnered the skills and techniques she needed, she had that artistic “it” and should go out on her own. From that moment on, Michelle has exhibited her artistry in capturing the beauty of California on canvas and in murals. She loves seeing things that others don’t and grasping the beauty of everything, every day.

Michelle supporting WGNA at National Night Out on 8/2/2022

Some of Michelle's fabulous art:

https://www.instagram.com/chellesmithartwork/

Casey Jane Satterlund, Artist and Willow Glen resident

BIO: Casey Jane Satterlund is an author and illustrator from Willow Glen. She has worked as a camp councilor and an art teacher in San Jose and Cupertino. In the past she and her students have created murals at the San Jose Discovery Museum and in Santa Maria Urban Ministry as community service projects. Today Casey Jane writes and illustrates childrens' books and does freelance illustration. She's looking forward to helping beautify the neighborhood where she grew up!  Find her books at Hicklebees on Lincoln Avenue or see her artwork at Instagram.com/little.sprig.stories

Instagram: @little.sprig.stories

Sketch for Art Box located at Meridian, Minnesota & Isabel

Other Art Casey Jane has Created:

Kayla Jimenez, Artist and Willow Glen Resident

Artist for Art Box located at Pine and Hicks

BIO: