Let's take a Walk Through District 1

I have lived in just about every neighborhood in District 1 nearly my entire life. And because I spent a good number of those years patrolling that area as a San José police officer, I’d bet that there are not too many people who know the District as well as I do.

I grew up here with my parents and three siblings in a small house on Strawberry Park Drive.  At that time, the neighborhood consisted of hard-working people, like my parents, who wanted a place that was safe and offered opportunity, where they could prosper and raise their families. San José and District 1 have grown a lot since then, but I think you’ll agree that all of us still want the same things that my parents did.

One of the most amazing aspects of District 1 is the area’s incredible ethnic diversity; it’s the perfect microcosm of San José. So many different cultures living together and getting along reflects the unique spirit of cooperation that makes our District—and our city—so great. For instance, in just one short block in District 1, there are restaurants and businesses, side by side, of just about every ethnicity—Chinese, Korean, Italian, Mexican, Thai, Japanese and Vietnamese, to name just a few.

But the mix of all our different cultures isn’t the only kind of diversity that District 1 has to offer. If you know the area like I do, you know how many different and terrific things there are in and around our neighborhoods.

We may have the fewest parks of any council district in San José, but we do have some of the finest, such as Rainbow Park and Murdock Park. If you’re seeking some peace and quiet in a more natural setting, the San Tomas Aquino/Saratoga Creek Trail is a special open place in District 1. Here you can walk, jog, or ride your bike on the path that meanders along Saratoga Creek. After just a short while, it’ll seem like the rest of the bustling city is miles away.

If the San Tomas Aquino/Saratoga Creek Trail isn’t rural enough, you can get down on the farm, literally. It’s hard to believe until you actually see it, but just a five-minute walk from the Westmont High School campus will place you smack in the middle of the school’s Future Farmers of America (FFA) agricultural program. Built in the 1970s, the farm serves as the Life Science Lab for Westmont students, where they get hands-on experience raising animals like pigs, lambs and even steers.

District 1 has a wide range of available shopping, too, from quaint little ethnic boutiques to good-sized malls, like El Paseo de Saratoga. It’s also the gateway to Santana Row where you can lose yourself in a European-style boulevard of shops, restaurants, wine bars and coffee houses.

Just about all of us are familiar with that sprawling and wacky mansion on Winchester Boulevard that was built by the widowed heiress of the Winchester rifle fortune. Better known as the Winchester Mystery House, this odd architectural marvel has enchanted and baffled visitors for years. Incidentally, if the permit process in 1884 had been anything like what it is today, Sarah Winchester would most likely still be standing in line at City Hall. But back then she had free rein and plenty of money to keep building—non-stop for 38 years—stairwells that led nowhere and the structure’s 160 rooms.

This is just a sampling of the wonderful variety of things available to us right in our own District 1 backyard. I feel very fortunate to live in such a great part of San José. In fact, District 1 has been my favorite area of the city for most of my life and I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. Nevertheless, West San José is so much more than a collection of great things to do. For me, by far, the finest feature about our little piece of San José is—and always will be—the people who live here. They are my friends and neighbors. By the number of neighborhood associations that have been formed and operate within the District, you can easily see just how committed they are to the community. It’s people like them, who care deeply about where they live and who proudly take ownership of their neighborhoods, which makes District 1 so special to me.

Wherever I walk around any part of District 1, I’m surrounded by so many good memories of my nearly thirty years here. Whether it’s in the Strawberry Park Drive neighborhood where I grew up, my old Blackford High School stomping grounds, the neighborhoods that I patrolled as a San José Police Officer, or the area where my wife and I and our five children now live, I’m constantly reminded of what a great place District 1 is and how lucky I am to be a part of it.