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News From Silicon Valley's Neighborhoods Smoke Scream After 17 centuries of bad ink, practitioners of the Wicca faith--also known as witches--are annoyed at a Camel cigarette ad that they believe mis-stereotypes them. Highway Robbery Sunnyvale--After admitting that the city had towed a private citizens' car, kept it for more than 30 days, and then sold it for profit, city officials here admitted last week that their failure to comply with a 1996 change in the vehicle code could cost the city $67,000. Last Straw Estates Los Gatos--At an Aug. 26 planning meeting here, many local citizens showed up wearing home-made pins with a piece of straw glued to a picture of a camel, with its back broken in half. Many live near a proposed development on one of the last undeveloped pieces of land near downtown. Apparently, the local Planning Commission heard them. Lost Boys Saratoga--For those who thought this posh Silicon Valley suburb had nothing to offer in the way of life-threatening adventure, consider that those Lincoln Navigators and Land Rovers aren't just for show. It's surprising to think that three kids could get so lost in Sanborn Canyon that it would take rescue workers two hours to find them. But it happened. The Dog-and-Pony Before the Cart Alviso--Even before a task force of Alviso citizens has come to final approval of a plan to reorganize zoning in the North San Jose community, a main player here has proposed a major, last-minute change to the Master Plan. The maneuver poses a significant dilemma for local environmentalists and residents. [ Metro | Metroactive Central | Archives ]