September 3 - 16, 2011
www.SanTanSun.com
Relentlessly local coverage of Southern Chandler and our neighboring communities s Smile: CUSD students on camera by Miriam Van Scott
Students in area elementary schools will soon be monitored not just by teachers and staff, but by a sophisticated electronic surveillance system. The project, coming in at around $1.13 million, is being covered by Chandler Unifi ed School District (CUSD) bond funds, approved in the 2010 election, and should be up and running within the next year. “We will have up to 12 cameras installed at each campus,” explains CUSD spokesman Terry Locke. “We anticipate the cabling, cameras, server confi gurations and network hardware installation should take approximately eight months.” Specifi c camera locations will be decided at each individual site, and some administrators may entertain suggestions from parents and support staff on what areas of the school should be monitored.
“Every campus is different and principals are best positioned to understand the optimal placement of cameras for his or her campus,” says Locke. “Principals may seek some input from site council or any parent who has ideas of optimal placement. Certainly points of entry to a campus to protect from an intruder or other areas that may have been problematic in the past such as bike racks, parking lots, that kind of thing.”
Safety, cost savings top priorities According to Locke, the decision to put cameras in CUSD elementary schools was made after extensive consultation with education offi cials and feedback from the SanTan Sun community. The new system’s
See On camera Page 7
MAKE HAY WHEN SUN SHINES: That old farmer adage makes for lots of hay baling in the SanTan Sun area. This modern bale wagon scoops up the individual twine-wrapped bales of hay, stacks them first flat and then upright in the wagon and gets them ready for transport to local hay storage yards and market. The wagon can hold up to four tons of baled hay, which can be more 80 square bales. This scene at Germann and Val Vista is being played out all over the area as farmers bale their latest crop of alfalfa, and is a reminder of the agricultural heritage of the SanTan Sun area juxtaposed with modern, new buildings often on the edge of farm fields.
STSN photo
WATCHING: Elementary school officials will be able to monitor kindergarten through sixth-grade students when electronic surveillance cameras are installed next year, similar to ones seen here at Hamilton High.
Lush landscapes oasis for desert dwellers
by Miriam Van Scott
Record-setting August heat has many area homeowners fed up to their air-conditioned necks with summer, but the fall planting season is just around the corner. The promise of mild fall and winter temperatures is a draw for those relocating to the SanTan Sun area, but most want their landscapes to more closely resemble a tropical paradise than cactus- infused rock garden.
“People come here for the weather, but they don’t necessarily love the desert look,” says Sean Alexander, president of Blooming Vista Landscape Design and Installation on Cooper Road south of Ocotillo Road. “About 80 to 90 percent of our clients want an oasis in
STSN photo Teen urges others to ‘Hear the World’ by K. M. Lang
Whispering voices, rustling branches, distant birdsong. To 16-year-old Jacob Gonzales, the ability to detect such subtle sounds is a gift not to be squandered. Earlier this summer, the Chandler resident and Hear the World ambassador joined other teens, most of them with varying degrees of hearing loss, for a weeklong trip to the Grand Canyon, where they river-rafted, camped and explored the area’s noises, collecting sound data for the National Park Service. “I would say the purpose of the trip was to realize how important sound really is,” explains Jacob,
who was born with moderate to severe hearing loss. “I think the thought was, it’s a good start to go into nature and listen to the natural sounds out there. We had discussions like ‘What if noise pollution came up in the wilderness?’ It gets you thinking about hearing loss awareness. If you really want to enjoy the sounds around you, you have to take care of your hearing.”
For the Mountain Pointe High School junior, the message has real signifi cance. Jacob is able to hear, but only at louder levels. Although hearing aids have made his life easier,
See Hear the World Page 14
Senior Center renovation
Community Page 4 Turn scrap to cash Business Page 16
Badminton team flying
Youth Page 25 BLD debuts Neighbors Page 45
SanTan Family Fun Center spread
Submitted photo
COLLECTING SOUNDS: Jacob Gonzales explores noises at the Grand Canyon with other Hear the World ambassadors, collecting sound information for the National Park Service.
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INSIDE
Business . . . . . . . . .16-23 Youth . . . . . . . . . .24-32 Things to do . . . . . . . . . 33 Opinion . . . . . . . . . 34-35 Neighbors . . . . . . . .45-53 AZ Arts . . . . . . . . .55-63 Spirituality . . . . . . . 65-69 Directory . . . . . . . .70-72 Classifieds . . . . . . . .73-74 Where to eat . . . . . . 75-79
See Lush landscapes Page 12
FAMILY FUN
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