San Jose Water Lantern Festival October 2019

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Water Lantern Festival October 2019San Jose Water Lantern Festival October 2019 – It’s a visual splendor that evokes hope, love, peace, and dreams. The San Jose Water Lantern Festival is being held again in Almaden Valley, for the second time this year. Following the huge success of the spring event, this beautiful festival of floating lanterns is back for the fall season this weekend on Saturday, October 5, 2019.

Event at a glance:
Venue: The Almaden Lake Park
Date: Saturday, October 5, 2019.
Time: 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm.

Enjoy the Water Lantern Festival with your family and friends, or come and make a date night of it. The event begins at 4:00 pm, when you can enter the venue. There will be music and food trucks, and you can decorate your lanterns provided at the entrance with special messages and prayers. The lanterns will be launched at dusk around 7:30 pm.

Tickets are available for purchase online right now, and they include the festival entry pass, a floatable lantern, a marker and a commemorative bag. The price of tickets also includes the cost of retrieving the lanterns from water and clean-up of the lake the following day. Special pricing on tickets is available for kids and couples. Kids under seven can enter for free.

For more information, visit: https://www.waterlanternfestival.com/sanjose.php. This beautiful spectacle is a memory-maker. Don’t miss!

Almaden Valley Art and Wine Festival 2019

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Almaden Valley Art and Wine Festival 2019Almaden Valley is buzzing with excitement. One of the community’s biggest events, the 43rd Annual Almaden Valley Art and Wine Festival 2019 unfolds this weekend. On Sunday, September 15th, 2019, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., the serenely beautiful Almaden Lake Park will be a beehive of activity, buzzing with families, performers, artists and wine enthusiasts.

Neighborhood artists will showcase their work, local vineyards will host sampling booths serving boutique wines, and patrons will be able to enjoy the pristine surroundings of Almaden Lake Park, sipping wine, listening to music or watching performances.

This year’s performers include Team M Taekwondo, Aerial Tumbling and Acrogymnastics, Almaden Spirit Athletics, Willow Glen High School Spirit Squad and Leland High School Dance team, besides the various local music bands.

There will be food trucks serving a variety of cuisines, with the new addition this year being Indian cuisine. There will also be a Kids’ Fun Zone, with a rock-climbing wall, bounce houses, arts and crafts, face painting, and a children’s stage. Performers in this arena will be Shaolin Kungfu Martial Arts, Little Gym and Leland Robotics.

The Almaden Art and Wine Festival is organized by the Almaden Valley Women’s Club, a non-profit organization in Almaden. They provide grants and aid to a wide range of organizations as well as some local schools. So, come and enjoy this beautiful fall festival with your family and friends.

At a glance:
When: Sunday, September 15, 2019, 10:00 am to 6:00 pm.
Where: Almaden Valley Lake Park

For more details, visit: https://www.almadenwomen.org

Almaden Graffiti Night Classic Car Show-N-Shine

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Almaden Graffiti NightIf you are a classic car enthusiast, Almaden Graffiti Night is a must do. On Friday, September 6th, 2019, from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, Almaden Lake Park will host its 4th Annual Graffiti Night Classic Car Show-N-Shine with a bevy of beauties from the 50s, 60s, and 70s.

On display will be about 100 classic and custom cars of various models and makes. These include custom cars, hot-rods, antiques, low-riders and traditional cruisers. There will be music and food trucks at the venue. This family friendly event is hosted by the City of San Jose Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services.

Admission is free for visitors. So stop by with your friends and family to enjoy an evening out and admire these classic cars of yesteryear.

Basketball and Swim Teams Registrations Open

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Basketball and swimWith the new school year in full swing and kids back into routine, it’s now time for sports registrations. Currently, registrations are underway for basketball and swim teams in Almaden.

Basketball

The Almaden NJB Youth Basketball League 2019-2020 registrations are now open. The Almaden NJB offers an exciting opportunity for both girls and boys to play in division, all-star and all-net, with teams advancing to the national tournament. Here are some dates to remember:

  • Registration: currently open
  • Mandatory player evaluations (grades 3-8): Sept 21-22
  • First games (division and all-net): November 24

Since the NJB is completely a volunteer-led program, there are several volunteer positions open that you may also consider, if interested. For more information, visit: http://www.almadennjb.org

Year-round Swim Teams

The two year-round swim teams in and around Almaden are the Almaden Riptides, which practices at the Shadowbrook Swim club, and the Quicksilver Swim team (QSS), which practices at both Gunderson High and the Almaden Swim and Racquet Club (ASRC). Both are currently accepting registrations. Further, while both are year-long competitive swim teams, they also offer recreational swim options. For more information, visit: https://www.almadenriptides.com and https://www.teamunify.com/Home.jsp?_tabid_=0&team=pcqs

June 2019 Almaden Valley Real Estate Market Update

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The June 2019 Almaden Valley real estate numbers showed growth from May. The number of single family homes that sold increased a healthy 36% from the previous month (34 versus 25), while the number of such homes on the market increased a bit over 23% (58 versus 47). The average price per square foot increased $4 to $664.

When we look at current trends compared to the same time last year, we can see that buyers aren’t quite as bullish. Price per square foot in June 2018 was a market-peaking $757. The number of single family homes that sold at this time was 40, and the number of homes for sale was a mere 26.

Although supply is now higher than demand, the average days on market for single family homes dropped to a year-to-date low of 21 days, a number we haven’t seen since fall of last year. This indicates that buyers are still keen on Almaden Valley, but from my personal observations, they are attracted to updated, well-priced homes that show well. The savvy seller can do well in this market, but it takes more than putting a For Sale sign in the yard. If you are thinking about selling your home, contact me and let me show how I can help you make the best of this challenging market!

June 2019 Almaden Valley Real Estate

4th of July 2019 at Almaden Lake Park

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4th of July 2019

If you are in the South Bay this 4th of July 2019, head over to Almaden Lake Park for a dazzling display of fireworks. The 6th Annual Family Fun Festival and Fireworks show at Almaden Lake Park continues to grow in fervor, with a host of family friendly activities culminating in a fabulous fireworks show reflected over the beautiful lake.

The event starts at 3:00 pm when the gates to the park open, and ends around 9:30 pm. The fireworks display is slated to begin right after sundown. Besides the fireworks, this event also celebrates veterans and the US armed forces. There are food trucks, bands playing live music, and a table for writing letters to soldiers, which is a great favorite with the kids.

Almaden Lake Park is undoubtedly the best place to be to celebrate Independence Day and to watch fireworks. Please remember, for safety reasons, the use of fireworks at a personal level in the city of San Jose is otherwise banned.

May 2019 Almaden Valley Real Estate Market Update

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Things have slowed down a bit.

Almaden Valley residential real estate continues to show transition to a buyer’s market. The number of active single family home listings increased almost 24% from April 2019 and a whopping almost 81% from the same time last year. Meanwhile, the number of homes that closed sale during May 2019 decreased by over 34% since April and over 45% since the same time last year. The average price per square foot retracted about 4% from April and a bit over 7% since the same time last year.

Overall, indicators would seem to show that the Almaden Valley real estate market has cooled from its relatively long run of growth. From my personal experience, homes that are staged well and competitively priced are still selling quickly. Agents need to be pro-active; marketing has become vital.

If you are thinking about selling your home, contact me and let me show how I can make your home stand out in our changing market. Additionally, Compass can front the money for upgrades until close of escrow with no interest.

May 2019 Almaden Valley Real Estate Market

Leland High School Speech Workshops

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Leland High School Speech WorkshopsLeland High School will be hosting two speech workshops for elementary school students this summer. The workshops will be led by coaches from the nationally ranked Leland High School Speech and Debate team, under the guidance of Gay Brasher, celebrated public speaking coach and Leland teacher.

The workshops are for students entering second grade through sixth grade and will be conducted in two sessions. During the workshops, students will be trained to write, practice and present short speeches. They will get a chance to develop key public speaking skills that will remain with them for a lifetime. The details are as follows:

Session 1: June 26, 27, 28
For students entering 2nd – 4th grades
Cost: $160
Location: Leland High School, Room J-2
Time: 9:00 am to 11:00 am

Session 2: July 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
For students entering 4th – 6th grades
Cost: $390
Location: Leland High School, Room J-2
Time: 9:00 am to 12:00 noon

To register, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/summerelementaryworkshop2019
Checks are payable to Leland Speech and Debate and all proceeds will benefit Leland Speech and Debate.

Almaden Community Center Summer 2019

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Almaden Community Center Summer 2019Almaden Community Center Summer 2019

Spring is well under way, and with just a few short weeks left of the school year, are you wondering how to keep your kids engaged during the summer? Well, here are the highlights of the popular summer camps and activities at the Almaden Community Center. You can view the full catalog here: Almaden Community Center Summer Catalog 2019

Dance

From fairy-tale themed dances for the tiny tots to the more energetic hip-hop and cheerleading style moves for the older kids, the dance camps will have them moving and grooving in no time. Look up:

  • Camp Dance
  • Anna and Elsa Dance Camp
  • Cheerleading/Hip-Hop Dance Camp
Sports by Skyhawks

The sports camps by Skyhawks are intensive camps for both beginner and intermediate levels, where participants have fun and also pick up essential skills to excel. Some of the sports taught by Skyhawks are:

  • Basketball
  • Beginner Golf
  • Flag Football
  • Tennis
  • Volleyball
  • Track and Field
STEM with Mad Science

For kids with a curious bent of mind, the STEM camps conducted by Mad Science are sure to keep them thinking and tinkering all summer long. Check out:

  • Eureka! Young Inventors Camp
  • Fizz-Ical Phenomena and Che-Mystery
  • Jet Cadets
LEGO and Minecraft

For the little gaming and engineering enthusiasts, the LEGO and Minecraft camps are sure to enthrall. Consider:

  • Harry Potter Magical and Master Engineering
  • Bash’ em Bots
  • Brixology
  • Jedi Engineering
  • Minecraft Build Adventure and Survival Game
  • Minecraft Edu Theme Park Mania
Art and Craft Camps

For the budding young artists and the crafty kids, there are:

  • 3D Printing
  • Art Start
  • Art with Masters
  • Origami

The camps run on a weekly basis from June through August. Be sure to register as soon as possible on or after May 4th at 10:00 AM for Summer 2019! For more information, call the Almaden Community Center at 408.268.1133 or visit: www.sjregistration.com

 

San Jose Water Lantern Festival

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Water Lantern FestivalBook your spots today for the San Jose Water Lantern Festival! Don’t miss this mesmerizing visual experience, which will stay with you for a lifetime.

At: The Almaden Lake Park
On: Saturday, April 27 and Sunday, April 28, 2019
Time: 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm

Decorate your lanterns with messages of hopes and dreams, set them afloat, and watch them light up the waters of the beautiful Almaden Lake Park. The Water Lantern Festival, being held this weekend at the Almaden Lake Park, will be a dazzling spectacle that you can enjoy with your entire family.

The festivities begin at 5:00 pm, when you can enter the venue (from the Winfield Blvd. entrance) and enjoy music and snacks from food trucks. During this time, you can also decorate your lanterns (provided at the entrance) prior to setting them afloat. The lantern launch is slated to begin at 8:00.

Tickets include the festival entry pass, a floatable lantern, and a commemorative bag. Remember to carry a folding chair, bug spray, camera and some cash for the food vendors.

For more information and to buy tickets, visit: https://www.waterlanternfestival.com/sanjose.php