AS A RECENT story in the Times noted, elected officials in San Carlos are backing up their views on Measure U, a proposed half-cent sales tax, with serious amounts of cash.

Mayor Bob Grassilli has given $4,000 of his own money to the campaign in support of Measure U, while City Councilman Brad Lewis has chipped in $2,000. Andy Klein, who is running unopposed Tuesday for a seat on the council, and Beth Hunkapiller, a member of the San Carlos School District board, have contributed $1,000 and $5,000, respectively.

On the other side, Councilman Matt Grocott, the leading voice against Measure U, has loaned roughly $2,600 to the campaign to defeat the measure.

"Quite honestly, I felt it was important to do," Grassilli said of his campaign donation. "I think it shows that we really believe in this town."

Grassilli said the measure would help businesses by preserving important services, maintaining the city's attractiveness to residents and visitors who spend money in San Carlos.

"I want my city to be well run, I want the emergency services to be good, I want the streets to be swept and I want the parks to be kept clean," he said, drawing a connection between quality of life and a healthy business climate.

Grocott said he made his loan because he strongly believes that Measure U is a bad idea that will hurt local merchants, from small businesses to retailers of big-ticket items. The City Council

"It's not fair just because we haven't managed our employee compensation well to lean on businesses and other folks to make up for what we haven't done," Grocott said.

Grocott said the donations by Grassilli and the others in favor of Measure U is revealing in that it shows they may be removed from the hard financial realities many residents and businesses face.

If you can give a couple thousand dollars to a campaign, "you're not going to think very much about paying half a cent of sales tax, either," claimed Grocott, emphasizing that he made a loan to the campaign against Measure U because he would not be able to afford to give that amount as a donation.

For his part, Grassilli said he's put off by the fact that the campaign against Measure U is getting help in the form of mailers and robocalls from People's Advocate, a statewide anti-tax group that was founded by Paul Gann, one of the men behind Proposition 13 in 1978.

A Sacramento interest group is removed from any of the consequences San Carlos residents will have to deal with if Measure U fails, he said.

Guest pumpkin judge

Kyle Niermann, a third-grader at Kings Mountain Elementary School in Woodside, took first prize this week in a pumpkin design contest.

The twist is that Niermann's design for a carved pumpkin was selected as the winner by Koko the gorilla, a Woodside resident who is known around the world for her ability to communicate with humans through sign language.

Niermann's winning design was applied to an actual pumpkin, and Koko gave the gourd a personal inspection, according to the Gorilla Foundation, the nonprofit that cares for the 38-year-old primate.

For more information about Koko and the foundation, visit www.koko.org.

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