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vol . 5 , no. 46 : july 15-21 , 2026 : losgatan.com
new census data p4 : testarossa winery's katie abelson p6 : police blotter p7 : the teen journal p8 Faizi Samadani / Los Gatan
DRONES DEPLOYED TO TAKE PHOTOS OF VEHICLES FROM ABOVE DURING PARKING STUDY
11U, 12U and 13U All Stars victorious in the postseason Emanuel Lee, Sports Editor
Town says initiative was temporary; contract with Axon climbs to $2.79M
The group of players that comprise this year’s Los Gatos Little League 11-and-under All Star team had never won a District 12 championship. Not last year as 10-year-olds. Or two years ago as 9-year-olds. If things were going to turn around this summer, the players would have to embrace the challenge issued to them from the coaching staff. “We started the season and asked them to come together as a team,” Los Gatos manager Anthony Sammut said, moments after a 6-3 win over San Jose American on July 10. “We let them know that they all made it individually to this point (being selected as an All Star), but you will not make it far and succeed unless you come together as a team. That’s what we hammered the entire season and they took on the challenge. They put in the hard work everyday and I couldn’t be more proud of them. Beyond proud. They 100 percent did it.” Los Gatos opens Section 5
Obadiah Casperson, Contributor
“Los Gatos is watching your car. Drones are circling downtown right now.” That’s how San Jose-based Kip “Your Real Estate Dude” Barnard kicked-off a June 27 Instagram reel that’s racked up almost 2,000 likes since it was posted. But is it true? We reached out to Barnard for comment, but didn’t hear back by press time. And when we asked local authorities about it, they downplayed the situation. According to the Town, the drone movements Barnard was referring to were part of a temporary parking study that ended back in October. The posting nevertheless raises broader questions about surveillance technology in Los Gatos around temporary parking studies, license plate readers and a multimillion-dollar technology contract: what tools are being deployed, and how transparent are local municipalities being? Every so often, the Council debates the merits of a paid parking program. And every so often, Council opts not to head down that path. Free spaces are largely limited to three hours at a time. As part of a study tracking how long cars parked downtown, the Town dispatched drones flown by FAA-certified pilots. ➝ Drones, 4
TITLE TOWN! THREE LGLL TEAMS ARE CROWNED CHAMPS
➝ Champs, 9
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FOOD & BEV Tana Duncan (center), founder of catering company Salt & Stone, with head chef Abril Ramirez (right) and manager Lily Sauer.
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