Heritage Plaza vaccination clinic gets musical accompaniment
Getting a COVID-19 vaccination at the Mexican Heritage Plaza in San Jose has become a more pleasant experience. That’s largely due to a pilot program that provides live music, including Afro-Latin jazz, R&B and mariachi for people in line for their shot or waiting out the observation period after receiving the vaccine.
And while the music is entertaining, it’s serving a bigger purpose, too.
Omar Rodriguez, owner of Kooltura Marketing, said it’s important to find creative ways to “build a bridge of access and trust among hard-working communities that have historically been underserved when it comes to public health services and resources.” And part of that can be as simple as providing music to encourage people to get their vaccination and make it as enjoyable an experience as possible.
And it’s just plain nice to have music coming from the School of Arts and Culture at the Mexican Heritage Plaza, which was primarily known as a cultural gathering spot and performing arts space in East San Jose, before it shifted gears when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. In the past year, the Plaza has been used for food pick-up services for the needy and later became a testing site and now a vaccine clinic.
Gardner Health Services provides vaccinations on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at the Plaza, but the music is only happening on Thursdays through May 6. Upcoming performers include the
DannyGerzQuartet,the Ralph Trujillo Trio, the Oscar Pangilinan Quartet and the Monique Valenzuela Mariachi Trio.
Santa Clara County protocols are being followed, and funding is being provided by the School of Arts and Culture, San Jose Jazz, Republic Service and San Jose Jazz board member Bob Escobar and Latinas Contra Cancer CEO Darcie Green.
PURPLE MUSEUM IS BACK>>
After being closed for more than a year, the Children’s Discovery Museum
in downtown San Jose is ready to welcome visitors back inside the iconic learning space starting Friday. And the city of San Jose is expressing its gratitude for the museum’s grand reopening — and 30th anniversary — in a big way. Expect to see iconic places like the Circle of Palms and San Jose Civic awash in purple lights to celebrate. The public also is invited to get in on the fun by wearing purple and sharing their photos with the hashtag #purpleplaydays.
Of course, it won’t be business as usual at the museum, which will open at 25 percent capacity and eventually ramp up to 50 percent. Guests will be
welcomed inside for two play sessions each day — Fridays through Sundays, plus April 14-15 during spring break for many schools. Masks are required for anyone over age 2 and some exhibits have been altered to make social distancing easier.
“So many families have expressed tremendous appreciation for our ability to successfully reopen Bill’s Backyard and they are eagerly awaiting to visit their favorite spaces inside,” Executive Director Marilee Jennings said. “But there are some exhibits we just can’t open yet; however, we’ve worked hard to figure out how to safely open many of the favorites like Waterways, the
Rainbow Market, and Bubbles, which we moved outside.”
You can check hours and ticket information or reserve a time for a visit at cdm.org.
NO FOOLIN’ >> Two more signs of things returning to pre-pandemic ways are happening April 1, but these aren’t April Fools’ Day jokes. First, VTA will again start collecting fares on buses and lightrail. You might remember that last year the transit agency went fare-free and used rear-door boarding to protect drivers. With
transit workers now eligible for vaccination and COVID-19 cases declining, VTA announced it’ll start collecting fares and boarding up front again. People going to vaccination appointments can still use those sites for free by showing their vaccination cards or appointment slips.
Also on April 1, the city of San Jose will resume charging for parking at regional parks including Alum Rock Park, Almaden Lake Regional Park, Happy Hollow Park & Zoo and Lake Cunningham Regional Park.
The parking fees were suspended last year to encourage people to get outdoors when indoor recreation spots were closed, but the city’s bringing the revenue stream back online to support park maintenance and operations staff. In case you’ve forgotten, parking is $6 per day at those parks but annual passes issued from April 2019 through March 2020 will be honored until they receive a full year of value.