November 28, 2003


Street Scene: Box Canyon Road

Peaceful, tree-lined street backs against open space park

While all nine of the resident families call Box Canyon Road home, several of them also call it “paradise.” Aptly named, this peaceful, tree-lined road backs up against Quicksilver County Park and features deer, quail, raccoons, squirrels, hawks, hummingbirds, wild pigs, and turkeys.

Ann and Ben Angileri have lived on Box Canyon Road for 28 years and are one of the four original homeowners. Their house had just been built when they saw it one rainy Sunday afternoon. “We fell in love with it,” Ben declares, “and have been here ever since.” Although they purchased their home for $150,000, today it is worth well over a million dollars. They both enjoy living in a country setting that is still close to the city and stores. They don’t even mind having deer in the backyard and wild turkeys in the front. “One day I heard a clappity clap,” reports Ann, “and there’s a deer going by my kitchen window! I only wish my grandson had been here to see it.” They also have a soft spot for a certain pair of ducks. “The ducks visit us each year, and they have done so for the past five years. They float and sun themselves in the pool for hours at a time,” Ben shares, “They have become so used to us that they don’t even fly away when they see us come outside.” The Angileri’s three sons, Thomas, John, and Ben Jr., attended Leland High School, Castillero Middle School, and Simonds Elementary School. Although they considered relocating after retiring, the Angileris could not find anywhere that compared with Box Canyon Road. “We love this street just as much now as we did when we first moved here,” Ben says. “We really do love it here,” Ann agrees.

Residents on Box Canyon Road look out for one another, and some even take turns bringing in each others’ trash cans. When he heard about the robberies in the Almaden Country Club area, Ben coordinated a Neighborhood Watch program, which is run through the San Jose Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit. Besides safeguarding his street with the aid of Neighborhood Watch, Ben also helped his neighbors become better acquainted with each other, including three new families. “We are very fortunate,” Ann acknowledges, “The people who have moved in are very nice.” One of the new neighbors, Mojey Ghafouri, hopes that they will further their friendships with monthly cocktail parties at each others’ homes in the future.

Mojey, her husband Kamran, and their son Oktay, joined the residents of Box Canyon Road one year ago. Mojey adores the rolling hills, friendly neighbors, deer, turkeys, and good schools in the area–but most of all, she loves her house. “I was looking at open houses, and one night it happened,” she recalls, “we were on our way home from a party, and I stopped to show my husband the house–and he talked to a realtor the next day!” They almost changed their minds when her mother thought the house was too expensive, but they managed to get a good deal, “And now, we’re all happy,” she adds. Kamran, of Icon Realtors Group, produces Persian media for local cable stations, and is coordinating support for City Council candidate Rich De La Rosa among the local Persian community. Oktay attends Bret Harte Middle School and plays football with the Almaden Chargers. Mojey appreciates her life in Almaden. “I love it here!” she declares, “It’s beautiful.”

Original owners Gary and Virginia Throckmorton have lived on Box Canyon Road since 1976.
Gary considers Box Canyon a nice place to live due to its quietness and good neighbors. They could however, do without the wild turkeys stomping on their rooftop, and the gophers destroying their shrubbery. “We bought vibrating sticks to keep the gophers at bay,” Virginia confides, “but when the batteries run out, here they come again!” Sometimes deer eat their plants down to the ground, but at least those plants grow back, Virginia says. One day, Gary heard a noise in the backyard and suspecting deer, ran out to chase them off. “There were wild pigs back there!” he exclaimed, “I wasn’t about to chase them away.” He was also recently surprised by a band of marauding raccoons. “The raccoons won,” Gary concedes with a chuckle, “There were more of them than of me.” The Throckmorton’s two sons, Roger, and Robert, attended Castillero Middle School. Their daughter, Teri, attended college in Southern California, and lived with them over summer breaks. In describing one of the aspects she loves about living here, Virginia shares her daughter’s view, “It’s like living in both worlds–commercial and country–and when you look up, all you can see are the green hills,” she says. Virginia also likes how the homes are situated on Box Canyon Road. “The houses are far enough apart so that they’re not right on top of each other,” she observes, “but they’re not so far apart that you feel isolated.” The Throckmortons briefly considered moving back to Austin, Texas, but changed their minds. “We drove through Austin, and kept right on going,” Gary enthuses. “We’ve been here too long to call another place home,” Virginia adds, “We’re staying!”

When Chris Greene and his daughter moved into Box Canyon Road last month, he immediately impressed Virginia Throckmorton by introducing himself to each of his new neighbors. Chris has loved Almaden since he was a child visiting his uncle, Bob Greene, one of the area’s earliest residents. Chris appreciates the natural aspects of his home such as the sunlight that fills it, the terraced English rose garden in his backyard, and the fact that Box Canyon Road backs up against Quicksilver County Park. His daughter also likes the neighborhood, but finds some of the steep streets challenging to bicycle. “You have to pick your bike routes carefully around here,” Chris admits with a grin. “Here you have the amenities of the city with the grace and character of the country,” he notes. “In the summer, you have the sound of crickets and (above you), the stars. It has real charm.”