Politics & Government

LIVE BLOG: Los Altos City Council Forum

Follow along with our low-tech live blog tonight, covering the forum on downtown vibrancy and sustainability.

 

Greetings. We're doing the low-tech live blog version tonight for the Los Altos City Council Forum

Emcee Margie Suozzo is walking the audience through the process of asking questions via cell phone text. It is being streamed on the web and will be placed on YouTube later, she says.

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Each candidate has three minutes to introduce himself or herself. [Editor's Note: Most candidates presented themselves via a shortened version of the five-minute presentation they gave to the Rotary Club last week. We've provided links to those remarks for each candidate]

Jon Baer: Moved to Los Altos several  ago because it is a wonderful place to raise a family. He is citing his record of service and his time on the Planning Commission. These are largely the same remarks he made to the Rotary Club last week. See these remarks here.

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Megan Satterlee: She has given her background, including a long list of accomplishments. These also were the same remarks in large part made to the Rotary.

Jan Pepper: She is touting her background and her skill set. She moved here in 1985 and brought up her two children here. She is citing her education at Stanford, first for her civil engineering degree and then her MBA. These, too, are very similar to her remarks made to the Rotary Club. She says she was endorsed by the Sierra Club and the (missed this second group). She says she has reviewed Los Altos' financial report. She cites two key strengths she has: that she listens, and she is even tempered. She supports transparency in government. I ask you to pick Pepper for City Council.

Jeannie Bruins: She says she came her for the same reasons most people come here -- for the quality of life and the schools. She says there is a "disconnect" between elected officials and the community. Need a viable downtown, need to define "village character," and we are at risk of missing strategic opportunities for larger goals if we make decisions project by project. She wants the City Council to work collaboratively to address the Bullis Charter issue. .

Anabel Pelham: Describes herself as a social scientist, professor and a leader with "exceptional experience" in strategic planning knows how to secure private grants and funding. She has taught in Europe each summer that gave her a window. Her work shepherding Los Altos' application to the World Health Organization's Age-Friendly City list. My leadership style is values-driven, shaped by process. I have experience skills and have the strategic vision to move Los Altos forward." A fuller version of her main points about her background and service is here.

Jerry Sorensen: I'm asking for your vote if you're interested in solutions. Spent 30 years in Los Altos. He said he has . Solutions to our challenges is my single reason to running. Parking, traffic, development, school site. The city published retail sales tax data recently and sales tax has dropped 40 percent since the 1990s. My campaign slogan is "Solultions Not Agendas." He says we have more folks working against downtown vibrancy. If we are serioius about traffic, "why did we get rid of our Traffic Commission?" he asks. "We spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on reports," he said and that we will only commission again.

Margie Suozzo: We are using Google Moderator. There were 96 questions submitted online. On the webstream, one person is watching from Japan.

Questions from the panelists begin.

Diego Abeloos (Los Altos Town Crier): Most people talk the need for vibrancy downtown. Describe what "vibrancy" means to you.

Megan Satterlee: That people are attracted to come downtown to purchase goods, receive services and dine. That they are attracted by their friends there, and other people dining [or shopping] there.

Jan Pepper: That people come to see their friends, the community. That there will be activities for all ages, for teenagers, kids, seniors, middle-agers, like myself

Jeannie Bruins: It means "feet on the street." A sense of liveliness. You want to gather. You see friendly faces. During the day and into the evening. A place for all generations.

Anabel Pelham: A core that places pedestrianss, and cycling in the mix. With parklets, a fixed-route mini-bus. A place that connects with the college community, with free wi-fi in Los Altos and moderate income housing so our children and grandchildren can live here.

Jerry Sorensen: A place that has great architecture, yes, but it's about a sense of place; it is economically vibrant.

Jon Baer: There's the tangile and the intangible. The tangible is "feet on the street," places were we can shop. Intangible is a place that feels comfortable, that feels like home. We have that now but we don't have enough feet. How do we feel good about being here, but also increase the activity? There need to be more reasons to stay and come back.

Dave Price (Palo Alto Post): it seems like the sidewalks roll up early in Los Altos. How late should downtown be vibrant?

Jan Pepper: Definitely later than now. There used to be a place on Main Street that had [live] bands. It used to be a fun time. We could have more late night in the core streets of Main Street and State Street. A movie theater would be nice. 

Jeannie Bruins: I'm in favor of later. We have a social experiment going on now. We keep our city open until 8 p.m. with First Friday We're going to push the envelope next time... First Friday up to 10 p.m. We do have to be mindful of residents who live in the area.

Pelham: I also echo First Friday. It's a really good effort. Some of the suggestions that I've heard is a jazz club. Man people have asked for a larger variety of restaurants and a small theater. Would be nice to have a coffee shop.

Jerry Sorensen: I was a frequent visitor of the Los Altos Bar & Grill. I think it's an organic process. Now, you might be able to lie down in Main Street at 8 p.m. and not get hit by a car. You might be able to lay down on Foothill Expressway and not get hit. 

Jon Baer: My wife and my son tried to have dinner on Saturday night. Everything was closing. My son is 14 and would love to have more to do.

Megan Satterlee: Right now there is nothing preventing a business from staying open later. Our downtown is dominated by retail. As much as I enjoy Castro Street, encountering drunks on occasion is not my idea of quality in downtown in Los Altos. 

Norma Schroeder (Los Altos Politico): While we're talking about nightlife, let's talk about signs. Digital signs, for example: There were concerns that the regulations too restrictive. Describe your stand and understanding about signs and how they contribute to vibrancy?

Jeannie Bruins: I link signs more to the character of our town. There are some that represent the establishment. I'm not for having the neon sign approach to Los Altos. That said, the technology exist that illuminated signs can be tastefully done. Should give the merchants an opportunity to do more here.

Anabel Pelham: In favor of tasteful illuminated signs. Could have a citizens committee. I'd be open to an experiment. Something small to see how digital signs work. Pehaps a month long. If most people don't like them and could let them go.

Sorensen: I could remember back in the day, there was a sweet shop open downtown and there was a controversy over the green and red sign, but once it was in place, everybody liked it. I think the sign ordinance should be loosened up.

Jon Baer: The council voted in favor of digital signs. They are allowed. The Planning Commission was concerned about light levels. [He refers to the big billboard along Highway 101 near Redwood City that is extemely, distractingly, bright] 

Megan Satterlee: I was on the recent sign committee. We weren't sure how to regulate them to keep the character of Los Altos. We wanted the business community to come back with suggestions how it could work. I have expressed to the business commmunity many times that if there is a problem I would adjust it.

Jan Pepper: The business community and the city should come together. I think that experimenting, trying something for a month or two, that they could try that and residents could react to it and see if it could work.

David Price: How would you regulate the tastefulness of signs?

Pelham: I really trust the good judgment of citizens. Think there should be a little group that could review ideas.

Pepper: Don't have to legislate everything. Don't legislate architecture, think we don't need to regulate taste.

Diego Abeloos: We've heard the term "village character" often in town. How do you balance protecting village character and at the same time encourage private development and investment in the downtown area?

Pelham: We need a master plan that joins downtown and the civic center. I support an intergenerational commuity center. Our citizens want it. It would attract more feet on the street. Downtown zoning nees to be predictable.

Sorensen: It means a lot of different things to different people. For me it's about great streets and good architecture. Guidelines that are objectified. Great architecture is not wrapped up in the height of buildings. Means a lot of other things. 

Baer: I was on the downtown committee that looked at the rezoning of downtown. Looked at cities like Carmel and Los Gatos. Charm and character means pedestrians, scaled buildings, storefronts that are interesting to look at. We have 150,000 approved space. Things are getting better.

Satterlee: I'd like to say I'm really impressed by the candidates here. 'Village character' is a variety of architecture, built on a smaller scale than a large-city format. I voted to modify zoning. I'm hearing some feedback in regard to setback on First Street. I b elieve zoning and design guideline is the way we strike that balance.

Jan Pepper: We can address that small town feel by ...[missed this] we need to have a plan and agree on the plan and not keep changing the rules. Then developers will be interested in coming here.

Bruins: Character is in the eye of the beholder. It's not just height. My starting point is the master planning process. Defining our wants, needs and desires. I realy think it's going to be important to define village character so we don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Dave Price: Should the city protect independent businesses from chain stores? If [bigger development] is in Los Altos' future, should the city do more to protect the independents?

Sorensen: Hands off would be my approach, but ... Jon has said three times we have 150,000 new feet. We (really just) have a net increase of 1,000 square feet — in ten years. That is very discouraging. When you have a planning comissioner who thinks that's an accomplishment that doesn't lead a developer to come to town.

Pelham: I agree with my colleagues, at the same time, many of our citizens would love to see chains. Some would like to see an Apple store, a women's shop like you'd find in Stanford Shopping Center. We might think about public private partnerships downtown.

Baer: First we need to help the businesses that are downtown. Our new project is 18,000 square feet of Grade A offices. Will put feet on the street. We have the opportunity to bring more people downtown. I already see it. It's getting harder and harder to find empty streets.

Satterlee: I would let the economy manage that situration.

Pepper: When we create that vision we can figure out what we want to have. We do  have chains. We have Peets, Starbucks, Le Boulanger. And we have independent coffeehouses opening up. It may be that we need anchor tenants that would get the vibrancy going on.

Bruins: I go back to a master plan. The question is about protecting our independent local businesses. As properties begin changing hands we need to know where we're going.

Margie Suozzo: The next segment is the short-anwer round. The candidates are going to have to answer the short-answer round. Yes or No. Each candidate gets a yes or no card and holds them up, based on the question. 

[This segment had to be seen to be appreciated, so when the YouTube version is ready Patch will link to it. It was also going too fast to capture, but there was much laughter from the audience, as candidates fidgeted with their cards, held them up—took a not-so-furtive peek down the row at the others' answers]. Some of the questions are recorded here:

Diego Abeloos: Do you support termed-out councilmembers to run for a seat, after a hiatus?

Shroeder: Do you support putting Ron Packard on the Planning & Transportation Commission?

Dave Price: Do you have a problem with the walls outside of the banks downtown? 

Shroeder: The city's master plan for the civic center calls for cutting down the trees now and would move the orchard elsewhere on the site?

Pepper: That's a question that's difficult to answer yes and no!

Los Altos is developing a climate action plan. Do you support hiring a staffer for this? [Mixed answers]

Margie Suozzo: The next segment: We're going to give each of the candidates a chance to ask another candidate a question.

Jon Baer to Jeannie Bruis: You've talked about a downtown visioning process. Menlo Park spent millions of dollars on this and then it became essentially a food fight because the businesses and the community didn't agree. How would you do this?

Jeannie Bruins: We need to break it down to people in groups. If we have the will, we will have a way. Needs and desire, to allow all of us to put our stamp on it. We need to go through this process that will allow ups to look at the big picture. I think it can be done. 

Satterlee: Mr. Sorensen -If you are elected, do you plan to pursue the development of 40 Main while a councilman? [People from the audience ask what is this? Answer: This building, owned by Sorensen and his brother, is on the first block on Main Street; A development proposal, after a very long planning process, was turned down by the City Council earier this year.]

Sorensen: We'll make our decisions regardless of whether I'm on the council or not. I would have to recuse myself from that process [if elected].

Pepper, to Jon Baer: I'm curious about the process of the approval for the property where the Adobe Animal Hospital was? It doesn't appear to match the zoning.

Baer: All of that area has a zero setback zone. I am certainly in favor of looking at zero setback zoning because it's creating things we don't like. It should be public process. It's not looking very good right to many people right now, myself included.

Jeannie Bruins, to Jan Pepper: You're big on sustainability. How you can do so in a cost-effective manner? 

Pepper: If you do it right, it can be cost effective. I'm very excited about the opportunity we have to become a green community. We have the Packard Building that is a net-zero building. We can have charging stations as a city and net revenue from that. 

? to Megan Satterlee: How would you create a process to make possible a public private process.

We're working with Passarelle for 170 State Street. The city is actively working with them on that beause we have a shared parking plaza. Opportunities for pubic private partnership there. That will be the next big piece that may occur in our downtown.

Jerry Sorensen to Jon Baer: Do you think it's appropriate to come to the council to speak against a project that the Planning Commission had just approved?

Jon Baer: Residents have the right as private citizens to free speech, representing themselves as themselves.

Dave Price: Kim Cranston did not ask me to ask this question. He's currently suing the city in order to obtain a document written by the former staffer Anne Stedler. Cranston claims that the memo will show that other developers were interested in the First & Main street

Satterlee: The principle behind not releasing the memo is not about the contents. Has to do with the relationship with staff. Staff needs to be encouraged to have. Releasing lower level employees to higher employees would have a 

Jan Pepper: The law is the California Public Records Act. The law requires that the information be released. Can redact some information. But the law should be obeyed.

Bruins: While I understand the chilling effect, I believe there is ways to redact specific pieces. Think we should be looking at that.

Pelham: I agree with my colleagues. Information can be redacted. I support transparency in government, always. 

Sorensen: The anwer is yes. It should be released before Nov. 6. The council was informed there were multiple buyers privately or publicly. What can happen if it's released? The staff can be embarrassed. The council can be embarassed. Or Kim Cranston can be embarrased. No one is going to die. No one is going to prison. No one is going to danger.

Baer: I believe in following the law. So I believe the law should be obeyed.

Diego Abeloos: What other public private partnership opportunities exist?

Pepper: After a visioning, it could go in a number or directions

Bruins: Public spaces and amenities. And parking. A lot of our solutions may be in parking for property owners and the developers.

Pelham: A fixed stop shuttle bus. I already have a name for it. It's called the Apricot. I'd like to see a free wifi in Los Altos. Weave a town gown relationship. bike racks that are art. get some really attractive bike racks downtown.

Sorensen: Great opportunities to reduce the cost of services. Think the suggestions that Anabel made are great. Benefit our schools Opportunities to address the 10th school site questions. 

Baer: There are opportunities for this. Public parking: There are great opportunities on the other side of First Street. We need to enable these partnerships. Encourage creative developers to come.

Satterlee: Parking is the next big one that comes to mind. The city has land, so it can bring this to the table. Expanding services would be . I'm not sure we have the means to expand services downtown. 

Dave Price: What should the city do, if anything, to help the school district with a 10th site, and is Hillview part of the equation?

Bruins: I think we understand that the city and the school district are distinct entities. But we need to understand that the district is . Ad hoc team a board member, one from BCS, reps from each city. Some of our council members are passionate about HIllview not be an option.

Pelham: I agree that Hillview can be on the table, but I'd like to make the case that it's not the ideal site because it sits on an emerging civic center. I hear people say that Los Altos needs a wonderful beautiful community center.

This issue finally prompted me to run. The school board is the single largest stakeholder in this town. It is important for the council to work together with them. As they do in Palo Alto, they work closely together. Council members needsto take an active role.

Baer: The council needs to keep an open mind about Hillview. There are sites in other cities, as well as a handful of properties in private hands. Including a completely undeveloped site in LAH that is larger than Hillview. It needs to be discussed in a methodical , fair and unbiased manner.

Satterlee: The role the council should play is that the discussion is thorough. Making sure the community heals on this issue. I have vocally supported the superintendent's task force project. All the data should be public. All the substreams should be examined so that people feel that no stone is left unturned. 

Pepper: There is a need to convene MV, LA, LAH, BCS, county board of education, the MVLA, stakeholders. Important to locate campuses. Would strongly discourage cities to sell properties. Lose any flexibility.

Norma Schroeder: Have any of you spent time talking to the public of alternatives?

Pelham: The main thing I have heard is that there is a great deal of pain, a great deal of hurt. It will be important to address that first. People are so angry and so hurt. I've heard many ideas, many proposals, none of them seem particularly viable at the moment. Really agree with Jan. I also think there should be fresh faces at the table.

Sorensen: I've spent time with parents and people. It's a process that we just need to be engaged in. I think it's the approach to the process that is frustrating. When the stake holders come to you and say go away, we might have to sue you, we might have to hire a consultant for that." That's inappropriate. 

Baer: There is some frustration 26 percent of the school population comes from Mountain View. And 1,000 units are coming online on the El Camino corridor. People want a solution and you know what? We have to give them a solution.

Satterlee: So, alternative sthat don't involve a 10th site, I understand it's school board policy rlated to the students. Constrain the subteams differently. Removed from the constriants to see what is possible. Can have a dialogue and can see what the tradeoffs are.

Jeannie Bruins  I've talked to a lot of parents. Expand the capacity of the existing campuses by adding 6th grade. Since 25 percent come from Mountain View. We should work with the city of MV. Help us since kids come from MV

Expanding the capacity of our existing schools, offload to jr highs. I think we are in agreement. Megan Satterlee and I have spent a couple of hours discussing this in parking lot. We need a team. Everyone needs to check their egos at the door. We'll see some creativity.

Diego Abeloos: There are other areas that may be need of vibrancy, too. What other areas need some TLC? 

Jerry Sorensen: Loyola Corners needs some TLC.

Jon Baer: Just planting some new trees isn't an answer. 

Satterlee: Loyola Corners! El Camino Real corridor. San Antonio corridor. The Sherwood area.

I would advocate getting the more neighborhood type commercial areas. They can talk about the traffic issues and what kind of stores they would like.

Bruins: We have seven buisness districts. Six of them serve a real need in our neighborhoods. We need to gather and consult them. 

Pelham: I agree with my colleagues. I had a meeting around Loyola Corners. Their major concerns were signage, and about traffic issues in Loyola Corners.

Margie Suozzo thanks all the candidates, the sponsors and the technical staff.

It's a wrap! 

 

Editor's Note: Live blogging events is an imperfect process. Things move quickly and some speech may not be heard well. Patch will be back-editing incomplete information. Candidates and their campaigns, as well as organizers and audience participants are welcome to improve the accuracy of the report by contacting losaltos@patch.com with their contributions. 


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