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Midterm Report
As of June 2008 I’m halfway through my year as your Mayor as well as my first term on the Los Altos City Council. It seems appropriate to step back and review our major accomplishments during the past 2 1/2 years.
Celebrating Volunteerism
As many of you know, during my mayoral year I’m celebrating volunteerism by recognizing the people and organizations that share their time and talents with our community. Volunteers are the heart of our community and make Los Altos the wonderful place to live, work, and raise a family that it is. Thank you all for everything that you do.
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I believe that elected officials in our community should be accessible to our residents. In that regard, I have written community update articles for the Los Altos Neighborhood Network newsletter as well as the City’s Communique’ newsletter, and held community meetings in both South and North Los Altos to provide opportunities for residents to share their views with city council members and to ask questions in a more informal setting. We will be holding another set of meetings this fall.
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City Staff Changes
In 2007, our city manager and police chief retired and public works director resigned. The City Council appointed Councilman Lou Becker and I to manage the search for a new City Manager, and Doug Schmitz started in September 2007. Doug’s accomplishments during his first year are noteworthy: he hired new Chief of Police Tuck Younis; realigned key staff responsibilities; fostered a new level of communication among the city council, the city staff and the community; and directed the addition of the trees and flowers that have noticeably improved the appearance of San Antonio Road and downtown.
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City Finances
The financial position of the City of Los Altos continues to be sound. We have carefully managed our expenses over the years, and with the growth of our property and hotel tax revenues, we began our new fiscal year on July 1st with cautious optimism based on the approved 2008-2009 Service and Financial Plan. If necessary due to decisions over the summer in Sacramento, we will review the budget again this fall once the final State budget adjustments and impacts are clear.
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Public Safety and Traffic Calming
Public safety and traffic calming are the #1 concern of City residents and therefore are a top priority for me.
We successfully negotiated multi-year contracts with the Los Altos Peace Officers Association and the Santa Clara County Fire Department without any loss of personnel or disruption of services.
The long-awaited pedestrian crosswalk warning light systems have been installed at six intersections along San Antonio Road.
The City Council also authorized hiring a traffic consultant to assist the staff with expediting Neighborhood Traffic Management Program applications so that permanent traffic calming solutions can be put in place on our residential streets. In addition, we are working at the State level to address the infamous 85th percentile rule that in effect sets speed limits that can be enforced by radar based on the speeds of the fastest drivers.
Finally, we have received two additional Safe Routes to Schools grants totaling nearly $1 million since the project on El Monte Avenue near Almond School was completed several years ago, bringing the total amount of grant monies invested in traffic calming in our community to nearly $2 million.
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City Park Playground Equipment Replacement
The City is nearing completion of an ambitious project funded through a major grant for replacing all of the aging and non-ADA compliant playground equipment in our 8 City parks. The new equipment meets all current ADA requirements and was designed by the Parks, Arts and Recreation Commission in partnership with the City Recreation Department staff.
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The city has hired an architectural firm to design a master plan for the community center bounded by San Antonio Road and Hillview Avenue. A master plan advisory committee, co-chaired by Councilmen Lou Becker and David Casas, is working closely with the city and the design firm in this process, scheduled to be completed in early 2009. Key to its success is input from the community, so please share your views at the public outreach meetings that are being held throughout this process.
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Downtown
The first two downtown zoning committees, chaired by Councilman Ron Packard, worked diligently over the past several years to review the zoning regulations for the downtown triangle. Updated ordinances have been approved by the city council and are now in effect.
The building renaissance on 1st Street that began with the redevelopment of the Ramsey property on the corner of West Edith is continuing: the new showroom/warehouse across from the Safeway parking lot is nearing completion, a mixed-use 2-story office/residential building where the current post office is located has been approved, the City has hired a landscape architect to develop a streetscape plan for 1st Street between Main and West Edith, including the entrance onto Main from Foothill Expressway as well as the intersections on Main, and the City’s 1st and Main property is on the market. Several other new buildings in the downtown triangle have also recently been approved, including 45 Main Street and 240 3rd Street.
In addition, the City has hired a landscape architect to develop a streetscape for San Antonio Road between West Edith and 1st Street in anticipation of the new Packard Foundation project in this area.
As a next step, the downtown zoning committee, on which I now serve as chair and Councilman Lou Becker as vice chair, is developing commercial design guidelines for downtown, similar to the city’s residential design guidelines, and is also considering other issues related to downtown, such as ways to increase parking.
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Loyola Corners
A specific plan for historic Loyola Corners was developed some years ago and is currently under review. Traffic circulation is an area of particular emphasis; Santa Clara County has allocated funds for work on the bridge across Foothill Expressway at Fremont. The City has retained a design firm to work on the streetscape in Loyola Corners in an effort to enhance its appearance and attract new business energy to this neighborhood.
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Continued Focus on Campaign Promises
As I promised during my campaign, I continue to work to:
Manage city finances conservatively, with balanced budgets and sufficient emergency reserves
Maintain the character of our residential neighborhoods
Improve public safety and calm traffic
Support community resources like a public swim facility
Promote vibrant business districts with convenient parking
Thank you for the opportunity to serve our community.
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