Three new members, new mayor bode for a change in city's vision
Balloon bouquets and babies, silly and serious gifts, tears and hugs and handshakes all created a sense of celebration and a turning point for Los Altos last week as three new council members and a new mayor were sworn into office.
Newly elected council members Francis La Poll, Kris Casto and Louis Becker took their seats on the dais to join continuing council members Bob Gray and Patti Williams on the five-member city council at the council's Nov. 21 meeting.
The council then elected Williams as mayor and La Poll as mayor pro tem.
Council policy states the council member with seniority who has not served as mayor, which is a one-year term, shall be the next mayor. Since Gray was outgoing mayor, he nominated Williams to be the next mayor.
The candidate with the highest number of votes, La Poll, became the mayor pro tem.
After her election, Williams suggested some directions she hopes to take during her term.
"Nostalgia for the 'good old days' will not do it," she said. "Our values today require that we be inclusive ... How then can we build community in today's environment?"
She announced she plans to start a mayor's advisory council "that will include citizens who are not currently active in city affairs."
She also hopes to develop a city page in the Town Crier, to initiate meetings in neighborhoods and to present a plan for upgrading and maintaining school fields.
"I am available to you, the citizens of Los Altos, to listen to you, to be your representative during this year," Williams said. "I am proud to be the next mayor of the city of Los Altos."
The three new council members replace outgoing council members Marge Bruno, Ted Laliotis and Dave Reeder, each of whom had served two terms on the council. Los Altos has a voluntary two-term limit policy.
La Poll, 36, an attorney and father of four children, ages 5, 4, 3 and 1, said he wants to preserve the community "for our children and grandchildren." La Poll said he wore out three pairs of shoes walking the precincts during the elections and listening to the concerns of residents.
He heard a lot about traffic and said he "wants to keep it out of neighborhoods." He believes in meetings, he said, but they must be followed by action.
Casto, 48, co-owner of Casto Roofing, said in an interview before the meeting she's the first person to be elected to the city council also representing students in the Cupertino Union School District.
"I want to keep all the school children of the city informed" of city events, contests and activities, Casto said.
She said she hopes to see some brainstorming about getting city information out to residents, whether it is about a meeting, an application, or a task force meeting.
"It is a courtesy we can give, whenever possible, as early as possible," Casto said.
A theme she heard while she knocked on doors during the elections was, "People want to be recognized and be part of the process.
"I heard a lot against a parking garage. People don't want a downtown parking garage in the plazas," she said.
Lou Becker, 61, an engineer, had to wait a week after the elections before he even knew if he had won a seat. It took seven days for the county registrar of voters to process the 150 absentee ballots cast on election day. With the final count, Becker edged out Bob Norton by only 14 votes.
Becker said in an interview after the meeting he believes people want the city downtown to stay as it is, as a "semi-rural village."
"I feel extremely positive about the new council, that it is a good representation of age groups," he said.
Los Altos City Manager Dianne Gershuny presented each outgoing council member with a pair of neon pink or purple fuzzy ear muffs.
"You've spent eight years of listening patiently," she said. "Now you don't have to listen any more."
Then she presented to each new council member a survival kit which included No Doz for long council meetings and Groucho Marx glasses to wear as a disguise for getting in and out of Safeway.
Williams then invited the crowd to join her next door at the Los Altos Youth Center for cake and champagne.
Many participants agreed the crowd of about 300 guests was larger than usual.
Gershuny said she saw some tears when Reeder and Bruno gave their goodbye remarks.
"They were part of the council that hired me, along with Penny Lave and Denny Spangler," she said.
She said that each new council takes on its own personality. "Common goals will keep them moving effectively together."
Lave, a former mayor, said she was thrilled to see so many young people - parents of school-age children - at the party.
"This crowd is the who's who of Los Altos," said Fran Vella, a newly appointed member of the library commission.
Each of the council members said they were looking forward to working with the other council members.
"There's a very strong commitment for each to put Los Altos first," Becker said.
"We all want to work as a team. It will be easy to make progress."