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Published on 02/23/1998 All articles from this issue

Council, staff reach out to the residents

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By Joanne Griffith Domingue

Town Crier Staff Writer

When Earl Johnson answered his door the other night, there stood the Los Altos Planning Director Larry Tong and City Councilman King Lear.

"We had a very pleasant conversation," said Johnson, a 37-year Los Altos resident and retired electrical engineer.

"We just don't get a chance to go to council meetings," he said.

So the council and staff are coming to residents.

Feb. 23 was the first night out for a pilot program in which council members and staff began going door-to-door to hear what's on peoples' minds.

"I enjoyed it," said City Manager Dianne Gershuny who was paired with Councilman Francis La Poll. "It was fun talking to people."

The city had sent a letter ahead of time so folks knew a team would be coming.

The plan was for each pair to visit 20 homes and spend 10 minutes per home.

"We spent more than 20 minutes at peoples' houses, and we only made it about half way through our assigned addresses," Gershuny said. "We didn't want to interrupt a conversation."

What Gershuny and La Poll heard about most was traffic.

That was at the top of Johnson's list of concerns.

"With children and animals it's been a real problem with traffic in the morning," he said of his street, Golden Way. The street, in the south end of town, and is used as a cut-through to St. Francis High School, Johnson said.

He is also concerned about walking around town.

"In some parts of Los Altos sidewalks are obscured with shrubs and trees and are dangerous. The corner of Covington (Road) and Golden Way is a good example," he said.

The five city teams, in addition to Lear and Tong, La Poll and Gershuny, included: Councilman Lou Becker and Police Chief Lucy Carlton; Mayor Kris Casto and Recreation Director Bob Rayl; and Councilman John Moss and City Clerk Carol Scharz.

The teams headed to the neighborhood behind Rancho Shopping Center.

"The choice was totally random," Gershuny said. All went calling on different streets in the same precinct. Using a precinct was "just a convenient way to get names and addresses," Gershuny said, for sending letters and then visiting.

The council members will be reviewing the pilot program and deciding what is next.

"It's a great idea," Johnson said, "long overdue."