Special to the Town Crier
Council OKs graffiti abatement ordinance
Los Altos Hills residents will have the opportunity Nov. 3 to set term limits for their town council representatives. Council members agreed at their July 1 meeting to place a measure on the November election ballot limiting council members to two consecutive terms.
If adopted, the term limit ordinance would apply prospectively, beginning with council members who have served half of a term by November 1998. Councilman Bill Siegel agreed to write arguments against the measure.
"One argument against (term limits) is that the voter should be the ultimate decider of how long an individual holds office," said Mayor Bob Johnson.
Term limits have had their greatest effectiveness at the state and federal levels, where the number of lobbyists enables elected officials to amass large campaign war chests, Johnson said.
Councilman Sid Hubbard, who will not run for reelection, decided after the meeting to oppose the term limit amendment. "I think more people in town should get involved," Hubbard said, "but I think we should leave the options open for people to elect who they want."
A simple majority is required to enact the term limit ordinance.
Beginning with November's election, Los Altos Hills council candidates will be asked to comply with voluntary campaign guidelines approved by the town council July 1. The voluntary Los Altos Hills Code of Ethics was originally suggested by a citizens' committee lead by Ralph Vetterlein. City Attorney Sandy Sloan drafted the adopted code to assure compliance with state and federal statutes.
Council members identified misleading mailings made by unidentified third parties as the primary hindrance to fair elections in Los Altos Hills. The Code of Ethics asks candidates to agree that they "shall not use or agree to let third parties use subtle deceptions, half-truths, falsifications, or mailers that do not contain the name(s) and address of the sender(s). If such practices are used by third parties without my approval, I shall repudiate it immediately and publicly upon my knowledge of its occurrence."
The code also asks candidates not to "condone or allow third-party advertising which dos not meet the principles contained in this document." It prohibits using the names of endorsers without their written consent.
Candidates for the 1998 council election are requested to file their acceptance or rejection of the voluntary guidelines by Aug. 7 in the office of the city clerk.
The council authorized an independent auditor to monitor and report on candidates' compliance with the code. Councilwoman Elayne Dauber agreed to contact the League of Women Voters to see if the organization would agree to research complaints.
In other action, a graffiti abatement ordinance similar to ordinances in Menlo Park and San Mateo County passed the council on first reading. The ordinance makes placing graffiti on permanent buildings and structures, public or private real property a misdemeanor. The city will reimburse affected property owners up to a maximum of $250 per incident for cleaning up graffiti. Alternatively, at the property owner's request and agreement to hold the town harmless, the town may choose to abate the graffiti.
The council also authorized the city engineer to advertise the Fremont Road Pathway project for competitive bids.
City Manager Jeff Peterson emphasized that this is not an off-road pathway. The project consists of installing a new pathway along the eastern side of Fremont Road from Arastradero Road to Concepcion Road. The existing pathway sections will be improved, and a missing section of pathway located across from Bullis-Purissima School will be constructed. The project also includes necessary storm drain improvements.
Peterson said his staff should complete an updated master pathway plan map this month. The map is intended to accurately reflect the current status of the town's off-road pathways.