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Published on 10/05/1998 All articles from this issue

Letters to the editor

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Try to think fairly in this LAH election

I am a 27-year resident of Los Altos Hills and a real estate broker so I have a very personal as well as professional interest in the politics and workings of the local government. I have faithfully read the planning commission and town council minutes for nearly 10 years. Two things have continued to bother me - the almost cloistered way important laws are enacted, and the inconsiderate way applicants have been treated over the years by the staff, the commission or the council.

If you don't read the minutes or go to the meetings you have had no way of knowing what is going on. The Los Altos Hills Civic Association is the first to try to shed light on what is happening. You can agree or disagree, but at least you have notice and can make your opinions known.

The current staff seems to be helpful and competent. But even they seem bewildered and frustrated with the seemingly unreasonable demands of the present planning commission. This commission seems to be taking subjective interpretations of the ordinances to extreme lengths. The current council seems pretty fair.

Please let's try to think fairly in this election. Don't be influenced by the old inflammatory routine. We can't have unrestricted development because we have very stringent regulations as to what can be built and where. You would be shocked if you knew how much most lots are restricted and how that adversely affects their value. And forget the dirty "D" word. Developers haven't been a major force for years. It's our neighbors who are subdividing and building.

I think everyone supports roadside paths. It is the paths that go between you and your neighbor (and open to any stranger) that property owners are objecting to. And these days, do you really want your child on these hidden paths?

Los Altos Hills is a wonderful rural community. But times and values have changed. Few people want to keep horses now, but you can on most properties. Some people like their small homes. Others want to add on. Some want to build mansions. I hope we have room for everyone. Our laws are in place. Let's all be involved and knowledgeable and work together for the good of our community.

Charlene GeersLos Altos Hills

Planning not to be taken lightly

Toni Casey candidate for Los Altos Hills City Council, is playing it fast and loose with her suggestion that the Los Altos Hills Planning Commission be abolished. The necessary and thorough deliberation by a planning commission takes time and by the very process of project evaluation creates a sense of frustration in the applicants.

Mrs. Casey is attempting to build support among residents who perceive they have been unfairly dealt with, promising them a panacea of fast track resolutions via the town council sitting as a planning commission.

In this combination of function, she is doubling the work of the city council. Would they then meet weekly rather than semi-monthly? Or to cut work time, would many projects be rubber-stamped for approval without thorough consideration in order to get them off the agenda?

Planning is a process not to be taken lightly. It is almost guaranteed that dealing with a planning commission is not an easy experience by the nature of its work. They are simply designed that way.

Mrs. Casey is doing the town a disservice by offering false hopes for a better treatment of applicants through abolition of the planning commission.

William C. DowneyLos Altos Hills

Editor's note: Casey has maintained she doesn't want to eliminate the planning commission. She wants to eliminate housing design review from the commission's jurisdiction.

'Innumeracy' cited in pathways survey

In the Los Altos Hills Civic Association newsletter for September 1998, there is a mention of a letter from Tom LeFevre, a graduate of Stanford Business School with extensive market research experience, where he states that with 95 percent confidence, 70 percent +/- 7 percent of the residents do not find off-road pathways acceptable.

I am not a graduate of the Stanford Business School, but I do have a doctorate degree from the same school in mathematics, and I have taught elementary statistics more than once. Mr. LeFevre's statement is nonsense.

First of all, even under the most optimistic sampling assumptions, I don't get the same numerical results he did. The main problem, however, is that given how the survey was executed, there is absolutely no way to know how biased the sample of respondents is, and without doing some door-to-door research where you get everybody's answer, there is no way to know. I suspect (but I have no way of knowing, of course) that people who feel strongly about pathways are more likely to participate. For example, try proposing some draconian measure against Los Altos Hills dogs, and I bet the vast majority of respondents will be dog owners or people who hate dogs or have been bitten by them.

The only thing I can assure you of is that of the 189 people who bothered to fill out the survey, 70 percent +/- 0 percent of the 189 were opposed to off-road pathways, but that gives very little evidence about how the rest of the citizens of Los Altos Hills feel.

For the record, I'm highly in favor of off-road pathways, but I didn't bother to respond to the original survey. It takes something that really upsets me, like innumeracy, to get me to write a letter.

Tom DavisLos Altos Hills

Why oppose LAH Civic Association?

It is hard to understand why some of the Los Altos Hills City Council and Planning Commission members oppose the Los Altos Hills Civic Association, an organization created to get residents involved with the community and inform them about city government issues.

With a growing membership of more than 800 residents, the Civic Association has circulated townwide surveys and reported results at regularly scheduled city council meetings. It has sponsored candidates' nights, civic meetings and social events to encourage residents to know each other - and their town government - better.

Since I've been a member, I've seen the association work to include everyone in the community. If council candidates Toni Casey and Steve Finn are perceived as being the Civic Association's candidates of choice, perhaps it is because they choose to work with residents to resolve real problems. We welcome other candidates to do the same.

Lisa VellequettePresident, Los Altos Hills Civic Association

Helmets, yes, but learn to ride bicycle safely

I was pleased to see the article advocating the proper use of bicycle helmets (Sept. 23 Town Crier). I initiated in 1984 the rule that bicycle racers in the United States must wear strong helmets, and I have served for the last decade as the representative of USA Cycling on the ANSI and ASTM national committees that develop helmet standards.

Nevertheless I disagree with one statement in the article, namely that "the best safety precaution is a properly worn bicycle helmet."

It is important but fairly easy to learn how to put on a helmet properly and to steer and balance a bike. But figuring out which are the safer routes to follow to get to your destination and how to ride safely in traffic are even more important for safety and require much more knowledge. I believe that these skills should he taught in school at an early age, but most schools do not offer such instruction.

The keys to safe cycling are essentially the same as for operating other vehicles: stay alert to what is going on around you and follow the rules of the road. One excellent training program called "Effective Cycling," was developed some years ago by a nearby resident, John Forester of Sunnyvale.

There is a book of that title available at many bookstores and "Effective Cycling" instructors have been trained and certified throughout the U.S. by the nonprofit League of American Bicyclists.

In summary, it is important to wear a good helmet when cycling but even more important to ride competently as an operator of a vehicle.

Les EarnestLos Altos Hills

Anyone else would be fired

It's hard to understand how anyone, even loyal Democrats, can continue to support the president. I think we know that anyone else employed in the public or private sector would be fired for conduct similar to Clinton's.

Do we want to set a lower standard of conduct for the president of the United States than we expect of the average citizen? Of course not. It is time for Democrats to start thinking about what is best for our country and urge Clinton to resign.

Leona Peery

Los Altos