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Published on 11/09/1998 All articles from this issue

News Briefs

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City inks contract with police officers

After five months of negotiations, the city of Los Altos has inked a contract with the Los Altos Police Officers Association.

Mayor Kris Casto, who completed her one-year term as mayor that evening, announced the news at the beginning of the city council meeting on Nov. 10.

The contract had expired June 30.

Layne Long, assistant to the city manager for Los Altos and the city's labor negotiator, said the issue had centered around expanding options for health insurance and the portability of insurance for retirees.

This issue has been lingering for some time. The July 1, 1996, contract that was not signed until March 1997, was held up over this issue.

Graffiti remains on Tree Farm walls

One of the problems with the graffiti on the 10-foot white stucco walls around the Tree Farm property on El Camino Real is that the city has no graffiti ordinance.

When graffiti turns up on public property - like park or city facilities - it's cleaned up usually within 24 hours.

But on private property, there's nothing the city can do other than request and hope the owner complies, officials said.

On Oct. 13 a complaint was filed regarding the graffiti on the Tree Farm walls, according to police records.

Mountain View has a graffiti ordinance that makes it unlawful to allow graffiti to remain if it is visible from the street.

Los Altos has no such ordinance.

"We'll paint it right after Christmas," said John Challis, a Los Altos resident and project manager for the Tree Farm. In the meantime, the land has been rented to a Christmas tree group, Challis said. And the debris is being cleaned up, he said.

Fire station remodel complete in January

The remodel of the Loyola Fire Station on Foothill Expressway should be done by early January, officials said.

Even though it is taking longer than expected, work is "coming along nicely," said Capt. Don Jarvis, with the County Fire Department that provides fire protection to Los Altos.

The city owns the building and is funding the work in tandem with the fire department.

"Cooperation between the city, the fire department and the contractor has been very good," Jarvis said.

The 45-year-old station needed seismic upgrading as well as additional living facilities to accommodate female firefighters, officials said.

Even with some changes to door designs, the project is still well within budget, Jarvis said, because of the 10 percent contingency built into the budget.

Total cost of the work, according to city figures, is $549,000, which includes the 10 percent contingency. The city received $87,000 of state funds for the earthquake safety work.

- Joanne Griffith Domingue