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Published on 06/09/1999 All articles from this issue

Editorials

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Fast-track puts town on right track

ast week's Los Altos Hills council approval of a fast-track ordinance to streamline the housing application process is a starring example of democracy at work.

The ordinance, which limits the scope of town planning commission review, addresses many applicant complaints about subjective rulings often involving the most minute details. It shows that town government has listened, and responded.

Now town staff will send projects without major questions straight to the council, bypassing the planning commission.

Housing development issues are huge in the hills, and no wonder. Land is worth its weight in gold. Debates have created an atmosphere of divisiveness.

The planning commission has bared the brunt of the blame for applicants' dissatisfaction, although town policies and guidelines are sometimes not clear and allow for interpretation.

Critics of this new ordinance decry a lack of accountability in the review process by taking away the commission, and note that the planning director now has too much authority. It is his decision to fast-track or send to the commission.

But we see only good coming from it. Complying applicants get a much-needed break, saving them thousands of dollars in additional and possibly unnecessary fees. The planning commission stands to be less of a scapegoat and can work on housing plans that truly need its attention.

And council members, despite their bickering and conflicting political insights, have shown they can work together to hammer out a compromise solution with this ordinance. We expect it will work.

The point about 'Every 15 Minutes'

Last week, we profiled the "Every 15 Minutes" program at Mountain View High School, which references the fact that every 15 minutes, a person is injured or killed in a DUI accident.

In the program, students are zipped up in body bags, made up to look injured or dead, erect their own tombstones, and endure the heartbreak of parent notifications - all to drive home the point about the often tragic consequences of drinking and driving.

Over the top? Were the body bags really necessary? And the fake blood? Maybe. But those were genuine emotions we saw when participating students and parents embraced and cried. Also, the thoroughness of the program, which spanned two days, generated far greater impact that a standard 45-minute lecture from an officer.

Certainly, students and parents learned valuable lessons about drinking and driving. Moreover, they gained greater appreciation for the value of life itself, and how easily it can be gone in an instant.

We thank the Mountain View police and the high school for their care and courage in offering this program.