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Published on 08/11/1999 All articles from this issue

Los Altos officials outline state of the city

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By Clyde Noel

Special to the Town Crier

Los Altos City Manager Phil Rose and Councilwoman Kris Casto outlined city achievements and also noted areas needing improvement during a state-of-the-city update at the Rotary Club of Los Altos, July 29.

One upcoming challenge is the creation of a new general plan, which has not been updated since 1987.

As a general law city, Los Altos must submit a general plan to Sacramento detailing the city's scope of development, including such topics as housing development, land use and zoning.

The last general plan was completed in 1987.

The city council must keep its decisions within the parameters of the state-approved general plan. Casto said the council is beginning this year to update the housing element to conform to state standards.

Casto spoke about the city's financial picture with an emphasis on taxes. She discussed various taxes and fees (property, sales and gas taxes, and enterprise, building and motor vehicle fees), elaborating on the percentage each category contributes to the total budget.

"Problem is, the state takes money from us and promises to return it but never does," Casto said. "Right now they owe us about $1 million per year for the last five years and they may or may not return to us."

Casto discussed upcoming issues, including a new cable TV contract, development plans for First and Main streets, the day-worker problem, and updating the city's housing element.

"The two-story issue is still unsolved and it's not a 'you vs. us' situation," Casto said.

Rose presented a statistical report, reviewing the activities of several city departments.

In the 1998-1999 fiscal year, Los Altos police made 9,250 calls and 682 arrests, of which 87 were felonies.

Police made 9,585 traffic stops and 1,730 presentations to local students.

"There were no criminal homicides in the city for the last six years," Rose said. "We do have a hard time keeping full staffing of police officers and dispatchers, a problem similar to other employers in the area."

"I feel really safe here," said Casto. "The neighbors look out for each other and the police help do a nice job. It's safer than most cities in California."

The fire department made 1,700 calls during the past fiscal year. There were 50 fires and 950 medical aid calls.

In discussing traffic and transportation, Rose said, "We have 107 miles of streets and we are not taking care of them properly. We have four people staffed for 107 miles and that is not adequate."

A new traffic management plan will be discussed in September, specifically dealing with traffic control methods for neighborhoods and business areas.

The planning and building departments last year issued 1,127 building permits, 2,032 construction permits and 191 residential reviews.