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Published on 09/22/1999 All articles from this issue

Los Altos adopts limits for garage sales

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By Joanne Griffith Domingue

Special to the Town Crier

It's about to get tougher to have a garage sale in the city of Los Altos. At its meeting Sept. 14, the Los Altos City Council adopted a garage sale ordinance, limiting sales to a maximum of two days with at least three months between sales at the same address.

The action came in response to a complaint that went to City Manager Phil Rose. In early August a resident said that one of his neighbors allegedly held garage sales on three consecutive weekends. Supposedly the neighbor "had a store going out of business and was bringing stuff over and selling it" from his home, Rose said.

The city council directed city staff to provide additional information regarding "possible regulation of garage sales," said Senior Planner Jim Mackenzie. Planning Director Larry Tong said he had only one or two complaints a year regarding garage sales.

Initially the city staff drafted an ordinance that could result in a $1,000 fine and jail time.

"Do we really want people in jail for garage sales?" asked Councilman Francis La Poll. The council toned down the proposed ordinance to an infraction, instead of a misdemeanor, which "is less severe," said City Attorney Bob Booth. An infraction could carry a fine of $100 and is "similar to a traffic violation," Booth said.

"Do we want code enforcement out there counting?" La Poll asked. "I haven't had a complaint in 15 years about garage sales," Booth said.

Palo Alto, Mountain View and Campbell have no garage sale regulations, Mackenzie said. San Carlos, Sunnyvale and Foster City do.

The Los Altos ordinance is the most restrictive. San Carlos, for instance, allows a three-day garage sale and sales on two consecutive weekends; but each weekend counts as a separate sale. Three sales are allowed in a calendar year.

Beginning Oct. 15, it will be illegal in Los Altos to hold a three-day garage sale or to have more than one every three months. People moving will need to sell everything off in one two-day event.