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Published on 11/03/1999 All articles from this issue

Evening for the ages

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By Bruce Barton

Town Crier Staff Writer

Plans for spectacular turn-of-the-century celebration unfold

2 years of planning

Planning this celebration has been no small effort. Raising upfront money, setting a $400,000 budget, planning the luxurious tent with forced-air heating and hiring a top-notch production company to manage entertainment and catering. To get the ball rolling, the esteemed Packard Foundation, headquartered in Los Altos, stepped in with a $50,000 grant.

But it all started with a column in this newspaper nearly two years ago.

"Millennium Eve is coming! Let's Party!" headlined an op-ed column by Town Crier publisher Paul Nyberg, on Dec. 31, 1997. He suggested putting "a tent over Main Street from State Street to Foothill Expressway."

While that particular idea turned out to be unfeasible because of fire rules and congestion, the spirit of the original intention has been realized. Organizers said those who choose to stay near home can share a "Times Square" experience, as it were, while avoiding travel, congestion and the unknowns of Y2K right here in the tent pavilion at Hillview.

Planning for the event began in earnest in January, 1998, with an initial committee that included VIPs from both Los Altos and Los Altos Hills: John Moss from the Los Altos city council and former Los Altos Hills councilman, Sid Hubbard. In November 1998, the committee hired Los Altan Gunilla Cook as executive director, and contracted Rick Herns Productions to handle the facilities, catering and entertainment. Herns has organized the Palo Alto Black & White Ball the past 11 years, and his company produces 300 events annually.

Labor, management costs

run high

But shortly into the planning, the Millennium committee discovered that staging a world class event would not be cheap. One reason is that many people do not want to work millennium eve, so all labor and management costs esculated dramatically. The costs of catering, big entertainment and the colossal tent meant tickets to such an event would be expensive. The initial $500 per person ticket prices for the 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. dinner/dance/entertainment were reduced through cost cutting to $450 per person. And the committee also developed an after-dinner option- $75 tickets for guests to come at 10:30 p.m. These after-dinner guests would get champagne, enjoy dancing and entertainment, and witness the midnight surprise extravaganza.

The event also will feature "singles-only" tables for solo guests or those unmarrieds with friends. Cook said the celebration is a prime opportunity "to meet new friends."

Infrastructure is a large part of the cost. Herns said crews will have to build a sub-floor at the site, using 4-by-8 foot pieces of plywood, 4 inches of the ground. Then black carpeting will be laid. The tent itself, which raised safety concerns at one council meeting, is "very secure," Herns said, "tested against gale-force winds."

Tent city is Y2K proof

With its own generators, lighting, heating and accompanying elegant portapotties, the "millennium city" may be "one of the safest places to be during Y2K," Herns said. "If you stay home, you might not have any power." Seventeen security guards have been hired for the event and Los Altos police officers also will be keying in on the activities. Emergency medical personnel will be standing by and security fencing will surround the premises.

The main tent interior designs comprise past and present. Roman columns will tower over modern, metallic sculptures. Edible centerpieces will be at each table. Two giant screens will provide live feeds to other celebrations such as Times Square or the International Date Line.

On the positive side, celebrating close to home reduces other costs. Whereas trying to find hotel bookings at this late date in San Francisco or even Santa Rosa may be like finding a needle in a haystack, the Los Altos event eliminates the need for travel or costly hotel stays.

Sandy Carse of Los Altos Hills, says she did her "homework" before reserving a table at this event. She said the few hotels that do have vacancies are requiring 2- and 3-night minimum stays. She described the local celebration as "a marvelous bargain."

Los Altos is only local city with celebration

Committee members noted the Los Altos celebration is the only community-initiated, non-hotel New Year's event in the south bay and peninsula, and one of the few in the Bay Area. According to local officials, both Palo Alto and Mountain View tried earlier this year to organize a millennium event, but were unable to get enough support.

Cook said approximately 60 percent of the 45 tables for the dinner, seating 10 people each, have been sold. Organizers are expecting a last-minute push from those who procrastinated, remained undecided or changed their minds about staying home in front of a tv.

"I like the idea of this happening in our town," said committee member Marsha Robertson of Los Altos Hills. She expects the presentation to knock the proverbial socks off guests. "The word 'tent' will never come to your mind," she said.

For children too

For those guests who are parents, the event offers safe child-care options for the little ones, infants to age 8, and a youth arcade at the adjacent Hillview multipurpose room for the older kids, ages 8-18. The older kids join the extravaganza at 10:30 p.m. The off-site child care opportunities are at Twisters Gym, Stepping Stones and Pebbles. A kids site at Redwood Grove will feature a potluck dinner and optional sleepover. All the child care options are managed by licensed personnel and may be the answer for families seeking baby sitters on this historic night. Parents can call 650-948-2803 for instructions.

Event is non-profit, tax deductible

Those who think Los Altos and Los Altos Hills are sleepy communities may be in for an awakening Dec. 31. That's when the usually quiet night landscape of central Los Altos plays host to a celebration to usher in the new millennium, the scope of which this community has likely never seen.

Picture, if you will, "Millennium City," a large tent covering much of the Hillview soccer field near Los Altos City Hall. The tent will have a capacity for hundreds of celebrants, with tables for an elegant sit-down dinner, a large dance floor and space for after-dinner guests and a Las Vegas-style stage show.

All of this is happening due to the persevering efforts of the Millennium Celebration Committee, with a core group of about 10, who have weathered city council approvals and modifications, and some skepticism to make this fantasy a reality.

"I'm looking forward to it," said Los Altos Councilman John Moss, who has served on the committee from its inception. "It's going to be something very special." Moss expects to begin his one-year stint as mayor on Nov. 23 and will have the honor of being "millennium mayor" at the turn of the century.

Sticking with the original intention, the committee created a non-profit event to contribute to a worthy cause. A portion of the proceeds are slated for the new Education Center at History House. The $2.2 million center is currently under construction at the Los Altos History House Museum. Because the whole event is a fund raiser, $200 of the $450 dinner ticket is tax deductible, Cook said.

The first guests, arriving at 7 p.m., can engage in a cocktail hour, with swing and Big Band music provided by the Black Market Jazz Orchestra. Dancing will continue throughout the multi-course dinner which includes a double entree of filet and salmon.

Around 10:30 p.m., the tempo picks up. That's when Full Motion, the acclaimed headliner act, hits the stage with three lead singers, full band and professional dancers. Herns said the music is 1960s-to-1990s contemporary pop music with everything from Stevie Wonder to the Beach Boys, New Wave, with classic rock thrown in to meet diverse tastes on the dance floor.

At 11:30 p.m., organizers are announcing a midnight surprise that you may hear about in a future issue. But here's a hint - it's out of this world. "This is so spectacular, it will appeal to ages 5-100-plus," Cook said.

"A substantial portion of human beings don't get this opportunity," says John Moss. "They're born and die in the same century," he adds. "Normally, my wife and I sit in front of the TV for New Year's, but I wanted this to be really special."

For tickets and more information, call 948-2803 or e-mail: lamillennium@aol.com.