7JFXQPJOU N EDITORIAL
THE OPINION OF THE VOICE
Flood basins pass final hurdle
Founding Editor, Kate Wakerly
N S TA F F Editor & Publisher Tom Gibboney
Editorial Managing Editor Andrea Gemmet Staff Writers Daniel DeBolt, Nick Veronin Intern Anna Li Photographer Michelle Le Contributors Dale Bentson, Angela Hey, Sheila Himmel, Jennifer Pence, Ruth Schecter, Alissa Stallings
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Advertising Vice President Sales and Marketing Tom Zahiralis Advertising Representatives Judie Block, Brent Triantos Real Estate Account Executive Rosemary Lewkowitz Real Estate Advertising Coordinator Samantha Mejia Published every Friday at 450 Cambridge Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94306 (650) 964-6300 fax (650) 964-0294 Email news and photos to: editor@MV-Voice.com Email letters to: letters@MV-Voice.com News/Editorial Department (650) 964-6300 fax (650) 964-0294 Display Advertising Sales (650) 964-6300 Classified Advertising Sales s fax (650) 326-0155 Email Classified ads@MV-Voice.com Email Circulation circulation@MV-Voice.com The Voice is published weekly by Embarcadero Media Co. and distributed free to residences and businesses in Mountain View. If you are not currently receiving the paper, you may request free delivery by calling 964-6300. Subscriptions for $60 per year, $100 per 2 years are welcome. Copyright ©2012 by Embarcadero Media Company. All rights reserved. Member, Mountain View Chamber of Commerce
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14
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he scary scenario of huge storm water overflows racing down Permanente Creek created enough concern for county voters to approve a flood control measure in 2000 designed to protect more than 1,300 Mountain View homes from a 100-year flood. Since that $40 million measure passed, the Santa Clara Valley Water District has been planning how to reduce the chances of such a catastrophe ever happening, and in the process reduce the flood insurance costs for more than a thousand local homeowners. Last week, the City Council finally approved the water district’s latest plan, which will lower parts of Cuesta Park Annex by 12 feet, leaving gently sloping walls and landscaped areas behind. It adds the final piece to a plan that also includes lowering McKelvey Park by 15 feet with new baseball facilities. It is a plan the City Council has endorsed throughout the process, although diehard opponents continued to reject the idea at last week’s council meeting. But early on, a study conducted by the city to confirm the Water District’s calculations came to the same conclusion — that the project is necessary to guard against the worst case scenario and reduce the need for flood insurance for homeowners. It is not difficult to understand why some residents continue to oppose carving a flood basin out of the rustic Cuesta Annex, which will give the park a more polished look than it has today. But when you couple a slightly remodeled Annex with Cuesta Park next door, residents will continue to have a major open space asset in the heart of the city. At McKelvey, which has been home to two playing fields for some 50 years, the lower elevation should not change the nature of the playing fields, which will be rebuilt to the latest specifications and will continue to serve many young baseball and softball players. In addition, the park remodel will include a .7-acre minipark for neighbors who said they had little use for the two playing fields. Also last week, the council found out that the Mountain View Historical Association’s plans to build a history museum in the Annex have been disbanded. The committee said it lacked the funds to build a museum, in part due to the council’s decision to turn down developer Roger Burnell’s proposal to move the 1880s Pearson House from its downtown location to the park. Burnell’s effort to restore the home in return for being permitted to build a 20,000-square-foot office building at 902 Villa St. would have enabled the History Association to meet the fund-raising goal required by the city. Unlike many of its neighbors, Mountain View has yet to develop a building to house its historical documents. It is sad to lose the commitment for a museum at Cuesta, but in our view, the council was correct in turning down the Pearson House. Other opportunities are certain to show up in the years ahead that eventually will lead to a permanent home for Mountain View’s historic archives and artifacts, some of which are stored in the library’s Pioneer Room.
■ MOUNTAIN VIEW VOICE ■ JANUARY 27, 2012
■ EDITORIAL ■ YOUR LETTERS ■ GUEST OPINIONS
N LETTERS
VOICES FROM THE COMMUNITY
BUS LANES GOOD FOR EL CAMINO
CHECK OUT DOWNTOWN’S NEW GROCERY STORE
I was disappointed to see several City Council members dismiss the dedicated bus lanes for El Camino Real. This project would greatly improve transit speed and reliability along VTA’s most popular transit corridor while giving El Camino Real a much needed multimodal facelift. New bike lanes, mid-block cross walks, and pedestrian-friendly sidewalks are part of the project, and they will build a sustainable and livable foundation for the next generation of growth on El Camino Real. Surprisingly, we should take a cue from Santa Clara, which has committed to dedicated transit lanes on El Camino Real as a means to provide incentives for redevelopment projects to be transit-oriented, human-scaled projects while mitigating the strain new residents will place on the region’s roads. Santa Clara’s policies will help El Camino transition from an auto-oriented strip to a Grand Boulevard where residents can accomplish many tasks by walking, biking, or taking a quick, reliable bus trip. Council members must look beyond the next five years and envision what the city and the county will look like with an additional 600,000 persons, according to the ABAG estimates. Trafficchoked arterials with unreliable alternatives are not an option. This project gives us a reliable alternative to driving, and sets a precedent for more livable growth and sustainable land use patterns. Jarrett Mullen Latham Street
The latest incarnation of our largest downtown grocery store provides an opportunity that some people might want to check out. I encourage everyone finding themselves in the vicinity of 340 Castro St. to visit Ava’s Downtown Grocery and Deli, which opened in November. The deli isn’t there yet, but the groceries have been greeted with surprise and delight by many neighbors. The owners expect you to ask if you don’t see what you want — they often have it but things move around with so many new items coming in all the time. They also take the suggestion box submissions very seriously. We have been waiting for this moment for 25 years, and now have a chance to do both ourselves and the store a favor by helping them get through the always-difficult startup period. Julie Lovins California Street
LANE REDUCTION WOULD CLOG TRAFFIC I work in Fremont so I drive down El Camino every weekday morning to reach Hwy. 237. Every weekday evening, I turn from 237 onto El Camino in order to get home. I know that others use El Camino to get to and from Hwy. 85. A reduction from three lanes to two in each direction would cause traffic to get even worse than it is now. Konrad Sosnow Trophy Drive