Upfront
Arastradero (continued from page 5)
News Digest (continued from page 8)
The project has received a mixed response from the public. Representatives from both camps addressed the commission Wednesday and urged members to halt the experiment immediately, to extend it or to make it permanent. Barron Park resident Doug Moran criticized the project for not paying sufficient attention to the “road rage� caused by the new lane configuration and told the commission, “Driver problems are worse than before.� John Elman, who lives on Hubbartt Drive next to Arastradero, said the new lane configuration has slowed traffic and forced drivers to rely more on residential side streets. “The darn thing is a mess, and I hope you listen to people who object to this,� Elman said. But the majority of the speakers said they support the new setup and urged the commission to extend the trial. Philip Malese, who lives on Arastradero and whose children attended Gunn and Terman, said the road previously resembled a highway, with drivers regularly exceeding the speed limit. The new configuration is making things safer for pedestrians and bicyclists, he said. “I found the current configuration has done what it promised — it made Arastradero seem less like a freeway where people from one end or another go as fast as they can and made it more conducive to walking and biking,� Melese said. The commission agreed that it is too soon to determine the impact of the project, particularly given its evolving nature. Gunn High is scheduled to delay its start time from 7:55 a.m. to 8:25 a.m. in the fall, a shift expected to improve traffic conditions by creating staggered starting times at the various schools along the corridor. Rodriguez said he expects Gunn’s new bell schedule to have a “significant� impact on traffic conditions. The new traffic signal at Coulombe, which will include a dedicated left-turn arrow, is also expected to make things better for drivers. “There are some things that still need to be accomplished or finished before we can adequately evaluate this,� Vice Chair Lee Lippert said. Commissioner Daniel Garber also said the road changes reflect the values of the Palo Alto community, which he said is increasingly tilting toward walking and biking. “This isn’t a project that’s being foisted on our community,� Garber said. “It is a trial and it has errors, and as a result it’s structured in a way that we can address these errors, study them further and work to correct them every time.� N Staff Writer Gennady Sheyner can be emailed at gsheyner@ paweekly.com.
the city should instead focus on the Pope/Chaucer Street Bridge. Others argued that the proposal to replace the narrow 40-foot bridge with a much longer and wider structure would bring more traffic to the neighborhood. At the council meeting, several residents said the new bridge would be out of context in their neighborhood and asked city officials to think smaller. Andrew Vought, whose Edgewood Drive home is near the bridge, said that while he supports replacing the bridge he and his neighbors are concerned that building a larger bridge would create new “traffic and safety issues� and interfere with the wildlife in the San Francisquito Creek. The scope of work for the project tentatively proposes a 75-foot-long bridge with wider traffic lanes as well as sidewalks and bike lanes on both sides. Public Works officials said they proposed the larger structure largely to ensure they get enough grant money for the project. Phil Bobel, interim assistant director of Public Works, said engineers will continue to refine the design of the new bridge and make sure it accomplishes the goals of improving flood — Gennady Sheyner control and boosting traffic safety. N
JLS administrator named principal at Duveneck A new principal will greet students at Duveneck Elementary School in August: Chris Grierson, formerly assistant principal at JLS Middle School. Grierson, who taught six years at Walter Hays Elementary School before moving to Jordan Middle School and later JLS, was named to the post Wednesday (July 13). He replaces John Lents, who resigned unexpectedly last month because of a job opportunity for his spouse in St. Louis. Grierson joined the school district in 2002 as a fourth-grade teacher at
Walter Hays. He taught sixth grade at Jordan for a year before moving to JLS, where he has been assistant principal for several years. He also has worked as a summer school principal. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in education from the University of California at Santa Barbara, as well as a master’s in public administration from Notre Dame de Namur University. “Mr. Grierson’s extensive knowledge of elementary curriculum and his work with middle schools make him an ideal candidate for this position,� Superin— Chris Kenrick tendent Kevin Skelly said. N
Stanford Hospital project wins final approval After an unexpected last-minute delay, Stanford University Medical Center’s bid to dramatically expand its hospital facilities surged past the finish line Monday night (July 11) when the Palo Alto City Council gave the $5 billion project its final approval. The council’s vote came a week after Stanford agreed to relocate a day care center at one of the construction sites, thereby resolving an 11th-hour dispute with the parents whose children attend the Stanford Arboretum Children’s Center. Stanford earned the city’s initial approval June 6 after nearly 100 public hearings. But the hospital was forced to halt its celebrations a week later because of protests from dozens of parents whose children attend the day care center near the Hoover Pavilion. The city’s approval of the massive project was nearly four years in the making. As part of its settlement with the parents, Stanford agreed to move the day care center and to postpone construction on the parking garage near Hoover Pavilion until the center is relocated. After hearing about the deal, the council voted 7-0, with Gail Price absent and Larry Klein abstaining, to give Project Renewal the final go-ahead. N — Gennady Sheyner
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