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Atherton removes Circus Club tax hike from ballot measure By Renee Batti
approve reconsideration of the matter, which it did unanimously before supporting a fter hearing from a num- new ballot measure keeping all ber of unhappy resi- rates at their existing levels. dents and having second The vote represented a turnthoughts about a July 17 deci- around for Councilman Jim sion on the town’s parcel tax, Dobbie, who in July voted the Atherton City Council last against the overall measure week voted to place renewal of — although he argued for the the tax on the November bal- Circus Club increase. He was lot, without the 150 percent opposed to the measure at increase for the Menlo Circus the time, he said, because he Club that it had approved at believes taxing all homeownthe July meeting. ers at the same rate is more fair The Aug. 7 vote was unani- than the stepped rates that are mous. The parcel tax renewal based on size of parcel. “The measure that voters will be parcel tax provides services, asked to approve leaves the and you get those services no tax rate at the same level it has matter what size (your lot) is,” been at since 2001, with most he said. property owners of parcels that In voting to approve the include a dwelling paying $750 measure last week, Mr. Dobper parcel annually, a small bie said, “I didn’t want to be number of ownthe person they ers whose houses blamed” if the are on smallermeasure were to The parcel tax than-average lots fail because peorenewal measure ple organized a paying between $450 to $570, and against would leaves tax campaign the Menlo Cirin protest of the rates at current Ci rc u s C lub cus Club paying $10,000. increase. “There levels. At the earlihad been a lot of er meeting, the publicity about council approved a ballot (the earlier decision to increase measure to renew the tax for the rate), and a lot of members four years at the existing rate of the Circus Club were raising except for the Circus Club’s, hell,” he said. “For an extra which would have risen to $15,000, I didn’t think it was $25,000 from $10,000 annu- worth it.” ally — an increase all four Mr. Dobbie, Mayor Lewis council members endorsed at and Councilman Bill Widmer, the time. There had been no who voted remotely during a prior indication — or notice teleconference from the East given to the Circus Club — Coast, emphasized the need that the increase was being to begin studying alternative considered, and no increase sources of revenue for the for the club was included in town, which has no commerthe three options suggested cial tax base and relies on the in a written staff report to the parcel tax for more than $1.8 council. million of its $10.4 million After that meeting, Mayor operating budget. Elizabeth Lewis said that, in The parcel tax is set to expire hindsight, she was uncom- at the end of June 2014. Revefortable with the decision and nue from the tax is divided wanted the council to recon- between police services, which sider it. At the Aug. 7 meeting, receives 60 percent, and public the council was required to works projects.
Almanac News Editor
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the project would include building new two-story buildings for classrooms. It also would include investment in modern technology, improved accessibility to meet ADA (American With Disabilities Act) requirements, and an expanded lunch
area to deal with the larger number of students. Permanent classroom space and upgrades to existing classrooms are necessary to accommodate the “shifting types of instruction” the district must provide to meet the new “common core” standards, said board member Jay Siegel, who with board president Richard
8 N The Almanac N TheAlmanacOnline.com N August 14, 2013
Photo by Magali Gauthier/The Almanac
Day of service It’s not all Hackathons and free food: 160 Facebook interns participated in the company’s fifth annual day of service on Aug. 2, working at six sites around the Bay Area. In the photo, interns Neha Chachra, left, and Kaitlyn Lee prepare a plant bed along Bay Road in Menlo Park.
Woman killed in Skyline Boulevard crash A woman visiting from India was killed in a head-on crash on Skyline Boulevard near Woodside on Aug. 7, a California Highway Patrol officer said. The woman, Sarani Banerjee, 49, from Howrah, India, was in the back seat of a Toyota Camry heading northbound on Skyline Boulevard about a halfmile south of Old La Honda Road just before 7 p.m., CHP Officer Art Montiel said. Driving the car was her son, Shamik Banerjee, 31, of Mountain View. His father, Kalyan Banerjee, 61, was in the front pas-
senger seat, Mr. Montiel said. The Camry was negotiating a curve when it was driven off the road onto a dirt and gravel shoulder, Mr. Montiel said. When the car returned to the road, it collided head-on with a Chevrolet Monte Carlo driven by Susan Michele Cozad, 58, from Nice, California, near Clear Lake. The Camry flipped and came to rest on its roof. Ms. Banerjee was pronounced dead at the scene. Her husband was transported by helicopter to Stanford Hospital with major injuries.
Her son was also taken to the hospital. He suffered no injuries, Mr. Montiel said. Ms. Cozad, the Monte Carlo’s sole occupant, was not injured in the crash, Mr. Montiel said. The roadway was closed for about four hours after the fatal crash. The cause of the crash is under investigation, according to the CHP. “At this point, we’re just trying to figure out why he went off the road,” Mr. Montiel said. — Bay City News Service and the Almanac
ELECTION 2013
portable,” and that he supports looking at ways to reduce the town’s contributions to pensions and other benefits. He noted that the town has a “very substantial unfunded liability” for post-retirement costs that needs to be considered when looking at the town’s overall financial health. (The unfunded liability
has been estimated at between $12 million and $30 million.) Mr. Conlon and Ms. Sandhu said they need more information before commenting on whether the town needs to adjust police officer compensation in the next contract. Mr. Conlon said that he is concerned with the town’s unfunded liability, but that the Audit/Finance Committee hasn’t specifically studied police compensation. With negotiations in
progress, “I don’t want to prejudge without the facts,” he said. Ms. Sandhu said the finance committee is taking a harder look at the long-term forecast related to pension costs, and said she’s convinced that CalPERS, which oversees the state’s public employee pension system, is not providing accurate figures. That makes it difficult to understand the town’s true financial picture, she said.
Ginn and other members of the school community prepared the ballot language and the list of projects covered by bond revenue if the measure passes. District residents are now paying for two previously approved bond measures. Measure A was passed in 1999, authorizing the issuing of $12
million in bonds to pay for renovation and repair projects at the district’s two schools. In 2001, voters approved Measure E, which was to raise $12 million to finish renovation projects in the face of escalating costs, and to fund a new gym at La Entrada School and make playground and safety improvements at La Entrada
School. In addition to payments on the bonds, district residents now pay an annual parcel tax of $311 per parcel, according to Ms. Chow. Go to t i ny u rl.com / LLBond2013 to read the ballot language and the list of projects eligible for bond revenue funding if the measure passes.
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