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vol . 3 , no. 11 : november 22-28, 2023 : losgatan.com
historic plaza tree p6 : police blotter p7 : ny times crossword puzzle p11 : upcoming events p13 Contributed
CALIFORNIA SHOOTS DOWN LOS GATOS’ PLAN TO DOUBLE COUNT UNITS IN HOUSING DOCUMENT
PARADE GRAND MARSHAL WILL WEAR TWO HATS THIS YEAR
Consultant believes Draft Housing Element is almost up-to-snuff
Longtime organizer Rick Miller reflects on annual event
Drew Penner, Reporter
Judy Peterson, Contributor
Los Gatos’ housing plan consultant says the Town is “95%” of the way to winning approval from the Department of Housing and Community Development, but a few tweaks may still need to be made, including around making the community less exclusive. But during the special Nov. 15 Planning Commission meeting, Town staff said the State had shot down their last-minute plan to double-count 250 units that were included in the prior Housing Element. That’s just as well for many residents, who have begun complaining that the “buffer” (beyond the 1,993 homes Los Gatos is required to plan for) has risen from the 15% initially supported by the Council to around 50%. Local resident Jim Zanardi is one of them. “Why add more units now for our town to bear?” he asked during public comment. “Why not put them on as you need them?” It was another frequent civic contributor, Lee Quintana, who
Rick Miller will be wearing two hats Dec. 2 because he’s doing double duty that day: He’s the chairman of the 67th annual Los Gatos Children’s Christmas/Holidays Parade, plus he’s the parade’s Grand Marshal. Miller has been the parade chairman since 2013, working on the parade since joining the Los Gatos Lions Club in 1978. Although Miller serves on the committee that chooses the Grand Marshal, he bowed out of this year’s decision-making process. “I was a little uncomfortable with accepting the nomination
➝ Housing, 4
➝ Parade, 6
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LIGHT UP THE NIGHT Santa Clara County Parks is commemorating the 25th anniversary of Fantasy of Lights at Vasona Lake County Park in Los Gatos, which runs Dec. 5-30. For more information, turn to page 10.
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