I read in the Dec. 24 edition of the Courier that at least for now the Oaks renovation project is dead because of a 2-2 tie when the city council finally voted on it on Dec. 15.

I am extremely disappointed in our new mayor Sandra James who chose not to vote. I have in the past been a big fan of Councilwoman James and was not a supporter of the Oaks project.

I watched then Vice Mayor James listen during the hearings to all of the arguments from the planning commission, the developers and all of he concerned residents about the pros and cons of the project. She, I thought, asked some very intelligent and pertinent questions about the project from all parties. She actually appeared interested in the outcome. What she didn't do during this process was tell everyone involved at the very first hearing on Aug. 25 that she had no intention of voting one way or the other on this project because she "has a long-term personal relationship with one of the tenants."

I suspect that had she divulged this information at the outset, the various participants would have changed their strategy and spent zero time trying to persuade Ms. James to favor their cause and as a matter of fact would have no interest in anything she said. She essentially wasted all of their time because as it turned out she was the deciding vote. Not a very auspicious start for the mayor starting her term.

I would suggest that in the coming year anyone having business before the city council be a little wary of Mayor James because she may seem interested in what you are saying but if the Oaks project is any example, she may just end up when voting time comes saying she doesn't want to vote on your request "for personal reasons."

Jim Carlisle

Cupertino

Oaks development would have caused overcrowding

The Courier's coverage of the city council meeting concerning the Oaks' Regis project omitted several important points.

The focus of citizens' comments was the negative impact of more high-density developments on the schools, especially Monta Vista High School. The school enrolled 67 new students in October when about 20 were expected. The current modernization program at Monta Vista is designed to accommodate 124 new students through 2008­09, but the school is in danger of being overcrowded well before this time.

A Fremont Union High School District representative informed the city council on Nov. 17 that district funding is declining while enrollment is increasing with a consequent potential decline in the quality of education.

More high-density housing developments will exacerbate this problem and will soon extend to other schools.

City council members who supported Regis chose to consider piecemeal the impact on the schools and ignore the FUHSD report. It is their responsibility to measure the integrated impact of all development on the schools and act accordingly.

The Courier devoted much of its report to comments by several retailers at the Oaks, especially the Coffee Society. It failed to mention that not one retailer showed up to voice their opinion at the council meeting. Rather they signed supporting form letters in a "Faustian" deal with the developers to obtain improvements to the Oaks; improvements which Council member Patrick Kwok pointed out should be made by the current owners.

The added business from the Oaks development is unlikely to compensate for that which could be lost from local residents who oppose development at the Oaks. Retailers who label us as a "noisy minority" do little to encourage our business.

We all value the Courier and its contributions to our community and we value it even more when a balanced view is presented.

Robert Garten

Cupertino

Kwok and Wang, knights who stopped Oaks project

With "Save The City" T-shirts worn by over 70 people who attended the fully packed council meeting on Dec. 15, we made our voices heard.

However organized we were and with the factual information that we presented, three of our council members still didn't get it.

Even though the Oaks project was defeated 2-2, it is very clear that Sandoval, James and Lowenthal have a pro-growth agenda.

While James recused herself from voting on the Oaks townhouse proposal, apparently later in the meeting, while discussing the Wolf housing project for 105 units that was approved, she did mention how much she liked the Regis Homes proposal for the Oaks.

The two shining knights for the evening were Councilman Kwok and Councilwoman Wang. Kwok was against the project because he did not see the merit of giving up city property on Mary Avenue for the sake of making a project survive. He also listened to the fact that the General Plan Task Force, which concluded its work in September, unanimously voted against rezoning retail property to residential. He also questioned the effects on the schools. He wondered why the owners of the Oaks hadn't done more in the past to promote their shopping center.

Wang questioned whether the Oaks management was doing all it could to promote its current vacancies. She also expressed her concern on the impact to schools.

Kwok and Wang were the only two who voted against the project. We again applaud them for asking the hard questions and listening to the community that elected them.

Malka Nagel

17-year Cupertino resident

Cypress community work doesn't help controversy

Thanks for the article about the Cypress Hotel.

It is refreshing to know that, in Cupertino at least, you can smooth over any controversy by throwing around some money and putting a Christmas tree on your roof.

Apparently the saying about "good fences making good neighbors" needs to be updated.

Matt Conens

Cupertino