The work of Lucia Wu, Dennis Wan, David Stearns, Fernando Chen and others in building the Moon Festival into an event of area-wide excellence is an outstanding achievement, which has brought honor and acclaim to Cupertino as its host.

As a 30-year resident, I am proud of these people and hope they can continue their work here without hindrance.

Since the last city election, however, there have been hindrances and planted rumors which are unfair and which are hurtful to volunteers who deserve praise and not hurt.

For example, the City of Cupertino said Moon Festival group could not meet any longer in a vacant room at city hall because "someone had cancelled their reservation." Neither the clerk nor the administrator then had the slightest idea who this mysterious person was. Yet the festival people were told they could not meet there. How would you feel, as a volunteer whose meeting place had been cancelled by an unknown person in city hall?

And since the last election, a rumor has circulated that "hundreds of thousands of dollars" of [Moon Festival] income are unaccounted for, and probably were siphoned off by one or two individuals. This is slander in a hurtful and very high degree, possibly worthy of a lawsuit.

The public fact is that the finances are kept by Ed Grant, a respected local accountant, and all expenditures have been for costs and for donations to worthy local groups!

Moreover, the liaison councilwoman acted as though operating under a mandate from the city. Is the city urging that this highly successful non-profit enterprise be re-structured? Does a liaison person have power to act and speak for the city?

These and other reasons give cause for examining the facts, to determine whether a recall petition is called for. Frankly, an apology seems due to the MFSV president and to all others whose reputations have been maligned and impugned since the last city election.

Ralph Otte

Cupertino

Initiatives don't impede future retail growth

Recent experience shows that there is a tendency to incorrectly interpret the General Plan Amendment in the initiatives proposed by the Concerned Citizens of Cupertino. The language of these amendments has been carefully crafted in order to not impede growth of retail business in the city.

The objective of the amendments is to provide standards for sensible growth while controlling undesirable high density and high-rise apartments and mixed-use developments. Specific exemptions have been put in to allow greater height, higher density, and less restrictive setbacks in the Vallco Park Planning District as defined by the initiative.

In addition, the area designated as the "Wolfe Road Commercial Corridor" is defined in these amendments where commercial buildings are totally exempt from provisions of the amendments. This corridor encompasses both sides of Wolfe Road, 500 feet from centerline, along a portion of the street, which starts at a point 500 feet north of Stevens Creek Boulevard and extends northward to Interstate 280. In this area, the limitations to the height and setback in the amendments only applies to residential or mixed-use facilities—not to commercial/retail buildings.

The configuration of commercial/retail buildings along the Wolfe Road Commercial Corridor would be determined by currently existing laws and actions of the city council but not by the amendments by the CCC.

Recently the city attorney prepared the Title and Summary for the initiatives. Specific exemptions for the commercial/retail buildings in the Wolfe Road Commercial Corridor were incorrectly interpreted. As a result, the provisions of the amendment in the initiative were stated to be more restrictive than they actually are. This distinction is very significant because people with opposing views have criticized the CCC's efforts as potentially detrimental to future growth of business in Cupertino.

In fact, if the voters enact the initiatives, growth of retail business will continue without hindrance because of the exemptions for business properties in the initiative. Furthermore, the CCC initiatives will encourage business growth because the city council would then stop amending the General Plan to rezone retail business areas to high density, residential projects.

The requests for rezoning come from developers who are from outside our city and absentee landlords who own the properties—not from the business community.

If voters adopt the initiatives proposed by the CCC, future growth would then be in the hands of the citizens who live in the city and own their homes instead of profit-motivated developers or special interest groups who don't live in Cupertino.

Ned Britt

Cupertino

Residents have always wanted a downtown

Cupertino citizens have consistently expressed the desire to have a downtown area as part of our community, as shown in previous general plans, community congresses, and resident surveys. In a 2002 survey, 75 percent of residents supported this goal. Unfortunately, the General Plan Task Force recommendations conflict with this previously expressed desire of our citizens.

A downtown consisting of buildings up to three stories high, placed close to the street and close to each other would provide an intimate, walkable, inviting, attractive addition to our city. Retail could be combined with housing on the same property, providing a ready population of people to make these areas vibrant, welcoming, community gathering places.

As noted in a recent article in the San Jose Mercury News, areas such as Los Gatos and Willow Glen have had residential property values increased by the proximity of such areas.

Unfortunately, excessive limitations on building form and use in the General Plan Task Force Recommendation would eliminate many of the features that could create a downtown in our own city.

I served on the general plan task force and I signed the minority report because I am a concerned resident who believes that community desire for features such as a downtown, expressed so clearly previously, should be heard.

Let's continue to hear from everyone as we consider the future of our city.

Rod Brown

Cupertino