As a newcomer, I see disillusionment in a neighborhood that previously had an abundance of local pride. Many who live adjacent to Vallco feel abandoned by a city council, seemingly lulled into compliance by the developer's perceived need for haste in order to complete a major project in their backyards.

These neighbors have organized to protect themselves from a shopping mall morphing into a mega retail/housing center at warp speed. Sadly, their opposition seems to be greeted with taunts of NIMBYism.

The process of building a project of this magnitude should be slowed down long enough to assuage the fears of those who will be impacted by it, and compromise should be the order of the day. Once the land is gone, it will never reappear. The needs of constituents should always weigh in above visions of future tax dollars.

Ruby Elbogen

Cupertino