Los Gatos Weekly-Times Study session on 330 University may yield solutions for access By Jeff Kearns It didn't really look like a love-in, but the first study session since the Los Gatos Town Council passed the so-called "gag rule" for planning commissioners was praised by all sides after a Jan. 12 meeting to discuss how to go ahead with a problematic development proposal for 330 University Avenue. The council in November required the Planning Commission to make strategy sessions open to the public and include input from neighbors. The new approach is also designed to let all sides talk to one another outside of the sometimes-constrictive atmosphere of a commission hearing. After participants broke up into small discussion groups, the issue of access emerged as the greatest concern. In the current plans, the property would be connected to University Avenue about 100 feet from the Highway 9 intersection. Some, however, believe such an approach could create circulation problems at the already-busy intersection, and they suggested an access point at Edelen and Bentley avenues. Edelen neighbors, however, have been fiercely opposed to bringing any new traffic through their streets. Maxim developer Bill Hirschman, meanwhile, says he's not wedded to any particular approach. Hirschman, who participated in the study session, said he was surprised that some residents were at least willing to consider an entry at Edelen Avenue. "The Bentley and Edelen people were unanimously opposed to that access from the very beginning, going back 15 years," he said. Nearby residents also said they wanted to see a more open development that is integrated into the surrounding area, not isolated. "One of my greatest joys of living downtown is walking through the town and feeling that the whole town is my neighborhood," Stacy Stewart said. In order to foster more open "outside-the-box" discussions, the rule for the session was that any aspect of the development proposal was fair game. After the meeting, commissioner Laura Nachison said she was happy to have more direct communication with all parties. "It really fosters community involvement and breaks down communication barriers between developers, the commission and the community," she said. "And it prevents the impression that this is happening behind closed doors." But while the session gave all sides time to have their say, there wasn't enough time to build consensus on specific solutions. Now, the Planning Commission decides whether to schedule a second study session or let Hirschman use the discussions as a guideline for a project redesign of the project. [ Back to Contents Page | Los Gatos Weekly-Times Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, January 20, 1999. ©1999 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.