Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Town says bus depot will close

By John Pancharian

The Greyhound station at 145 S. Santa Cruz Ave. has seen the last passengers pass through its doors, according to Town Attorney Orry Korb, who says that station operator Ron Schivo Sr. didn't live up to the terms to his lease. Schivo was originally served with an eviction notice on May 14.

Now that site is no longer a bus station, Korb says that, among other things, the town may consider turning it into a parking lot, and the Town Council may not necessarily make the decision. The trailer on the site is owned by the town.

The original lease between the town and Schivo expired in 1994, Korb said, but Schivo had continued to lease the property and trailer on it on a month-to-month basis. Korb declined to enumerate all the town's complaints against Schivo, but said Schivo had sublet the space to San Francisco Chronicle/Examiner distributors, which placed him in violation of the lease-continuation agreement as well as the zoning for that location.

Korb said that the lease wasn't terminated, it just wasn't renewed because town officials decided that there were other more compelling uses for the property.

"It's been quite frustrating," Korb said of his dealings with Schivo, who was to have vacated the premises by July 7, though Korb said Schivo was still there as of July 9. As of last week, Schivo was apparently gone. Calls to his house went unanswered.

Because Greyhound Bus Lines does not require a bus station in order to stop and take on passengers, the closure of the station does not necessarily mean the end of service to Los Gatos. The town could arrange with the carrier to stop in a particular location, where passengers would simply pay the driver for their tickets. The Greyhound parcel service available at the station would not continue, Korb said.

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