Letters

Those who came to meeting need to stay involved

The July 17 town council meeting was an exhilarating experience. Although the council decided not to pursue the parking-management plan proposed by consultant Tim Ware, the consideration of it drew more people, more energy, more creativity, and more attention to the downtown parking issue than ever before.

There are many strategic options to meet any goal. Everyone has a different set of concerns and ideas, but the key is stay focused, as a community, on the core objectives we are trying to accomplish.

The Town of Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce seconds the council's praise for the work of the Task Force. These individuals spent hundreds of hours to develop a parking-management plan that would accommodate the diverse needs of the constituents who come to our downtown to live, work, visit, shop, dine, and generally enjoy our beautiful town.

I am sure they are disappointed that their proposal was not moved forward, but they should not be disheartened. The efforts of the Task Force led to that landmark council meeting that promises to be a catalyst for more new, fresh ideas to manage our downtown parking resources.

As always, the chamber is continuing to work on developing programs that will serve the parking needs of the downtown workforce and customers of downtown businesses. In the next few weeks, we will be drafting recommendations for short-term solutions that can be put in place before the start of the holiday season. We made careful notes of the wonderful suggestions that came forth at the council meeting, but we invite anyone who has ideas to share them with us soon.

The late Congresswoman Barbara Jordan once said "The stakes are too high for government to be a spectator sport." We encourage those who got out of the viewer stands last Monday to stay in the game. Los Gatos needs you.

Diane McNutt, Chair
Town of Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce

Good sense won out over a bad parking solution

I would like to publicly thank the hundreds of Los Gatans who responded to a proposal to impose a sweeping change to the very character of Los Gatos--the paid parking proposal--by saying NO!

Kathy Carmel and I distributed more than 1,000 notices, and I called dozens of businesses in and out of the Chamber of Commerce describing and discussing the impact of the so-called final draft solution to the Los Gatos parking "problem." My faith in the process was confirmed.

Perhaps the best symbol of what was wrong with the system was the surprising absence of the appropriately named, Tim Ware. Nowhere to be found at the crucial moment, this high-priced consultant, was no match for the unrelenting pulse of logical argument against the plan.

To her credit, Linda Lubeck changed her position. Joe Pirzynski went from leaning to falling in the right direction. Mixing coffee and yoga let Jan see the light, finally. Atta-boy Attaway. Mayor Blanton, in a dreamy reference to the Bhagavad-Gita felt paid-parking was a holistic solution. He still doesn't get it.

Monday's meeting was a holistic response to a poorly conceived plan. It was where good karma overruled bad karma.

John Tice
Los Gatos

Now is the time to begin committing to some solutions

Monday night was a wonderful example of democracy at its best. The people came, the people were heard and the elected officials voted with the people they were elected to serve. Too many times when encouraging people to come down and voice their opinions I am told, "Why waste my time 'they' have already made up their minds and 'they' won't listen anyway."

Well, hopefully last week's parking meeting will prove that your presence and participation are truly powerful.

Now let's take that position of community power and solve the problem. The parking problem still exists and if we are really going to chart a community course, we've all got to get on the boat. We all know the problems confronting our neighbors downtown and our invaluable merchants.

So, can we start with a compromise through Christmas? Let's try gift giving in July.

* The University neighborhood gives the gift of parity to the Almond Grove neighborhood by reducing their 24-hour parking restrictions to 6 p.m. through 2 a.m.

* The Almond Grove neighborhood sits down with St. Mary's Church and exchanges a gift of workable compromise. The first good faith step might be painting out the red curb area in front of the church which is room for four cars, restricting the space only when needed for the occasional limo.

* The downtown merchants could give themselves and the surrounding neighbors the biggest gift of all, an enforceable employee parking solution. Perhaps finding a firm that could prepare a professional assessment of the employee problem based on current needs and conflicts collected scientifically. This study could be used as a baseline in conjunction with the town's future commercial development.

* Above all the management of the town of Los Gatos (interim or not) must commit immediately to expending funds and manpower to reconfigure, restripe, pave and light our poorly utilized existing parking lots, in order to create more available spaces now.

* Last, those of us who are going to go on enjoying free parking without any impact, it's our turn to think twice above driving downtown when we can walk. It never ceases to amaze me that people will put their bikes on their cars, drive to town, park their cars, then ride their bikes, or walk the trail. Let's give our merchants and the downtown residents a break and do our part.

If we can solve this problem before Christmas this year we can be assured that the most memorable gift of the season has already been given, the gift of real community cooperation, proving once again that Los Gatos has that small town character worth preserving.

Sandy Decker
Los Gatos

Council dodged opportunity to work on solution

Last week's council meeting was classic Los Gatos. The council bends to the will of the community, right or wrong. To deny the parking-management plan an opportunity to work is poor planning.

The neighborhoods have acquiesced to employee parking by permit on their streets. Lots have been set aside for employee parking. The community agreed with everything except paid parking on the streets. To fund a parking program most folks even agreed that parking be charged for in the lots or garages.

The council needs to immediately set up a town task force to pick up the pieces of the parking-management plan and see what they can do with it without paid parking on Santa Cruz Avenue and Main Street. They have agreed to do this and could have done it Monday night at Councilman Pirzynski's request, but did what they usually do and did nothing. Let's hope council does this at their next meeting.

Larry Arzie
Los Gatos

Brian Hinman has shown himself to be a real hero

When I Iearned that Mr. Brian L. Hinman will buy the land under the CDF Alma Fire Station in the mountains above Los Gatos and gift it to the California Department of Forestry, I was awestruck. It was more than those of us who know what that station means had hoped or even dreamed. I tried to think how to thank Mr. Hinman, but words and deeds eluded me.

The fact that the station, with its heliport and fire engines, will remain at its present site means that all of us in these mountains and in the town of Los Gatos itself have a much safer future.

Often in the last few years, I have seen people with huge amounts of money buy property in these mountains and destroy the wilderness to build monster homes with columns and gated entries. They cut down the native plants to landscape and sometimes even put in vineyards.

All this to enjoy the country, or impress others? When I drive by these properties, I never think that a great and powerful human being owns this place. Instead I think the opposite.

But now every time I drive by that little fire station where there are a few fire trucks and a helicopter or two, I will know that a truly great and powerful man has owned this place. A man who has the heart and the courage to do the right thing just because he can.

I'm not sure how to thank Mr. Hinman, but I will always admire and respect him as the hero he has shown himself to be. May we all be as great and follow the lofty example he has set!!

Rea Freedom
Los Gatos Mountains

Photo: Gas line rupture

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Picture from the Past

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Gatos hosts volleyball camps

Metro wins regional title