The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

City Council candidate Joe Martin

Martin favors more housing, trafÞc solutions

By Natasha Collins

Although he has only lived in Sunnyvale for a couple of years, City Council candidate Joe Martin believes he has a greater appreciation for the city because he has experienced a different way of life.

"This is the best-managed city I have ever seen," the former New Yorker said. "There is a nice balance between the suburban and urban developments, and I want to help preserve that feeling."

As an investment adviser, Martin said he must be able to take a lot of information, process it and make the best decision he can on behalf of his client in a short period of time. City Council members must do the same thing on behalf of the residents, he said.

Martin's primary vision for Moffett Field would be to turn a portion of the airfield into a museum and build stores and restaurants on the remaining land near the water. Another option would be to allow start-up companies to occupy part of the land, enticing them to the area with lower rents until they get started, so sales taxes would stay within the community and residents wouldn't have to commute long distances.

The Town & Country shopping center needs to be redeveloped, Martin said. "It is from an era gone by," he said. "I would like to see it put to a better use, one that would make people look forward to coming to the city and staying."

Martin is an advocate of high-density housing. If high-density residential developments were placed closer to El Camino Real and other major thoroughfares, then traffic from the developments would not affect neighborhoods, he said.

"By keeping the high-density developments near the main roads, people will have no reason to travel through the neighborhoods because everything they need, such as groceries, will be on the main thoroughfares," Martin said. "If you put the high-density developments near the neighborhoods, then people will have no choice but to drive through the residential streets to get to their supplies."

As Sunnyvale grows, the city must come up with alternatives to solve traffic problems, he said. Martin would like to offer incentives to employers and employees to encourage the use of public transit and carpools.

"I would like employees who take the bus to work everyday to get discounted bus passes," he said. "It may also be a possibility to provide shuttle buses to and from bus stops near major Sunnyvale corporations. By encouraging people to take public transportation, we would not only lessen traffic, but help the environment as well."

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This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, October 8, 1997.
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