In order to discuss the "conceptual" plan and gather public input, the city held planning commission­facilitated meetings on Sept. 18 and 25 at two different locations, each one attended by more than 80 people.

According to Robert Paternoster, director of community development for Sunnyvale, the design plan calls for the construction of six-story buildings for commercial and retail use along W. Mathilda Avenue and four-story buildings for residential use along E. Mathilda Avenue from Washington Avenue all the way to El Camino Real, transforming the street into a boulevard.

Admitting that this part of the plan is "most controversial," Paternoster tried to reassure residents by insisting that the buildings will be no taller than the three Mozart buildings - each 100 feet tall - currently being completed near the overpass. Residents were not receptive to the plan even after Paternoster displayed a three-dimensional model so the audience could get a feel for the size of the buildings.

"Walking past large buildings on both sides of the street makes one feel vulnerable and scared," said Johanna Friesen, who has lived in Sunnyvale for six years and is looking for a permanent home in the city.

Friesen, who attended both meetings, said that after traveling all over the country looking for a place to live, she chose Sunnyvale because of the charm and suburban feel it maintains despite being located in the heart of a major metropolitan area. However, she said the city's downtown plan will change the character of Sunnyvale and might cause her to move again.

Several residents agreed with Friesen about the tall buildings and high density proposed along Mathilda Avenue. Many said the traffic along the street, which is already heavy, will become unmanageable. They also said that tall buildings promote crime and an unhealthy environment.

Pete Contostovlos, commissioner of parks and recreation, who moved from New York to Sunnyvale more than 40 years ago, said, "This plan reminds me of New York."

"This will be like walking through a canyon," said Andy Maloney, a resident of the downtown area and a member of the Friends of Sunnyvale community group. "We are concerned that the high density will hinder our quality of life."

Maloney and his fellow group members presented another downtown plan at both meetings, which features a large village green - to be the focal point of the downtown area - where the Town Center Mall now stands. With buildings lower in height and with a mission-style architecture, a performing arts center, fountains and more open spaces, Maloney's plan features McKinley Avenue as the main boulevard.

Small-business owners in the downtown area also voiced their discontent about the city's plan.

"We are barely hanging on," said Mike Campbell, who, along with his wife, Julie, owns Fireside Stamps at Town and Country Village.

The small businesses in the area, except for ones along Murphy Avenue, are threatened by the city's plan, Campbell said, because there's been little or no communication with them from the city. Campbell complained that Sunnyvale's small businesses were not adequately represented in the Downtown Stakeholders Advisory Committee, which drew up the plan last year based on input from business owners and residents.

"Small businesses are very important to the downtown area," Paternoster responded.

The plan calls for a combination of residential and retail units where the Town and Country Village is currently located, he said.

Certain parts of the plan that have started operating are actually detrimental to the success of small businesses in the area, Campbell said, stating that the new underground parking garage, with its three-hour limit, totally defeats the goal of motivating visitors to spend time in the downtown area. He added that customers do not want to park underground and walk up flights of stairs to visit his store.

Other small-business owners agreed with the Campbells that the input from small-business owners should be considered so that they can be successful in the new downtown.

"We need to do something for the downtown area, but this is not it," said Dean Rhoads, an architect who runs his business out of an office on S. Murphy Avenue.

"This plan will force the unique small businesses out," said resident Dave Hamilton.

Resident Tom Carrig said he thinks the city should take care of basic facilities before expanding or developing any area. He said he understands that Sunnyvale, being in the heart of Silicon Valley, needs to grow along with the rapidly developing Bay Area. However, it should be "smart growth," he said.

"You have to build the infrastructure before you build any plan," Carrig said. "This is ridiculous."

Plans at both meetings presented different ideas for the space occupied by Town Center Mall, which is currently under foreclosure. Paternoster said that "several people" interested in the mall property are very much in agreement with the city's plan for demolishing the mall and opening it up to a more pedestrian-friendly retail area.

"The trend all across the country is to build open shopping centers and have lots of streets," he said.

However, the current trend notwithstanding, residents said they would rather have a downtown that they will like and enjoy. Many said the city needs research into why some of the neighboring downtown areas are thriving and successful. Residents also agree that the downtown area should have something that draws people to it.

Many residents who don't live in the downtown area also voiced their discontent with the design plan.

Judy Dietrich, who works for the Sunnyvale School District, lives in the southeastern part of the city. Dietrich said she did not know about the downtown plan until she drove by the area one day and saw "the three monsters," meaning the three Mozart buildings. Unconcerned with city development until then, Dietrich said that sight woke her up to what the downtown area might look like a few years down the road and made her decide to start speaking up.

Myrian Villegas agreed with Dietrich that the Mozart buildings are monstrosities. Her house is behind one of those buildings, which completely blocks her view, she said.

"How much of this plan is still negotiable and how much is already underway?" Villegas asked.

Paternoster responded that the city will adopt a plan, though not necessarily this one, in February 2003. Although the plan is currently in the environmental impact review stage, the input gathered at the meetings will be taken into consideration, he said.

Fred Wiesinger, a member of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, was also a member of the Downtown Stakeholders Advisory Committee. As a resident of the downtown area, Wiesinger said the plan is very important to him. He requested that the city communicate the results of the impact report to all the city commissioners before it goes to the draft stage.

"All the good and the bad should be meshed together to give the people what they want," resident Werner Gans added. "It's important to find out what the people of Sunnyvale want."