It's time for new and objective thinking on the city council, and that's why I support Nancy Smith for Seat 3.

I got to know Nancy when we attended Leadership Sunnyvale together in 1999. At that time, I recognized her leadership qualities, her generosity of spirit and objectivity.

Since 1999, she founded the Don Edwards Computer Learning Academy, served on the board of directors of the Third Street Community Center and chaired the Sunnyvale Housing and Human Services Commission. At the same time, she found time to be a business owner and a consultant to the high- tech industry.

Running for city council should not be about personalities. It should be about having the best qualities and talents at the right time to do the job. In my opinion, Nancy Smith is the right person for the job at this time.

Let's elect people who can guide our city during these challenging years while we build a new downtown, provide quality schools for our children, create affordable housing and work with our senior community.

I know that Nancy is principled, honest and beholden to no one. As a councilwoman, Nancy will vote on the issues before her evenhandedly and with the very best interests of all Sunnyvale citizens.

Vote for Nancy Smith on Nov. 8.

Leslie Lawton

Sunnyvale Resident since 1977

Candidates should reveal
core beliefs to the voters

My wife and I have lived in Sunnyvale for 39 years and considered Sunnyvale a budget-wise city.

However, in recent years we have heard the disturbing words "Republican-free" council. We know city positions are supposed to be nonpartisan, but after serving four years on the arts commission (as a registered nonpartisan), it was clear there is partisanship.

The nonpartisan policy may sound good, but the reality is the voter is being kept in the dark on the core beliefs of candidates.

Candidates running for the council seats don't identify themselves.

Is it city policy against declaring your core beliefs of, say, liberal or conservative? Should the public be kept in the dark about any candidate's core beliefs?

The point I wish to make is current candidate information is useless. Candidate literature essentially says the same thing and candidates just badmouth each other.

News articles provide absolutely no information or speculation on how candidates will vote on raising or lowering taxes or adding or mitigating cost burdens to the city.

Come on, this is supposed to be a free country. If you can't identify your core beliefs you should not be listing your name on any ballot.

We all know what our core beliefs are and if we hide them we are lying. Core beliefs can be simple: socialism versus U.S. democracy; enlarging government versus limiting government; law-abiding versus circumvention; moral foundation versus if it feels good do it; property rights versus eminent domain; individualism versus group think; etc., etc.

We all have core beliefs, but if you are running for office the public should know how these will be represented in voting.

Don Wicks

Sunnyvale

Complaints about stores
are unfounded, mindless

I am still recovering from the shock and awe of published statements (Letters & Opinion, Oct. 12) by another mindless guilt-trip chastising Sunnyvale and its leaders for imposing upon us two more retail stores on the El Camino Real.

As far as I know, El Camino was here long before Sunnyvale or even Murphy Station existed. To suggest we have ruined residents' property by allowing a new development instead of a car dealership that it replaced is, well, mindless. Should we close down El Camino and turn it into a park for these complainers?

Whoa, that sounds crazy, doesn't it?

To equate new development to an injury of confiscation of property without compensation is quite a stretch. And it's very similar to the negative gripes expressed on the Town Center Project where the complainers were most worried about the growing concerns of more people coming to Sunnyvale and all the problems that will come with it.

With incredible examples of local developments like Santana Row, it becomes clear that all the folks who claim there is something wrong with successful, tax-generating projects are just not meant to be living in the big city.

Sunnyvale has been cited as a national model of excellence and while there's plenty of room for improvement, we're certainly headed in the right direction.

Respectfully, for some of our residents, perhaps cashing in on the home values created by being in Sunnyvale, and a move to La Honda is in order.

Brian Taffe

Sunnyvale