The Sunnyvale Sun
Letters & Opinions
Speak Out
Story on council
race was biased
against challengers
First things first. Your article on the front page [Oct. 10] is not news; it is opinion, and highly biased in favor of the incumbents. I'd classify it rather as propaganda than news, since obviously its intent is to re-elect the city council incumbents by smearing the challengers.
It's OK if you don't favor the challengers, but it's not OK that everything in your article was slanted against the challengers--not when you classify your article as news.
I happen to have met two of the challengers and like what they have to offer. A bit of fresh air will do the city of Sunnyvale a lot of good; professional politicians have too much of their own interests at heart when they are entrenched in office for too long. They forget they are public servants.
Pat Meyering and Dave Whittum are very impressive in the way they discuss the issues. They have done their homework and express creative and positive plans for how Sunnyvale can meet the challenges it faces, not the least of which is the currently proposed Mary Avenue Bridge.
For the Sun to print only quotes from supporters of the incumbent councilmen manifests a bias towards those candidates. It would have been easy to find thousands of Sunnyvale voters who think highly of Pat and Dave. Why didn't the "news story'' include comments from supporters of these candidates? Since your article lacked balance, it failed to meet the basic standards of journalistic professionalism.
Pat Meyering and Dave Whittum always talk about the issues and do not engage in smear tactics about the other candidates. They have the ideas, energy and commitment to help Sunnyvale move forward. The legal, technical background and civic experience they have will serve Sunnyvale well to make it a "cool clean city.''
Please publish an errata report that your article was printed in the wrong section of the Sun (news instead of opinion). It certainly was not news; it definitely was prejudiced reporting.
Practically all the members of my large neighborhood organization will be voting for Pat and Dave--in spite of your attempt to knock them out of the running by commenting negatively about them and writing upbeat remarks about the incumbents running for re-election.
You made fun of them because they are going door-to-door for support while those running for re-election have accepted substantial contributions from developers and corporations. I admire Pat and Dave for how they are managing their campaign. We should have more like-minded citizens seeking public office like them.
Jan Boehm
Sunnyvale
Measure B is
the best option
for a new library
Glenis Koehne [Letters, Oct. 17] asks questions about other facilities options for the Library of the Future. Had she attended any of the 15 or so public meetings over the past 18 months, she would have her answers. I can only highlight them here.
Doubling the current library outward would destroy NOVA and seriously decrease parking (a very big no-no!). Rebuilding the library or retrofitting a second story capable of bearing book weight costs millions more than a new building, while closing the library for two years. The city examined buying or leasing property, alternate locations including Raynor or next to the Senior Center, and even scenarios such as a joint-use branch with Columbia Middle School. All were much more expensive and bad in other ways.
Measure B is easily the best solution. It gives us a properly sized, environmentally friendly library that is badly needed. The old library remains open during construction. The NOVA offices upgrade from the "rabbit hutches" to new offices in the untouched old library building. The Charles Street Gardens get a real opportunity for permanence in its current location, and the city saves tens of millions of dollars over the second best option. Everyone wins, at a price we can afford.
Measure B is a smart plan, and Sunnyvale's best and most affordable plan. Voters should pass Measure B.
Jim Griffith
Chairperson, Yes on B campaign
Use of library
should be limited
to local residents
The information about the Library of the Future and the Measure B bond from official channels and in the letters you've published has been misleading. There's a reference to the population of Sunnyvale and the increase in the number of residents from all of these sources. This would lead most Sunnyvale residents to believe that the resource is being planned around their needs and is meant for their sole use, but this is not the case. The policy at our library is to give anyone in the state a library card, and this explains the chronic overload on the facility and staff. It has been my experience living in Sunnyvale and working for more than 20 years at a large, local semiconductor company, that people who work in or near here use our library in great numbers.
In Measure B, we Sunnyvale homeowners are being asked to subsidize library patrons from the entire Bay Area and beyond. If the Sunnyvale library changed its policy and honored only library cards from residents of the three Sunnyvale ZIP codes, our current library might well serve us far better now, and into the future.
Linda Reynolds
Cirrus Avenue
Story draws
thanks from
local family
To all at the Sunnyvale Sun: Myself, my wife, Mike and his sister and brother would like to express our sincere appreciation for the article that you ran [Oct. 17, "Uplifting: Sunnyvale native is named Special Olympian of the Year"].
Mike has had the time of his life this past couple of weeks with all the picture-taking by Mark Tantrum, videotaping by the San Jose Sports Authority and interviewing by Erin Hussey. I'm not sure we'll be able to live with him after the SJSA ceremony and dinner on Nov. 14. This recognition by SJSA will certainly be one of the most important events in Mike's life.
We have had nothing but positive comments from our neighbors and friends who have seen the article. This includes Mike's doctor, orthodontist, teachers at DeAnza College, co-workers at Loehmann's, Special Olympics coaches and almost anybody else who knows Mike.
In reading the article, we could tell that Erin had done her research, and that is especially important to us, including even the little things like not referring to Down syndrome as Down's syndrome.
In addition, we appreciate that this article will bring attention to the tremendous opportunity that Special Olympics provides to the special needs community. In the case of those individuals with special needs, if someone (a parent or caregiver) doesn't take the time to encourage participation, it just doesn't happen.
Again, please accept our sincere thank you for a job well done!
The Bailey Family
(David, Karen, Mike, Melissa, Danielle & Chris)
New library
is much too
costly to build
I really enjoy the Sunnyvale Library, and it could use more space, but regrettably I feel I must vote No on Measure B. The reason is simple--cost.
While I support an improved library, I can't support constructing a grand palace, and calling it the new library. This "Library of the Future" lists among its highlights "modernized plumbing," and I should hope so. It is a new building, but at $931 per square foot, the plumbing should be gold! The new library is also described as a "green-designed" energy efficient building. This should result in sharply lower operating costs. So why is the city saying the operating budget for the new library will be substantially higher? There are just too many unanswered questions to vote yes.
The $108 million bond measure funds a building that will cost more than three times the average cost per square foot for other libraries in California. Those 116,000 square feet will cost $931 per foot, when the construction estimating reference at www.saylor.com/lacosts lists typical library costs of $250 to $294 per square foot (about the same as luxury housing). While these widely-used costs are for L.A., the location adjustment for Sunnyvale is, at most, a 3 percent difference.
I believe that once you consider the facts, you will join me in voting no on Measure B.
Jim Mekis
The Dalles Avenue
