Stanford GUP Town Hall Thursday

Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian is hosting a Town Hall this Thursday, March 14 about Stanford University’s General Use Permit application. The meeting is from 6:30-8:00 p.m. in Palo Alto City Council Chambers (250 Hamilton Avenue). 

The event is co-hosted by the Palo Alto Weekly and will provide an update on where things stand in the review process, including a high-level overview of the staff-proposed conditions of approval. After brief welcoming and introductory comments, the staff of the Palo Alto Weekly will interview Supervisor Simitian and then turn to the audience for questions they have for the Supervisor. Supervisor Simitian and his staff hope this format will ensure they get to the information of most interest to the public.

If you can’t attend the meeting, it will be taped and available on Supervisor Simitian’s website. It will also be broadcast live by Midpen Media on Channel 26.

Before the meeting, the PTA Council of Palo Alto will be holding a “Stanford Share the Cost” rally in the plaza in front of City Hall. The council is urging Stanford to fully mitigate the impacts of any new development on Palo Alto schools, including providing lands and funds for building a new elementary school. On that note, Stanford and PAUSD announced this week that they’re restarting discussions on the GUP and its impacts.

Volunteers Needed for the CTRA Board

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The annual meeting of the College Terrace Residents Association (CTRA) is coming up on Saturday, March 23, at 9:30am at University Lutheran Church (1611 Stanford Ave at Bowdoin). Palo Alto mayor Eric Filseth will give an address and Q&A, residents will elect the 2019-20 CTRA board, and there will be pastries and muffins provided by Khoury’s Market.

We are still looking for volunteers for a few open positions on the CTRA board for 2019-20 – no experience necessary, just an open mind and generous spirit. If you are a College Terrace resident and are interested in serving on the board, please email current CTRA president James Cook, or just come to the meeting and volunteer. It’s a small time commitment and a fantastic opportunity to serve your neighborhood and community.

Here’s a tentative schedule for the annual meeting:

9:30 a.m. Coffee/pastries/socializing with neighbors old and new
10:00 a.m. Welcome and “State of the Terrace” address by current CTRA President James Cook
10:15 a.m. Election of new CTRA board
10:30 a.m. Mayor Eric Filseth’s address followed by Q & A
11:15 a.m. Announcement of election results and appreciation of new board members
11:30 a.m. Meeting ends

CTRA Board Meeting Agenda: March 20, 2019

The next CTRA board meeting will be Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at 7:00pm at University Lutheran Church (1611 Stanford Ave at Bowdoin). Topics at this month’s meeting include Stanford construction in College Terrace, newsletter distribution, planning for the CTRA’s annual meeting and board election on March 23rd, and more. Read the agenda here.

All College Terrace residents are encouraged to attend. Hope to see you there!

Statewide Housing Legislation Gains Steam

While Palo Alto’s City Council grapples with ways to address the current housing crisis, legislators in Sacramento are proposing a wide range of bills aimed at spurring development, some of which restrict cities’ abilities to limit or block housing development.

Senate Bill 50 (SB-50), for example, aims to bolster housing development near major transit stops and bus routes, as well as “job-rich” areas, by exempting projects in these areas from local limits on density and parking requirements.

The Embarcadero Institute recently published an analysis of SB-50’s impacts on Palo Alto. It’s worth reviewing the potential impacts on our neighborhood, as parts of College Terrace are within a quarter mile of a “high quality bus corridor” (VTA Routes 22/522) and nearly all of Palo Alto will likely be deemed “job-rich.”

Given Governor Newsom’s aggressive goal to build 3.5 million new homes in California by 2025, it’s worth watching these bills as they progress through the Legislature. The future of Palo Alto housing may be decided in Sacramento and not City Hall.

Stanford/Bowdoin Crosswalk Improvements Coming

This spring, the City of Palo Alto Office of Transportation will install high-visibility yellow crosswalks and required school crossing signage to the Stanford/Bowdoin intersection. This project was initiated by PTA Transportation Safety Representatives of Escondido and Nixon Elementary Schools approaching the City of Palo Alto’s Safe Routes to School and Stanford staff to improve student visibility.

After several observations with PTA volunteers and design iterations by Stanford’s consultants, City staff and the project stakeholders agreed that the striping and signage project was an important step in enhancing safety at this busy intersection for students and other road users due to the proximity to two elementary schools and high use by students of all ages.

After installation, the City and Safe Routes partners will continue to monitor the intersection as a regular activity of the Safe Routes to School Partnership. Questions about the project can be sent to SafeRoutes@cityofpaloalto.org.

In other good news for neighborhood pedestrians, Caltrans is installing Pedestrian Hybrid Beacons (PHBs) at several intersections along El Camino Real, including one at College Avenue.

PHBs are flashing signals that tell drivers to stop when pedestrians are crossing the roadway. The installation process at Palo Alto intersections (Vista Ave, Barron Ave, Fernando Ave, College Ave, and Palo Alto Ave) is scheduled to begin this month and the full project should be completed by summer.

Please see the City of Palo Alto’s Stop for Pedestrians flyer for more information on how drivers and pedestrians should use these crosswalk safety enhancements. For more information, contact Caltrans Public Information Officer for District 4, Victor Gauthier at victor.gauthier@dot.ca.gov.