art liberman

The Jay Paul Company has announced it will hold two public meetings to describe their project: a planned community development (PC rezoning) at 395 Page Mill that would add two office buildings, totaling 311,000 square feet on the same site as the 220,000 square foot AOL building, and a three story 44,500 square foot Public Safety Building (the public benefit) and associated Parking Garage opposite, at 3045 Park Boulevard.

WHEN: Nov 20th and Dec 4th, 7 PM

WHERE: main conference room 395 Page Mill Road

Ray Paul will be there along with his architect, Tom Gilman. Also speaking will be someone from Fehr & Peers, the traffic consultants hired by the city (apparently the city is aware of this even though their report is not final), and Paul Krupka, the Traffic Demand Management TDM consultant hired by Jay Paul.

The following provided by Art Liberman…..

These new buildings would add as much office space as currently exists in all four buildings of the Palo Alto Square development – including the two 10 story buildings , while the size of the property is about half the size of Palo Alto Square.

The proposal includes 1700 parking spaces, so even though it is close to Caltrain’s California Avenue station, the project will certainly result in a huge increase in traffic in the El Camino/Page Mill/California Avenue area.

One of questions is whether the Council is so desperate for a new public safety building that they are willing to overlook the projects’ negative features – the traffic snarls, the problems it would create for the nearby residents, and also the issues with placing a Public Safety building on road with poor connectivity to the main arteries. Park Boulevard, the location of the proposed public safety building and the parking garage it would share with the new commercial buildings, is certain to be crowded with pedestrians and road traffic, which would impede the deployment of public safety vehicles. It is also slated to become one of Palo Alto’s new ‘Bicycle Boulevards.’

Project overview:

http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/37530

An Environmental Impact Report is being prepared. More information about this project is on the Planning and Department website:

http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/news/displaynews.asp?NewsID=2269&TargetID=319

Jay Paul public meeting invitation

What is going to be done: installing new 2” polyethylene gas mains and new 1” service lines to replace aging pipelines. The formal name of this capital improvement project is Gas Main Replacement Project (GMR) 19B/20/21.

Where it is going to happen: Following map indicates the (blue lines on map) streets where work will take place (click on map for enlarged view):

Pipeline repair map Barron Park 2013

LaDonna from Barron to Kendall and down Kendall to El Camino,

Whitsell

La Selva

Matadero from Josina to El Camino

Laguna from Laguna Oaks to Shauna Lane

Ilima Court & part of Ilima Way

San Jude

Cass Way

Contractor for the project: Daleo, will be starting work on the streets indicated on the attached map* next Tuesday November 12^th. Residents whose gas service may be impacted got a direct notice- (*Laguna Avenue, Ilima Way, Ilima Court, and San Jude Avenue)

If you have questions about this project: contact Debra Katz (contact info below), or contact contractor directly:

Project Contractor: Daleo, Inc. (408) 846-9621

Utilities GMR Project Engineer: An Le (650) 566-4528

Debra Katz

Utilities Communications Manager

City of Palo Alto

PO Box 10250

Palo Alto CA 94303

debra.katz@cityofpaloalto.org

(650) 329-2474

My thoughts on the day after the election…..

I think those of us living in Barron Park and Greenacres can agree that we have just been through a period that has challenged our community’s cohesiveness. The PAHC housing proposal along Maybell had its supporters but it brought out an amazing outpouring of anger and opposition from many in the neighborhood.

The Measure D campaign was contentious. People had to choose sides. But now that the election is over, it’s time to repair frayed personal relationships, and to learn from this experience and just accept the fact that good friends do not necessarily share similar political views.

Arguments and disagreements, private and public, are not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, that’s how democracy is supposed to work. It is a good thing if people are willing to listen to what others have to say, are willing to learn something new, to compromise even if they disagree on some points, and are not hyper-sensitive to slights or criticism. On the other hand, it’s not good if disputes get out of hand and possibly rupture long standing bonds of personal friendship. There’s been lots of back and forth debate, some of which has been less than illuminating or edifying.

So, we should take some time to reflect on some of the heated exchanges and see if problems were caused by what was said or how it was said…or written – some heated exchanges were in emails. People sometimes will say things in email that they would not say in person, and sometimes regret it immediately afterward. Reflect and take a deep breath, and reread your message before you push that send button. When using our BPA-issues, my suggestion is to direct your argument and comments to the entire group of subscribers, not to a single individual, try to elevate the discussion rather than denigrate the author of a previous email, and avoid cheerleading.

Even after taking care with your message, it’s sometimes not possible to avoid becoming embroiled in a heated exchange when people misconstrue your words. Folks can misread your words in ways that are difficult to anticipate, and those preoccupied with real or imagined slights are quick to counterattack and the exchange can elevate and become personal and unpleasant. In those cases, there’s not much you can do about that besides halting the exchange if you see yourself caught up in a debate with someone like that.

This year’s street scape Halloween decoration featured the red and yellow of the lawn signs and countersigns. It’s now time for us to pull back from confrontation as we pull up the lawn signs, and repair whatever bonds we can that were broken within our community. Let’s all try to reengage each other with respect – respect different opinions, accept that others can honestly disagree with you, listen to what is being said before reacting and immediately sending off a response. Think independently and don’t necessarily rely on any group for answers. Let’s return our community discourse into a more civil tone, and not allow any leftover bitterness, alienation, and divisiveness within our neighborhood have any long-lasting effects upon future cooperation among friends and neighbors. We’re going to be living together after this election and probably the next election, and a long time after that.

Art Liberman

Update – At its meeting on October 15th, the BPA Board voted, 8 to 1, to adopt the following resolution:

“The Barron Park Association will discontinue its charter of Pack 52 and Troop 52. The Pack 52 charter shall be discontinued as of November 30, 2013 and the Troop 52 charter shall be discontinued no later than November 30, 2014, or sooner should they obtain a new charter organization”

The Cub Scout Pack 52 has tentatively already found an alternative organization that would be its sponsor.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The following is the personal opinion of Barron Park Resident and BPA Board member Art Liberman. It does not represent the position of the BPA or the BPA Board. However, this item will be discussed and acted upon at the October 15th BPA Board Meeting.

Should the BPA continue to be a Chartering Organization for the Boy Scouts of America? My answer is NO.

For some years, the Barron Park Association has sponsored a Boy Scout troop and a Cub Scout pack affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America. I have come to the conclusion that we should sever our connection with the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) because of their discriminatory policies. We should encourage the troop and pack leaders to find other organizations as sponsors to minimize the effect on the boys currently active in this program.

The BSA terminology for an organization that sponsors a Boy Scout troop is a “chartered organization.” In practice, a BPA Board Member signs a piece of paper at the end of each year from the BSA that defines the responsibilities of the sponsoring organization. By signing the Charter AgreementAnnual Charter Agreement with the BSA, the BPA agrees to “Conduct the Scouting program according to its own policies and guidelines as well as those of the Boy Scouts of America.” In effect, this says that in conducting or supervising the scout program, we – the BPA – are bound to follow the policies of the BSA, including their discriminatory policies, whether we personally approve them or not.

The BSA of today is not “your grandfather’s” Boy Scouts. For most of its history the BSA allowed individual troops to define their own rules, but this changed in recent decades. The national organization of the BSA has recently updated its membership policies to allow gay scouts but reaffirmed its policy that does not allow gay adult troop leaders. To fulfill its requirement in the Charter Agreement, the BPA Board member must affirm that scout troop leaders and other volunteers are not “open or avowed homosexuals.” The BSA couches its policy in terms of protecting the scouts, but this policy doesn’t target pedophiles but just all adults of a certain sexual orientation – it is discriminatory and unacceptable.

The issue before the BPA Board is not to assess the value of scouting to the participants. That’s a separate question. What the BPA Board needs to decide is whether it’s appropriate for the BPA to be affiliated with the national BSA given its current membership and volunteer policies.

There is a second reason why the BPA should disengage from the BSA. The BPA does not fulfill another requirement of a chartered organization, which is to “Include Scouting as part of its overall program for youth to meet the developmental needs for every age level.” Unlike some churches or other community organizations that sponsor BSA troops, the BPA does not have any youth development programs as part of its objectives or in any of its activities.

Art Liberman

The Fall 2013 issue of the Barron Park Newsletter is out and should have reached the mailboxes of all BPA members. If you have not received your issue, send us an email. This issue features the following articles:

President’s Message by Art Liberman – on the surge in development all along El Camino and the need for City planning staff and policy makers to have an overview of all this activity and to consider the consequences of all the additional traffic before gridlock arrives on the main arteries and the residential roads are besieged with cut through traffic.

A New Pocket Park: The Matadero Well Site by Doug Graham – on the newly landscaped area with two benches (one donated by the Henshel family) alongside the Matadero Well Site, the history the Matadero Well itself as source of water exploited by private water companies until 1953, and efforts in the last few years by several determined Barron Park residents to create this new pocket park.

Art in the Park – featured artist: Nancy Lewis of Kendall Ave

Immersion Spa: Korean Spa culture in the Bay Area by Markus Fromherz (Business Liaison) – a new business in the former Blockbuster store: a Korean-style spa with American influences. They are offering first-time Barron Park residents 25% off through end of October.

Business Beat by Bob Moss – an update on businesses and business vacancies along the Barron Park section of El Camino

BPA Newsletter Survey Results by Nancy Hamilton – on the results of the survey in last issue of the BPA Newsletter, asking members their thoughts about the importance and the content of the Newsletter and for their input on ideas or willingness to participate in the Newsletter staff.

The Barron Park Association

The Barron Park Association

Public Meeting for Jay Paul Project 395 Page Mill Road

Pipeline Replacement Work – starting soon

Restoring Community & Repairing Bonds

Should the BPA continue to be a Chartering Organization for the Boy Scouts of America?