Publication Date: Wednesday, February 09, 2005
Letters
Letters
(February 09, 2005)
Examining 'Zero Waste'
Editor,
The Baylands open space vs. 19-acre Environmental Services Center (ESC) debate continues to divide the community. Fortunately, there is a sensible compromise that seems to address the substantial concerns of most parties.
Upon landfill closure in 2011, all our refuse would go to the Sunnyvale SMaRT station except we can continue to operate a small drop-off facility at the current site, reserving and grading the land for 6.2 acres today.
The city auditor's analysis shows that this is the most economical choice. This is a compelling choice for many reasons. We would save:
1) Most of the $400,000 EIR cost, a burden on ratepayers.
2) Up to $1.6 million/year operating costs. We have a financial obligation to our SMaRT partnership until 2021, a contract that is renewable until 2031.
3) Our options. If our partnership does not last after 2021 for any reason, our feasibility report tells us that the 6.2 acres is what we need to handle 100 percent of our waste stream in Palo Alto. We retain control over our recycling future by keeping that option open. We can evaluate the proposal to look at an eight-acre option as well.
4) Additional payroll. The 19-acre ESC calls for 43 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees for Palo Alto alone when we have an alternative of sharing the burden with partners.
5) Finally, we would save valuable land. The SMaRT partnership was initiated to prevent the need for every city to build its own facilities, ringing the bay. Part of the costs we pay to SMaRT compensates Sunnyvale for use of their land. In return, Palo Alto hosts regional facilities such as the airport, golf course, animal-services center and waste-water-treatment plant.
The key to true local control lies in our new commitment to Zero Waste goals, which aims to reduce the need to handle waste. With careful choices, Palo Alto can stay in control of our Zero Waste future and open space as our dual legacies.
Yoriko Kishimoto
Palo Alto City Council member
Hamilton Avenue
Palo Alto
Enlightening opinion
Editor,
Jeff Blum's "An e-mail blitz on police policies, practices" (Feb. 2) enlightened me. I'd hoped communicating my concerns to the Human Relations Commission (HRC) would demonstrate the value of community participation to those who feel that the local government totally disregards our twin human rights of freedom from degrading treatment and equality before the law.
Since the HRC meets only monthly, at a time which conflicts with my parenting duties, I've relied on e-mail. But then I read Mr. Blum's article and found myself stripped of humanity and reduced from a person to one of "these persistent e-mailers" -- i.e., a spammer.
So much for freedom from degrading treatment.
In contrast, Lynne Johnson is described as a "breath of fresh air" and "reacting in positive ways to problems." Johnson stated her department "didn't do anything wrong" in their investigation that left the public with a wrongful arrest, $75,000 settlement and an unsolved rape.
Rather than apologize to Jorge Hernandez (and the public), she suggested he was linked to the crime, offering no supporting evidence. Does Mr. Blum consider that a positive reaction? Should those feeling threatened by power that deceives, imprisons and then slanders instead of correcting mistakes be dismissed as just "a few unhappy residents" -- i.e., misfits?
From Mr. Blum's comments it seems those who feel that the local government totally disregards our human rights were correct and I was naive in believing the HRC offered an avenue to redress our grievances. I regret inconveniencing Mr. Blum with e-mail.
David Taylor
Ventura Avenue
Palo Alto
Jordan needs 'Teaming'
Editor,
The Palo Alto Unified School District has held a strategic vision to implement smaller communities of learning and flexible timing, also known as "Teaming," in its middle schools since 1988. Terman Middle School is fully Teamed, JLS is mostly Teamed and Jordan is partially Teamed.
Parents and staff have volunteered many hours over the past two years to evaluate and make a recommendation on the details of the implementation at the three middle schools. We thank those volunteers for their service to our community.
The Jordan Middle School PTA has held several public meetings at the school to discuss the concepts behind Teaming over the past two years. There have also been publications in the Jordan Journal and on the Jordan Web site to provide information as Jordan moves toward a Teaming model.
In March 2004, the Jordan PTA Executive Board approved a resolution, "the Jordan PTA supports extending the Teaming concept from 6th to the 7th and 8th grades as soon as it can be reasonably implemented."
Teaming allows teams of teachers to plan interdisciplinary instruction, allows for flexible instruction time, reduces students' sense of isolation and allows parents to meet with their student's team of teachers all at one time.
Electives will still be offered in the same numbers and will have virtually the same level of scheduling complexity as currently exists. Both Terman Middle School and JLS have successfully implemented some form of teaming.
We believe the opportunities that Teaming can bring should be available at Jordan Middle School.
Camilla Olson
President, Jordan PTA
Holly Ward and Susan McDonnell
Middle School Advisory Team
Aesthetic disaster
Editor,
California Avenue in Palo Alto has nice restaurants, cafes, markets and shops. I find it much friendlier than University Avenue. But aesthetically it is a disaster and the work of the Palo Alto Arts Commission (Weekly, Jan. 28) has made matters much worse.
If half of the commission's $60,000 budget had been spent on some colorful flowers for the sad little planter boxes which line the sidewalks, the result would have been dramatically better.
It is time for the City Council to zero out the budget of this organization and to find a warehouse somewhere for its "collection."
Last year the Menlo Park Arts Commission resigned en masse to protest a critical statement by a City Council member. Why does Menlo Park have all the luck?
David Lieberman
Kingsley Avenue
Palo Alto
Parcel tax times two
Editor,
The Palo Alto Board of Education should place two parcel-tax measures on the ballot.
The first measure should ask voters to extend the current $293 parcel tax. The second measure should ask voters to approve an additional parcel tax.
Each measure would require a separate two-thirds vote of approval, but the second measure would be adopted only if the first is also adopted.
The November 2004 measure bundled together the renewal of the current $293 tax with an additional tax, which may have led to the defeat of the November proposal. The board may have thought that voters who wanted to extend the $293 tax would vote for a single combined tax that included an additional amount that some voters opposed.
Instead, voters who were opposed to the additional amount voted against the combined tax that included the extension of the current $293 tax that they would have supported if there were a separate vote on the current tax.
The board intends to combine the two taxes in one measure again. If two measures appear on the next ballot and only the $293 extension passes, the board will have another opportunity to ask the voters to approve an additional tax in a future election.
If both measures fail because the voters don't want to approve the $293 extension when another tax is on the same ballot, the board will have another opportunity to ask the voters to approve the $293 extension without any other measure on the ballot.
Herb Borock
Colorado Avenue
Palo Alto
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