Publication Date: Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Editorial: A sunny example of civic engagement
Editorial: A sunny example of civic engagement
(March 16, 2005) 'Heritage Park' dedication Saturday marked culmination of hard-fought effort by neighbors -- who hope it sets the tone for Palo Alto's future
The more than 150 persons -- from senior citizens to toddlers -- who gathered Saturday morning to celebrate and dedicate Heritage Park south of downtown Palo Alto basked in sunshine and goodwill.
No one gloated over a hard-fought victory that took neighborhood leaders years of effort to change a narrow strip park into a full-size neighborhood park. Instead they spread thanks and praise to a variety of city officials, neighbors and donors who gave nearly $20,000 for park amenities such as benches and play structures.
"My dream is that this can become a kind of town square," one nearby resident said as people chatted and began drifting off to Saturday-afternoon commitments.
City Arborist Dave Dockter predicted that a California live oak due to be transplanted to a knoll in the park will in a hundred years be known as the most-climbed tree in Palo Alto, and recounted an early history when Stanford students used to race to the top of El Palo Alto, the city's living-landmark redwood tree, each year.
Others were discussing the possibility of occasional outdoor showings of films against a large blank wall of the historic Roth Building -- the original 1932 building that housed the Palo Alto Medical Clinic for nearly 70 years -- starting with Harold & Maude, with scenes shot in the neighborhood.
Some noted the park is a work in progress -- illustrated by the planting of two new trees by members of Canopy, Trees for Palo Alto.
The park also is a leading candidate to be the site of a 3-million-gallon underground reservoir to expand Palo Alto's emergency water supply, about which neighbors have mixed views. But those faded in the sunny Saturday morning, and some neighbors who fought hard for the park shrugged about the reservoir, noting its presence would be virtually unnoticeable once it was constructed.
More than one person choked up when talking about the reality of the park, and cited that reality as an example of what can be done when people get behind a worthy common purpose.
It is in fact a clear example of achievement in a time and community when such achievements have seemed hard to come by. As such, perhaps the hope of some -- that the park signify both the heritage of Palo Alto's past and become part of the city's heritage of how things are done in the future -- can become a reality also.
Feds finally take note of Enron's energy scam
Feds finally take note of Enron's energy scam
(March 16, 2005) Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ruling concludes that Enron's pricing practices -- affecting Palo Alto -- violated rate-setting approvals
The Enron scandal, as it has become known, still haunts Palo Alto in the form a legal claim that the city owes $48 million under energy contracts it signed. Palo Alto is negotiating with Enron, under a court order from the bankruptcy court handling the case.
In a separate proceeding, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, just issued a "clarification" ruling that concludes that energy contracts with Palo Alto and other public-power agencies were within FERC's domain.
It said that "Enron's profits under the terminated contracts fall within the scope of this proceeding," and that the termination payments were based on projected profits from long-term, wholesale power contracts signed "when Enron was in violation of conditions" of rate setting. (See related news story.)
Significantly, the commission noted that based on evidence in several related cases, "Enron potentially could be required to disgorge profits for all of its wholesale power sales in the Western Interconnect" between January and June 2003.
City officials are being cautiously optimistic about how this might affect the Enron lawsuit. Councilman Bern Beecham speculated that the ruling "may tend to invalidate contracts we had with them."
FERC's record of passivity during the rate-manipulation period, when it seemed obvious to many that Enron and other power brokers were secretly colluding to drive up prices, leaves city officials skeptical and cautious. But they are rightfully savoring a significant federal finding in a long process.
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