Letters Letters (October 26, 2005)

Backing the chief

Editor,

No one should be subject to personal attacks in a public forum such as those endured by our police chief, Lynne Johnson. A City Council candidate may have a legal right of free speech, but the community has the right -- even the responsibility -- to make plain its disgust with unwarranted personal attacks.

Chief Johnson has a tough job. Who would want to stand in her shoes? Yet she serves our community competently and calmly, responding to the harsh criticism of a few with measured remarks and attention to the requirements of her job.

Thank you, Chief Johnson, for your leadership and example.

Our assistant city manager, Emily Harrison, has also been attacked by the same candidate. On various occasions over several years I have worked closely with Emily Harrison. She is a problem-solver, committed to making city government work and capitalizing on opportunities as they arise.

She believes in building partnerships with both public and non-profit agencies. She expresses empathy and remarkable good cheer in a thankless position.

Ignorant and unconscionable attacks serve one good purpose if they prompt all of us who know Lynne Johnson and Emily Harrison to pause and thank them for their service to the city we all care about.
Carolyn Tucher
Manuela Way
Palo Alto

Disturbing parallel

Editor,

At the Palo Alto Unified School District school board candidate forum held at Terman last Wednesday night (Oct. 19), the four candidates were asked what they would say to a Gunn student about the glaring discrepancies between the Paly and Gunn athletic facilities.

Three of the candidates agreed that something needed to be done to bring Gunn up to par with what Paly now has (as a result of extremely generous contributions from Paly parents).

The fourth candidate replied that, "clothes don't make the man, dresses don't make the woman and facilities don't make the team."

The remark reminded me of Gerald Ford's response to New York City as it flirted with bankruptcy in 1975, which was memorialized by the tabloid headline: "Ford to New York: Drop Dead."

The parallel here is disturbing, if not shocking.
Dave Charleson
Chimalus Drive
Palo Alto

Foothills and voting

Editor,

I've been a resident and homeowner of Palo Alto for years less than many -- 35 -- but I remember the "let's open Foothills Park to everyone" paean from the 1970s.

One of the arguments then was, I believe, elitism espoused by Wallace Stegner, among others. It was baloney then and still is. Now we're told the ban "smacks of racism" (Commissioner Steiner). That is intolerable and insulting.

I'd been looking for differentiation among council candidates and believe I've found it.
Larry Coy
Stelling Drive
Palo Alto

Not about color

Editor,

No, it's not time to open up Foothills Park. Wealthy whites from Atherton and Los Altos can't get into the park, while Councilwoman LaDoris Cordell and my African-American neighbors can.

It's not just East Palo Altans who are excluded. So why does Commissioner Judith Steiner say the ban on non-Palo Altans "smacks of racism"? Color has nothing to do with it.

All of our other parks are open to everyone. If there's elitism in Palo Alto, it's because of home prices, not because of one park.

Cordell says, "The perception sometimes is as important as the reality." That's true, so let's not reinforce false perceptions and act on them as if they're true. Let's instead root out racism where it does exist and not use it as an excuse to open up our only nature preserve.
Pat Marriott
Dennis Drive
Palo Alto

Applause from contractor

Editor,

As a professional remodeling contractor, I want to thank Carol Blitzer for the articles in the Palo Alto Weekly's 2005 Fall Real Estate issue.

My company has been in business locally for 20 years. As Erik Sundquist, a contractor quoted in one article, said: "There are always things that don't go the way you planned."

Remodeling is not an entirely predictable process and we have found that when it comes to setting expectations, there are no substitutes for detailed drawings, specifications and contract documents.

Similarly, when unpredictable surprises occur, there is no substitute for detailed, written change orders. Comprehensive change orders describe not only the scope of the change, but how much it will cost and how it will affect the schedule.

The recommendation to contact professional organizations such as NARI (the National Association of the Remodeling Industry) is good. As a longtime member of NARI, I can attest to the high level of professionalism and ethical business practices our members strive to maintain.

The level of professionalism in our industry has increased dramatically in recent years.

I would like to add that working with a handyman for a small "low-risk" project might work out sometimes, but for any project valued at over $500 a contractor's license in required by law.

While a self-employed handyman is not required to have worker's compensation or liability insurance, just about any construction project I can think of has inherent risks that would make these insurances (along with written contracts) essential.
Iris Harrell, Harrell Remodeling, Inc.
Old Middlefield Way
Mountain View

Garden outrage

Editor,

I am ashamed of my city's blatant abuse of power.

The compost dumpster at the Main Community Garden is used by the city's own employees even though it is posted "for community garden use only." At 4 p.m. every Friday one of the city's garden contractors dumps his green waste in the community garden dumpster. Other abuses of our dumpster frequently occur.

How can the city try to charge us gardeners for the dumpster that its own employees use?

The charges for tree-trimming costs are ridiculous. Our contractors with the city clearly state that the areas outside the community garden fence are city property and not a part of the community garden.

So how can the city possibly charge the gardeners for trimming of trees not even in the garden?

Thirdly, if the city truly wanted to cut its hard costs, why didn't Greg Betts come to the gardeners to brainstorm ideas to decrease water and dumpster usage?

In one week we have brainstormed several solutions. The final atrocity is that the city is trying to justify price gouging the gardeners with a "private use of land" farce, when in reality a community garden is a public park.

Artists (painters and photographers), dog walkers, runners, nature classes and people just interested in the peaceful sounds of a garden in the middle of a city can come to relax.

Take back this outrageous increase.
Rita Morgin
Channing Avenue
Palo Alto

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