Our Town: Around Town

QUESTIONABLE CAMPAIGNING? . . . At least one Palo Alto resident is "really offended" by the three phone calls she received Wednesday night from callers claiming to be Palo Alto firefighters urging her to vote against Measure M and for Measure O. Karen Harwell, a Crescent Park resident, said she received three separate phone calls "from people passing themselves off as Palo Alto firefighters with this incredible scare tactic that Palo Alto firefighters will not be able to deliver any kind of emergency service if Measure M passes." Harwell said her curiosity was aroused when one of the callers couldn't even pronounce Palo Alto correctly. She asked where he was calling from and his answer surprised her: he said he worked for a telecommunications company in San Diego. Callers said they were also representing the League of Women Voters. Tony Spitaleri, president of the Palo Alto Firefighters Union, said firefighters have agreed to do precinct walking for Measure O and will be doing some phone calling, although as far as he knew, the calling hadn't begun as of Wednesday night. But Spilateri was concerned about misrepresentation of his force. "If they are not a firefighter, they will say they are calling on behalf of the Palo Alto firefighters," he said.

PRIZE PARKING . . . Nobel laureates at Cal are treated to free parking privileges. Not so at Stanford. The Farm's Nobel Prize winners have to fight for parking spots along with lesser mortals. Stanford's President Gerhard Casper joked Wednesday that Stanford could not afford to waive the $310 annual parking fee, now that 19 faculty members and Hoover Institution fellows have won the prize.

ALMOST ROYAL VISIT . . . Familiar to the horsey set and royal watchers alike, Captain Mark Phillips, former husband of Britain's Princess Anne and current coach of the United States Olympic Equestrian Team, will be in the area this weekend to teach a clinic for local riders at the CTETA Horse Park on Sand Hill Road. On Saturday, Phillips will coach riders over stadium fences and on Sunday he'll give tips on cross-country. The public is invited to attend both days. For more information, call clinic organizer Karen Bertrand at 327-7303.

UPCOMING FORUMS . . . For those who would like to see the Palo Alto City Council candidates in action, mark the following dates and times on your calendars: On Tuesday, Oct. 21, candidates will appear at Lytton Gardens, 437 Webster St., at 7:30 p.m. for an election forum; on Wednesday, candidates will participate in a forum sponsored by the Palo Verde Neighborhood Association at Palo Verde elementary school, 3450 Louis Road, also beginning at 7:30 p.m. Also, the Greenmeadow Neighborhood Association will host a school board candidate forum on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at their neighborhood center, 303 Parkside Drive.

NAMES AND NOTES . . . Former Palo Alto City Manager Bill Zaner has been appointed by Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian to the Santa Clara County Charter Review Commission, which advises the Board of Supervisors. The charter also governs the powers and duties of elected and appointed officers.

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