A sports utility vehicle crashed into a historic house in downtown Palo Alto Friday afternoon in an apparent hit-and-run collision. No one was hurt.
The vehicle, a Nissan Murano, was heading west on Forest Avenue at about noon when another vehicle, which was going south on Cowper Street, crashed into it, said Imelda Landeverde, the Nissan’s driver.
The Nissan, which was also occupied by Landeverde’s husband and 10-month-old daughter, then ran over the curb, cut through the front lawn and hit The Downing House at 706 Cowper St., in the University South neighborhood.
Landeverde said the other vehicle apparently ran a stop sign before hitting her car. The driver of that car did not stop after the collision, she said.
All three occupants were able to exit the vehicle without assistance.
“My first thought was just to make sure my daughter is alright,” Landeverde said.
Fire Department officials were inspecting The Downing House for damage Friday afternoon.
Police at the scene declined to answer questions.
Historic must be the most overused word in Palo Alto. Heritage possibly, historic questionable!
Please post a description of the hit-and-run vehicle and/or driver. They must have noticeable damage (at least for now).
Is Karen Holman okay? If she heard that a “historic” home was damaged (wait if any home in Palo Alto is damaged, since everything in Palo Alto is historic–people like Holman do not live in places that are not historic), she may have fainted. Someone should go check on her.
To the last poster re: Karen Holman and historic Palo Alto:
“Zip it” and make a New Year’s resolution to change your picky and sarcastic attitude. The “Downing House” is indeed one of Palo Alto’s most historic structures – Dr. Downing built that beautiful Victorian when Palo Alto was just coming to life. He also built the “Downing Block” downtown – the gracious building on Hamilton at (I think) Emerson. Palo Alto has enough problems and doesn’t need one like you with an attitude problem. This was an accident, NOT a political issue ferpetesake.
that building indeed is not just another buiklding. those kind of houses are very old. people used to rent rooms in these old houses. you dont see many buildings from 1890’s. therec was almost nothing around when those were built.
“”Zip it” and make a New Year’s resolution to change your picky and sarcastic attitude.”
Bob–not familiar with the idea of people expressing personal opinions that may be sarcsatic and that do not agree with your beliefs??? Maybe you need to make the New Year’s resolution instead. And zip yourself up as well, you may get arrested.
Does this qualify as a “Hate Crime”?
Inquiring minds want to know.
According to the Palo Alto Weekly, “The vehicle, a Nissan Murano, was heading west on Forest Avenue at about noon when another vehicle, which was going south on Cowper Street, crashed into it, said Imelda Landeverde, the Nissan’s driver.
If that were true, then there would be damage to the passenger side of the Nissan Murano. However, the picture provided by the PAW demonstrates that there is no such damage. I can only conclude that the owner of the Murano is a liar who has duped the Palo Alto Weekly into believing Imelda Landeverde’s bogus story.
Why would the Palo Alto Weekly print information that cannot be proved? Obviously, Mrs. Landeverde has some pull with the Palo Alto Weekly and the local authorities.
Where is the damage to the vehicle as Mrs. Landeverde claims?
Not a week ago a driver ran a red light at Channing and Waverley, crashing into another car. Downtown is a dangerous place to be midday!
When drivers hunt for free University South parking they stop paying attention to driving laws and proper etiquette. This neighborhood is indeed a very dangerous place to drive.
I also agree with Mr. Professorville. Why is there seemingly no damage to the passenger side of the Nissan Murano? Why no description of the hit and run car?
I don’t know about the veracity of Ms. Landeverde’s statement or the accuracy of information in the Weekly, but when PAPD first arrived on the scene, an officer reported that the other vehicle fled NORTH on Cowper. PAPD located the car north of University Avenue a short time later. That may be why the description of the other vehicle wasn’t included in the story.
I am glad nobody was hurt, but I hope that the Weekly follows up on this story. At one point, one of the PAPD officers ran a license check on an individual who was born in 1900, and their license was valid until 2013!
The Nissan Murano costs between $30 and $42,000. This comes from a review of that oversized hulk:
Test drivers note that the Murano has particularly bad rearward visibility compared with other crossover SUVs.
People need to stop competing on who has the biggest ugliest vehicle.
The stop signing is haphazard near downtown, with some intersections being 4-way stops, others 2-way stops. I drive those streets every day, so have observed many drivers who somehow believe they are at a 4-way when in fact traffic on the cross street does not stop. A good and careful driver always takes into account the possibility that other drivers are ignorant or unobservant and prepares accordingly. It is the only way to avoid accidents around here. The Murano driver must not have been paying much attention or must be unfamiliar with our streets.
Re: Posted by SUVs are ugly, a resident of the Crescent Park neighborhood, on Dec 31, 2011 at 12:29 pm
It’s their money so they buy the vehicle of their choice. When you start buying everyone vehicles with your money then you can designate what you will purchase for them. In the meantime, it’s not your call on what they should or shouldn’t drive.
Undented is absolutely right about driving in the downtown area. Hawthorne is a particularly bad street, as cars run through all of the stop signs, assuming the cross traffic stops. There are things that could be done, such as speed bumps or some other change in road surface right before the sign, as the signs themselves aren’t enough
any longer.
This is a joke, right? Not newsworthy, and snitches get stitches. & Hawthorne is fine.