A preview of Palo Alto government meetings for the week of Oct. 17.
CITY COUNCIL … The council plans to consider approving 200 Geng Road as a temporary location for Fire Station 3; provide direction about the parameters of an ordinance to strengthen retail protections around downtown and the South of Forest Area; and consider endorsing Santa Clara County’s Measure A. The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 17, in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 250 Hamilton Ave. Read the agenda here.
COUNCIL FINANCE COMMITTEE … The committee plans to consider re-appropriation requests for funds to be carried over from fiscal year 216 to fiscal year 2017; and consider a recommendation to adopt a carbon-neutral natural gas portfolio . The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 18, in the Council Conference Room at City Hall, 250 Hamilton Ave. Read the agenda here.
BOARD OF EDUCATION … The board will convene for a closed-session meeting at 8 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 17, at the district office to discuss a request from the teachers’ union to negotiate the impact of full-day kindergarten.
The board will hold a special study session on the 2017-18 budget from 8:30-10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 18, at the district office, 25 Churchill Ave. Read the agenda here.
In its regular evening meeting, the board will hear a report on the high schools’ SAT, ACT and AP results; discuss a proposed board policy on institutional review for student research; and discuss an authorization to bid renovations for a Palo Alto High School building, among other items. The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the district office.
Read the agenda here.
ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW BOARD … The board plans to consider 450 Bryant St., a request by Avenidas to renovate and expand its facility; and consider the appeal of a previously approved mixed-use project at 429 University Ave. The meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20, in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 250 Hamilton Ave.
PUBLIC ART COMMISSION … The commission plans to hear a presentation from Aaron Lee Benson about his artwork and the site-specific piece planned for King Plaza; to allocate funds for temporary installation of “Truth Booth”; and approve matching funds of up to $25,000 to support the National Endowment for the Arts grant pertaining to the Code:ART initiative. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20, in the Community Meeting Room at City Hall, 250 Hamilton Ave. Read the agenda here.
BOARD POLICY REVIEW COMMITTEE … The Board of Education’s policy review committee will discuss a proposed research policy. The meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 21, at the district office, Room A, 25 Churchill Ave. Read the agenda here.
Please reconsider moving Fire Station 3 temporarily to the tennis courts by Rinconada and NOT to Geng Road. It is too far for our first responders to travel to our district in emergencies. With all of the money this town spends on other things I would think that our safety is a first priority. Housing the station temporarily to the tennis courts makes a lot more sense than “daytime at Station 1 and nighttime at Geng Road”. Seconds count in an emergency!! And money should not be the driving factor in this decision.
Seconds do count in responding to fire and medical emergencies. That’s why the City is currently investigating the Deputy Fire Chief’s use of a PAFD truck and crew to assess fire lanes in her Mountain View community. The fire department doesn’t want the public to know this goes on, so they are keeping a tight lid on it. There needs to be more accountability of the Fire Department and it’s emergency vehicles. Of course the Fire Department only rolls out issues of response times when it threatens salaries and perks. At any other time, the Fire Department has it’s toys and does what it likes with them.