Assistant City Manager

American Red Cross Month

Each March, we celebrate American Red Cross Month, recognizing the organization and its work to prevent and alleviate human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors. ​ At its meeting on March 13, 2018, Mayor Mordo issued a proclamation in honor of American Red Cross Month and the work they do both locally and globally. The Red Cross honors and celebrates the community members supporting their mission by donating funds, donating blood or volunteering. The Red Cross also offers classes in first aid, CPR, babysitting, water safety and more at their website at www.redcross.org/take-a-class. To learn how you can best prepare for emergencies, connect to Emergency Preparedness resources offered through the City at www.losaltosca.gov/emergencyprep.

Community Emergency Preparedness and City Council

A large group of Los Altos volunteers attended this week’s City Council meeting to show their dedication and enthusiasm for the City’s community emergency volunteer efforts. City Council took the first steps to introduce an Ordinance to reestablish the Los Altos Disaster Council, which had been repealed in 1987 with the adoption of the Los Altos Emergency Plan. City Council also received a report from the new part-time Community Emergency Preparedness (CEP) Coordinator.

Having an accredited Disaster Council will allow Los Altos to register the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and Amateur Radio Emergency Service volunteers as Disaster Service Workers (DSWs) to benefit from State of California Workers’ Compensation coverage and liability coverage. The Ordinance will establish the purpose, membership, and roles of the Disaster Council. If approved at the March 27 ^th Council meeting, the Disaster Council Ordinance will go into effect 30 days later.

The CEP Coordinator reported on progress made since the position was filled in November 2017, including the analysis of City procedures with respect to the Disaster Service Worker Program that resulted in the recommendation of the Disaster Council Ordinance, and increased communications to residents about emergency preparedness and training events. In the next few months, CEP plans include launching the Disaster Council (if reestablished by Ordinance), seeking approval for a project to improve Ham radio emergency communications capability across the City, and engaging the business community in emergency preparedness discussion and planning. For more information about the reestablishment of the Los Altos Disaster Council, click here.

In Los Altos, neighbors help neighbors with emergency preparedness and response through the Los Altos Block Action Team, Community Emergency Response Team, and Los Altos Amateur Radio Emergency Service. Get more information at losaltosca.gov/emergencyprep. 

Smoke-Free Los Altos

At its March 13, 2018 meeting, City Council introduced and moved forward with an Ordinance that expands the city’s smoke-free environments. The second reading of the Ordinance is tentatively scheduled for March 27, 2018. If the Ordinance is adopted, it will take effect 30-days after the second reading. 

The Ordinance expands the scope of an existing Ordinance which currently bans smoking in any public recreation areas, their respective parking lots and on the Civic Center campus. The new Ordinance prohibits smoking in nearly all enclosed public places and many unenclosed public places. Public places are areas, publicly or privately owned, that are accessible by the public, whether by payment of money or not and regardless of any age requirement. Additionally, smoking will be prohibited within twenty-five feet (25’) of all publicly accessible buildings as well as unenclosed areas such as parks, service areas, outdoor dining areas, at entryways and exits, and at public events. Smoking will also be prohibited Downtown except for areas in the ten (10) public parking plazas, provided those areas are twenty-five feet (25’) or more from any building entry or window.

The Ordinance includes all types of smoking products, including tobacco, e-cigarettes, vaporizers, and cannabis. The City will partner with Breathe California of the Bay Area to provide public outreach and education to community members.

Administrative Services

National Award Recognition for Financial Reporting

The City of Los Altos is pleased to announce it has received a national award from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Annual Reporting. Founded in 1906, the GFOA represents public finance officials throughout the United States and Canada with a mission to promote excellence in state and local government financial management. The GFOA established the Popular Annual Financial Reporting Awards Program (PAFR Program) in 1991 to encourage and assist state and local governments to extract information from their comprehensive annual financial report to produce high quality popular annual financial reports specifically designed to be readily accessible and easily understandable to the general public and other interested parties without a background in public finance. The PAFR Program also recognizes governments that are successful in achieving that goal.

The City of Los Altos produced its first Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR) in 2017 covering the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 2017. Only twelve municipal agencies in California received the PAFR Award in 2016. The total number of awardees for 2017 is unknown at this time, however, the City is pleased to join the few CA cities who have received this award since 1991. Los Altos’ PAFR was mailed to all Los Altos business and residential addresses in December 2017. An electronic copy is available online at losaltosca.gov/pafr. 

City Clerk

Commission Appointments

At its meeting on March 13, 2018, the City Council appointed the following individuals to serve on City Commissions: Stacy Banerjee and Barrie Levinson (Complete Streets); Frank Bishop and Michael Ma (Design Review); David Klein (Environmental); Christopher Roat (Financial); Stuart Eckmann (Parks and Recreation); and Alison Biggs and Anita Wu (Public Arts). In addition, the Council reappointed the following individuals: Nadim Maluf (Complete Streets); Don Weiden and Lei Yuan (Environmental); and Janet Harding, Tracie Murray and Kevin O’Reilly (Senior). Commissioners serve for terms of two or four years. The City would like to thank and congratulate each of the residents appointed to serve on the various City Commissions! 

Community Development

Parking Regulations Under Review

At its meeting on March 15, 2018, the Planning Commission continued discussions regarding parking regulations. The Commission conducted an in-depth review of the draft parking ordinance and developed several changes they want to see incorporated into the draft before they make a final recommendation to the City Council. The revised draft of the Ordinance is slated to come back to them at their meeting of April 17, 2018.

New Accessory Structure Regulations Approved by City Council

On March 13, 2018, City Council adopted an Ordinance that puts in place new site development standards for accessory structures. These new regulations provide for greater setbacks between property lines and accessory structures taller than six feet and they put these rules in one place within the zoning code. Prior to this, one needed to look at several different sections of the code to find out how tall and just where on a site an accessory structure could be located – this information will be easier to find now that it is in one place. The City Council also directed that some potential changes to the ordinance be explored in the near future, including limiting the maximum size of a detached accessory structure to 800 square feet and providing a 10’ setback from the rear property line.

Police

Tax Season Reminder

With tax season upon us, we’d like to remind residents to be aware of potential scams. It is important to note that the IRS, a law enforcement agency, or any reputable business will never:   

If you suspect you’ve been the target of such a scam, please contact us at (650) 947-2770. Otherwise, we urge you to be on the lookout and help spread the word to prevent others from falling victim to potential scammers.

Public Works

Recycled Water Visioning Workshop

This week, Public Works staff attended a recycled water visioning workshop hosted by the City of Palo Alto Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP) and the Santa Clara Valley Water District. The visioning workshop is part of the Northwest County Recycled Water Strategic Plan Project, a multi-agency planning-level collaboration meant to update the 1992 Recycled Water Master Plan. To date, this project has focused on completing water quality (i.e., salt reduction) improvement evaluations, understanding indirect potable reuse opportunities in Palo Alto, as well as completing the preliminary design for pipeline expansion into south Palo Alto. The next step in the project is to evaluate expansion opportunities within the RWQCP service area and neighboring communities, including Los Altos.

City GIS System Upgrade

The City’s existing Geographic Information System (GIS) is outdated and is no longer supported by the original vendor, necessitating the transition to a new software platform. A GIS is a framework for gathering, managing, and analyzing many types of data. It analyzes spatial location and organizes layers of information into visualizations using maps and 3D scenes. The City utilizes this technology to managing our sewer system and address databases for public noticing requirements to name a few. Through a multi-year effort, the City has recently upgraded to a new GIS platform that supports the City’s current business needs with higher accuracy and better integration with other software used by the City. A series of training sessions for staff were held over the last few weeks to provide basic training of the new GIS platform.

Parking Plaza 3 Parking Stall Improvements

This week, Public Works staff responded to a resident concern regarding a severely damaged Christy box, which houses communication connections, on the sidewalk at Parking Plaza 3. The box was damaged when driven over by an oversize delivery truck. City crews secured the site with protective measures the same day it was alerted to the issue, and worked with the utility company to have the box repaired the next day. To prevent such an incident from happening again, the City decided to maintain the drive aisle width by relocating the wheel stopper closer to the landscaping area. City crews replaced the existing concrete stoppers with a low-profile rubber wheel stoppers with yellow striping. A flexible rod will also be installed in front of the parking stall with signage to encourage drivers to pull forward. Public Works will also raise the sign indicating ‘No right turn for vehicles over 3 tons’ at the driveway entrance to make it more visible to the truck drivers.

Water Main Upgrade at Covington Road

Cal Water continues work to upgrade the existing 4” water main to a new 8” water main along Covington Road between Springer Road and Miramonte Avenue. The new 8” water main will be installed at the north side of Covington Road with open trench method. During construction, one travel lane will be closed and adequate traffic control measures will be provided by the contractor to ensure two-way traffic is maintained. The construction hours are limited between 9:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to minimize traffic impact to the neighborhood. The project is tentatively scheduled to be completed by the end of April 2018. Minor traffic delays are anticipated during the construction period. For more information or to report a concern, please contact Cal Water at (650) 917-0152 or visit calwater.com to submit your questions or concerns online.

GreenTown Los Altos Public Meeting

Public Works staff, along with staff from the Planning Division and Police Department, attended a public meeting organized by GreenTown Los Altos on March 14, 2018 at Los Altos Library. Staff presented information related to traffic, land use and safety in the northern Los Altos area along San Antonio Road and the El Camino Real corridor. This meeting was organized and moderated by GreenTown.

Eagle Scout Project

Congratulations to Eagle Scout candidate Aiden Fairman on the completion of his Eagle Scout project in Redwood Grove. Aiden and his fellow troop members installed a new split rail fence along the eastern edge of Adobe Creek. The approximately 120-foot-long fence will not only look great for years to come, it will also help in the creek bank restoration efforts in the park!

Recreation & Community Services

Congratulations to our Coordinators

Congratulations to City of Los Altos Recreation and Community Services Coordinators Candace Avina, Eddie Valdez and Lisa Klatt for attaining the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) certification. The CPRP certification is the national standard for all parks and recreation professionals who want to be at the forefront of their profession. Attaining the CPRP designation shows that you have met education and experience qualifications, and illustrates your commitment to the profession as well as your knowledge and understanding of key concepts within parks and recreation.

Senior Program Updates

Senior Spring Fling: Calling all seniors! A Senior Spring Fling is scheduled for Friday, April 6, 2018 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Garden House located in Shoup Park, 400 University Avenue. Join us for a casual evening to welcome spring while mixing and mingling with old and new friends. Enjoy heavy hors d'oeuvres, beverages and an “Oldies, but Goodies” DJ. Tickets cost $10 per person and must be purchased by Thursday, March 29. Tickets can be purchased online or at the Hillview Community Center front office. The activity code for this event is 440711-01. This event is sponsored by the Senior Commission and Club 55. For more information, call (650) 947-2790.

Tax Preparation Program: This activity will be taking place each Monday through the month of April from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the Hillview Community Center, Room 8.

Senior Tech Seminar: Want to learn a specific topic on the computer, smartphone or tablet? Come join us for our first ever Tech Seminar. Each meeting will cover a new useful topic about your device. Held every 3rd Wednesday of the month starting March 21 ^st until May 16 ^th from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in 

Room 8 at the Hillview Community Center. Cost for Members $1; Non-members $3. For more information about this program or to reserve your time with Gladys, please register at the Senior Center or call (650) 947-2797.

To register or for more information about Senior Programs, call (650) 947-2797.

Reminders

Spring Egg Hunt – Save the Date!

The City will host its annual Spring Egg Hunt on Saturday, March 31, 2018 on the soccer field adjacent to the Hillview Community Center, 97 Hillview Avenue. The fun kicks off with carnival games and 4H Bunny Project at 9:30 a.m. The Egg Hunt will begin promptly at 10:00 a.m. Participant age range is walking to 10 years old. Please be sure to bring your own baskets. Plan to stick around after the hunt to enjoy a fun show for the kids by Sean Mendelson beginning at 10:20 a.m. There will be lots of singing and dancing. This year’s event will be co-sponsored by Friends of the Library.

April LAYC Dance

The next LAYC Dance for Los Altos middle schoolers will be Friday, April 6th from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. This activity will be taking place at the Los Altos Youth Center, located at 1 N. San Antonio Road. Play ping pong or dance as the D.J. plays your favorite songs! 

Tiny Tots Preschool Program

The award-winning Los Altos Tiny Tots Preschool Program is now accepting deposits for the 2018/19 Terrific 3’s and Fabulous 4’s program. Preschool runs September through May and follows the Los Altos School District Calendar. For more information and to schedule a tour, visit our website or call Recreation Coordinator, Candace Avina at (650) 947-2890.