SCRL NEWS

In This Issue ...

Executive Director’s Message County Historic Survey: What’s new, what’s old Fear (for) the Tree? Preparing for an Emergency Working on Ground Rent Art All Around Santa Clara’s Stanford Community Plan What else is the board working on? Halloween! Annual Meeting - January 13, 2021

SCRL News is a quarterly publication for the Stanford Campus Residential Leaseholders ("SCRL") membership that includes the homeowners of over 850 homes on the Stanford campus, on land leased from Stanford University. SCRL is an independent, non-profit community organization.

From the Executive Director I’ve been thinking about silver linings lately. Our nuclear family is all under one roof, which many of you are aware takes some doing, once the “kids” get to be adults, used to living on their own. Read more>>

Is your house historic? The county thinks it might be. Santa Clara county’s historic survey of the San Juan Residential District got more complicated last summer when the county determined that the Conditions for Approval section of the 2000 General Use Plan (GUP) applies to all SCRL homes, not just to campus properties managed solely by the University. SCRL board member and architectural historian Grace Hinton, who serves on the historic survey’s Community Stakeholder Group, explains it all in this latest update. Read more>>

The perfect Stanford Tree? You might be surprised. If you are one of the many neighbors who have spent more time out walking in the last eight months, you’ve probably been paying a little more attention to the 20,000 trees on campus. And if you have, you’ve probably noticed a number of dead trees. My own daily inventory of dead and dying redwoods around the neighborhood and the emergency removal of a giant old pine tree in my own yard left me with more than a few questions about our trees. Here’s what I learned from the university’s arborist and Faculty Staff Housing. Holly Thompson. Read more>>

Is your emergency plan ready? The new SCRL emergency plan will focus on education and training for individual households, but neighborhoods are urged to think about creating a neighborhood plan. Here’s the latest on what SCRL is doing to help you get ready for the big one—or whatever else comes our way. Read more>>

SCRL board establishes working group to prepare for 2021 ground rent process How much do you really know about that ground rent you pay every month? Let’s start with a little True/False quiz:  1.Your ground rent covers vacation drive-by house checks by the Stanford police. 2. Your ground rent pays for additional security for athletic events on campus. 3. Your ground rent pays for maintaining the greenbelt. 4. About 60% of your ground rent goes to police and fire. 5. The ground rent schedule is determined yearly by the provost. For answers and more about the SCRL ground rent working group, Read more>>

What I love about our neighborhood: Front Yard Art Our SCRL public spaces are full of delights — the old footbridge and follies in Frenchman’s Park, the views from Lathrop Park, the hidden corners of the greenbelt, to name a few. But these days, rambles through the neighborhood might lead to the discovery of beauty right in our own front yards. Take a look. Read more>>

The county’s Stanford Community Plan is being revised. What does that mean for leaseholders? When SCRL leaseholders zoomed in to Santa Clara County’s first stakeholder meeting about the county’s planned revision of the Stanford University Community Plan, there were more questions than answers. Read more>>

Board continues work on taxes, water rates, and noise Along with its ongoing monitoring of Santa Clara county’s historic review process and new Stanford University Community Plan, the ground rent working group, and emergency preparedness, the board has continued its work on property tax issues, water rates, and leaf-blower noise mitigation. Read more>>

Halloween -- Better than Ever SCRL members rallied to make Halloween 2020 memorable. Sarah Bagwell organized drive-by decoration viewing and candy pickup; families drove through the neighborhood to enjoy the best - ever decorations and curbside treats. Here are pictures and a video of the festivities and fabulous decorations at the Bagwell house. 2020 Annual Meeting will be virtual and in 2021  The SCRL annual meeting, postponed last spring and again in October, has been rescheduled for January 13, 2021at 7:30 p.m. The meeting will be convened via Zoom; members will be sent a link for the meeting in early January.

In Our Next Issue... Annual Meeting Report Updates on County Historic Review and Community Plan Birding at Stanford – finally Anything else you’d like to hear about?   Send an email to Holly Thompson

Stanford Campus Residential Leaseholders 105 Littlefield Center, P.O. Box 18146 Stanford, CA 94309

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