Candidate for
Council Member; City of Los Altos

I want Los Altos to grow and prosper while retaining the special village-like character of our downtown as well as the family-friendly nature of our community. Fiscal responsibility

I'll keep a tight rein on city budgets and expenditures to ensure that the city remains in the black. Making streets safer for pedestrians and bicyclists

I will make sure we have safe speed limits, crosswalks, crossing guards and bike lanes so that our community remains safe.

We have seen large increases in cross-town traffic, in part reflecting new developments and growth in surrounding communities. I want to find ways to minimize the negative impacts while encouraging more of those commuters to frequent our restaurants and retail shops throughout the city. Neighborhood Schools

I am a strong supporter of neighborhood schools. Great schools are important to Los Altos and addressing the school facilities issue is a community problem that needs the attention of both the Los Altos School Board and the City Council. I believe Hillview should be evaluated as a potential school site along with a range of other sites in Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Palo Alto, and unincorporated Santa Clara County.

In the past the City and the school district have come up with creative win-win facility solutions, such as the shared gyms at Blach and Egan. It is important for the City Council to work constructively with the school board to explore a range of possible alternatives which might use City property. Creating a senior-friendly community

A significant number of residents in our community are seniors. We need to make sure we provide the right mix of services, programs, and housing options to ensure that we remain a good place to live for all ages. Adequate parking in our downtown

The City Council has initiated development of a downtown parking management plan. Once we understand what can be done to better utilize our existing parking and where any parking shortfalls are located, we can then develop solutions. Downtown vibrancy

I will work with community organizations such as the Los Altos Chamber of Commerce, Los Altos Forward, and the Los Altos Village Association to identify ways to increase our downtown population during the day, nights and weekends. I'll continue to support new office construction outside the core of our downtown to increase foot traffic and lunch/dinner time restaurant business. As a city we need to be proactive about encouraging developers who share our values as well as enticing businesses that will be desirable to residents such as a greater variety of restaurants and retail shops. Creation of a shared, common vision for downtown

We need to understand what is working and what is not, and garner community input on some of the newly-constructed buildings in our downtown so that we can lay out a roadmap for growth and success. Better communications between the city and the community

I believe it is critical that we put in place a better system to let residents, property owners and other stakeholders know about issues that are being considered by the city (committees, commissions, council) as early on as possible. Getting early community input will help ensure that the problem is clearly understood and that the solutions developed are appropriate and fit with the community. This will also ensure that solutions which are developed reflect community needs and values, not strictly the best engineering solution. Other issues

Guess what? There will be issues that come up between now and the election as well as over the four-year term of a council member. Where do I stand on them? I will be open, thoughtful, gather information and listen to the input from the community so that I can advocate for the best decisions for Los Altos.

Los Altos Neighborhood Network articles

I have had the privilege over the past 7 years to be involved with the Los Altos Neighborhood Network, a community organization that publishes a monthly newsletter with unbiased, in-depth articles covering subjects of importance to Los Altans; these include schools, downtown development, and traffic. Operating for more than 10 years, this highly-respected non-profit has garnered credibility and influence throughout the community. A selection of articles that I have written can be viewed at http://www.jonbaer.org/lann.html