HomeMy Public PortalAbout20170424plCCCity of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 12:20 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:herb <herb_borock@hotmail.com>
Sent:Sunday, April 09, 2017 3:27 PM
To:Council, City; Clerk, City
Subject:April 11, 2017, Council Meeting, Closed Session Item #2: 380 Hamilton Avenue
Herb Borock
P. O. Box 632
Palo Alto, CA 94302
April 9, 2017
Palo Alto City Council
250 Hamilton Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94301
APRIL 11, 2017, CITY COUNCIL MEETING, CLOSED SESSION, AGENDA ITEM #2
380 HAMILTON AVENUE
Dear City Council:
Over a year ago when the City Council met in Closed Session on the subject
of this agenda item, I sent the Council a letter with my suggestions about
the potential purchase of the Hamilton Avenue Post Office at 380 Hamilton
Avenue.
Due to the passage of time and the election of three new Council Members,
I want to send you that letter again.
My February 8, 2016, letter appears in the public letters included as part
of the February 22, 2016, agenda packet on PDF pages 2 and 3 at
http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/51086
Sincerely,
Herb Borock
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:19 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Elizabeth Wong <elizabethwong2009@gmail.com>
Sent:Friday, April 07, 2017 10:47 AM
To:Council, City
Cc:Eggleston, Brad; Boyd, Holly; Yu, Gloria; Brad Ehikian (PPM); Keene, James; Shikada, Ed;
Gitelman, Hillary; French, Amy; Lait, Jonathan; Stump, Molly
Subject:Parking Garage D - Council Hearing Tuesday April 11, 2017
Attachments:PkgD ltr 04072017.pdf
Dear Mayor Scharff,
Please see attached letter regarding proposed parking Garage D.
Thank you.
Elizabeth Wong
650 814 3051
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 4:42 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Chop Keenan <chopkeenan@yahoo.com>
Sent:Monday, April 10, 2017 3:04 PM
To:Council, City
Cc:Keene, James; Gitelman, Hillary; Mello, Joshuah; John R. Shenk; Kleinberg, Judy; Roxy
Rapp; Russ Cohen; Jon Goldman; Brad Ehikian
Subject:LOT D
dear city council, thanks for taking up the Lot D parking
structure. i would encourage maximizing the parking (4 levels plus
roof, and two below grade) and no retail. there are very few
surface lots left large enough to build parking structures. lot G, lot
O, lot P, and urban lane are the most efficient remaining
sites. mechanical is most appropriate for urban lane. if we want
to solve for neighborhood and sleeper parking, we need more
supply. Lot D is a good start. you might ask staff to encourage
the parking committee and staff collaboration for more district
financed lots. Lot D is the first structure to be built with city general
funds (and in-lieu fees). white and bright interiors, no
bathrooms. thanks for considering these thoughts. chop
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 4:07 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Amie Ashton <aashton@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 2:49 PM
To:Council, City
Subject:Fwd: Climate Action: The Road to 80 X 30
Dear Honorable City Council,
Thank you for all your work - democracy is not a spectator (or an easy) sport. I just have to say that first of all.
I wanted to be a voice for the environment and area residents and speak out against a new, expensive, unnecessary parking garage downtown. We need to fix our jobs/housing imbalance and get businesses to
participate in a TDM/TMA program, not put an ineffective band-aid on the problem - a band-aid that will result
in a lower quality of life for area residents.
Sustainability I have been thinking a lot about why I am against a new garage and what to write. Then, I received the
following email in my inbox. One of the main goal's of the city's Sustainability and Climate Action Plan is to
reduce AUTO TRIPS. The main environmental impact of a parking garage downtown is the air pollution and
GHG emissions from those exact same garage-induced auto trips that we state that we should be reducing.
Three of the main goals of the Mobility section are to:
T-FAC-1. Expand bicycle infrastructure
T-FAC-2. Expand transit options
T-FAC-3. Grow ridesharing services and mobility apps
We should use the $25 million that this garage will cost to fund those strategies, as well as the TDM/TMA
program. Imagine the difference we could make. If Google can reduce their vehicle trips by 40% and Stanford can add over 1 million square feet since 2001 with no new trips, surely downtown businesses can get creative
and participate in a TDM/TMP program and we can nix this parking garage idea.
As a downtown resident, I estimate I spend approximately $1,500 a month at local businesses downtown and at
the Town and Country Shopping Center - and I can count on one had the number of times I have driven to those
places in the last 10 years I have lived here. We need more small unit, high-density housing downtown for folks like me if we want to maintain our vibrant downtown. I don't want to cater to office tenants that have on-site
cafeterias and amenities and do not support local businesses.
Jobs/Housing Imbalance
As a downtown resident, I estimate I spend approximately $1,500 a month at local businesses downtown and at
the Town and Country Shopping Center - and I can count on one had the number of times I have driven to those places in the last 10 years I have lived here. We need more small unit, high-density housing downtown for folks
like me if we want to maintain our vibrant downtown. I don't want to cater to office tenants that have on-site
cafeterias and amenities and do not support local businesses.
We do not need a costly parking garage at exactly a time when we should be reducing auto trips! I urge you to
please consider the environment and the long-term health of downtown retail in your decision.
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 12:17 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:slevy@ccsce.com
Sent:Friday, April 07, 2017 10:35 PM
To:Council, City
Subject:Paid and other parking solutions
For the near and medium term parking in our downtown area remains a challenge to solve.
I support the paid parking proposal but also support additional garage space (thank you for your Cal Ave decision), the
use of technology to help drivers find spaces and expanding non solo driving options to access downtown.
I did not see Burlingame on the list of cities with paid parking. Our experience is that it helps and downtown seems very
well used. Larchmont Avenue in Los Angeles combines paid parking with an RPP program (I believe Berkeley does also)
and it seems to help not hurt businesses in the area.
The idea that free parking is needed to support retail makes no sense to me in Palo Alto. Downtown was pretty dead for
almost 25 years with free parking and T&C likewise was pretty dead until the new ownership and renovation. If you have
great things to do, most people will pay a small amount to have better access. We have paid parking at airports, sports
events and lots of other venues with much higher charges and people pay to have easier access.
And "free" parking is not really free to you unless your time spent looking for "free" parking does not mean anything to
you. And it is certainly not free to all the people caught in congestion while drivers try to find a free spot.
Change is always hard and there are details to work out but the paid parking proposal is part of making downtown more
accessible.
Thanks to council, staff and the consultant for bringing this forward.
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 12:17 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:slevy@ccsce.com
Sent:Monday, April 10, 2017 12:24 AM
To:Council, City
Subject:Paid parking downtown
I think the parking meter proposal, combined with easy pay technology and technology to match drivers and spaces in
garages or on street, has two large benefits.
One, it will help residents, visitors AND downtown businesses by making it easier for customers to come. It wiil reduce
or eliminate the "I don't go downtown because parking is too hard". We all have experience with paying a bit more for
certainty and convenience and the parking meter fees are small in comparison to most paid parking such as at airports
where the expensive lots are chosen by many drivers.
Parking is never free when time costs are taken into account though ininderstand seeing the meters will be a change and
change is often hard.
Two, meters can provide funding for the TMA and alternatives such as Caltrain passes or Lyft subsidies. We seem to be
stuck or in slow motion in moving forward re TMA funding and development of options to driving.
The issue of helping low wage/shift workers is somewhat separate but, again, funding TMA options for these workers on
a broad scale can be a benefit of the meters.
I hope the discussion Tuesday can stay focused on the benefits and issues related to embarking on the return of paid
meter parking and the experience in cities where it exists.
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 10:04 AM
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Carnahan, David
From:mwg1378@gmail.com on behalf of Mike Greenfield <mike@mikegreenfield.com>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 6:40 AM
To:Council, City
Subject:paid parking downtown
Dear Palo Alto City Council-
As a resident of downtown Palo Alto who also ran a business based downtown, I have several thoughts on parking policy. Thanks for reading:
1) Please don't be afraid of generating revenue. Parking in downtown Palo Alto is in high demand, but it's (in
almost all cases) extremely cheap. If you charge a lot for the most expensive spots, you can generate a lot of
money for other city programs, whether they're related to transportation, infrastructure, or something else.
I hope you'll think at least a little bit like a business and try to grow revenues, and then separately give discounts
to disabled or poorer people where needed. $3+/hour seems completely reasonable to me.
2) Please don't limit the length of time people can park. I've had a number of long meetings -- board meetings, job interviews, people meeting for a half day session either at an office or HanaHaus -- where visiting
participants had no idea where to park (and I wasn't able to offer much help). For those sorts of meetings,
drivers would have absolutely no issue paying $3-4/hour, but they certainly don't want to be told they need to
walk over to City Hall to purchase a day long permit (or interrupt an interview/board meeting to change zones!).
Please make it easy for them to park for longer!
I recently drove to Redwood City and saw an area where virtually every parking spot was metered. Almost all
were being used -- so the city was generating revenue -- but because people have to pay, there was more slack
and I was able to find a parking spot reasonably quickly.
Thank you
-Mike Greenfield
Kipling Street (and former founder of a business that was on Florence Street)
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 10:04 AM
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Carnahan, David
From:Elaine Uang <elaine.uang@gmail.com>
Sent:Monday, April 10, 2017 11:52 PM
To:Council, City
Subject:Downtown Paid Parking Study
Dear Mayor Scharff, Vice Mayor Kniss and Council Members,
Thank you for reviewing the Downtown Paid Parking study. I am writing to you tonight to express my personal views on this topic. The council has wisely and thoughtfully considered a three legged stool of parking policy
over the last few years. Paid Parking for the downtown core is important for several reasons:
Charging for parking is one of the best parking management tools available: it frees up spaces more
frequently and makes better use of scarce parking resources. The first parking meter was installed in
1935 by a shop owner in Oklahoma precisely because he needed to turn over prime parking spaces to be more convenient for his customers. Redwood City, Burlingame, San Mateo, Berkeley, Santa Monica,
Cambridge, MA and many other small cities with thriving downtowns have been charging for parking to
free up parking spaces more frequently and induce less parking demand.
We are losing a major source of yearly revenue by not charging for parking - the consultant report
indicates a paid parking program can immediately be revenue positive. This important revenue should be used to provide a sustained, continuous source of funding for the Transportation Management
Association. The TMA is woefully underfunded now, and the TMA is critical to to reduce future
parking demand, by helping downtown employers provide better transportation options for their
employees.
Sustainable Transportation is the main goal of the future Comprehensive Plan’s Transportation Element, and key to achieving our S/CAP goal of reducing GHG emissions 80% by 2030. Effective parking
management through pricing of parking spaces, is a key lever to reduce future parking needs (and car
trips and congestion and excess GHG).
I would like to urge you to approve paid parking on downtown street parking spaces, lots and garages, but with
several amendments/additions to the staff proposal and consultant report:
1. Regarding the 3 tiers of parking pricing, please use price as the sole differentiator between tiers and do not limit total time. For example, Tier 1 could be $3.50, Tier 2 $2.50 and Tier 3 $1.50/hr, but
time limits should be open ended. Parking studies for comparable cities like San Mateo and Redwood
City show that the average visit is about 1.75 hours, and usually never more than 5 hours. A 2 or 3 hour
parking limit may be problematic for some people like my clients or collaborators who come to downtown PA once or twice a month for 4+ hours at a time. A majority of the spaces will not be used
for more than 2-3 hours, but we should have some flexibility for those who need it. Our paid parking
program should not induce car trips between spaces or garages because we have artificially set time
limits for each space.
2. Please develop daily, weekly, and monthly garage/lot parking permits NOT yearly permits. The existing garages are mismanaged and underutilized in part because yearly permits are only administered
and issued once each year. If someone leaves a job 3 months after getting a yearly garage permit, the
city doesn’t know until the next application cycle, 7-8 months later. The yearly permit option also does
not meet most people’s parking needs, particularly project based consultants, short term contractors or
seasonal workers. Having greater time flexibility for parking permits helps people buy only what they
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 10:04 AM
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need, and frees up precious parking resources more frequently. These daily/weekly/monthly permits
must also be EASY to obtain at each garage or surface lot. Going to City Hall to apply should not be an
option.
3. Please develop affordable discounted permits or dedicated spaces for our retail, hospitality, and service businesses. The RPP has disproportionately impacted workers at retail/hospitality/service and
even service professional (ie medical/dental) businesses, whose staff frequently use the free on-street
parking spaces. Current transit options and TMA benefits are not yet be good enough for most of them
to shift to non-car transport. I personally love having so much variety in small professional businesses and the convenience of so many shops, cafes, restaurants nearby. Our parking programs should support
both the needs of customer/visitors, and the needs of all types of workers. The paid parking program
needs to include strong, sustained, and consistent outreach to these businesses regarding parking options
and provide either reduced price weekly/monthly parking permit or even dedicated parking (like the top
floor of less utilized garages - Bryant or Cowper/Webster) for the convenience of these workers.
4. To prevent neighborhood spillover parking, please direct staff to coordinate future RPP permit prices and terms so that paid parking prices/terms in the downtown core are more convenient and
desirable than the RPP yearly permit. Right now a yearly RPP permit is the same as a yearly garage
permit, which is quite low - only about $2/day. If garage permit rates go up, the future yearly price of an
RPP permit should be higher than a comparable yearly garage permit. Short and medium term parking in the downtown core also needs to be more convenient and flexible than neighborhood options to prevent
neighborhood musical parking every two hours.
Thank you for your attention to this.
Sincerely,
Elaine Uang Kipling Street
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 10:04 AM
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Carnahan, David
From:Sheri Moody <sherimoody@hotmail.com>
Sent:Monday, April 10, 2017 8:27 PM
To:Council, City
Subject:Killing the Golden Goose
Dear Council members:
The paid parking in downtown Palo Alto is a terrible idea! Instead of shopping and dining downtown, it will be more
convenient to go to California Avenue or the Stanford Shopping Center. Maybe tourists will be willing to pay the toll, but
locals have too many other choices. It's not really the money as much as the bother of feeding the meter and checking
to make sure it doesn't run out. As a long time resident of Palo Alto, I urge you to vote against this stupid idea.
Thanks,
Sheri Moody
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 12:44 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Sandra Slater <sandra@sandraslater.com>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 11:38 AM
To:Council, City
Subject:Downtown Parking
Dear Mayor Scharff, Vice Mayor Kniss and Council Members,
I would like the opportunity today to express my personal support of Downtown Parking study which delineates the need for paid parking in the Downtown Core. This is crucial as the City has determined that we must
provide both carrots and sticks to alleviate congestion, green house gas reduction (GHG) and address the
livability of the City. This is our opportunity to show our residents, employers and employees that we’re
serious about solutions.
Many municipalities have proven that paid parking (sticks), coupled with supply management does not
negatively impact businesses and reduces the need for circling around in search of a parking space (which not
only is a big time-waster, but also increases our GHG emissions).
We’ll need to study how to make the payment tiers equitable for low-wage employees by making permits flexible (allowing for daily, weekly monthly options). We don’t want to penalize those who must depend on
cars to get them to work, daycare and to to 2nd jobs. The revenue from the parking fees can fund the TMA
(which is currently woefully underfunded). Funding the TMA to develop robust options for low-wage service
workers, residents and employees of all stripes to get to work using alternative transit will benefit us all by
reducing congestion and GHGs in addition to allowing workers to sleep, read or use their time more productively rather than sitting still in traffic.
Pricing should reflect what we want people to do (use public transit) by making parking pay for Caltrain passes,
Lyft credits, ZipCar passes etc. available to allow flexibility for those who need it.
I’m also not a proponent of additional parking garages in the Downtown core. If we allow the TMA to work
effectively by providing adequate alternatives to automobiles, build more housing units near transit and watch
as autonomous vehicles become a reality, we will have wasted tens of millions of dollars that could be spent on
carrots. At the very least, we should design these expensive parking structures to be repurposed into productive
spaces.
Thank you for your consideration of the above and for your service to our wonderful community.
Sincerely,
Sandra Slater
Sandra Slater
c. 650.520.6664
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:17 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Penny Ellson <pellson@pacbell.net>
Sent:Thursday, April 06, 2017 9:41 PM
To:Council, City
Subject:Approval of RM# Letter to State Elected Officials
Good letter. Please approve it.
Thank you.
Penny Ellson
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 7:41 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:John Kelley <jkelley@399innovation.com>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 6:12 PM
To:Council, City
Subject:April 11, 2017, Special Meeting, Action Items 10-11 regarding Parking
Attachments:PA-PACC-letter to CPA re parking 2017-04-11.pdf
Via Email: city.council@cityofpaloalto.org
Honorable Gregory Scharff, Mayor
Honorable Liz Kniss, Vice Mayor
Honorable City Council Members
City of Palo Alto
250 Hamilton Avenue
Palo Alto CA 94301
Re: April 11, 2017, Special Meeting, Action Items 10‐11 regarding Parking
Dear Mayor Scharff, Vice Mayor Kniss, and City Council Members,
Please see the attached letter.
Respectfully submitted,
John Kelley
John Kelley 555 Bryant St., No. 714 Palo Alto, CA 94301 jkelley@399innovation.com (650) 444-2237 April 11, 2017 Via Email: city.council@cityofpaloalto.org Honorable Gregory Scharff, Mayor Honorable Liz Kniss, Vice Mayor Honorable City Council Members City of Palo Alto 250 Hamilton Avenue Palo Alto CA 94301
Re: April 11, 2017, Special Meeting, Action Items 10-11 regarding Parking
Dear Mayor Scharff, Vice Mayor Kniss, and City Council Members,
Due to prior personal commitments, I will not be able to attend tonight’s meeting, but I would like to offer a few thoughts on Action Items 10-11 regarding parking.1
In general, I support both the goals for the City of Palo Alto Downtown Parking Management Study articulated at p. 4 of the second staff report (ID # 7155)2 and the “replacement of the “color zone” time restriction system with paid parking on street using a combination of parking meters, pay stations, and mobile pay options.” Ibid. Taking such actions would be, however, only a first step towards a comprehensive parking solution for Palo Alto.
The recommendations of City Staff concerning parking could be considerably strengthened by assessing parking issues from a broader perspective and by asking the City Staff to take additional specific actions before the City Council revisits these issues later this year, as follows:
1. Embracing paid parking downtown points Palo Alto in the right policy direction, but it would be only a modest advance, because the current proposal is geographically limited and poorly integrated with residential parking programs. We can do far better if we understand how substantially parking policies affect us all. As The Economist observed last week, in “Aparkalypse now, The perilous politics of parking,”
Flooding cities with parking works, in that finding a space becomes easier. But the overall cost is enormous. Because parking is so plentiful, it is free, and because it
1 See http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/56807,
http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/56784,
http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/56789.
2 See http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/56789 at p. 4: “(1) strengthening downtown as a
vibrant commercial district where the available parking supply is better managed, such that (2) customers can
have improved access to retail and services, (3) employees are better able to [use] long-term parking in area
garages and lots if they need it, and (4) pricing better reflects the true cost of parking, encouraging employees
and other long-term parkers to use alternatives to the single-occupant vehicles wherever possible.”
2
is free, people invariably overuse it. One study of Washington, DC, found that the availability of free parking is associated with a 97% chance somebody will drive to work alone. Generous parking requirements create asphalt deserts, sapping cities of vigour and beauty. The money and land wasted on car parks make life costlier for everyone, even those who do not drive. Parking adds 67% to the cost of building a shopping centre in Los Angeles—and a lot more if the spaces are underground.3
While having paid parking downtown would be far better than offering free parking, simultaneously expanding the overall supply of parking downtown by building a large new parking structure will undercut some of benefits of paid parking. (See also the discussion of sustainability goals in ¶ 5, below.)
A better and more comprehensive approach would begin by recognizing that parking spaces throughout Palo Alto are community resources that have real costs and that provide real value to those who use them. To avoid a citywide “tragedy of the commons,” all parking in Palo Alto should be priced, but we can do it fairly, while simultaneously addressing other community needs, through a feebate system. In general, we should aim for a system in which those using parking spaces anywhere in Palo Alto would pay for them, while at least a considerable part of the revenue obtained by the City would be distributed back to everyone equally in Palo Alto. As The Economist noted, “Local governments could spend the money on whatever they like, from beautiful gardens to security guards,” but the best use of most of the money would be to pay people, in effect, for not parking on city streets. This would encourage everyone to use our common community resources wisely and as only as reasonably necessary, for “Cities should be for people, not for stationary metal boxes.”4 (Again, see also the discussion of sustainability goals in ¶ 5, below.)
2. The best way to ensure that parking is priced reasonably while meeting other community needs would be through a system of dynamic, differential pricing; in other words, the price of parking should vary by location, time, overall demand, and, perhaps most importantly, by user. In this way, citizens of Palo Alto might pay less for community parking than non-citizens, seniors and those with disabilities might receive substantial discounts, retailers might be able to purchase parking rights for customers at lower rates, and low-income workers could also pay less. If we are committed to enhancing the availability of retail and services in high-density areas of Palo Alto, then we should decided upon appropriately varied pricing that matches our community values. With dynamic, differential pricing, our community could decide, more precisely, how our community parking resources could best be utilized. At some times, and in some places, parking rates might be quite high, but everywhere, and at all times, we could subsidize parking in ways that are much more nuanced than those described in the second staff report.5 With proper pricing strategies, we should always be able to ensure that those who most need pricing will be able to find it conveniently.
3 See http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21720281-average-car-moves-just-5-time-improve-cities-focus-
other-95-perilous
4 See http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21720281-average-car-moves-just-5-time-improve-cities-focus-
other-95-perilous
5 Cf. http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/56789 at p. 4. While, in general, it might be true
that we should make it easier for employees “to [use] long-term parking in area garages and lots if they need it,”
not every employee will be able to move easily from long-term parking garages to a place of work. In addition
parking in certain spaces should always be extraordinarily high, except for those with disabilities, so that those
3
3. We should also recognize that driveways, particularly in areas close to crowded commercial centers, and private parking areas can be part of the solution. A comprehensive parking solution should make it easy for people to find alternative parking spaces throughout the city, even in spaces that are not on city streets or in city-built parking structures.
4. We must also acknowledge the numerous ways in which free parking contributes to catastrophic climate change. Palo Alto has set forth a number of far-reaching goals in its “Sustainability and Climate Action Plan” (“S/CAP”).6 In Figure 8, under the “Rethining Mobility” “Lever,” the S/CAP proposes that we “[i]mplement parking pricing and feebates.” While the second staff report speaks to the former, to the best of my knowledge, the word “feebate” does not occur in that ~160 page report.7 Before proceeding much further with the City Staff’s recommendations concerning the City of Palo Alto Downtown Parking Management Study, it would be wise to reconsider how feebates could be incorporated into downtown parking management solutions and then extended throughout Palo Alto.
5. Importantly, paid parking requires that the City establish reasonable prices for utilizing valuable, and highly sought after, community resources. But have we even begun to ask the right questions concerning the true cost of parking? Have we calculated what it truly costs to create, maintain, and enforce parking limitations on parking spaces on streets throughout the City? Have we established what the capital cost of building even a single parking space in a new parking structure downtown --- including land costs --- translates into in terms of implied parking rates over a reasonable (e.g. 30-year) amortization period? Have we compared any such analyses with those offered by other authorities (e.g. those cited by The Economist in asserting that parking requirements add quite substantially to commercial building costs in Los Angeles) and tried to apply them to Palo Alto’s unique situation? (For example, including land costs, what is the marginal cost of requiring an additional parking space for a commercial building, a single-family home, and a multi-unit residential building a home in Palo Alto?) Until we have and have thoroughly analyzed and considered such information, it is far from clear how we could even begin to price parking in Palo Alto properly.
6. We should also ascertain the full range of technologies that might assist us in better managing parking throughout the city using feebates and dynamic, differential pricing. What technologies already exist to assist cities in implementing such policies? What new technologies can one reasonably expect to become available in the next 6-18 months? How can they be integrated with existing or soon to exist systems for making residential driveways and unused commercial parking spaces available? What technologies exist that would support feebate systems and that would support the goals expressed in the S/CAP, both now and in the foreseeable future? How could the City of Palo Alto Utilities’ billing system be adapted to support parking feebates for citizens of Palo Alto? While the City Staff and its consultants have addressed the availability and functionality of some technologies, it would appear that additional research could and should be undertaken to assess the full range of technological options available to the City to support reasonable parking policies.
who most need parking will always be able to find it close to their preferred destinations. With dynamic,
differential pricing, employees and those with disabilities who are less mobile could still be allowed to park on
streets closer to workplaces, retail stores, or service providers without incurring unreasonable financial penalties.
6 See http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/55892
7 See http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/56789
4
7. In conclusion, I would urge the City Council to provide further direction to the City Staff as follows:
a. to direct the City Auditor to assess and report to the City Council the true cost of parking, in both residential and commercial areas, throughout the City, in accordance with the general concerns expressed in ¶ 6, above, and such other concerns as the City Council specifies;
b. to direct the City’s Chief Information Officer to assess and report to the City Council the status of additional technologies that might be useful in implementing parking feebates, dynamic, differential pricing for parking, and payments to residents from feebates through the City of Palo Alto Utilities’ billing system, and such other technologies as the City Council specifies; and
c. to direct the City Manager to provide the City Council with additional recommendations in light of (a) and (b), above, when these, and any other related, parking issues are next considered by the City Council.
Respectfully submitted,
John Kelley
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 4:57 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:ritavrhel@sbcglobal.net
Sent:Saturday, April 08, 2017 9:40 AM
To:Council, City
Subject:California governor declares end to drought emergency
California governor declares end to drought emergency https://www.yahoo.com/news/california‐governor‐declares‐
end‐drought‐emergency‐224921893.html?soc_src=hl‐viewer&soc_trk=ma
Sent from Mail for Windows 10
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:01 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Sent:Sunday, April 09, 2017 12:39 PM
To:Loran Harding; Joel Stiner; Dan Richard; Doug Vagim; Mayor; CityManager; Mark
Standriff; esmeralda.soria@fresno.gov; paul.caprioglio; robert.andersen; scott.mozier;
nick yovino; Steve Wayte; Tranil Thomas; steve.hogg; Council, City; terry; beachrides;
President; fmerlo@wildelectric.net; Paul Dictos; mthibodeaux@electriclaboratories.com;
dennisbalakian; David Balakian; Cathy Lewis; richard.wenzel; popoff; bballpod
Subject:Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org> Date: Sun, Apr 9, 2017 at 1:51 AM Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Sun, Apr 9, 2017 at 1:46 AM
Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Sun, Apr 9, 2017 at 1:42 AM Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package! To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org> Date: Sun, Apr 9, 2017 at 1:35 AM
Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Sat, Apr 8, 2017 at 6:36 PM
Subject: Re: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:01 PM
2
To: Joel Stiner <jastiner@gmail.com>
Saturday, April 8, 2017 Thanks, Joel. I appreciate it.
Today on mighty KCBS I heard State Senator Jim Beall of the Bay Area, who sponsored SB1, say that repair of California's streets and highways can begin this summer even though the gas tax hike won't start until Nov. 1 and the reg. fee hike won't be effective until January 1.
http://sd15.senate.ca.gov/news/2017-04-06-senator-jim-beall%E2%80%99s-statement-sb-1-approval
Apparently they can use other money before the new revenues start coming in. So that answers one question I pose for Mayor Brand in my email.
"This summer" seems a little pokey, in view of the emergency nature of the problem. What about
"now"? Our employers always expect "now", as do the FTB and IRS when they want our money. I'd prefer
that they start repairs on our roads now rather than this summer. If you shred your tires or bend your rims or wreck the linkage of your car driving to the Bay Area, the tow trucks, repair shops and tire stores will want to
be paid when the work is done, not this summer.
I can appreciate that the DMV needs time to start charging more for registrations, but the gas tax hike could
have produced an immediate increase in revenues. The gas tax system is already in place. Additional money could have started flowing in from that system on May 1, 2017. Why have the gas tax hike effective six months
later, on November 1, 2017? Who did that benefit? I think Californians wanted to pay now and get the work
started now.
That word "now" is supposed to come up when you have an emergency on your hands.
I'd like to see the people who engineered this find some money for Caltrans and local governments to get
going right away on fixing the roads. Sell some notes or bonds if you have to and redeem them when the new
money starts coming in. The note and bond people would find it a no-brainer.
One Republican was shown on the news griping that the money can be diverted to HSR, and Assemblyman
Jim Patterson said there is already lots of money to fix the roads. He called the new law a "shell-
game". Governor Brown should mention Patterson by name for his contention that the safeguards are not there
to assure that the new money goes to fixing the roads and highways. I think Patterson should be called before a committee to present his evidence, if he has any.
The news says that Gov. Brown will sign the measure when the legislature returns from its break. I'm sure he
wants to see all the disgruntled Republicans standing there as he signs it.
But what a stunt!! Let our highways and city streets all fall apart causing millions of dollars of damage to our
tires and vehicles. I've never seen that done before in California, and my family moved here in 1947. Up until
2011 we were having rainy winters and the roads didn't all go to hell. This is a new low. Big, huge salaries, free
health and dental benefits, big per- diems, free meals and haircuts, free cars, big pensions, not much work to do,
probably girls brought in from Vegas, and this is how our elected officials treat us. They are taking a chance.
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:01 PM
3
LH
On Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 1:09 PM, Joel Stiner <jastiner@gmail.com> wrote:
Although not my exact choice of words, well said Loran. Well said!
On Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:57 PM, Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org> wrote:
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:45 PM
Subject: Re: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package! To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>, Dan Richard <danrichard@mac.com>, Daniel Zack
<daniel.zack@fresno.gov>, Mark Standriff <mark.standriff@fresno.gov>, Mayor <mayor@fresno.gov>,
esmeralda.soria@fresno.gov, "paul.caprioglio" <paul.caprioglio@fresno.gov>, Paul Dictos
<paul@dictos.com>, Doug Vagim <dvagim@gmail.com>, dennisbalakian <dennisbalakian@sbcglobal.net>, David Balakian <davidbalakian@sbcglobal.net>, kfsndesk <kfsndesk@abc.com>, newsdesk <newsdesk@cbs47.tv>, rosenheim@kpix.cbs.com, "robert.andersen" <robert.andersen@fresno.gov>,
"scott.mozier" <scott.mozier@fresno.gov>, terry <terry@terrynagel.com>, "city.council"
<city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>, CityManager <citymanager@fresno.gov>, Steve Wayte
<steve4liberty@gmail.com>, Tranil Thomas <soulja92y@hotmail.com>, Leodies Buchanan <leodiesbuchanan@yahoo.com>
On Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:23 PM, Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org> wrote: ---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:20 PM
Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package! To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org> Date: Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:06 PM Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Friday, April 7, 2017 Mr. Dan Richard
Chairman of the Board
California High Speed Rail Authority
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:01 PM
4
Dan- Wonderful that this passed! A cliff-hangar at the end. Governor Brown did a great job
campaigning for it, hardly holding back!! He scared some of the Leg. into voting for it or the voters would
vote them out.
He used the word "insane" if it didn't pass, and that was right. Imagine the local streets and all of the
highways just falling apart in California, and they are! This isn't Bangladesh or some other hell-hole.
You know that the roads in Japan, S. Korea, Germany, Italy, France- all of the countries whose military defense we provide- are in fine shape. The public is in a revolutionary mood, and something like letting the
roads absolutely go to hell is the sort of thing that can break the camel's back.
Today I'll drive to the gym in one round-about route here in Fresno to avoid pot-holes, and take a
different round-about route to come home. Some streets are better in one direction than in the other, forcing that. I burn more gas, pollute the air more by doing that, but the local streets in Fresno are just falling
apart! The City of Fresno tries, sort of, but they cannot cope with it. Fresno Republican Mayor Brand
actually used the words "pot holes" in a recent statement, so he knows.
I wonder how much this will help the City of Fresno in fixing our pot-hole filled, almost undrivable roads. Mayor Brand should issue a statement telling us. Let's hear it, Mayor Brand, are we now going to
see rapid improvement in our third-world streets in Fresno?
I won't be thanking Jim Patterson in the Calif. leg. because this Republican bastard opposed this gas tax
hike. "Screw the little people", he feels, and that is who can afford all the tire and car damage the least. Bastard Patterson should be sent back to Fresno at the next election, or, better yet, to jail. I'm going to work
on that process.
I am certain that Republican thinking was that anything that hurts the little guy is good. If you buy a
new Escalade every fall, you don't care about the condition of the roads. Once again, the Republicans have shown themselves to be a bunch of scum.
http://kmph-kfre.com/news/local/senate-oks-california-tax-fee-hike-for-roads
Please thank Governor Brown for his great effort in getting this passed.
The bastard Republicans in Sacramento and in Congress should check out what happened in 1789. They
have not picked up on the mood of the people.
Mr. Loran W. Harding
Fresno, Ca.
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Fix Our Roads <info@fixcaroads.com> Date: Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 10:00 AM
Subject: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:01 PM
6
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Joel A. Stiner
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:17 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Cynthia Typaldos <cynthiatypaldos@gmail.com>
Sent:Wednesday, April 05, 2017 8:53 PM
To:Council, City
Cc:Gary Kremen
Subject:Going Native Garden Tour in Palo Alto Sunday April 23rd!
Dear Palo Alto Mayor, City Council, City Manager, and City Staff,
The yearly "Going Native Garden Tour" (GNGT) features 4 gardens in Palo Alto this year, including mine
(for the first time). See list below.
Hashtags The tour: #gngt2017 & #GoingNativeGardenTour My garden: #MataderoDucky (a.k.a. "Next To Matadero Creek" Garden)
I hope you will all register (it's free!) and attend.
It would be wonderful for the city to provide some publicity of the GNGT to our residents. There are a total of 60 gardens on the tour which is on Saturday Apr22 (San Jose area and south), and Sunday April23 (north of
Sunnyvale - Palo Alto included) . I can put the right PR person at the city in touch with the right PR person for
the tour. The tour is volunteer created and run, although there are many sponsors and organizers. See GNGT
homepage. Years ago when I lived in Saratoga I was one of the founders of the tour. I am thrilled to again have a native
plant garden and hopeful that the GNGT Palo Alto will encourage more resident to use native plants.
Thank you.
Cynthia Typaldos Next to Matadero Creek Garden a.k.a. #MataderoDucky
Midtown
650-215-8406 (cell)
Complete list of GNGT gardens
p.s. One of the other gardens has a very similar name using "Matadero Creek" also.
p.p.s. if you would like a sneak peek of my garden that would be great! text, call, or email.
Palo Alto GNGT gardens
Master Gardener Demonstration Garden (#16, 13 yrs old, about 0.5 acre) , Sunday
Matadero Garden (#14, 3 yrs old, about 0.5 acre) , Sunday
Middlefield Native and Edible Gardens (#13, 13 yrs old, about 1500 sq.ft.) , Sunday
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:17 PM
2
Next to Matadero Creek Garden (#12, 2 yrs old, about 2200 sq.ft.) , Sunday
☺ Quintana Front Yard (#11, 2 yrs old, about 400 sq.ft.) , Sunday
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:16 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Cary Andrew Crittenden <caryandrewcrittenden@yandex.ru>
Sent:Wednesday, April 05, 2017 4:22 PM
To:scc.agriculture@cep.sccgov.org
Cc:Council, City
Subject:Gypsy moth caterpillars
I am writing to report gypsy moth caterpillars at 555 Waverly Street in Palo Alto
(All Saints Episcopal Church)
There are several hanging from trees at corner of Waverly Street & Hamilton. Last known sighting that I am aware of in the area was 11 years ago in Portola Valley
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:18 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Deborah Goldeen <palamino@pacbell.net>
Sent:Friday, April 07, 2017 12:01 AM
To:Council, City
Subject:Houses in Open Space Zoning
One of my favorite rides, on horseback, is up Moody Rd, through Hidden Villa, into Rancho San Antonio and back down
Rhus Ridge Road. As you cross over the the ridge, you go from undeveloped open space to a view of the bay, but with
houses all over the place. I know that these houses are people’s dream homes, but when compared to an undeveloped
landscape, from the outside, they look like pustules. Looking down from the ridge at all those massive constructions is
akin to having two hundred people all singing their favorite song at the top of their lungs at the same time, many of
them out of tune.
About that house being built off of Page Mill (council meeting on 3/27), there isn’t anything that could be built that
wouldn’t be an offense. There’s nothing anyone can do to stop people building something on private property, but the
least they can do is to respect the codes. Shame on them for even trying otherwise.
Deb Goldeen
2130 Birch St., 06
Davenport1‐7375
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 7:43 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:LWV of Palo Alto <lwvpaoffice@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 7:35 PM
Subject:League of Women Voters of Palo Alto -- May VOTER
Attachments:May VOTER Final.pdf
The Palo Alto VOTER
The May 2017 issue is attached as a PDF. Please save this to your desktop and enjoy!
Annual Meeting Information is Inside
On the front page:
All Members are Invited to the
LWVPA Annual Meeting!
Meet
Palo Alto Mayor Greg Scharff
Saturday, May 13, 9:00 am - 12:00 noon Peninsula Conservation Center 3921 E. Bayshore Rd, Palo Alto
RSVP by May 8 to lwvpaoffice@gmail.com or call the office at 903-0600.
--
League of Women Voters of Palo Alto
3921 E. Bayshore Road, Suite 209
Palo Alto, CA 94303
(650) 903-0600
LWVPA 5 May, 2017
Welcome to the LWV Palo Alto Annual Meeting
You may review our LWV Palo Alto, Bay Area, County and National Positions at our Website:
http://www.lwvpaloalto.org/Positions
At our Annual Meeting we will:
• elect a new board of directors,
• vote on the budget for fiscal year 2017-2018,
• decide what program and issues we wish to emphasize in the coming year,
• vote on updates to LWVPA positions on Natural Resources, Housing under Social
Policy, and City Finance under City Government,
• vote on changes to the bylaws.
The reports included here have been reviewed and are recommended by the Board.
The LWVPA Board Recommends the Following
Local Program for 2017-2018
Review of the current LWVPA Education Position to determine if an update to this position is needed.
Update LWVPA Positions on Natural Resources, The Housing position under Social Policy and the City Finance
position under City Government. Continue all other LWVPA positions.
LWVPA Recommended Program Issues for Emphasis:
Advocacy and education on:
¥climate change, Palo Alto’s Sustainability/Climate Action Plan (S/CAP)
• housing, transportation/transit
• local immigration (due process – sanctuary city)
• local campaign finance
• constitutional rights
Education on:
¥civic involvement
¥civic discourse
¥civic savvy (fact v. fiction)
Activities to reach out to the homeless, other underserved populations and organizations that work with new
citizens, regarding:
¥voter registration
¥get out the vote
¥civic education
Advice to the Board:
¥Ensure there is a Board committee to act on each of the issues for emphasis.
¥Re-activate an Observer Corps to follow PAUSD, City Council and other City boards and commissions as
appropriate.
¥Work actively to develop collaboration with neighboring Leagues and other nonpartisan organizations, as
appropriate.
Recommended Program for LWV Santa Clara County
Conduct a study of Independent Oversight Committees to determine:
•Does the committee meet?
•Do they have any power? In what areas?
•What reporting mechanisms are there, and to whom do they report?
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 7:42 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Andrea Smith <andreabsmith@sbcglobal.net>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 7:35 PM
To:Council, City
Subject:Message from the City Council Home Page
WH\hen developers construct an apartment building, office building, or other multiple use buildings, it is most
important that there is sufficient parking for all who live and/or work in these buildings. There is NO reason for NOT
having sufficient amount of parking so that those who are living in residential areas should endure parking by those
employees/residents.
Really, Palo Alto is NOT a city nor should it be considered a CITY. For those of you 4 who want Palo Alto to be a City,
MOVE to NEW YORK CITY, SAN FRANCISCO, SAN JOSE, ETC.
Andrea Smith
Walter Hays DRive
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:16 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Joan Larrabee <joan.larrabee@att.net>
Sent:Wednesday, April 05, 2017 5:09 PM
To:Architectural Review Board; Sheldon Ah Sing; Council, City
Subject:Millennium redux? San Mateo Rite Aid says dewatering sank floor - San Francisco
Chronicle
Dear Honorable Mayor and City Council, Architectural Review Board Members, and Mr. Sheldon Ah Sing:
The proposed 20 feet of excavation and dewatering of the 744‐750 San Antonio Road site (MARRIOTTS) may cause
similar problems to the adjoining businesses, as shown in the attached article.
There is so much underground water there, that the EIR states that it is expected to take TEN MONTHS to dewater.
The Marriotts proposal is wrong on so many different levels. This is only one.
Joan Larrabee
http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/networth/article/Millennium‐redux‐San‐Mateo‐Rite‐Aid‐says‐10423858.php
Sent from my iPad
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:39 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Mark <mark.arams@gmail.com>
Sent:Wednesday, April 12, 2017 9:57 AM
To:Council, City
Subject:Parking meters downtown
I am a resident and completely against parking meters downtown. This is my community and do not want to pay an
additional tax to enjoy it. It is already expensive enough. It impacts visits from friends and family as well.
Sent from my iPhone
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/7/2017 4:20 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Sent:Friday, April 07, 2017 12:45 PM
To:Loran Harding; Dan Richard; Daniel Zack; Mark Standriff; Mayor;
esmeralda.soria@fresno.gov; paul.caprioglio; Paul Dictos; Doug Vagim; dennisbalakian;
David Balakian; kfsndesk; newsdesk; rosenheim@kpix.cbs.com; robert.andersen;
scott.mozier; terry; Council, City; CityManager; Steve Wayte; Tranil Thomas; Leodies
Buchanan
Subject:Re: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
On Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:23 PM, Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org> wrote: ---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:20 PM
Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package! To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org> Date: Fri, Apr 7, 2017 at 12:06 PM Subject: Fwd: CA Legislature Passes Transportation Funding Package!
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Friday, April 7, 2017 Mr. Dan Richard
Chairman of the Board
California High Speed Rail Authority
Dan- Wonderful that this passed! A cliff-hangar at the end. Governor Brown did a great job campaigning for it, hardly holding back!! He scared some of the Leg. into voting for it or the voters would vote them out.
He used the word "insane" if it didn't pass, and that was right. Imagine the local streets and all of the
highways just falling apart in California, and they are! This isn't Bangladesh or some other hell-hole. You know that the roads in Japan, S. Korea, Germany, Italy, France- all of the countries whose military
defense we provide- are in fine shape. The public is in a revolutionary mood, and something like letting the
roads absolutely go to hell is the sort of thing that can break the camel's back.
Today I'll drive to the gym in one round-about route here in Fresno to avoid pot-holes, and take a different round-about route to come home. Some streets are better in one direction than in others, forcing that. I burn
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 12:44 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Palo Alto Free Press <paloaltofreepress@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 11:50 AM
To:Kniss, Liz (external); Kniss, Liz (internal)
Cc:Keene, James; Stump, Molly; Watson, Ron; Lum, Patty; Wagner, April;
jrosen@da.sccgov.org; Jay Boyarsky; David Angel; Brian Welch; Perron, Zachary; Sean
Webby; Cynthia Sumida; Council, City
Subject:Re: How are we doing on the letter of Exoneration and the check for 5K
And Liz, No one can protect you from the witness stand! Not even Ms. Stump. Got that!
Mark
Sent from my iPad
> On Apr 11, 2017, at 12:47 PM, Palo Alto Free Press <paloaltofreepress@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Not thinking of any of you!!! Only justice!!! Patty Lump... turn in your weapon and badge...
>
> <image1.JPG>
>
>
> Sent from my iPad
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/11/2017 12:44 PM
2
Carnahan, David
From:Palo Alto Free Press <paloaltofreepress@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, April 11, 2017 11:48 AM
To:Kniss, Liz (external); Kniss, Liz (internal)
Cc:Keene, James; Stump, Molly; Watson, Ron; Lum, Patty; Wagner, April;
jrosen@da.sccgov.org; Jay Boyarsky; David Angel; Brian Welch; Perron, Zachary; Sean
Webby; Cynthia Sumida; Council, City
Subject:How are we doing on the letter of Exoneration and the check for 5K
Not thinking of any of you!!! Only justice!!! Patty Lump... turn in your weapon and badge...
Sent from my iPad
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Palo Alto Free Press <paloaltofreepress@gmail.com>
Sent:Wednesday, April 12, 2017 5:03 AM
To:Press strong
Cc:michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com; Keene, James; Council, City; Kniss, Liz (internal); Kniss,
Liz (external); Watson, Ron; Bullerjahn, Rich; Brian Welch; Philip, Brian;
jrosen@da.sccgov.org; Jay Boyarsky; David Angel; supervisor.simitian@bos.sccgov.org;
Sean Webby; Cynthia Sumida; Keith, Claudia; jnowell@padailypost.com;
DOkonkwo@da.sccgov.org; Dave Price; gsheyner@paweekly.com; Scharff, Greg;
bjohnson@embarcaderomediagroup.com; bjohnson@paweekly.com; Perron, Zachary
Subject:Re: Police Auditors of little public benefit so says L.A. County
And Tony this is how Liz Kniss deals with controversy: The women is ready for the geriatric ward.
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
3
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
4
Sent from my iPad
On Apr 12, 2017, at 5:49 AM, Palo Alto Free Press <paloaltofreepress@gmail.com> wrote:
Tony,
And as you have known for years, and in my case, Mr. Gennaco produced a document for the
City of Palo Alto which is filled with erroneous statements of alleged facts proven to be fraudulent.
Palo Alto City Manager James Keene is aware of these inconsistency's which I have pointed out
repeatedly for correction but, to no avail.
Thus proving Mr.Keene and the city attorney Molly Stump are in fact implicit in the ongoing
fraudulent behavior of Mr. Gennaco and his team.
The news media has played an integral role as well in coving up Mr. Gennaco's improprieties
namely the Daily Post, The Palo Alto Weekly, PaloAltoOnLine.com, San Jose Mercury New and its principal reporter Jason Green and this guy's
<image1.JPG>
<image2.JPG>
Mark Petersen-Perez
Sent from my iPad
On Apr 11, 2017, at 11:26 PM, Press strong <pressstrong@gmail.com> wrote:
Michael Gennaco
Palo Alto Independent Police Auditor
OIR Group
Mr. Gennaco,
your words to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors claiming that
you hold cops accountable when they violate policy and the law is a lie revealing that you are a fraud. If you were legitimate and true to what you say you do you
would have held the culpable officers in my case accountable but you did
not. Since you refused to hold them accountable they along with their colleagues
and supporters throughout the area have targeted me repeatedly in much the same
way John Derek Chamberlain was targeted. They have manipulated many naive
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
5
and ignorant people with their lies and slander just as I am sure those who beat
Chamberlain to death were manipulated with false infofrmation.
Just like your failure in holding L.A. Sheriff Baca and his colleagues accountable you failed to hold Chief Burns and his colleagues accountable.
http://chiefburns.weebly.com/
http://chiefburns.weebly.com/police-auditor.html
http://gennacobarcomplaint.weebly.com/
And now contrary to your own assertions to the Los Angeles County Board of
Supervisors, even with your oversight of the Palo Alto Police, executives exercise
favoritism, fail to recognize policy violation, (just like you failed to acknowledge the
policy violation of Burns withholding the taser gun activation data), impose undue leniency,
let officers who should be separated from the department keep their badges.
And thus your own actions of undermining the disciplinary system has had a
hugely corrupting influence on the PAPD proved by their actions over the last 8
years.
When you condemn one person for violating the law and then condone the violation of the law by another you reveal that you are not upholding the
Constitution which you pledged an oath to nor are you subjecting yourself to the
Rule of Law but are allowing your own biases and prejudices dictate what the law
is revealing both hypocrisy bigotry in the process.
Your initial request to be retained by the City of Palo Alto to hold PA officers
accountable as an outside agency:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gvd2ouM9xTY
More proof that you did not do what you said you would do: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrA7ehMi0Lg
PAPD admits to destroying evidence in violation of policy and the law:
http://chiefburns.weebly.com/exhibit-5.html
Mr. Gennaco who pays your salary for auditing the Palo Alto Police?
The City of Palo Alto does. That essentially makes you a part of the executive
leadership within the City of Palo Alto/Police Dept. which is why there is still
much corruption within even with Burns gone repeating what happened with the
L.A. Sheriff's office.
April Wagner is the lead trainer manager:
Can the watchdog do his job if the watchdog is being fed by the wolf?
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
6
Tony Ciampi
<Gennacos Oversight Misleading The Critical Need for Oversight to Be Involved in LASD's Disciplinary Process.pdf>
<stutchman report.png>
<cops 7.PNG>
<adrianne moore 2.PNG>
<adrianne moore 3.PNG>
<Gennaco 1.PNG>
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City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Palo Alto Free Press <paloaltofreepress@gmail.com>
Sent:Wednesday, April 12, 2017 4:50 AM
To:Press strong
Cc:michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com; Keene, James; Council, City; Kniss, Liz (internal); Kniss,
Liz (external); Watson, Ron; Bullerjahn, Rich; Brian Welch; Philip, Brian;
jrosen@da.sccgov.org; Jay Boyarsky; David Angel; supervisor.simitian@bos.sccgov.org;
Sean Webby; Cynthia Sumida; Keith, Claudia; jnowell@padailypost.com;
DOkonkwo@da.sccgov.org; Dave Price; gsheyner@paweekly.com; Scharff, Greg;
bjohnson@embarcaderomediagroup.com; bjohnson@paweekly.com; Perron, Zachary
Subject:Re: Police Auditors of little public benefit so says L.A. County
Tony,
And as you have known for years, and in my case, Mr. Gennaco produced a document for the City of Palo Alto
which is filled with erroneous statements of alleged facts proven to be fraudulent.
Palo Alto City Manager James Keene is aware of these inconsistency's which I have pointed out repeatedly for correction but, to no avail.
Thus proving Mr.Keene and the city attorney Molly Stump are in fact implicit in the ongoing fraudulent
behavior of Mr. Gennaco and his team.
The news media has played an integral role as well in coving up Mr. Gennaco's improprieties namely the Daily
Post, The Palo Alto Weekly, PaloAltoOnLine.com, San Jose Mercury New and its principal reporter Jason
Green and this guy's
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
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City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
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City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
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Mark Petersen-Perez
Sent from my iPad
On Apr 11, 2017, at 11:26 PM, Press strong <pressstrong@gmail.com> wrote:
Michael Gennaco
Palo Alto Independent Police Auditor
OIR Group
Mr. Gennaco,
your words to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors claiming that you hold cops
accountable when they violate policy and the law is a lie revealing that you are a fraud. If you
were legitimate and true to what you say you do you would have held the culpable officers in my
case accountable but you did not. Since you refused to hold them accountable they along with their colleagues and supporters throughout the area have targeted me repeatedly in much the
same way John Derek Chamberlain was targeted. They have manipulated many naive and
ignorant people with their lies and slander just as I am sure those who beat Chamberlain to death
were manipulated with false infofrmation.
Just like your failure in holding L.A. Sheriff Baca and his colleagues accountable you failed to hold Chief Burns and his colleagues accountable.
http://chiefburns.weebly.com/
http://chiefburns.weebly.com/police-auditor.html
http://gennacobarcomplaint.weebly.com/
And now contrary to your own assertions to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, even
with your oversight of the Palo Alto Police, executives exercise favoritism, fail to recognize
policy violation, (just like you failed to acknowledge the policy violation of Burns withholding the taser gun
activation data), impose undue leniency, let officers who should be separated from the department keep their badges.
And thus your own actions of undermining the disciplinary system has had a hugely corrupting
influence on the PAPD proved by their actions over the last 8 years.
When you condemn one person for violating the law and then condone the violation of the law
by another you reveal that you are not upholding the Constitution which you pledged an oath to nor are you subjecting yourself to the Rule of Law but are allowing your own biases and
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/12/2017 8:36 PM
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prejudices dictate what the law is revealing both hypocrisy bigotry in the process.
Your initial request to be retained by the City of Palo Alto to hold PA officers accountable as an outside agency:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gvd2ouM9xTY
More proof that you did not do what you said you would do:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrA7ehMi0Lg
PAPD admits to destroying evidence in violation of policy and the law:
http://chiefburns.weebly.com/exhibit-5.html
Mr. Gennaco who pays your salary for auditing the Palo Alto Police? The City of Palo Alto does. That essentially makes you a part of the executive leadership within
the City of Palo Alto/Police Dept. which is why there is still much corruption within even with
Burns gone repeating what happened with the L.A. Sheriff's office.
April Wagner is the lead trainer manager:
Can the watchdog do his job if the watchdog is being fed by the wolf?
Tony Ciampi
<Gennacos Oversight Misleading The Critical Need for Oversight to Be Involved in LASD's Disciplinary Process.pdf>
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City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:02 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Mark Petersen-Perez <bayareafreepress@gmail.com>
Sent:Sunday, April 09, 2017 2:00 PM
To:Lum, Patty; Watson, Ron; Perron, Zachary; Bullerjahn, Rich; Philip, Brian; Keene, James;
Stump, Molly
Cc:Council, City; Kniss, Liz (external); Kniss, Liz (internal); Scharff, Greg
Subject:Re: Terminate Patty Lum's employment
Palo Alto City Council Molly Stumps primary function while employed with the city of San Francisco was to PROTECT San
Francisco police officers from prosecution. She did her job extremely well. She will now have to deal with me and again I
will work relentlessly to have her disbarred from practicing law in any capacity.
Mark Petersen‐Perez
Sent from my iPad
> On Apr 9, 2017, at 2:46 PM, Mark Petersen‐Perez <bayareafreepress@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> implicit
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:00 PM
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Carnahan, David
From:Jeff Hoel <jeff_hoel@yahoo.com>
Sent:Saturday, April 08, 2017 2:09 PM
To:Council, City; UAC
Cc:Hoel, Jeff (external)
Subject:Susan Crawford On Investing in Internet Infrastructure
Council members and UAC commissioners,
I recommend that you listen to this podcast (and/or read the transcript, below the "######" line), in which Harvard
professor Susan Crawford talks about what's wrong with internet access in the United States today, and what
municipalities can and should be doing about it. It's a great vision.
03‐29‐17: "Susan Crawford On Investing in Internet Infrastructure"
http://maximumfun.org/adam‐ruins‐everything/adam‐ruins‐everything‐episode‐23‐susan‐crawford‐investing‐internet‐
infrastruct
Thanks.
Jeff
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
Jeff Hoel
731 Colorado Avenue
Palo Alto, CA 94303
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
#########################################################################
00:00:
Adam Conover: Hello, everybody, and welcome to "Adam Ruins Everything," the podcast. I am your host, Adam
Conover. This is the podcast version of my TV show, "Adam Ruins Everything." Which, to remind you, airs on truTV.
We're currently in the off‐season, but we're going to have new episodes coming to you sometime this summer. In the
meantime, you can find clips and full episodes at truTV.com/adamruinseverything and the Watch truTV app.
Sometimes, people say why doesn't your TV have an app? And, guess what, they have one. It's called the Watch truTV
app. And you can find it if you search on your store ‐‐ on your app store ‐‐ for Watch truTV app. Have I explained
enough about the app? Let's move on. We're all bored of talking about the app, Adam. We wanted to talk about the
show.
Here's how the show works. On our TV show, I interview experts for two minutes, one minute, 30 seconds, 5 seconds.
Only, sometimes, just for a little millisecond, there'll appear, for just a frame ‐‐ appear ‐‐ like a subliminal message ‐‐ like,
you're ‐‐ I get the sense I saw an expert, but I don't ‐‐ I didn't actually see one. You just have an expert sort of feeling.
Because you just had a moment of. Just kidding. Subliminal messages are a myth. They don't really work. I don't think.
I'm not really sure. I'm not up on the research, guys. I gotta be specific. 'Cause I do a research‐based show. And I can't
get any bad information out there. So, I'm ‐‐ you know what, I'm not going to commit myself to subliminal messages.
Maybe we'll do that later, on Adam Ruins Everything, the TV show. But one thing is, this is a podcast. And on this
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:00 PM
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podcast, instead of talking with the experts for just a frame of video, I talk to them for a long time. For 45 minutes,
sometimes even an hour. We talk to them, and we learn all about the incredible work that they do.
Today's guest ‐‐ if you saw our Internet episode, which, personally, is one of my favorite episodes, that we have ever
done, you will have seen her. Her name is Susan Crawford. She is a professor at Harvard, and is an expert in the field of
America's internet infrastructure, and why it is not as good as we would want it to be, and what we can do to make it
better. We did a whole segment on, you know, on how our internet is not nearly as fast as it should be. It's many, many
times slower than other countries' ‐‐ South Korea, and many, many countries across the world. And the reason is
because of these huge cable conglomerates that have been able to merge and, you know, join up with each other. And
have carved out areas of the country to make sure they don't have to compete. And that's why your internet is so slow
and expensive. And, you know, we sort of lay out ‐‐ here's what we ‐‐ here's how we got to today ‐‐ in the episode.
Right? What Susan talks about so wonderfully is what we can do about this ‐‐ how we can dig ourselves out of the hole,
and what are steps we need to take as a nation ‐‐ nay, not just ss a nation, but on a city or local level ‐‐ what we can do
to address this problem. She talks about this issue so brilliantly. And she is joining us via internet telephone from New
York. And, by the way, she has a wonderful speaking voice. So we're all going to enjoy that together. In the upcoming
interview, let's ‐‐ with no further ado, let's just get right into it. Take it away, me.
03:12:
Adam Conover: Hello, Susan. Thank you so much for coming on the show.
03:14:
Susan Crawford: Hey, Adam. Thanks for having me.
03:16:
Adam Conover: Well, first of all, how do you describe your field, and what you cover overall?
03:22:
Susan Crawford: You know, in the broadest sense, I'm a technological humanist. I'm REALLY interested in the potential
of high‐speed internet access to make people's lives better. And I'm really worried about what's happening in the
United States ‐‐ that we're leaving so many people behind, and we're being charged so much, and the whole economy is
being drained by the actions of a few companies that have enormous power. So, my field these days is the use of fiber
and data to make people's lives better.
03:48:
Adam Comover: Got it. And I've noticed that you're really one of those experts who ‐‐ you know, when our research
team was, like, oh, we got Susan Crawford. She is the person on this. Like, I feel ‐‐ I read ‐‐ there was something in ‐‐ I
was reading the LA Times ‐‐ had a story about, you know, the new FCC chairman's plan to do X‐Y‐Z. And you're quoted in
it. You know, you're the ‐‐ But then, you know, I know you're also ‐‐ how you got started as a lawyer, professor at
Harvard University. How did you sort of move from A to B? How did you come to this?
04:17:
Susan Crawford: You know, I've quit a lot of jobs, Adam. And it all seems to work out. No, seriously, my background is
as a musician, actually. I went to grad school as a violist.
04:27:
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Adam Conover: Wow.
04:28:
Susan Crawford: And then I really needed to support myself. So I went off to law school, where I could spend three
more years in the undergraduate orchestra. I became a ‐‐ I had a lot of student debt after that. So, I went to a big law
firm, and I became a partner in that very fancy Washington law firm. And then, life is short. So, I quit that job and
became a professor. I ‐‐ About that same time, I joined the board of ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned
Names and Numbers.
04:51:
Adam Conover: Oh, yeah. Wow. I know ICANN.
04:52:
Susan Crawford: Exactly. And so, I met a lot of the engineers that thought up the idea of the internet. Which is the
biggest idea of my adult life.
04:59:
Adam Conover: Yeah. ICANN is one of those groups that's, like ‐‐ they're sort of like the original ‐‐ they're like one of
these groups you never really hear about, but they're sort of involved in, like, designing the very deep, international
infrastructure of the internet. Right?
05:12:
Susan Crawford: It's really the plumbing ‐‐ the mapping between the numbers that are attached to your machines and
names that we give them. And that's what ICANN is responsible for coordinating. But you're right, it's the petri dish. It's
the only thing we have for anything that could be anywhere close to governance of the internet. Because it shouldn't be
governed, essentially ‐‐ what we DO on the internet. From there, though, I got really interested in internet access, which
is a whole separate issue. The pipes, and the wires, and the very ‐‐ frankly ‐‐ physical stuff that goes into allowing each
one of us to be online. And that's where I've been focusing for the last, oh, ten years or so. From being a professor, I
got launched into being the Obama Administration at the very beginning ‐‐ 2009. And I put myself in charge of a
program that was giving out $7 billion to people around the country to build fiber networks. And I learned a TON in the
job. I got very interested in the role of Comcast. When I left the administration, I wrote a book about Comcast, called
"Captured Audience." And all the interviews for that book had to be done off‐the‐record. So I learned a ton about that.
And the power of the cable industry. I then got really interested in cities, and what they can do with data, and I co‐
authored a book called "The Responsive City." Now, what I'm doing is working on a third book, called "Fiber," about the
scrappy communities across the United States who are taking their destinies into their own hands, when it comes to
internet access. So I've been traveling a bit, over these last couple of months in particular, talking to Americans about
this. And I'm still a professor. I'm a professor at Harvard Law School. And I have wonderful students there.
06:46:
Adam Conover: Yeah. And, in your spare time, you're just teaching classes and grading papers, I guess.
06:49:
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Susan Crawford: [laughs] Yes, that's right. And it's a joy. My students are remarkable. And they're the ones that are
going to go into local government, in the places where they're from, and lead us all out of this morass that we're in as a
nation.
07:00:
Adam Conover: Right. So, how would you describe this morass? You know, on our show, we, you know, sort of phrase
it as "our" internet access, despite the fact that we sort of imagine that we're leading the world technologically. We're
by no means, you know, the world's leaders. And, you know, the story we tell is the story of cable companies
swallowing each other up, and, you know, sort of colluding ‐‐ not to us a quasi‐legal term ‐‐ but, you know, dividing up
the country in order to, you know, not have to compete with each other. And, you know, that's why we have this sort of
shitty situation today, where ‐‐ You know, everyone knows, the cable company is this shitty company that overcharges
you. And, you know, they don't have to show up when they say they do, because they don't really give a shit, 'cause
where else are you going to go. You know? Everyone's experienced that. And we were sort of explaining that through
that process of slow monopolization. But I know that, you know, you ‐‐ I'm sure you have a broader view of it. How do
you characterize where we're at with this issue?
7:56:
Susan Crawford: Well, what you said is exactly right. But it leads to this really fundamental point ‐‐ that the entire
nation needs an upgrade to fiber optic communications, between us and our neighborhoods. And I'd love to talk about
fiber. I've been out to Corning to understand how it's made. It's basically magical. It can carry unlimited amounts of
data symmetrically ‐‐ both ways ‐‐ upload and download. And because of the policies that we've put in place over the
last ten years or so, NOBODY has incentive to upgrade the fiber, because, as you say, the cable guys have locked up the
urban areas. They've abandoned rural areas, or left them to telcos that are basically moving everybody over to wireless.
And the whole situation is without a plan for an upgrade. So, what I'm looking into is what these scrappy communities
are doing, to build what is, in essence, kind of a street grid of fiber, reaching every house and business, that then allows
for a TON of competition on top of that. So, imagine the street grid allows for lots of cars. They can all use that. Same
thing here. If you had a basic network of glass ‐‐ this fiber optic cable running under the streets ‐‐ you could have fifteen
different competitors available to you every time you open your laptop. Certainly in an urban area. And even rural
areas, there could be competition for your subscription. And prices would go through the floor, which would be great
for America. And we'd finally be up with the northern European nations, and the Asian countries that figured this out
twenty years ago.
09:31:
Adam Conover: So, those are cities in America that currently have, like, a ‐‐ or are building a fiber optic grid. Like just
sort of, hey, we're running wires, you know, on a municipal level, to every house in town, and then different providers
can, what, lease out those wires and compete?
09:45:
Susan Crawford: That's the ideal model. That's the way telecommunications has always worked. Because it doesn't
make sense to have two wires to every house. Because the upfront costs of building those things is so high. So the way
to do it is to put a really great, future‐proof wire in place ‐‐ and that's fiber optic ‐‐ and then let anybody else compete
on top of it. So, yes ‐‐ In fact, just last week ‐‐ I'm on an advisory board to the city of San Francisco, which is looking at
EXACTLY that model. Because, you know, they're the leading tech city in the country. And yet, their internet access is
expensive, and not available everywhere, and a lot of people are left out. So they're really ‐‐ they're the first major
American city to look into changing that situation. And I'm hopeful that others will follow suit. They're already a bunch
of mid‐size and tiny cities that do this. But San Francisco's the first big leader.
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10:35:
Adam Conover: Wow! This really comes back to a recurring theme of this podcast, and the show, which is, like,
America's cities as a, you know, laboratory for moving the country forward, when our federal government, and, often,
state governments, seem so paralyzed. It's often the cities who are saying, well, we're just going to build ourselves.
10:52:
Susan Crawford: I have to say, I have found optimism and cheeriness and CAN‐DO‐ism [laughs] on these trips to cities.
No one ever mentions Mr. Trump. It doesn't matter, really, what he's up to.
11:04:
Adam Conover: Right.
11:04:
Susan Crawford: For the moment. Now, eventually, the cities will all get their act together. And that will be a
patchwork of networks across the United States. It will make sense for the federal government to wake up at some
point and show leadership, to ensure that every corner of the country gets this kind of connectivity. Because what we
do, then, is create a giant middle class ‐‐ which we're always hoping for ‐‐ a giant market for goods and services of
American companies. And ‐‐ the best part is ‐‐ we've created not only economic growth but also social justice. For
EVERY American, you know. What's basic. Everybody should have the opportunity to make the most of their lives. And
that's what this informational grid will give us.
11:45:
Adam Conover: And ‐‐ I want to be clear ‐‐ what you're describing ‐‐ this informational grid ‐‐ This is very similar to what
we currently have for utilities like electricity, water, and traditional telephone lines. Correct?
11:55:
Susan Crawford: I'd say this is the fourth on the list. You have water, sewer, energy, and fiber.
12:02:
Adam Conover: Hmm.
12:03:
Susan Crawford: And they actually are part of an interconnected need for infrastructure that can serve all of those
needs. We can talk about that if you'd like. That's sort of the idea of a sustainable infrastructure that knows what it's
doing. Like, how much water are we using? How much energy are we using? All of that requires fiber too. But, yes, it's
just a utility. It's ‐‐ you can do it through providing what some people call "dark air," which is conduit everywhere in a
city that's available for glass to go through. Or by actually calling for the construction of glass everywhere. So, that ‐‐
yes, it's a utility.
12:37:
Adam Conover: "Glass" ‐‐ meaning ‐‐ is that how you describe fiber? "Glass"?
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12:40:
Susan Crawford: Yeah. That's the nickname for it. Adam, it's the most remarkable stuff. I watched it being made.
What happens is that ‐‐ it's not like you grind up sand and create fiber optic. The people who make this stuff print every
layer of a thin glass tube so precisely that light can pass through it without interruption of degradation over tens of
kilometers.
13:04:
Adam Conover: Wow!
13:04:
Susan Crawford: It's AMAZING. So, that technology is ‐‐ people call it "glass," in a kind of a friendly way, but it's unlike
any glass you've ever seen. It's so pure, and so carefully engineered, that it can carry ‐‐ as far as we know ‐‐ unlimited
amounts of information, based on just the electronics that are attached to it. So, once the glass is in the ground, it can
be upgraded without digging up the street. You just attach different lasers to the endpoints, ...
13:31:
Adam Conover: Oh, yeah.
13:31:
Susan Crawford: ... and you can send a ton of information that way.
13:33:
Adam Conover: Oh, wow! 'Cause it's not even ‐‐ correct me if I'm wrong ‐‐ it's not even carrying a current. It's just ‐‐
light is being passed down it.
13:40:
Susan Crawford: Well, I have to say, Adam, it all gets very mystical. It's not that much difference between light and
energy at the edges. But the ‐‐ Yes, that's right. These are photons. And they're being sent by lasers, at a gazillion
times a second.
13:52:
Adam Conover: Right.
13:53:
Susan Crawford: And that ‐‐ because there's so much that can be packed onto those light beams, it can carry basically
unlimited amounts of information. It's the ‐‐ And it can carry it at the speed of light, for great distances, without being
amplified. It's amazing.
14:08:
Adam Conover: And so that's why you described it as "future‐proof" ‐‐ because it has a bandwidth that we ‐‐ if we were
to start using it now, it has a bandwidth that's much higher than anything we would use it for.
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14:17:
Susan Crawford: That's certainly true. AND it's future‐proof because the glass itself ‐‐ the physical medium ‐‐ doesn't
need to be upgraded in order for the amount of data it carries to be ...
14:27:
Adam Conover: Ah.
14:27:
Susan Crawford: ... raised, by changing out those lasers at the endpoints. That's what's so amazing. And we think it's
going to last for 30‐40 years.
14:36:
Adam Conover: Wow! And so, what we have in the ground now coaxial cable ‐‐ right? ‐‐ or copper cable?
14:40:
Susan Crawford: That's right. There is a lot of fiber between cities already. What doesn't exist is the part between ‐‐ in
the bottleneck part of the network, between, let's say, a network node and your home or your business. And that's
because it is in the interest of the cable actors. They're not malign ‐‐ they're not evil. It's just ‐‐ they build a network
that is optimized for entertainment. For watching things. For consuming.
15:04:
Adam Conover: Right.
15:04:
Susan Crawford: And it was build that way ‐‐ and most of their pipe is dedicated to their channels, and their way of
mixing up those channels.
15:14:
Adam Conover: Hmm.
15:14:
Susan Crawford: They could also use fiber as the medium across which they deliver paid television to us. Here's the
problem: they would have to compete with other providers of other signals to our houses. If they were just one of many
actors, going across that "glass" between a neighborhood node and your house. Does that make sense?
15:33:
Adam Conover: Why would that be? If they were the ones, you know ‐‐ of Cablevision ‐‐ Well, I guess Cablevision
doesn't exist but ‐‐ that's what I grew up with on Long Island.
15:43:
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Susan Crawford: They still exist. They're hanging on. They're hanging on.
15:45:
Adam Conover: Oh, yeah. They ‐‐ oh, they're Optimum now. That's what they are.
14:48:
Susan Crawford: Yeah. Yeah.
15:49:
Adam Conover: If they dig ‐‐ If they're the ones digging the fiber optic cable and laying it out, why would they have to
compete with other providers over a cable that they laid?
15:58:
Susan Crawford: Oh, thank you so much for asking that question. At the moment, the cable actors have no particular
incentive to replace their second‐class wire ‐‐ which is very much privileging downloads over uploads. They have no
incentive to replace that with fiber, because they are under no pressure from neither competition nor oversight. So
their wire stays in place. Unless a city does something about this, and says, you know, in addition to the cable wire,
we're going to make sure that every home and business has, in a sense, a public option available to it, which is this
"glass" tube ‐‐ the fiber optic tube. And the cable actors, then, could choose to be one of many retail providers over that
fiber ‐‐ over that "glass." That's available to them. And they would save a bunch of money, in some ways, by being a
retail provider, using that wholesale infrastructure. Their problem is that this would undermine their ability to raise
prices and, you know, ask us for ever‐more money for these inextricable bundles of programming and data access.
17:06:
Adam Conover: Right. There'd be more competition on that that wire.
17:10:
Susan Crawford: Right.
17:10:
Adam Conover: And I think that's so interesting. I never thought of the fact that ‐‐ You know, look, I've been a really
heavy internet user since ‐‐ Honestly, my memory of getting on the internet was that the cable company called my
family and was, like, we're rolling out cable internet, and we want to know whether you want to be early adopters, in,
you know, on Long Island. In 1996, or something like that. And my parents were, like, yeah, sure. And then, for some
reason, the cable internet went directly to my bedroom. And then I was just on the internet, like, constantly. I had no
social life. I was just a ‐‐ You know, that was just a ‐‐ that was my whole world. So I got an early education on some of
these issues, through reading, you know, some early internet activism sites, and things like that. So, I've, you know,
known, through my whole life, that downloading is faster than uploading, on the cable internet that we have. You know,
if you use ‐‐ You know, when I used to update my own website, and, you know, trying to download one of my videos
was a lot faster than trying to upload it. You know, that uploading would take ten times as long. And I never put it
together that the reason was that this is a system that's optimized to deliver, you know, ESPN and the Disney Channel,
not to share information bidirectionally.
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:00 PM
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18:21:
Susan Crawford: EXACTLY! It was built that way ‐‐ it was intended that way. And there is NO reason, for example, why
a fiber network would ever have to be asymmetrical in that way. "Cause everybody's download is someone else's
upload. And if you think about needing to be working from home, accessing your doctor, you know, taking a class ‐‐
genuinely taking a class remotely, not just being a passive participant but really being IN the classroom ‐‐ all of that is
only possible with a symmetric connection, where you're able to upload without even thinking about how much data
you're uploading ‐‐ as well as download. And it's that big shift that the United States has to make. Because right now,
we have no inkling of what might be possible, with the grit and ingenuity of Americans, who are able to develop new
uses for internet access. Because they're all stuck with just entertaining themselves.
19:15:
Adam Conover: Right.
19:15:
Susan Crawford: Or tweeting, which takes very little bandwidth. So, what I'm looking forward to is the creation of a
tremendous sandbox for playful Americans from every corner ‐‐ 'cause good ideas come from everywhere, not just from
big cities ‐‐ who are able to develop new uses. For a network that allows for eye contact, compassion, empathy,
connection, ...
19:36:
Adam Conover: Ah.
19:36:
Susan Crawford: ... real health care, and advanced energy. All of that is only possible with fiber.
19:41:
Adam Conover: So, let me ask ‐‐ You said that the cable companies are not being pressured by either oversight or
competition. So, the ‐‐ you know, sort of, free market argument is always that, you know, well, hey, competition is going
to create innovation, and is going to cure the, you know, ills of any market. And, I think ‐‐ it seems to me that the
telecommunications industry is an example where it certainly seems like that kind of competition has failed. Because
we've ended up with, you know ‐‐ the results are something that is not good for society. It might be good for the cable
companies. Not good for the consumer. Because we've got these, you know, sort of monopolies that are, you know,
separated out by area and don't have to compete with anybody. My question is, what would stop a new company from
competing with fiber optic? And I actually remember when I lived in New York ‐‐ when I moved there ‐‐ it would have
been around, like, 2006 or so ‐‐ Verizon FiOS was, like, a big deal. They were rolling out FiOS everywhere. Which is
Verizon's fiber optic service. And I remember, I would check their, you know, zip code tool ‐‐ you know, is it in your area
‐‐ once every, you know, couple months. Because Time Warner Cable was so bad at the time, and I couldn't upload my
web videos for our sketch comedy group, you know, to our FTP site. I was like, aargh, I can't upload my three‐minute
video. This was, you know ‐‐ connections were really bad ten years ago. And then, it never ‐‐ it never came.
21:10:
Susan Crawford: Um hum.
21:10:
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:00 PM
10
Adam Conover: It never came to my neighborhood. But ‐‐ And then, I recently looked it up and found out that FiOS just
sort of stopped expanding. That the program kind of failed. It still exists in the areas where it's available, but they ‐‐ I
don't know ‐‐ sort of petered out. And so I always wondered, what happened? Why is it that, you know ‐‐ if fiber optics
is so amazing, why is there not, you know, some company coming in and laying all that "glass" all over every city in
America?
21:34:
Susan Crawford: You have lived the country's story, there, Adam, I have to say. 'Cause there was a CEO of Verizon at
the time ‐‐ Ivan Seidenberg ‐‐ who understood fiber, and thought that it would be great for Verizon to leap ahead. But
his shareholders did not agree with him.
21:49:
Adam Conover: Hmm.
21:49:
Susan Crawford: And here's the difference between a utility ‐‐ which is what fiber access has to be treated as ‐‐ and
these companies, who have very short‐term horizons, and needs for extraordinary returns across a very short period of
time. Verizon announced in 2010 that it was no longer going to expand its FiOS coverage. As it is, it was covering
about 10 percent of American households, if I've got this right. And they've since sold off their FiOS systems in California
and Texas and Florida. Because Verizon's retreated to mostly being a wireless media company. That's how they see
themselves. That's where they saw higher margins for themselves. And ‐‐ Because they have ceded the wired
marketplace, by and large, to the local cable monopoly.
22:40:
Adam Conover: Ah.
22:40:
Susan Crawford: We have learned over time that where consolidation is possible, competition is impossible. And so the
cable guys took the wired world, essentially ‐‐ all over America. They're basically a monopoly. They left behind rural
areas to phone companies, with ‐‐ who are offering copper phone service, not fiber. In those rural areas, often, the local
provider is trying to pull out those wires and, itself, become a wireless provider, with all the consequences of
uncertainty, and high data caps, and all kinds of things, for those people. High data charges for those people. So,
Verizon has retreated from the fiber world, and sees itself mostly as a wireless company at this point. Leaving
everything, really, to the cable guys, particularly in urban areas.
23:29:
Adam Conover: And so, is there just no ‐‐ Is it just that the cost of, you know, laying down all that glass is ‐‐ you know,
there's no incentive for the cable companies to do it, because they've already got all their copper in the ground, ...
23:40:
Susan Crawford: Um hum.
23:40:
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:01 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Mark Petersen-Perez <bayareafreepress@gmail.com>
Sent:Sunday, April 09, 2017 1:46 PM
To:Lum, Patty; Watson, Ron; Perron, Zachary; Bullerjahn, Rich; Philip, Brian; Keene, James;
Stump, Molly
Cc:Council, City; Kniss, Liz (external); Kniss, Liz (internal); Scharff, Greg
Subject:Terminate Patty Lum's employment
LUMP far right!
You do not deserve to be a police officer by any stretch of the imagination I will work relentlessly to see that you receive no:
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:01 PM
2
1. Pension
2. No employment in any law enforcement capacity (Decertified)
Mark Petersen-Perez
Palo Alto City Council you are implicit if you continue to allow her to continue her employment period.
Mark Petersen-Perez
Sent from my iPad
City of Palo Alto | City Clerk's Office | 4/10/2017 5:02 PM
1
Carnahan, David
From:Mark Petersen-Perez <bayareafreepress@gmail.com>
Sent:Sunday, April 09, 2017 8:19 PM
To:Lum, Patty; Council, City; Watson, Ron; Perron, Zachary; Keene, James; Bullerjahn, Rich;
Philip, Brian; jrosen@da.sccgov.org; Jay Boyarsky
Cc:Keene, James
Subject:Tweet by Palo Alto Free Press on Twitter
Turn in your badge Ms. Lump
Palo Alto Free Press (@PAFreePress)
4/9/17, 9:15 PM The abusing @PaloAltoPolice officer? Patty Lum asst. police chief #PaloAlto PD They can get away with
most anything bit.ly/2ojQ5Wx twitter.com/pafreepress/st…
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Sent from my iPad