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CC 03-07-2023 Item No. 11. Removal of Planning Commissioner R Wang_Written communicationsFrom:Krithika Srinivasan To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:Stop The Divisiveness And Dirty Politics - Do Not Remove Planning Commissioner Wang Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 5:06:16 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Dear Cupertino City Council, City Attorney, City Manager, and City Clerk I am writing to you today with regards to the agenda item considering the removal of Commissioner Wang. The attempted removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated by a majority City Council that has lost the community's trust and faith. These new council members have colluded with staff to remove the resident focused council members from key committees, sought to shut down commissions where they do not have a majority, and seek to silence public commentary on agenda items at council and commission meetings. Just a few weeks ago, this city council and city staff attempted to write into the city code a way to remove former two-time Mayor Steven Scharf and current two-time Chair of the Planning Commission. This action was deemed unlawful and atrocious. The latest endeavor attempts to remove former two-time Chair and one-time Vice Chair of the planning commission R "Ray" Wang on trumped up charges of treating staff and consultants poorly, and calling out the staff's sand bagging of requests from the commission. The attempts to defame him and his reputation are quite shameful. This is very disappointing. The residents see this attack on Wang as part of a larger strategy to remove resident focused commissioners and replace them a "rubber stamped" commission that will do your bidding from approving a unnecessary expensive new city hall to jeopardizing future housing site selections and appeasement of developers who seek to build on the toxic site at Vallco without cleaning the land up. Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests. Wang and the current planning commissioners Steven Scharf and Muni Madhdhipatla have worked hard to approve the Westport Project, the new hotel at Cupertino Village, the Bateh Brothers site for new mixed-use housing, and complete their duty in housing element site selection. Wang has been a strong advocate for resident focused causes and keeping the city staff accountable. In fact, Wang continues to question why no action has been taken to create 5G tower architectural standards to protect our neighborhoods. The lack of a response by staff has been unacceptable and clearly showcases their lack of accountability. Wang also criticized a very inept housing element consultant at EMC who failed to complete the project required and cost the city 100's of thousands of dollars. For that, the staff again failed to take responsibility and accountability for hiring a bad consultant and he was told he was not respectful in criticizing our city staff and the consultant. This pattern of city staff behavior has been consistently challenged by Wang and the other pro- resident focused commissioners and council members. We need more residents like Wang who represent the interests of residents and speak up against all other interests that do not act for the well being of Cupertino residents. Your removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated. We feel Wang has represented us well and should continue to serve as our voice in the community Wang should serve out his term and should not be removed from his position due to false accusations. Please reconsider your actions to remove Wang from the planning commission. Krithika Srinivasan krithikas@yahoo.com Cupertino, California 95014 From:Karen Norris To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:Stop The Divisiveness And Dirty Politics - Do Not Remove Planning Commissioner Wang Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 4:56:00 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Dear Cupertino City Council, City Attorney, City Manager, and City Clerk I am writing to you today with regards to the agenda item considering the removal of Commissioner Wang. The attempted removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated by a majority City Council that has lost the community's trust and faith. These new council members have colluded with staff to remove the resident focused council members from key committees, sought to shut down commissions where they do not have a majority, and seek to silence public commentary on agenda items at council and commission meetings. Just a few weeks ago, this city council and city staff attempted to write into the city code a way to remove former two-time Mayor Steven Scharf and current two-time Chair of the Planning Commission. This action was deemed unlawful and atrocious. The latest endeavor attempts to remove former two-time Chair and one-time Vice Chair of the planning commission R "Ray" Wang on trumped up charges of treating staff and consultants poorly, and calling out the staff's sand bagging of requests from the commission. The attempts to defame him and his reputation are quite shameful. The residents see this attack on Wang as part of a larger strategy to remove resident focused commissioners and replace them a "rubber stamped" commission that will do your bidding from approving a unnecessary expensive new city hall to jeopardizing future housing site selections and appeasement of developers who seek to build on the toxic site at Vallco without cleaning the land up. Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests Wang and the current planning commissioners Steven Scharf and Muni Madhdhipatla have worked hard to approve the Westport Project, the new hotel at Cupertino Village, the Bateh Brothers site for new mixed-use housing, and complete their duty in housing element site selection. Wang has been a strong advocate for resident focused causes and keeping the city staff accountable. In fact, Wang continues to question why no action has been taken to create 5G tower architectural standards to protect our neighborhoods. The lack of a response by staff has been unacceptable. Wang also criticized a very inept housing element consultant at EMC who failed to complete the project required and cost the city 100's of thousands of dollars. For that, the staff again failed to take responsibility and accountability for hiring a bad consultant and he was told he was not respectful in criticizing our city staff and the consultant. This pattern of city staff behavior has been consistently challenged by Wang and the other pro- resident focused commissioners and council members. We need more residents like Wang who represent the interests of residents. Your removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated as many members of City Council including gave donations to the instigator, Richard Mehlinger who has a personal vendetta against Wang. Previous city councils have not capriciously dismissed commissioners in this fashion nor should they in the future. We feel Wang has represented us well and should continue to serve as our voice in the community Wang should serve out his term and you should be ashamed at your attempts to remove him. Please reconsider your actions to remove Wang from the planning commission. Karen Norris knorris365@yahoo.com 6032 Acacia Ave Oakland, California 94618 From:sydney.y.ji@gmail.com To:City Clerk Subject:In Support of Removal of Planning Commissioner Ray “R” Wang Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 4:50:25 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, I was born and raised in Cupertino and lived here most of my life. This community means a lot to me, and I believe we are home to some of the brightest and most compassionate minds in California. Unfortunately, we are still recovering from prior leadership that has greatly damaged our reputation, including the past actions of Planning Commissioner R. Wang. That is why I am here today to voice my strong support for the removal of Planning Commissioner R. Wang. While a sitting Planning Commissioner City official, he urged fellow residents to call the employers of pro-housing activists to try to get them fired from their jobs. He has disrespected, insulted, and alleged conspiracy theories against core community partners like Cupertino Rotary and the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce. He sexually harassed a City Councilmember in Redwood City (was a planning commissioner), signing her up for porn. Instead of admitting the truth, he lied that developer interests hacked his computer. Commissioner Wang even acts on misinformation to propel his political agenda, instead of listening to legal advice, putting the city at risk of being sued. For example, when the City sought to fix a density bonus ordinance to comply with state law, he compared this to free and fair democratic elections in the Soviet Union.” I believe in Cupertino and its future–that’s why I am here speaking for democracy and for ethical leadership. It’s past time for the Council to hold Commissioner Wang accountable. Please honor the lived experiences of those who have been personally harmed by Mr. Wang and do the right thing. Please honor the intelligence and character of our good residents, who deserve to have genuine trust in their officials. Thank you for your time. It’s time to bring dignity back to Cupertino. sydney.y.ji@gmail.com Cupertino, California 95014 From:N Wang To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:Planning Commissioner Wang Should Not Be Removed Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 4:31:00 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests Wang and the current planning commissioners Steven Scharf and Muni Madhdhipatla have worked hard to approve the Westport Project, the new hotel at Cupertino Village, the Bateh Brothers site for new mixed-use housing, and complete their duty in housing element site selection. Wang has been a strong advocate for resident focused causes and keeping the city staff accountable. In fact, Wang continues to question why no action has been taken to create 5G tower architectural standards to protect our neighborhoods. The lack of a response by staff has been unacceptable. Wang also criticized a very inept housing element consultant at EMC who failed to complete the project required and cost the city 100's of thousands of dollars. For that, the staff again failed to take responsibility and accountability for hiring a bad consultant and he was told he was not respectful in criticizing our city staff and the consultant. This pattern of city staff behavior has been consistently challenged by Wang and the other pro- resident focused commissioners and council members. We need more residents like Wang who represent the interests of residents. Your potential removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated. N Wang spamhackad@gmail.com Cupertino, California 95014 From:T Wu To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:I Support Planning Commissioner Wang Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 4:00:17 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Dear Cupertino City Council, City Attorney, City Manager, and City Clerk I am writing to you today with regards to the agenda item considering the removal of Commissioner Wang. The attempted removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated by a majority City Council that has lost the community's trust and faith. These new council members have colluded with staff to remove the resident focused council members from key committees, sought to shut down commissions where they do not have a majority, and seek to silence public commentary on agenda items at council and commission meetings. Just a few weeks ago, this city council and city staff attempted to write into the city code a way to remove former two-time Mayor Steven Scharf and current two-time Chair of the Planning Commission. This action was unlawful and atrocious. Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests. The potential removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated. Previous city councils have not capriciously dismissed commissioners in this fashion nor should they in the future.. We feel Wang has represented us well and should continue to serve as our voice in the community Wang should serve out his term and you should be ashamed at your attempts to remove him. Please reconsider your actions to remove Wang from the planning commission. T Wu twujunks@yahoo.com Cupertino, California 95014 From:Luzvilla Burkhart To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:Planning Commissioner Wang Should Not Be Removed Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 3:47:08 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests Wang and the current planning commissioners Steven Scharf and Muni Madhdhipatla have worked hard to approve the Westport Project, the new hotel at Cupertino Village, the Bateh Brothers site for new mixed-use housing, and complete their duty in housing element site selection. Wang has been a strong advocate for resident focused causes and keeping the city staff accountable. In fact, Wang continues to question why no action has been taken to create 5G tower architectural standards to protect our neighborhoods. The lack of a response by staff has been unacceptable. Wang also criticized a very inept housing element consultant at EMC who failed to complete the project required and cost the city 100's of thousands of dollars. For that, the staff again failed to take responsibility and accountability for hiring a bad consultant and he was told he was not respectful in criticizing our city staff and the consultant. This pattern of city staff behavior has been consistently challenged by Wang and the other pro- resident focused commissioners and council members. We need more residents like Wang who represent the interests of residents. Your potential removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated. Luzvilla Burkhart vburkhart7@gmail.com 10133 S. Tantau Ave. Cupertino, California 95014 From:Reza Soudagar To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:I Support Planning Commissioner Wang Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 3:41:05 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Dear Cupertino City Council, City Attorney, City Manager, and City Clerk I am writing to you today with regards to the agenda item considering the removal of Commissioner Wang. The attempted removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated by a majority City Council that has lost the community's trust and faith. These new council members have colluded with staff to remove the resident focused council members from key committees, sought to shut down commissions where they do not have a majority, and seek to silence public commentary on agenda items at council and commission meetings. Just a few weeks ago, this city council and city staff attempted to write into the city code a way to remove former two-time Mayor Steven Scharf and current two-time Chair of the Planning Commission. This action was unlawful and atrocious. Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests. The potential removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated. Previous city councils have not capriciously dismissed commissioners in this fashion nor should they in the future.. We feel Wang has represented us well and should continue to serve as our voice in the community Wang should serve out his term and you should be ashamed at your attempts to remove him. Please reconsider your actions to remove Wang from the planning commission. Reza Soudagar rsoudagar@yahoo.com 6032 Acacia Avenue Oakland, California 94618 From:Vincent Burkhart To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:Planning Commissioner Wang Should Not Be Removed Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 3:38:50 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests Wang and the current planning commissioners Steven Scharf and Muni Madhdhipatla have worked hard to approve the Westport Project, the new hotel at Cupertino Village, the Bateh Brothers site for new mixed-use housing, and complete their duty in housing element site selection. Wang has been a strong advocate for resident focused causes and keeping the city staff accountable. In fact, Wang continues to question why no action has been taken to create 5G tower architectural standards to protect our neighborhoods. The lack of a response by staff has been unacceptable. Wang also criticized a very inept housing element consultant at EMC who failed to complete the project required and cost the city 100's of thousands of dollars. For that, the staff again failed to take responsibility and accountability for hiring a bad consultant and he was told he was not respectful in criticizing our city staff and the consultant. This pattern of city staff behavior has been consistently challenged by Wang and the other pro- resident focused commissioners and council members. We need more residents like Wang who represent the interests of residents. Your potential removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated. Vincent Burkhart vburkhart7@gmail.com 10133 S. Tantau Ave. Cupertino, California 95014 From:David Lee To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:Stop The Divisiveness And Dirty Politics - Do Not Remove Planning Commissioner Wang Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 3:33:11 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Dear Cupertino City Council, City Attorney, City Manager, and City Clerk I am writing to you today with regards to the agenda item considering the removal of Commissioner Wang. The attempted removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated by a majority City Council that has lost the community's trust and faith. These new council members have colluded with staff to remove the resident focused council members from key committees, sought to shut down commissions where they do not have a majority, and seek to silence public commentary on agenda items at council and commission meetings. Just a few weeks ago, this city council and city staff attempted to write into the city code a way to remove former two-time Mayor Steven Scharf and current two-time Chair of the Planning Commission. This action was deemed unlawful and atrocious. The latest endeavor attempts to remove former two-time Chair and one-time Vice Chair of the planning commission R "Ray" Wang on trumped up charges of treating staff and consultants poorly, and calling out the staff's sand bagging of requests from the commission. The attempts to defame him and his reputation are quite shameful. The residents see this attack on Wang as part of a larger strategy to remove resident focused commissioners and replace them a "rubber stamped" commission that will do your bidding from approving a unnecessary expensive new city hall to jeopardizing future housing site selections and appeasement of developers who seek to build on the toxic site at Vallco without cleaning the land up. I've known Ray for over 30 years. The trumped up charges continue with these divisive YIMBYs Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests Wang and the current planning commissioners Steven Scharf and Muni Madhdhipatla have worked hard to approve the Westport Project, the new hotel at Cupertino Village, the Bateh Brothers site for new mixed-use housing, and complete their duty in housing element site selection. Wang has been a strong advocate for resident focused causes and keeping the city staff accountable. In fact, Wang continues to question why no action has been taken to create 5G tower architectural standards to protect our neighborhoods. The lack of a response by staff has been unacceptable. Wang also criticized a very inept housing element consultant at EMC who failed to complete the project required and cost the city 100's of thousands of dollars. For that, the staff again failed to take responsibility and accountability for hiring a bad consultant and he was told he was not respectful in criticizing our city staff and the consultant. This pattern of city staff behavior has been consistently challenged by Wang and the other pro- resident focused commissioners and council members. We need more residents like Wang who represent the interests of residents. Your removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated as many members of City Council including gave donations to the instigator, Richard Mehlinger who has a personal vendetta against Wang. Previous city councils have not capriciously dismissed commissioners in this fashion nor should they in the future. We feel Wang has represented us well and should continue to serve as our voice in the community Wang should serve out his term and you should be ashamed at your attempts to remove him. Please reconsider your actions to remove Wang from the planning commission. David Lee fyujunk@yahoo.com.sg Cupertino, California 95015 From:Jean Wang To:Kirsten Squarcia Subject:Planning Commissioner Wang Should Not Be Removed Date:Thursday, March 2, 2023 3:28:49 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City Clerk Kirsten Squarcia, Commissioner Wang has a long history of defending his community from developers and business interests who seek to take advantage of residents and their rights. I support his hard work and determination to represent the resident's interests Wang and the current planning commissioners Steven Scharf and Muni Madhdhipatla have worked hard to approve the Westport Project, the new hotel at Cupertino Village, the Bateh Brothers site for new mixed-use housing, and complete their duty in housing element site selection. Wang has been a strong advocate for resident focused causes and keeping the city staff accountable. In fact, Wang continues to question why no action has been taken to create 5G tower architectural standards to protect our neighborhoods. The lack of a response by staff has been unacceptable. Wang also criticized a very inept housing element consultant at EMC who failed to complete the project required and cost the city 100's of thousands of dollars. For that, the staff again failed to take responsibility and accountability for hiring a bad consultant and he was told he was not respectful in criticizing our city staff and the consultant. This pattern of city staff behavior has been consistently challenged by Wang and the other pro- resident focused commissioners and council members. We need more residents like Wang who represent the interests of residents. Your potential removal of Wang is unjust and politically motivated. Jean Wang jeanhmwang@gmail.com 10148 S Tantau Ave Cupertino, California 95014