32. Task force safe routes to school via Scenic CirDEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
CUPERTINU
Agenda Item No. ~~
SUBJECT
CITY HALL
10300 TORRE AVENUE • CUPERTlNO, CA 95014-3255
TELEPHONE: (408) 777-3110 • FAK: (408) 777-3366
STAFF REP4R:T
MEETING DATE: Novenriber 30, 2009
Consider farming a task force to study safe routes to Monta Vista High School, Kennedy Middle
School, and Lincoln Elementary School, including access via Scenic Circle.
BACKGRQUND
City Council voted to close the gate giving access to Blackberry Farm from Scenic Circle on
December 6, 2005. Council action followed e~ttensive discussion on the issue. Those opposed to
closing the gate included parents concerned about having safe bicycle and pedestrian routes to
school. These parents felt a route through Blackberry Farm, from Scenic Circle, was the safest
alternative. Those in support of closing the ga~:e cited concerns about parking, traffic, and safety
in the Scenic Circle neighborhood.
The Council discussed the access issue again on July 17, 2007, and agreed to foam a task force to
look into the issue, as long as it addresses the larger issue of safety in the tri-school area. Council
asked staff to return with proposals on forming; such a task force.
Once construction began on the Stevens Creek Corridor Trail and Blackberry Farm Park, the issue
became moat as the entire area was closed to public access. Duizng the construction of the trail and
the renovation of the park, the construction crew removed the north bridge (close to the Blackberry
Farm Golf Course), replaced the middle bridge: with a new bridge, and temporarily removed the
south bridge (close to the playground). The south bridge crossing was reconstructed in the same
location, after the work in Stevens Creek was completed. The south bridge is currently used for
maintenance purposes by staff. The neighbori:ag community was notified of this action on July 23,
2008 in a Notice of Construction Activity.
32-1
The Stevens Creek Corridor Trail and Blackberry Farm Park~reopened on Juiy 4, 2009. The
Director of Parks and Recreation established a Blackberry Farm Operations Advisory Committee to
provide the department advice on the day to day operations of the trail and the park. At its October
12, 2009 meeting, some of the neighbors brought the issue of providing a safe route to school
through Blackberry Fainn to the committee. The committee discussed ideas such as having the route
accessible from Scenic Circle, during school hours only, with Parks and Recreation contract staff
opening and closing the gate. Those who had supported closing the gate in 2005 and 2007
continued to oppose opening the gate for reasons of neighborhood safety, parking, and traffic.
Parents brought the same issue to the October 20, 2009 City Council meeting and spoke of the
need for a safe route to the tri-school area now that Blackbei-~y Farm and Stevens Creek Corridor
Trail are open.
ANALYSES
Access to Blackbei~y Farm from Scenic Circle has been an issue for several years. People on both
sides of the issue feel very strongly. Staff reviewed the minutes and the staff reports from the
Council meetings where this issue was discussed. The July 17, 2007 minutes indicated Council
du-ected staff to prepare a reconunendation for the composition of a task force and how it would
function, with emphasis on identifying a safe access to school for pedestrians and cyclists. Council
asked staff to return with alternative compositions for this task force. Now that the park and trail
have reopened, staff is bringing to Council, two task force composition alternatives and a
composition recommendation.
The purpose of this task force is to address the safety issues around the tri-school area and develop
recommendations for Council consideration. Ally alternative proposed by a task force would
include associated costs to provide the alternative. Impact on the surrounding neighborhood would
need to be evaluated. The task force would also consider impacts on Monta Vista, Ke~medy and
Lincoln schools.
Option 1: Staff is offering two task force composition options. A task force composed of a broad
based group of stakeholders interested in safety, including safe pedestrian and bicycle routes to the
tri-school area as follows:
Two City Council members serving as co-chairs of the task force
One Planning Commissioner
One Parks and Recreation Commissioner
One Bicycle and Pedestrian Commissioner
One Teen Commissioner
One Public Safety Commissioner
One representative from the Fremont Union High School District
One representative from the Cupertino Union School District
32-2
One representative from the County Sheriff
One representative from the people who opposf: a route through Blackberry Farm Park
One representative from the people who supports a route through Blackberry Farm Park
Option 2: A task force composed of fewer participants and including participants that have been
recently involved in safety in the tri-school are~i. Members of this alternative would include:
One City Council member serving as chair
One Public Safety Commissioner
One Bicycle and Pedestrian Commissioner
One Teen Commissioner
One representative from the County Sheriff
One representative from the Fremont Union High School District
One representative from the Cupertino Union ~.chool District
One representative from people who support a route through Blackberry Farm Park
One representative from people who oppose a 3•oute through Blackberry Farm Park
The first task force alternative is comprised of 12 members. The second task force has 9 members.
Under either option, task force members are se:'ected by their respective organization or a oup. The
task force would be responsible for developing a work plan and schedule. Task force
reconunendations would return to the City Council for action.
FLSCAL IMPACT
Staff support for either task force would come .from existuig resources.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends Option 1. While the task force is a bit larger than Option 2, the composition of
Option 1 includes those currently working on the issue of safety in the tri-school area, 'as well as
some fresh perspectives.
32-3
SUBMITTED BY:
~'"
Lin er
Director, Parks and Recreation
APPROVED FOR SUBMISSION BY:
David W. Knapp
City Manager' '
32-4
EXHIBITS
BEGIN
HERE
cc /i ~- ~~~--coq
Linda Lagergren
From: leslie fowler [fowlerl555@att.net]
Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 12:33 PM
To: Orrin Mahoney; Dolly Sandoval; M;~rk Santoro; Gilbert Wong; Kris Wang
Cc: dknapp@cupertino.org; mlindor@cupertino.org; bchang@cupertino.org;
saferidescupertino@gmail.com
Subject: Scenic Circle Gate
My name is Leslie Fowler and I live on Mira Vista Road in Cupertino. Due to a conflict, I
will be unable to speak during the Scenic CirclE~ Gate Agenda Item#32. Therefore, at this
time, I would like to request that the City Council Members approve the creation of a task
force to study this issue. Last month, I submitted a petition requesting that the Scenic
Circle Gate be reopened. That petition had over 100 signatures from the immediate
neighborhood including many families with sch~~ol age children who had used this route
prior to the Blackberry Farm renovation and thE~y are interested in using this route to get to
school again. My son enrolled at Kennedy this past Fall. He tells me that Kennedy is
currently promoting "Fresh Air Friday." "Fresh ~~ir Friday" awards students that walk and/or
bike to school. However, those in my neighborhood and surrounding neighborhoods do
not have a safe bike route to school. They are i~orced to travel on either Stevens Creek
Boulevard, a very steep, fast ,busy road or McClellan, a narrow, winding road that is busy
with students trying to get to school on time. I v~ion't let me child ride on these roads; many
parents feel the same way. Tonight, I represent: my neighbors in this request for a task
force approved by the City Council. My neighbors and I would like to have the newly
installed Blackberry Farm gate at the bottom of Scenic Circle, which is a public road,
reopened. That way the school kids can ride tl'leir bikes through Blackberry Farm and
then continue on to Kennedy Middle or Monte \/ista High School. This route will keep them
off any main roads.
I have lived in this neighborhood for over 20 years. During the Park renovation, a long,
black fence was erected along the entire length of Scenic Circle Blvd. However, there is a
gate that can be easily opened and closed by the Park staff that will allow access to the
Park during park hours. My neighborhood has used Scenic Circle Blvd. to get to
Blackberry Farm for as long as I have been here. We would like to once again have
access to the Park via the neighborhood.
Thank You.
Leslie Fowler
Cupertino, CA
c~~/~~- 3c,. c~~
_~ 3 ~-
Linda Lagergren
From: Loy Oppus [loy.oppus@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 11:1 i AM
To: saferidescupertino@gmail.com; M~~rk Linder; barry4cupertino@gmail.com; City Council
Cc: Kim Rennak; Johnston Nicole; StoM;es Cathy; renuka krishnan
Subject: Safe Routes to Monta Vista HS, Kennedy MS, Lincoln Elementary
Dear City Council,
We would like to express our full support for the formation of a Task Force to find positive and safe routes for
our children as they commute to and from school. Specifically, the route through Blackberry Farm is an
immediate issue that needs to be addressed.
We have been encouraging our students to ride bikes to school to reduce traffic, encourage green alternatives to
driving cars, and improve students' physical fitness. Howf;ver, this presumes safe routes and convenient routes
for them to take.
We are especially troubled that there is currently no altern;~tive route to travel to Monta Vista/Kennedy from the
West side of campus other than McClellan Road or Stevens Creek. Both of these streets have high traffic
volume combined with a steep downgrade toward the creek. McClellan does not even have a bike lane so
students must compete with car traffic on the street. Soma, students have been involved in multiple accidents
on bikes and in cars on these streets.
We urge the Council to follow through with the creation of the Task Force and ensure that its work moves
forward expeditiously so we can reduce the risk that stude~lts face daily, and reduce the traffic congestion on
our city streets.
Respectfully,
Loy Oppus-Moe
PTA President
Kennedy Middle School
On behalf of the Kennedy Middle School Parent Teacher f\ssociation
cc %//- :3~~ ~-~~~~
~ 3 ~~
Linda Lagergren
From: Bill Wilson [bwilsonca@earthlink.nE~t]
Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 11:47 AM
To: Orrin Mahoney
Subject: School Traffic
Orrin,
Welcome back and congratulations on the re-election. As I have said, I do want to make sure we jointly work on the issue
of traffic around our schools. The specific proposal for a task fc>rce to look at safe routes for bicycling/walking from the
Scenic Circle area certainly seems like a valuable thing to do. IVlore broadly, I think it is important to have a group with
representatives of the city and schools to look at the whole range of solutions including schedule modifications that might
be possible if we wind up with lights. Feel free to call me at 40f1-309-3956 at anytime. I will continue to work on the
FUHSD side to get more thinking on specifics of this. Any idea: you have on the best way to proceed to get some
momentum for this are most welcome.
Thanks,
Bill Wilson
~-~ ~-
Linda Lagergren
From: Roger and Dana Stern [rd-stern@comcast.net]
Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 8:56 ~~M
To: City Council
Subject: Scenic access
Hello Council Members
Thank you for considering this topic again in the agenda tonight:. Both of my children walked and biked to and from
Kennedy a few years ago (they are now both at Monta Vista). I can't tell you how dangerous the McClellan hill is for
children trying to ride their bikes to school. Cars speed through that area and there is no room for a bike lane. In addition,
the sidewalk does not continue on both sides of the street, so students have to cross at the crosswalk in the middle, which
many do not. When they reach the top of the hill, there isn't a crosswalk to get them from the Ranch side of the street to
Linda Vista. They have to dash across when they don't see car:.
To me, that is unbelievable. This is supposed to be an acceptable route to school? No wonder many parent want to
drive their children a few blocks to Kennedy and Monta Vista.
The only other route from the Monta Vista neighborhood would be to go to Stevens Creek up to Byrne and across
McClellan by Monta Vista. This route takes them out of the way.
I don't understand why Scenic Circle is allowed to keep our community hostage to a safe, alternative path to school for
our children. Scenic is a public street and now we have a new t~ridge to link the neighborhood on a safe path up to Byrne
ave.
Please consider opening this path before something regrettable happens to a family.
Thank you,
Dana Stern
10418 Palo Vista Rd
-~~ :~ a
Linda Lagergren
From: Zimmers, Karen [karen.zimmers@Imco.com]
Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 8:47 i~M
To: City Council; barry4cupertino@gm~iil.com; Mark Linder
Cc: saferidescupertino@gmail.com
Subject: Task Force to revew Scenic acces:~ to Blacberry
I will not be able to make the council meeting tonight, but I fully support opening an access at Scenic through Blackberry
as an alternative to kids riding down McClellan or Stevens Creek Blvd!!!!! Thanks for listening!
cc'/i/- ~~~ C~'7
,~ ~ '~,
Linda Lagergren
From: Carol Stanek [cstanek@echelon.com]
Sent: Sunday, November 29, 2009 11:18 PM
To: Dolly Sandoval
Subject: Task Force Agenda Item
Hi Dolly,
At this point I am thinking that the Task Force may be our only opportunity to get the real issues addressed for Scenic
Access and I am asking all the Council members (including Barry) to support it. Maybe we can deal with real issues and
not made up fears and hysteria. But in order for the Task ForcE~ to be useful, it needs to be focused on access from the
west side for alternatives to McClelland and Stevens Creek Blv~~. If it is saddled with a generic "School Traffic and safety
charter" it will never get anywhere. It also needs to have some sense of urgency to report back to the Council so it does
not go into the black hole where previous Task forces have gone.
Lastly, in case the issue of who would serve from the Council c~~mes up tomorrow, since Kris has demonstrated an
advocacy on behalf of the Scenic neighbors to keep the access closed, I think it is inappropriate for her to serve on the
Task Force.
I'm sure your last Council meeting will be bittersweet. Thanks for all your service to Cupertino and your help on this
issue.
All the best,
Carol
Linda Lagergren
From: Neena Kashyap [neenabobeena@c~mail.com]
Sent: Sunday, November 29, 2009 7:08 F'M
To: City Council; barry4cupertino@gm~iil.com; Mark Linder; saferidescupertino@gmail.com
Subject: Support of a City Task Force to review an alternative to riding on McClellan and Stevens
Creek
Hello,
My name is Neena Kashyap and I am a senior at Monta Vista High School. I am writing this email to speak in
favor of opening Blackberry Farm to students walking and. biking to Monta Vista and Kennedy. As a student
who biked and walked to Kennedy and Monta Vista for fi~~e years, I have seen many close calls between cars
and bikers, and I believe that opening up Blackberry Farm is a good and safe alternative to students biking and
walking on McClellan Road.
Due to the large number of students at both schools, biker;; on McClellan are forced to contend with many cars,
most with stressed parents trying to get their child to school on-time. With these conditions, added to by a
narrow road without a bike lane, there is no mystery as to why over the three years I biked to school I witnessed
bikers dangerously swerving around cars. The biggest danger occurs when traffic becomes stop and go, and
bikers bike past long lines of cars. I have seen bikers getting hit by doors that suddenly fly open as a kid gets
illegally dropped off, and have gotten hit by a door myself. All this accidents and the many close calls I have
witnessed, prompted me to switch from biking to walking, seeking the safety of the sidewalk.
Opening up Blackberry Farm to bikers and walkers would eliminate most of the danger of biking to school. It
would cut out bikers riding along cars on McClellan and give them a safer and shorter way to get to school.
Also, opening up Blackberry Farm would be more convenient to walkers, since they would not have to curve
around McClellan ranch and could go straight through Blackberry Farm, which could possibly increase the
number of students that walk or bike. Although I will not tie able to reap the benefits of this shortcut, since I am
graduating, when I used to walk/bike, I wished I could have used this shortcut. I hope you consider opening up
Blackberry Farm to students on their way to school, because the benefits in safety are numerous, and there are
little to no drawbacks.
Thanks you,
Neena Kashyap
22468 Palm Avenue
~ ~~
Linda Lagergren
From: Adrian Kolb [adkolb@gmail.com]
Sent: Sunday, November 29, 2009 12:05 PM
To: City Council; barry4cupertino@gm~iil.com; Mark Linder; saferides@gmail.com
Subject: Scenic access
Dear Council, Mark and Saferides,
I support the formation of a task force to consider opening access at Scenic blvd through Blackberry. Cupertino
is a city that has shown it cares about our kids, and this is ;~ way to do something about it. I understand that
residents don't want cars parked on their street, but anyone who lives near a park has to deal with that. I live
near a park, and have cars parked in front of my house all the time. Let's create the task force, look into all the
issues surrounding the neighbor concerns, and take action that benefits our city. The kids riding to school along
McClellan deserve that.
Thank you.
Adrian Kolb
~~
~~ ~
Linda Lagergren
From: Steve Mix [stevemix4@att.net]
Sent: Friday, November 27, 2009 7:22 P~~I
To: City Council; barry4cupertino@gm~~il.com
Cc: Mark Linder
Subject: Pedestrian access
Good evening one and all. I hope your Thanksgiving celebrations were chalked full of family, friends and many reasons to
be thankful!
We are writing to you tonight to seek your support of pedestriar and bicycle access from the Scenic neighborhood to
Lincoln Elementary, Kennedy Middle and Monte Vista High School. Our children need to have a safe way to travel to and
from school. In addition to our children's safety, if we can remove cars from the road it will benefit all of us and our
environment.
Please consider the creation of the Task Force for our children.
Sincerely,
Steve and Darlene Mix
stevemix4Cc~att. net
Linda Lagergren
From: Tom Scannell [tscanne1101@earthlink.net]
Sent: Friday, November 27, 2009 12:38 F'M
To: City Council; barry4cupertino@gm~~il.com; Mark Linder; saferidescupertino@gmail.com
Subject: Task Force for bicycle and pedestrian access through Blackberry to Kennedy and Monta Vista
Hello
My name is Tom Scannell and I live at 10208 Cass Place in Cupertino. I have lived here for 25 years and Cupertino
for 30 years.
It has recently been brought to my attention that the City Council will be considering a petition at the November 30
City Council meeting regarding pedestrian/bicycle access through Scenic Boulevard/Scenic Circle to Blackberry
Farm and onto Kennedy Junior High and Monta Vista High School.
I want to let the City Council know that I fully support the forrnation of this task force and I am in favor of opening
such a trail. My son is a graduate of Stevens Creek, Kennedy and Monta Vista. While he was attending Kennedy
and Monta Vista my wife and I encouraged him (and all his f~~iends) to use the then "unofficial access" through
Blackberry rather than risking his safety riding his bike down the very heavily trafficked McClellan road. I know many
other parents at our end of town also encouraged this practice. I was disappointed, but understood, when the
"unofficial" access was lost during the Blackberry restoration.
Now that the restoration is complete, I would like to support i:he opening of "official" access for the safety and
convenience of the kids at this end of town.
As a weekend walker I would also appreciate the opportunit)~ to gain access to the newly restored Blackberry farm
from Scenic. Once the other end of the Blackberry park is ok~ened at Stevens Creek I think the path through the park
to both McClellan and Scenic will make for a good circuit!
With all this said, I fully appreciate the concerns that my neighbors on Scenic Blvd/Scenic Circle may have about
public access through their neighborhood. I understand many of them were relieved when the access was closed. I
am hoping that this task force can address both access and my neighbor's concerns. I am sure there must a
reasonable accommodation that can be reached with good will on both sides.
Tom Scannell
3 "~
Linda Lagergren
Subject: FW: In Support of Task force to Study Safe Routes to Monta Vista High, Kennedy Middle and
Lincoln Elementary schools
From: Suman Ganapathy [mailto:sumanmitraganapathy@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 9:39 AM
To: saferidescupertino@gmail.com; Mark Linder; barry4cupertino@gmail.com; City Council
Subject: In Support of Task force to Study Safe Routes to Morita Vista High, Kennedy Middle and Lincoln Elementary
schools
November 30, 2009
To,
Cupertino City Council,
Cupertino, CA-95014.
Re: In Support of Task force to Study Safe Routes to 1'VIonta Vista High, Kennedy Middle and Lincoln
Elementary schools
Dear City Council,
The Monta Vista High School PTSA is tremendously concerned about the lack of safe bicycle routes to school. We try to encourage
our students to ride bikes to school to reduce traffic, encourage green alternatives to driving cars, and improve students' physical
fitness.
We are especially concerned that there is currently no alternative route to travel to Monta Vista from the West side of campus other
than McClellan Road or Stevens Creek. Both these streets have high traffic volume combined with a steep downgrade towards the
creek. McClellan does not even have a bike lane, so students are forced to compete with car traffic on the street. This problem is faced
by our neighboring elementary (Lincoln) and middle (Kennedy) schools too. Our students have been involved in multiple accidents on
bikes and in cars on these streets.
Therefore, our PTSA Monta Vista PTSA (MVPTSA) is in full support of a Task Force to examine any and all alternative routes to the
campus, possibly including a route through Blackberry Farm. We hope the Council will follow through with the creation of such a
Task Force and ensure that the work of the Task Force moves forward expeditiously so that we can reduce the risk that students face
daily on their bikes as they ride to school.
In addition, we would love to offer a liaison to be part of the taskforc~~, to be able to help out with this important issue of student
safety.
Sincerely,
Suman Ganapathy.
President, MVPTSA,
On behalf of MVPTSA Members.
S~ ~~~-~ K ~~~~Y
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July 17, 2007
's
6
Cupertino City Council
A~10:38 Mayor Wang closed the public hearing.
The mot~pns were taken in reverse order.
UPERTINO
Page 8 ~~a
The Deputy Ci Clerk read the title of the Ordinance. ok/Mahoney moved and
seconded to read th rdinance by title oily, and the Deputy City Clerk's reading
would constitute the firs eading thereof. A wok, Mahoney, Sandoval, and Wang.
Noes: None. Absent: Lowent /
Kwok/Mahoney moved and onded~prove the Tentative Map with 12 attached and
8 detached units and one mmon area. Tl.e tion carried 4-0, with Lowenthal absent.
Kwok/Mahone moved and seconded to adopt the Permit and Architectural Site
Review fo 2 attached and 8 detached units, and one comm area with the additional
condi ' n to eliminate on-street parking and have all 56 parking ces on-site. The
ion carried 4-0, with Lowenthal absent.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
14. Authorize removal of the Scenic Circle l3rid e as part of the Stevens Creek Corridor
Restoration Project.
City Manager Dave Knapp distributed a demo from Consultant Shawn Chartrand from
Balance Hydrologics, Inc.
Phil Phlager requested that the bridge remain for access to Scenic Circle from Monta
Vista.
Jim Bodwin said that a replacement bridge plan should be in place before the bridge is
removed.
Michael Stanek said that local park and trail access is crucial especially to the Stevens
Creek Corridor Park and that no access is in opposition to the idea of walkability and
biking in Cupertino. He urged Council to commit to a new bridge before tearing out old
one.
Leslie Fowler said she would like her children to have access to the park because of the
busy streets surrounding her house. She zrged reconstruction of the bridge rather than
removing it.
Anne Ng urged Council to replace the l:~ridge with an ADA acceptable bridge before
removing it. She also urged Council to m:ike the San Fernando entrance to the park safe
for cyclists and pedestrians.
July 17, 2007 Cupertino Cit;~ Council Page 9
Carol Stanek urged Council to explore all options first and then commit to a new bridge
as necessary.
I. Yuen showed pictures of the bridge. He said that the bridge is in poor condition and
needs to be removed now or the City might have legal issues. He noted that the City
should focus its resources on making facilities better in Blackberry Farm instead of
building a new bridge for access to a restoration area.
No action was taken.
BUSINESS
15. onduct a hearing to approve assessment of fees
(pri to parcels), and adopt Resolution No. 07-128.
This item ~s taken up earlier in the meeti~lg.
16. Consider adoptin resolution to amend
commissions, Resolu ' No. 07-129.
Sandoval/Kwok moved ands onded to,aCdopt Resolution No. 07-129. The motion
carried 4-0, with Lowenthal absent. °
17. Designate a votin dele ate and ternate r the League of California Cities Annual
Conference.
Sandoval/Kwok moved d seconded to designate Ma Wang as the delegate, Vice
Mayor Kwok as the fir alternate and CoL.ncil member Mah ey as the second alternate.
The motion carried 9~0, with Lowenthal absent.
ORDINANCES - N
STAFF REPORT`S -None
COUNCIL,~tEPORTS -None
ADJO
2:32 a.m. on July 18 the meeting was adjour:led to August 21. The first meeting in August
cancelled.
Grace Schmidt, Deputy City Clerk
October 17, 2006
Cupertino City Council
CSC I(~3~~~~
Page 6 ~~ `'2
obert Hirt said he was a Cupertino resident and President of the Santa Clara Valley
A ubon Society. He invited the community to McClellan Ranch Park for the Wild ' e
Educ 'on day on Saturday. He said they supported the creek relocation to benef the
fish, but ked Council to minimize tree re;moval, since many of the non-native ees are
habitats for variety of birds, including the Western Screech Owl.
~~p~i~TlNpPat Showalter, sen' r project manager with Santa Clara Valley Water strict working
with the city, said thi each of stream is very valuable as a steelhea trout habitat, an
endangered species in the unty.
F~
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Jennifer Griffin asked why mo is not being spent to crea parks in north or east
Cupertino. She was concerned ab t pr~~moting the break of the Vallco shopping
center from a shopping district into a 'ecemeal project th would support parks at the
other end of town. She also questione whether it w s wise to annex the Hanson
Permanente quarry because of the associated e vironme al problems.
Gail Bower showed a slide of the impartial
Blackberry Farm was to be purchased and p
delineated between the Fremont Older scho
recreation. She said that the picnic ground.; p~
are a major public recreation activity an~ nog
picnic facility and tree removal.
Alex Tsai said he had been a
environmental and neighborhooc
park should be preserved for
driveway around his house y r-
the pool area
cnal is of Measure T which stated that
:s rye s open space, and noted that it
site wh' h was designated for public
fined for the tevens Creek Corridor Park
open space, a she was opposed to the
dent in the park for 15 year , and felt that the
sues had not yet been fully addres d. He said the
•e and a trail only, and the current an to open a
nd is a violation of the deed, as is the fe cing around
Barbara Banfield said e had been employed as a naturalist at the City of Cup ino's
McClellan Ranch fo 0 years. She said that although she loves the trees that are ere
now, the area is i overished because there is no understory, which is a valuable hab at
for birds, and th deadwood has been removed, which supports the insects on which th
birds feed. S suggested that when the trees are removed, their large trunks should be
left on the pr perty, and said that the new t:-ees are necessary to replace the sycamores and
oaks that naturally declining.
Kwok/ andoval moved and seconded to af~prove Resolution No. 06-174 as recommended
by s ff, selecting Alternative No. 3 with a completion date of April 2008 for the basic
P se I project. Mahoney offered a friendly amendment to change the word "budget" to
`scope". The amendment was accepted an~i the motion carried unanimously.
15. Request from the Bicycle Pedestrian Commission to encourage the reopening of
the Scenic Circle, the preservation of the existing Blackberry Farm Bridge over
Stevens Creek, and propose the formation of a neighborhood Task Force to consider use-
related conditions for this bicycle and pedestrian corridor. (No documentation in packet).
October 17, 2006 Cupertino Cite Council Page 7
The City Clerk distributed a letter dated October 16, signed by the principals of Monta
Vista High School, Kennedy Middle School, and Lincoln Elementary School regarding
alternate pedestrian and bicycle routes. Shf; also distributed a letter from Stewart Kelly, a
resident opposed to reopening the gate from Scenic Circle to Blackberry Farm.
Bicycle Pedestrian Commissioner Joe 'JJalton, representing the Cupertino Bicycle
Pedestrian Commission, asked the City Council to commission a task force to attempt to
reach consensus about a number of issues, and specifically to find awest-side access
through the park to accommodate cyclists ;end pedestrians. He explained that many of the
people who signed the original petition asking for the gate closure have changed their
mind, because they only wanted to prohibit parking in the area, not to have the park
access closed. He suggested the task forcf; be made up of 10 or 12 volunteers from the
neighborhood who will work with the public works staff and a facilitator.
Paul Orleas said that as part of his employment, he was licensed to a first responder
operational level, so in case of emergencie~~ he would be one of the first on the scene. He
said that an access point at Scenic circle was necessary to provide access for emergency
vehicles and responders, for the safety of b~~th residents and responders.
Linda Orvick said she was in support of tl~e proposed task force as well as reopening the
gate to Scenic Boulevard, and talked about the need to create safe routes for pedestrians
and cyclists.
Theresa Dickerson was in favor of the t~.sk force and she talked about the number of
accidents involving children crossing Mc(:lellan and how critical it was to create a safe
access.
Denise Montijo said her son was one of the children in an accident in that area. She said
that there is not sufficient room for a bicycle and car to share the road there. She
supported creation of the task force.
Rhoda Fry talked about the future impacts on the park, which at this time can not be
known, but if this gate is reopened she wo~idered what additional mitigation measure will
be taken. She said that many of the roads around the park are substandard and the safety
issues have not been studied.
Leslie Fowler was in support of the task i orce and reopening the pedestrian and bicycle
access at Scenic Boulevard. She was also in favor of creek restoration but felt the
development of recreation facilities should be done at some other site.
Norm Donovan was in favor of the task force and reopening the gate.
Max Bokelman was opposed to the opening gate, and said the idea for a task force has
been tried before in 2000. He said whf;n the gate was open there was little use by
children, but teenagers used it as a part; location. Bokelman said there had been a
number of arrests across from his home, some of which occurred in the day time, and
reopening the gate would again expose the neighborhood to those same kinds of
October 17, 2006 Cupertino City Council Page 8
disturbances. He explained which schools were attended by students from that
neighborhood, and said that McClellan Ro<<d is not a safe route to school.
Ari Strod said the solution is to improve the condition of McClellan Road, not to reopen
the gate, and mentioned that his property had also been vandalized. He did not oppose
the formation of the task force.
Steve Moody said this is rehashing the issue and may result in additional costs, and said
that this neighborhood should not be looke~~ to as the first solution. He said that if the task
force is formed, it should review ways to improve McClellan Road.
Larry Loo agreed that this was a rehashing of a previous discussion, and he was opposed
to forming a commission to look at it again.
Bob Hoxsie in was in favor of the task force and reopening the gate to pedestrians and
cyclists.
Jennifer Griffin suggested that the task fort:e also explore the possibility of school buses.
Art Rodrigues said he was in support of thE~ task force.
Carol Stanek said that since there is new information from the neighbors who had
originally petitioned to have the access closed, it is appropriate to review the situation.
She said it needs to be determined what kind of access would be safe on Scenic Circle, if
any.
I. Yuen said that "safe route to schoc-1" is simply a slogan, and not a sensible
implementation in the Scenic Circle neighborhood, and instead the focus should be on
improving safety around the schools and o~i McClellan Avenue.
The Council members agreed that they were willing to have a task force look into this
issue as long as it addresses the larger issues of safety around the tri-school area and not
just reopening access to the park. Staff was directed to prepare a recommendation for the
composition of the task force and how it would function, with emphasis on identifying a
safe access to school for pedestrians and c}~clists.
16. onsider a petition for reconsideration of the City Council's decision to approve
App 'on Nos. U-2006-06, ASA-2006-06, TR-2006-09, & EA-2006-09; Tiff Chang
(Chang Arcfii~a~ture), 10495 N. De Anna Blvd., APN No. 3 - 0 (former Any
a) Use Permit and Architect`ut~anct~ Site Review to demolish an existing 27,000
square foot office building and cori~~xuct a 60,000 square foot office building and
parking structure "~ ~`"'~-,.`
b) free Removal and replanting for a proposed 60,000 squat of office building
,~%~~ ~' and parking structure
Cc-- ~ I l - 3 O ~~~~~
December 6, 2005
Cupertino City Council
Page 5
LowenthaUJames moved and seconded t:o continue this item to January 3. The motion
carried with Wang absent.
17. Authorize the City Manager to sign a lease agreement for rental of the Simms house.
This item was removed from the agenda ley staff.
Mayor Kwok reordered the agenda to take up item number 21 next.
NEW BUSINESS
21. Consider Scenic Circle access to the Stevens Creek Corridor Park. (This item was
continued from October 18).
Parks and Recreation Director Therese Srnith reviewed the staff report.
Mayor Kwok opened the public hearing at 7:27 p.m. Council member Kris Wang rejoined
the meeting.
The following individuals were in favor of opening up access to the park from Scenic
Circle:
Paul Oleas Ronda. Hoxsie
Kay Knapp Janet Trankle
Jim Bodwin Aaron Grossman, Executive Director,
Michael Stanek Friends of Stevens Creek Trail
Carol Stanek Rhoda. Fry
Deborah Hill Chris ~Gatley
Anne Ng
Their comments included: Scenic Circle is adjacent to other parks and schools; Council
should grant pedestrian and bike access, remove the locks, and return control of the park
to the Parks and Recreation Department as in the past; kids should be able to walk and
bike to school for health and safety reasons; access should be kept open for everybody;
safer and shorter route to schools are needed; it would be an improved park and would be
safe for kids to pass through; would avoid cars on McClellan Road; to close off access
completely would stop others from enjoying the park; there are ways to discourage car
traffic like restricting parking, installing speed bumps, and adding a mirror at the blind
corner; bicycle and pedestrian access w~~uld be a wonderful asset to the neighborhood;
others signed the petition to close the aa;ess, but are now asking to open it; parks should
not be secluded and should be accessible by any public street that borders it; it's not a
problem for property values; many kids ti~ike and walk to Kennedy Middle School and it's
safer to take the Scenic Circle route to school; the street won't attract a lot of cars because
there is no parking lot there; parking can be regulated by permit parking; in Mountain.
View, every house near the trail has increased property value; neighborhoods need to
December 6, 2005 Cupertino City Council Page 6
share both the burden and the enjoyment of having a park; neighbors shouldn't have
private access to a public park.
The following individuals were against opening up access to the park from Scenic Circle:
Max Bokleman Stewart Kelly
Ari Strod Bob Murphy
Terry Brown Bill Hawkes
Marc McGee Larry Loo
Don Bautista Steve Moody
Eva Low Mark Burns
Ryan Joe Imam Yuen
Ken Joe
Their comments included: There is no need for another entry to the park; concern about
traffic, especially motorcycles coming into the neighborhood; concern about parking, and
decline of property values as a result of strangers and additional traffic in the
neighborhood; congestion of trail users; recurrence of disturbances and crime; the serene
setting and privacy of the neighborhood is compromised; no good reason to allow access
from Scenic Circle; avoid problems in the future regarding people complaining about cars
and permit parking; the streets are narrow and don't have sidewalks; any traffic at all
would compete with pedestrians; none of the 220 people who signed the petition were
told that a vehicular entrance to the park would be added -they were told it was only for
pedestrians and bicycles; the park is unsafe for kids to pass through; concern that more
people would use the park illegally if the gate were open year-round; residents would not
have bought their house if they knew the neighborhood might become a parking lot;
people prefer to park in front of houses instead of designated parking lots; a slideshow
depicted cars parked on both sides of Scenic Circle, while other cars are driving up and
down the street, trying to pass each other; Scenic Circle is the only access in and out of
the neighborhood and the 12% grade is difficult to navigate already without adding
bicyclists and pedestrians; there are 2 blind corners and it's unsafe for bicyclists and
pedestrians; the amount of kids who use that access is low, so closing it wouldn't affect
very many; concern about unknown drivers in an area who aren't familiar with the blind
corners; neighbors with 95% agreement have expressed their desire to not have access to
the park; increased traffic equates to safety issues; make the current route on McClellan
Road safer; the Scenic Circle access is not needed for the success of the trail; kids don't
walk and bike to school anymore invalidating the idea of greater access for kids to school;
opening the gate would cost property owners at least $50,000 in properly values because a
private street would be turned into asemi-private one; the proposed trail entry is unsafe
due to lack of sidewalks, narrow streets, sharp curves and steep slopes.
The public hearing was closed at 9:11 p.m.
Therese Smith and consultant Jana Sokale answered Council questions regarding parking
issues. Their comments included: most people will come to the trail under their own
power rather than drive a car; staff could install "no parking" signs with stiff fines; the