CC 12-15-20 Item No. 1 Bird-Safe Dark Sky Postponement_Written CommunicationsCC 12-15-20
#1
Postponement,
Bird-Safe Dark Sky
Municipal Code
Amendment
Written Comments
1
Cyrah Caburian
From:Connie Cunningham <cunninghamconniel@gmail.com>
Sent:Monday, December 14, 2020 4:03 PM
To:City Council
Subject:Dec 15, 2020, Agenda Item 1, Postponement: Bird-Safe and Dark Sky Regulations
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.
Dear Mayor, Vice‐Mayor and Councilmembers,
Agenda Item 1: POSTPONEMENT: Subject: Municipal Code Amendments to adopt glazing and
lighting regulations to implement the Fiscal Year 2019/20 City Council Work Program items related to
Dark Sky and Bird‐Safe Design. (Application No. MCA‐2019‐003and MCA‐2019‐004; Applicant: City
of Cupertino; Location: City‐wide)
DO NOT POSTPONE discussion/approval of this agenda item. Vote December 15 to approve Bird‐Safe Design and Dark
Sky Municipal Code Amendments. Our City has been a leader on the behalf of the environment in many ways. Ex:
Cupertino was recently awarded the Platinum Beacon Vanguard Award for Leadership on Climate Change from the
Institute of Local Government. These two regulations are a natural fit with our leadership.
I commend City Staff, Ellen Yau, Erick Serrano and Piu Ghosh on their excellent report and for efforts on behalf of all of
us and the environment. Awareness is key to help people realize that they can help care for some of the smallest
living creatures among us.
I have spoken on behalf of wildlife, especially birds, and biodiversity a number of times. There has been much discussion
of the need to support nature and wildlife, including birds, over the past several months. There is significant support by
the community.
1. Sustainability Commission: support biodiversity in Climate Action Plan 2.0.
2. Bird‐Safe Design/ Dark Skies
a. Outreach meetings on this agenda item in February 2020,
b. Both Planning Commission meetings in Aug and Oct 2020, and
c. City Council meeting. Dec 1, 2020
I speak for birds because they cannot speak for themselves. These regulations will not only protect the birds in our City
that bring joy to residents, but will, also, protect all humans, since light pollution is detrimental to people as well as
wildlife.
Why I care: Millions of birds collide with windows every year. Overall numbers of birds are declining
radically. Residential homes are a key source of bird strikes because of the sheer number of homes. During early COVID
pandemic I posted a different wild bird species each day to NextDoor, and many, many, people responded with stories
of their own about the wild birds in their yards. This sharing of nature benefited all of us. KEY point: 1. Glass treatments
2
must be visible for all birds. 2. Note that glass treatments reduce the use of heating/air conditioning so save money and
energy.
Why I care: Light pollution is global. It affects the biology and health of humans as well as all living things. Many birds
migrate hundreds or thousands of miles each year. Little known fact: Birds migrate at night. Migrating birds are
distracted by artificial light from their nightly flight patterns. KEY points: 1. Turn off lights 11:00 pm. 2. Use no or very
little up‐lighting 3. Use below 2700 Kelvin light spectrum‐‐blue wavelengths cause stress.
Migratory birds within 1.5 miles of my home include Ruby‐Crowned Kinglets, Cedar Waxings, American Robins, Hooded
Orioles, Crowned Sparrows, and Yellow‐Rumped Warblers. These are just a few of the migratory birds whose numbers
will continue to fall if lighting in cities is not regulated. My photos of these 7 species are below.
I urge you to support Cupertino and take the recommended actions.
1) Find that the action is exempt from CEQA and,
2) Amend the Municipal Codes as specified in the report.
Your support will go a long way to educating all residents of the role we play in the long term health of our
environment and saving birds who bring us the thrill of flight, life and color in small packages. While protecting
them, we protect ourselves.
Sincerely,
Connie Cunningham
Lived in Cupertino for 33 years.
Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society Member for many years.
Ruby‐Crowned Kinglet—Migratory
Cedar Waxwing—Migratory
3
American Robin — Migratory
Hooded Oriole — Migratory
White‐Crowned Sparrow — Migratory
Golden‐crowned Sparrow‐Migratory
4
Yellow‐rumped Warbler‐Migratory
1
Cyrah Caburian
From:Shani Kleinhaus <shani@scvas.org>
Sent:Friday, December 11, 2020 12:05 PM
To:City Council; City Clerk
Cc:Dashiell Leeds; James Eggers; Kirsten Squarcia; Erick Serrano; Piu Ghosh; Matthew Dodder
Subject:December 15 2020: Bird Safe Design and Dark Sky
Attachments:SCVAS SCLP letter to Cupertino 12.15.2020.pdf
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sender and know the content is safe.
Dear Mayor Paul, Vice Mayor Chao and Cupertino City Councilmembers,
The Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society and the Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter thank you and City Staff for your diligence
and thoughtfulness reflected in the proposed municipal code amendments. Please see our letter pertaining to Regular
Meeting Item 1 (Postponements) attached. In this letter, we request that you do not postpone adopting Municipal
Code Amendments for glazing (Bird Safety). We are supportive of considering Dark Sky regulations in
January.
Respectfully,
Shani Kleinhaus, Environmental Advocate, Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society
Dashiell Leeds, Conservation Assistant, Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter
December 11, 2020
RE: Municipal Code Amendments to Adopt Glazing and Lighting Regulations
Dear Mayor Paul and Cupertino City Councilmembers,
The Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society and the Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter thank you and City Staff
for your diligence and thoughtfulness reflected in the proposed municipal code amendments. After
discussions with the Chamber of Commerce, we agree with the Chamber that Council should bifurcate
the Bird-Safe and Dark Sky Ordinances.
Bird Safe Design: Please immediately approve the “Alternative Draft Bird-Safe Only Ordinance” in
Attachment D as proposed
We strongly support the Alternative Draft Bird-Safe Only Ordinance in attachment D. This ordinance is a
straightforward and crucial step to protect Cupertino’s local and migratory bird populations from fatal
bird strikes and to safeguard biodiversity. Many other cities in the Bay Area, including Mountain View,
Sunnyvale, and San Francisco have successfully adopted and implemented Bird safety standards.
Companies like Intuit, Google, Facebook, Microsoft and others have used Bird-Friendly Design in their
projects.
Dark Sky Ordinance: Please defer to January 19th as proposed in the agenda
While we strongly support the Dark Sky Ordinance, we recognize that the Cupertino community is asking
for more time to understand how residential and commercial standards are to be applied and enforced.
Cupertino’s business community has been challenged by COVID-19 and we support taking this time to
allow them to review the ordinance. Fortunately, Dark Sky policies have been widely implemented
successfully across major economic sectors and entire nation states (Such as France) and we believe that
with education and communication, the Dark Sky Ordinance can return to City Council with the support
of all stakeholders.
Looking ahead: City buildings and streetlights
Given the control Cupertino has over its own municipal assets, we believe there is an opportunity for the
City to implement Bird-Safe Design and Dark Sky standards for its own buildings, as the city has done at
the McClellan Ranch Preserve. In addition, we hope that the City Council prioritizes in its 2021 work plan
a study of how to reduce light pollution from street lights and similar light sources.
Sincerely,
Shani Kleinhaus,
Environmental Advocate, Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society
Dashiell Leeds,
Conservation Assistant, Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter