Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Town to host community forums, get recommendation from Parks Commission on guidelines for off-leash dog recreation program at selected Los Gatos parks.
The Los Gatos Town Council voted unanimously Monday night to direct town staff to proceed with a dog off-leash pilot program at town parks through a public process. According to Town Manager Greg Larson, two to three community forums will be hosted through April and May to get the public’s input and ideas for such a program as well as get an ultimate recommendation from the town’s Parks Commission. The public will set guidelines for the pilot-program such as selecting three to four town parks to host unleashed dogs as well as select the amount of limited hours per day dogs will be allowed to be on the loose. More than two dozen community members came out to Monday's meeting in support of the program with not a single resident speaking in …
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Iconic dive bar on Los Gatos Boulevard is brought into compliance with town code.
After being "illegal," sort-of-speak, for about two decades, The Boulevard Tavern finally has a permit to operate as a bar now that the Los Gatos Town Council voted unanimously Tuesday evening to bring it into compliance. With Councilmember Steven Leonardis absent due to a family vacation, the Council voted 4-0 to give the owners of the land, where the watering hole operates, a so-called "conditional-use permit." The Tavern, 15043 Los Gatos Blvd., also avoided periodic permit review as had been suggested. “Our permits run with the land, not with the business, and it doesn’t seem fair to impose the subsequent review on the property owners,” said Councilmember Diane McNutt. “There are safety nets in place and we don’t need the extra …
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Council grants apartment complex owners 50 additional units after they meet state density bonus requirement.
The Los Gatos Town Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to allow the owners of the Riviera Terrace apartment complex to expand by 50 additional units. The decision came after the Council found that the complex owners, Sobrato Interests, meet the state law that allows a housing density bonus for property owners who provide at least 20 percent of their units at a below-market price rate. The town’s Planning Commission rejected the proposal at a Sept. 14 meeting, however, the town’s Planning Department recommended that the Council approve the expansion due to the density bonus statute. Of the 50 proposed expansion units, 25 are planned to be affordable housing, 24 are planned below-market price, and one is planned to be a moderate-priced …
Monday, January 9, 2012
Former Los Gatos Mayor Joe Pirzynski will serve as vice chairman of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority Board of Directors.
Former Los Gatos Mayor Joe Pirzynski has been appointed the new vice chairman of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority Board of Directors. The longtime town political leader will serve along with Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager, who will serve as chairman. The new leadership was welcomed Jan. 5 during its first meeting of the year. Yeager has been on the board for the past 11 years, serving most recently as vice chairman last year. Pirzynski, who's a member of the Los Gatos Town Council, chaired the VTA Board in 2005. “2012 will be a banner year for VTA,” said Yeager in a press release issued by the VTA. “This year, the agency will break ground on projects that include bringing BART to San Jose and creating the county’s …
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Town is in the process of developing a Sustainability Plan.
Practicality, funding and compliance with state legislation were the main concerns of the Los Gatos Town Council as it held a special study session Monday afternoon to develop a Sustainability Plan as directed by the 2020 General Plan. Consultants Joanna Jensen and Nicole Vermilion, of Berkeley-based The Planning Center DC&E, presented nine different town operation measures for the plan and gave council members a chance to weigh in on each. “The purpose of this meeting is to present a laundry list of measures to the council,” said Los Gatos Town Manager Greg Larson. “We want to know which measures are worthy and which are not so we can take them off our plate and focus on the ones that are.” Council members Joe Pirzynski and Diane McNutt …
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Meeting on Nov. 21 will decide who will be town's next mayor and vice mayor.
Los Gatos Vice Mayor Steve Rice is facing harsh criticism from some community members and fellow council members upset that he's openly stated he intends to bypass Councilwoman Barbara Spector for the body's second-in-command position when he becomes the town's nominal head next Monday. On Nov. 21, the Los Gatos Town Council, under the leadership of current Los Gatos Mayor Joe Pirzynski, will consider Rice's sure nomination for the mayor's job and his vice mayoral nomination, which some speculate will not be Spector based on statements Rice has made to Spector herself and the Los Gatos Weekly-Times. Community advocate Jonathan Knowles wrote to this publication this week and said: "I agree that to bypass Barbara Spector is unconscionable. I…
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Medical offices are also OK'd at 15400 Los Gatos Blvd.
The Los Gatos Town Council voted unanimously Monday night to allow the owners of The Terraces of Los Gatos senior-care facility to add a 23,000-square-foot, two-story building that will have 26 senior units—10 assisted-living and 16 memory care dwellings specifically built for patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. The facility, located at 800 Blossom Hill Rd., is owned by American Baptist Homes of the West. It currently includes 18 buildings that house 175 independent-living units, 59 skilled-nursing units and 35 assisted-living units. Twenty nine of the independent-living units are below market price units, according to a staff report. The building, which will be erected at the southwest corner of The Terraces, will be…
Monday, November 7, 2011
Los Gatos Community Foundation hosts CATillion Gala to support local scholarships, nonprofit grants and community improvement projects.
About $30,000 were raised Saturday evening for local scholarships, nonprofit grants and community improvement projects during the seventh annual Los Gatos Community Foundation's CATillion Gala at La Rinconada Country Club. According to LGCF Executive Director Sharon Childs, the organization has raised $200,000 for such purposes during the past six years. Some of the money's beneficiaries include the Auxiliary of Good Samaritan Hospital, a nonprofit organization that created ACCESS, or A Caring Community of Education, Services and Support, to help families of infants born prematurely or with special needs who face many challenges. Foundation President Janice McCabe presented Los Gatos Councilwoman Diane McNutt with the President's Award for…
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Santa Clara Valley Water District increases storage restrictions as safety measure.
Calero and Guadalupe dams are in deep doodoo should the earth underneath them start shaking and rolling, officials said this week. A Santa Clara Valley Water District study has found that both dams are subject to significant damage if a major earthquake were to occur. Guadalupe Reservoir is located southeast of Los Gatos, on the western edge of Almaden Quicksilver County Park and Calero Reservoir is located in the hills south of Almaden Valley, on McKean Road. The dams have been subject to storage restrictions based on earlier similar findings, according to district spokesman Marty Grimes. As a result of the new findings, the district has voluntarily decreased the amount of water the dams can hold to 25 feet below their crest. The new …
Friday, October 14, 2011
Los Gatos Business Park, LLC hires research firm to conduct survey in response to lawsuit filed challenging environmental review of project.
The proposed Netflix headquarters at the intersection of Albright Way and Winchester Boulevard enjoys "overwhelming" support from town residents, according to a survey conducted by the research firm of Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates or FM3. FM3 was hired to do the survey by the owners of the Los Gatos Business Park, LLC, who own the 21 acres of land where the new headquarters would be built. According to a press release issued Friday afternoon by Los Gatos Business Park, the survey was conducted Oct. 2-5 in response to a lawsuit filed mid September by a group calling itself Los Gatos Citizens for Responsible Development claiming the town failed to conduct an environmental impact report on the project. Survey results showed …
Vikki Foley Boyd
9:34 pm on Tuesday, March 27, 2012
If people want their voice to officially count, they need email the town council at council@losgatosca.gov This email will go to all the council members. more ›