By LAH largest increase in net assessed value
Santa Clara County Assessor Larry Stone announced the total net assessed value of all real and business personal property in the area. In Los Altos, the total net assessed value grew from $4.06 billion to $4.49 billion, representing a 10.56 percent increase. In Los Altos Hills, the net assessed value grew from $2.06 billion to $2.39 billion, representing a 16.25 percent increase.
At 16.25 percent, Los Altos Hills experienced the largest percentage growth in the county. Overall, according to Stone, “the county’s assessed value has grown a stunning 75 percent” since 1990.
The soon-to-be-released Assessor’s 2000-2001 Annual Report cites two major factors that have attributed to this growth: changes in property ownership and new construction. The growth has also resulted in a widening disparity between the assessed value of a home and its market value. In 1999, the gap widened to market value being, on average, $250,000 greater than assessed value.
HMOs dropped from SCCIPA medical group
One local physicians’ group is no longer accepting HMOs. Santa Clara County Individual Practice Association (SCCIPA), based in San Jose, yet affecting doctors in Mountain View and Los Altos, has stopped servicing all HMOs, including Aetna, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Sigma and Healthnet.
SCCIPA is a physician-owned medical group that links over 135,000 patients to their HMOs. According to Larry Bonham, CEO of SCCIPA, “the premium structures (of the HMOs) would not allow us to pay doctors in the El Camino Hospital area.” Bonham said that SCCIPA would be unable to pay doctors until “a better rate can be negotiated with the HMOs.”
Bonham said approximately 9,000 patients in the El Camino area will be affected by the change. For a complete list of member doctors, patients can access www.sccipa.com.
Investing decisions TASC luncheon topic
Lloyd Kurtz, a chartered financial analyst, will discuss the use and impact of social responsibility screens in making investment decisions at the Technology and Society Committee luncheon, scheduled for 11:45 a.m., Tuesday, at the Golden Wok Restaurant.
Kurtz did much of the quantitative work on the first broad-based index of stocks in socially responsible companies. He also oversees the industry’s Moskowitz Prize for the best study of socially responsible investing.
Golden Wok Restaurant is located at 895 Villa St. in Mountain View. Lunch is $7 for TASC members and $8 for nonmembers. For more information, call Bob Kirby at 969-7215 after 6 p.m.
B of LA reports 2nd quarter earnings
Bank of Los Altos reported second quarter earnings of $680,000, an increase of 117.9 percent compared to the same quarter last year. The wholly- owned subsidiary of Western Holdings Bancorp’s fully diluted earnings per share was 23 cents, compared to 11 cents per share in the same quarter last year.
Total assets were $223.3 million, an increase of $46.2 million or 24.7 percent over June 1999. Loans increased 23.5 percent and deposits increased 40.3 percent.
President Jim Wall said the positive results were partly the result of strong loan growth in single family residential mortgages and equity lines, and a significant increase in commercial loans to local businesses.
