By Who is 'majority' that supports theater?

I will freely admit that I feel a theater in downtown Los Altos is a silly idea. If the Bandera parking lot is so under-utilized then why isn’t Bandera allowed to open for lunch? And where exactly are all of the movie goers going to park if the theater is going to replace existing parking?

That being said, I wish to question the constant assertion from theater proponents that a “majority” of Los Altos residents support it. No one has asked me or anyone in my family if we support it.

I propose the city put a referendum on the next available general election ballot that asks whether we support a theater or not. With that question answered, the city council can then either get back to more important matters or start serious planning for the project.

Duane AllenLos Altos

Why doesn’t the district plan ahead?

The Los Altos School District administrators should explain how they are spending the bond money the citizens of Los Altos approved in 1998, before they can expect the voters to jump to the rescue and approve a 130 percent increase in parcel tax.

Instead of improving existing schools, they started out by rebuilding Covington School.

Now even with the proposed parcel tax they will not be able to open the new school.

Don’t they think ahead? They are losing the revenue of the rental income from the Montessori school and pre-schools who were using the buildings. The school district has to rent office space in downtown Los Altos for its district offices instead of using the Covington building That is a waste of money.

Don’t they think ahead?

On top of that, there are all those never-used, empty portables at Blach School. That costs a lot of money, too. Don’t they think ahead?

They have to scale down the upgrading of all the existing elementary schools, because Covington school costs too much! Don’t they think ahead?

And now they want the people of Los Altos to rescue them. I am all for paying our teachers, and teachers aides good salaries, but the administrators have to plan ahead and not be wasteful to win back the trust of the citizens. Maybe then Los Altos will support a reasonable parcel tax increase.

So please, together with all these upbeat stories about our schools, be honest and explain what went wrong with the Covington School planning.

Ineke LigtenbergLos Altos

School traffic OK, but pool another story

Covington School has now been open several weeks and what a joy it is to see so many children walking, biking and scootering on Rosita Avenue as they commute to and from school.

Many parents are walking, biking, jogging or pushing strollers as they accompany their children to school. In fact, there are so many that Rosita Avenue, between Campbell Avenue and the rear entrance to Covington School, is essentially becoming a pedestrian walkway.

To the school district’s credit, it has been very effective in convincing the majority of those who drive their children to school to use the front entrance of Covington School. This is in compliance with the Mitigated Negative Declaration (March 2000) for the environmental impact that would result from the opening of the school.

However the City Council is continuing with their plans to open a Regional Aquatic Complex at Rosita Park. Vehicle traffic for the pools will overlay the pedestrian traffic for Covington School, creating an unacceptable safety hazard for the children and adults who must use the street since sidewalks are either inadequate or nonexistent. In placing the Regional Aquatic Complex at Rosita Park, the City Council is abandoning their responsibility to provide for the safety of the children commuting to and from school. The Council must find an alternate site for the Regional Aquatic Complex. They cannot abdicate their responsibility to the safety of the children who will be attending Covington School.

Roy and Jan Presley

Los Altos

Big difference between pool and aquatic center

No one will deny that it would be a good thing if Los Altos had a swimming pool, a pool designed for its citizens and their children.It is quite another thing to place an Aquatic Complex in a quiet residential area with a school, baseball and soccer fields at the dead end.

This Aquatic Complex is designed to be financially feasible only if it attracts paying customers from the Bay area.Is the aim to produce an Olympic Champion in imitation of the Santa Clara Swim Club?

Mention has even been made to allow concessionaire stands at the Complex. The City Council seems bent on changing this quiet area into a de facto commercial zone.

This conglomerate has been called “Rosita Park”. It is not a park, it is a Sports Complex. Parks are designed for all people,where even the elderly might go and enjoy a walk.

It is time to reconsider this whole project.

Sylvanus J. Devine

Los Altos