By Linda Taaffe

Residents launch citywide mailing to refute claims that voters don’t want new building

A Los Altos Hills resident group raising community donations for a new, city-approved town hall refuted an opposition group’s recent opinion poll that claimed most residents were against the mission-style building. Members for Town Hall launched a mailing earlier this month to counter alleged fallacies they say members of LAH Watchdog have been circulating about the new $4.9 million town hall planned for Fremont Road.

Mayor Bob Fenwick’s wife, Jan Fenwick, who is leading the public relations campaign, called the survey misleading, especially regarding construction costs and project funding.

Fenwick said she believes that 95 percent of the 471 residents who allegedly responded to the survey said they supported a smaller, scaled-down town hall because the information was worded in a way that implied residents would be required to pay $2,000 each for the construction of the stucco building. She also questioned the group’s claim that residents could build a town hall with the same square footage as the city council’s design at half the cost.

“Why have residents vote on something without the facts,” she said. “They’re pulling things out that just aren’t true.”

Fenwick said the town hall won’t cost residents anything. There will be no assessments, new taxes or the sale of town-owned property, she said. The city plans to fund $3.5 million of the building costs from the $5 million available in its reserves fund and will rely on resident donations for the remaining $1.4 million.

Planning Director Carl Cahill said the $4.9 million building estimate includes building, demolition, interior and exterior furnishings, as well as other expected costs, such as temporary staff relocation. A price breakdown from Goldman Architects estimates the construction and demolition costs at $3. 5 million.

Cahill said the cost works out to about $400 per square foot.

Resident Mark Breier, leading the campaign to build a scaled-down wood-framed town hall that residents have designed, said his recent opinion poll shows that many residents believe the city design is too extravagant.

He claims that his design would be the same square footage at half the cost based on average office construction costs in the area.

Breier said his 7,188 square-foot building would cost about $250 per square foot or about $1.8 million according to commercial building estimates from South Bay Construction.

Breier said the $2000 cost per household for the city design that he quoted “helps citizens understand the pro-rata spending … it puts the excess in perspective.”

Breier estimated that the resident-designed town hall would cost each household $600 in comparison.

“I don’t know where (LAH Watchdog) got that figure,” Cahill said. “The work fees are the same no matter what you build.”

The city-approved town hall features a 35-foot bell tower and an arched courtyard for receptions and other social events.

The resident-proposed building is the same square footage but less than 19 feet at its highest point. It does not include an events area.

“The costs come in the fine details,” Breier said.

Cahill said, “It really comes down to a community center vs. a business building.”

The city council is expected to open the bidding process for the approved mission-style project next month. Fundraising would more-than-likely not begin until early next year, Fenwick said.

If voters elect candidates Breene Kerr and Dean Warshawsky, Breier believes the council majority will overturn the town hall project. If not, Breier said he plans to launch a recall campaign.