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District must provide

under Prop. 39

Marge Gratiot and the Los Altos School District are determined to deny the use of the Bullis School site to the recently approved Bullis Charter School. Under Proposition 39 the district is required to make reasonable efforts to provide the charter school with facilities near to where the charter school wishes to locate. The only site that can fill this legal obligation is the Bullis site.

I attended the Los Altos School District Board meeting two weeks ago and was appalled by the board’s disorganized haste to lease out the Bullis site to underqualified tenants such as day care centers. The school district has acknowledged that they must legally provide classroom space in the district under the Prop. 39 request submitted by the charter group for the proposed 155 students next fall and 310 students the following year. I understand that Superitendent Marge Gratiot has already told the school community that class room space at Covington will not work for the charter school.

Why is the board rushing to lease the Bullis site to child-care when within a few months they will have a legal obligation to provide space for the charter school? The school district and board should do sufficient future planning on where they plan to house the charter school before they close their options and try to lease the Bullis Site to a child care provider.

If the school board refuses to negotiate with the charter school, I fear that they are headed for a messy fight, which they will likely lose because of Prop, 39 and in the process send rapidly evaporating school district funds down the litigation drain. It is in everybody’s best interest for the school board and the charter school to sit down and negotiate a solution that both sides can live with.

Mark Jensen

Los Altos Hills

Protest over stories

about Shelton’s remark

As a member of the Celebrity Forum’s audience during Gen. Shelton’s lecture, I found his comment about Gen. Clark of very poor taste. To find them in print in Los Altos Town Crier the following week, was even worse.

Yesterday, to my great dismay, I find the Crier taking great pride in the national attention your article received.

Here is what the general said: “I’ve known Wes for a long time. I will tell you the reason he came out of Europe early had to do with integrity and character issues, things that are very near and dear to my heart … I’ll just say Wes won’t get my vote.”

Shelton conveniently forgot to tell us, what exactly, his problem with Clark’s “integrity and character issues” were. Hence Shelton’s statement is no more than heresy. One thing is for Shelton to make statements like that, another is to propagate them in the press. I would prefer our news media to report on facts and figures.

Shelton’s comment about Clark, given its lack of substantiation, is not newsworthy, and should not have been reprinted. I respectfully submit my protest!

Since we have opened up the topic. I find Shelton’s remarks about Clark to lack both “personal integrity and character” on behalf of the speaker. I’m glad he’s no longer in charge of our armed forces!

Mogens Lauritzen

Los Altos

Thanks for the

summer picnic

A belated thank you to all the city employees and local organizations who made the second annual Los Altos Community Picnic a special event.

My husband and I enjoyed the festivities and believe it’s a great way for community members to meet each other, as well as to acquaint themselves with what Los Altos has to offer.

There was plenty to do for everyone, including the play structures, band concert, visiting the History Museum, meeting city officials and seeing their vehicles.

The food was delicious, prepared by the firemen, and the free snow cones went over big on a hot day!

We rode our bikes there and took advantage of the valet parking by the Scouts.

We hope the event will be held again next year!

Dee Gustavson

Los Altos