By Tim Seyfert

Horses graze outside Westwind Barn in Los Altos Hills. The city council recently agreed to keep the city-owned property off the open market for another decade.

Local horse lovers and open-space enthusiasts breathed a sigh of relief last week when the Los Altos Hills City Council approved a proposal to keep Westwind Community Barn off the open market for another decade.

Westwind Barn is owned by the town of Los Altos Hills but operated by the Friends of Westwind Barn, who have been leasing the property for nearly 30 years.

At a regular town hall meeting Dec. 19, the Friends asked council to renew and amend the current lease agreement between them, which is set to expire in February 2004.

The lease was initially set to end in April of 1999 but was extended after the Friends funded the construction of an “all-weather” arena and were deemed by the council “not in default” of the lease requirements, according to an official town staff report.

“It’s important to realize what the Friends have done for Westwind,” said Mayor pro tem Mike O’Malley before the ruling. “The Friends are stewards of the barn.”

After a rather swift public hearing, council approved the new lease agreement, which essentially mirrors the existing one. The one change was an increase to the term of lease from five years to 10, a negotiated compromise down from the Friends’ original request for a 25-year term.

“We had hoped to get a longer lease, but this one will suit us just fine,” said Friends member Dan Alexander. “We’re satisfied.”

The base rent of $1,088.95 per month will stay the same.

Things didn’t run as smoothly during the Friends’ previous lease negotiation with the town.

When the prior rental agreement expired in April 1999, council started considering other uses for about 20 parcels of the town-owned land, including the barn.

The reasoning behind the idea was to sell the site to raise revenue toward other town projects, such as the burying of utility lines. Though an official proposal to sell the barn never emerged, the thought alone prompted opponents to draft an initiative that required the obtainment of voter approval before city-owned land could be sold.

The initiative won overwhelming community support and was adopted as law by the new council in December 2002, making the barn a permanent piece of the town’s heritage.

The main barn dates back to 1945 and was once owned by Countess Margit Bessenyey, who over time expanded the facility and added features, including several smaller barns and arenas. She ultimately gave the barn to the town in 1975 after it purchased a portion of land bordering the property.

Since then Westwind has become a multi-functional facility. It not only provides stables for local steeds but serves as a popular meeting space for several community events and programs, including the town’s parks department summer camps, year-round riding classes for Los Altos Hills children and the Westwind 4-H Riding for the Handicapped Program.

“It’s a focal point for the community,” said Nancy Couperus, a founder of Friends of Westwind Barn. “It’s had such an enriching effect on the residents here, and we want to make sure it keeps doing that.”

Westwind Barn is located at 27210 Altamont Road. For more information, call 941-6113 or logon to www.westwindbarn.com.