Hotel delays mean lost dollars to the city

The idea for a downtown boutique hotel was first proposed in 1995, shortly after the city of Los Altos had acquired land at First and Main streets. Ostensibly, the land was purchased to expand parking. However, several proposals were made to build a hotel on the location, including providing extra parking for the public.

Here is what could have been if the city had taken action:

Sale of land: $3 million was considered a reasonable sale price. The city had paid $1.8 million so would have realized $1.2 million profit.

If the sale had been consummated and the current leases settled with a fair buyout, the hotel could have been under construction by 1999 and completed by 2001.

The hotel developers expected, at 70 percent occupancy, to be paying the city about $500,000 per year in hotel tax. In addition, the pedestrian traffic in downtown could have created additional thousands of dollars in sales tax revenues to the city, to say nothing of the benefit to downtown merchants.

So all told, the city has blown $2 million to $3 million in revenues during these years of foot dragging.

Tax paying citizens of the community deserve action, not more delays and excuses.

Hospital should reveal salaries

Other local newspapers have recently made a big deal of El Camino Hospital’s refusal to reveal the salaries of CEO Lee Domanico and other top staffers.

Hospital officials contend they are not legally bound to divulge salaries because the hospital is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and operates as a private business would. But such semantics, however correct, don’t change the fact that this is a public hospital. The hospital was built with taxpayer money, and residents have invested in rebuilding hospital facilities. The public elects its board of directors.

We understand this issue was spurred by a small minority of physicians and other staff who have axes to grind. They might use Domanico’s salary figure against him. But better the figure is revealed now and done with than have questions linger that, continually fueled by the media, create an atmosphere of suspicion.

We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that Domanico is doing an outstanding job. El Camino is run efficiently and in great financial shape. Patient and physician satsfaction ratings are still top-notch.

All the more reason not to let this relatively minor public access issue get in the way and blown out of proportion. Revealing salaries would reflect the spirit of El Camino’s public charge. Hospital officials should end any and all suspicion now. It will serve them better in the long run.