The League of Women Voters strongly urges you to vote “no” on Measure D, which would require a city-funded election for each and every modification of the downtown parking plazas except for maintenance and limited affordable housing.
Why do we oppose this measure?
1. The League believes in representative government and holding elected officials accountable. Hindering city decisions with costly elections, where voters would be asked to weigh in on technical issues, wastes scarce resources that are better used to expand services and maintain city streets, parks and infrastructure at a time when funding is tight. It introduces significant risks and uncertainty with any project proposal, which can deter projects outright.
2. The measure requires the city to defend it or reimburse the legal costs of the initiative’s proponents should they defend instead; legal threats have already been made. These costs are not wise uses of the city’s resources, money otherwise reserved for the services that make Los Altos a great place to live.
3. We support housing for all Californians, including for low and middle-income families. This measure makes it very unlikely for Los Altos to have housing downtown, and without such housing our Housing Element could be decertified. If that happens, developers can bypass all local control, allowing them to build Builder’s Remedy projects as we’ve seen in Palo Alto and Menlo Park. Residents and the City Council would have little voice in these projects.
In addition, the League believes initiatives should be supported only when they are clear and unambiguous. They should contain a sunset clause or allow for flexibility to meet future needs and challenges. Measure D meets none of these tests of good governance. The ballot measure leaves key terms undefined, introducing elevated legal risk. Terms such as “availability,” “access,” and “convenience” of parking lack clarity; the “affordable housing” exception is also unclear.
For all these reasons and more, please join the League of Women Voters in opposing Measure D and vote no by Tuesday, November 3rd.
Ellen Wheeler, Vice President – Action League of Women Voters Los Altos-Mountain View Area
