How housing density is slowly affecting local residents

At less than 7 square miles in size and 28,000 inhabitants, the word “density” is rarely associated with Los Altos. Yet as residents increasingly experience such big-city headaches as traffic, overcrowded schools and shrinking room between neighbors, some see signs of growing pains. “People like to say we live in a rural or semi-rural area, but there’s nothing rural about our traffic,” said Bill Crook, a member of the city’s Traffic Commission. The causes of this increased feeling of density are many, both internal and external. While the town is in no danger of overcrowding – minimum lot-size requirements guarantee that – housing units are being added. And because Los Altos rests between larger, growing cities and major freeways, it is not immune to change. “We are seeing density increase slowly, but in certain places many people are being affected (and in other areas) some people not affected at all,” said Kate Disney, a former member of the Los Altos Planning Commission. “These gradual changes over time will change the character of the town.” Some visible changes within Los Altos will result from various condominium projects under construction or in discussion. These include a 78-unit project at El Camino and Los Altos Avenue, a 29-unit housing project at 5100 El Camino and development of the Los Altos Gardens area near San Antonio Road. Neighboring city projects could include 530 new houses on the old Mayfield Mall site on San Antonio Road and the development of the former Pumpkin Patch on Grant Road. Furthermore, the El Camino corridor is rapidly changing with the addition of such big-name businesses and traffic magnets as Whole Foods Market and Home Depot, which is expected to replace Sears in the future. In Los Altos Neighborhood Network’s annual survey of approximately 400 members, traffic ranked as the No. 1 issue, according to Kate Putman, a member of the network. That would come as no surprise to Crook. “Clearly, there is a huge amount of cut-through traffic,” Crook said, particularly on El Monte Avenue and San Antonio Road. The city’s infrastructure, much of it first laid out in the 1950s with wide streets, few sidewalks and rounded-off curves, facilitates faster speeds, he said. Today, the city is adopting traffic-calming practices, among them efforts to narrow some streets and reduce speed limits. “You get back to traffic no matter what,” said Los Altos City Councilman Lou Becker. “There are more cars, but the streets stay the same.” As far as condominium projects, Becker noted that most are going in near or on El Camino and said, “I don’t think people have a lot of concern as long as it doesn’t affect their privacy.” North Los Altos resident Becky Larsen disagreed. “The traffic density is horrendous,” Larsen said, noting that traffic on her block has worsened steadily with speeding cars taking a shortcut to the Egan Intermediate School and Bullis Charter School campuses. With the expected addition of dozens of condominiums at nearby Los Altos Gardens, Larsen said she feared the city is “looking at the short term, not the long term.” “You need to create housing, but you also have to think about quality of life,” said Disney, speaking of development in general. She said more attention should be paid to such infrastructure needs as parks, libraries and schools, as well as traffic. Outsiders aren’t the only ones to blame for increased road density. It’s increasingly common to drive children to school, which in turn makes the streets busier and more dangerous for pedestrians and bicyclists, said a number of those interviewed. Crook said the town is actively promoting walking and biking to school programs. “The ones who do walk and bike have to deal with traffic,” Disney said. “Once you hit a critical mass (of vehicles), it shuts down all pedestrian traffic and you become a driver yourself.” “Everything is related. Schools impact traffic, traffic impacts housing and so on,” Putman said. Density isn’t measurable solely in population terms. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, from 1975-2005 the average American household decreased from 2.94 people to 2.6 people, while the average new single-family house grew 48 percent in size. Los Altos is no exception to this trend. “The sizes of houses are certainly bigger,” said James Walgren, Los Altos community development director. “With the rise of real estate prices, we saw smaller 1,200-square-foot houses replaced by 2,500- and 3,000-square-foot properties.” Put into numbers, of the 10,000-plus houses in Los Altos, on average at least 200 are remodeled a year, Walgren said. In fiscal year July 2005 through June 2006, 100 houses were torn down and replaced, and 50 two-story additions or new homes were built. Even if one-story construction is chosen, it’s common now for homeowners to build to the maximum 35 percent floor-area ratio. (For example, a 10,000-square-foot lot can have a maximum size house of 3,500 square feet.) Before Larsen moved to Los Altos more than six years ago from the East Bay, her house was so close to her neighbor’s, she joked, they could lean out their windows and shake hands. “When we moved here, that’s what we were getting away from,” she said. “We wanted open space.” “There is an impact of mass and bulk when instead of trees you see a looming house,” Disney said. “We are feeling more walled in and more encroached on.” This is why landscaping is so important, she said, adding, “Lots are not getting bigger, but houses are. Privacy is an issue.” “With bigger houses, people are defeating themselves if they’re too close to the edge,” Putman said. Still, as long as they follow the rules and work with the neighborhood, “People have the right to build what they want.” “We’re not Sunnyvale or Hillsborough,” Putman added. “We’re trying to be woodsy. It’s such a pretty town (and) that’s why people wanted to move here.”