As Palo Alto’s most critical infrastructure project nears the finish line, the city remains embroiled in a dispute with the main contractor, a conflict that is threatening to further raise the costs of the $120-million public safety building. The project has seen numerous delays since construction kicked off in June 2021. The city’s most recent...
Palo Alto eyes upgrades for car-free California Avenue
California Avenue will finally get some love next month, when Palo Alto’s contractors start painting two-way bike lanes, implementing colored paving and installing planters at the entrance points of the eclectic retail district that expelled cars and welcomed dining tents during the early days of pandemic. The suite of improvements comprises just the first in...
Palo Alto city manager, attorney up for 6% raises
Palo Alto’s three council appointed officers – City Manager Ed Shikada, City Attorney Molly Stump and City Clerk Mahealani Ah Yun – are all set to receive raises next week, according to a report from the Human Resources Department. The raises, which follow a period of evaluation by a City Council committee and its consultant,...
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema coming to San Antonio Center in Mountain View
A new luxury movie chain is moving into The Village at San Antonio Center in Mountain View, taking over the site of the ShowPlace Icon theater that abruptly closed earlier this year. Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, an Austin-based company, plans to have the theater ready for movie-goers next summer, with premium viewing technology and top-notch amenities. But it...
Mountain View Planning Commission backs affordable housing development with little parking
An affordable housing development in Mountain View is one step closer to getting built, although it is still raising concerns that there is not enough parking for the hundreds of residents who will be living there. CRP Affordable, an affordable housing developer, is proposing to build an eight-story, 100-unit apartment complex at 334 San Antonio...
Palo Alto set to expand its network of license plate cameras
Palo Alto Police Department’s latest crime-fighting tool is silent, passive and largely invisible unless you know where to look. The city introduced this tool last spring, when it became just the latest municipality to partner with Flock Safety to mount automated license plate readers on lamp posts, street signs and other fixtures in undisclosed locations....
Mountain View’s future development plans along Moffett Boulevard just got bigger
Moffett Boulevard, a busy thoroughfare in Mountain View, is poised to undergo some major changes, possibly on a much larger scale than originally anticipated. The boundaries of a precise plan that will guide future development along the corridor are being expanded, after the City Council recommended adding three major properties at a study session on Nov. 19....
Palo Alto joins effort to stop quarry at Juristac
Palo Alto added its voice this week to a growing coalition of cities and environmental groups that are rallying to prevent a proposed quarry from taking over a grassy expanse in the hills south of Gilroy that is sacred to the Amah Mutsun tribe. Known as Juristac or Sargent Ranch, this area has been used...
Palo Alto to review Stanford’s plans to add more hospital beds
Citing surging demand in emergency room visits, Stanford Health Care is asking the city of Palo Alto for permission to add 70 beds in its hospital buildings, raising the maximum total to 670, according to an application that the hospital system submitted last month. The proposal, which is now being reviewed by the city’s Department...
Developer threatens litigation over Mountain View builder’s remedy project
A developer in Mountain View is threatening litigation if the city does not drop its conditions of approval and allow a builder’s remedy project to proceed. Forrest Linebarger of Tower Investment wants to build a seven-story, 85-unit condominium development on a half-acre site, replacing an existing family home and empty lot at 294 and 296...