Palo Alto has reached another milestone in its quest to rebuild the Mitchell Park fire station with the City Council approving a series of contracts totaling more than $13 million for a project that has long been viewed by city leaders as a key infrastructure priority. By a unanimous vote, the council approved on Oct....
Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in Palo Alto to reduce workforce
Citing financial challenges and economic uncertainty, the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital is preparing to reduce its workforce by 87 positions in December, according to a notification that the Palo Alto medical institution filed with the state this week. The hospital at 725 Welch Road submitted on Oct. 10 a notice with the state Department of...
Palo Alto buries power lines, boosts education to lower wildfire risks
For Palo Alto Fire Chief Geo Blackshire, the best type of home to come across during a fire is an empty one. It’s even better when the residents have also left their home adequately prepared for the risk of fire by keeping vegetation several feet away from the exterior. “I can go on and on...
Palo Alto celebrates new bike lanes, few appear to use them
State and local officials on Monday celebrated the completion of the suddenly popular but sparsely used bike lanes on El Camino Real with a ribbon-cutting ceremony that was attended by dozens of cyclists and advocates for safer streets. City officials from Mountain View, Los Altos and Palo Alto voiced their appreciation for the project’s completion...
Commission doubles down on limiting Palo Alto Commons expansion
The divisive expansion of the Palo Alto Commons assisted living facility was once again scaled back by members of the Planning and Transportation Commission, which on Wednesday signed off on just seven additional units despite City Council direction to nearly double that number. It’s the second time the commission has arrived at the number of...
Palo Alto looks to add tunnels across tracks for cyclists, pedestrians
Palo Alto is weighing eight options, seven of which are tunnels, for bicyclists and pedestrians to have a safer way to cross the Caltrain tracks between the California Avenue and San Antonio stops. City staff must now pare down the list from eight to two before returning to the Planning and Transportation Commission in November...
She puts the Lord in ‘vanlord.’ Palo Alto wants to ban her business
Kate Bridget Li is not a typical landlord. Instead of apartments or homes, she rents out half a dozen RVs that are parked on the street in the East Meadow neighborhood of Palo Alto. She also says she isn’t in it to make money — at least, not for herself. “When Lord God called me...
Palo Alto considers RV parking restrictions as complaints rise
Palo Alto is considering banning inoperable vehicles from parking on public streets as part of a multi-pronged response to a recent wave of complaints from various neighborhoods about the growing number of RVs in residential areas. If Palo Alto takes action to limit RV parking, it would join Mountain View, which bans RVs from parking on the vast...
Palo Alto downtown aims to raise heights, spur residential growth
As Palo Alto leaders forge a new strategy for increasing housing in the downtown neighborhood, one edge of the 90-acre planning area is emerging as a promising site for a future residential boom. Downtown has seen virtually no residential growth over the past decade, even as other areas have experienced an influx of proposals. The...
Palo Alto approves 368-apartment complex on El Camino Real
One of Palo Alto’s largest and most ambitious housing projects, a 368-apartment complex proposed for the former site of The Fish Market on El Camino Real, has received the green light from the city, clearing the way for construction to begin. The proposal from Acclaim Companies for 3150 El Camino Real exemplifies more than any...