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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-05-12 City Council EmailsDOCUMENTS IN THIS PACKET INCLUDE: LETTERS FROM CITIZENS TO THE MAYOR OR CITY COUNCIL RESPONSES FROM STAFF TO LETTERS FROM CITIZENS ITEMS FROM MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS ITEMS FROM OTHER COMMITTEES AND AGENCIES ITEMS FROM CITY, COUNTY, STATE, AND REGIONAL AGENCIES Prepared for: 5/12/2025 Document dates: 5/5/2025 - 5/12/2025 Note: Documents for every category may not have been received for packet reproduction in a given week. 701-32 From:City Mgr To:Council, City; Shikada, Ed Cc:Executive Leadership Team; City Mgr; Clerk, City Subject:City Council Bundle - May 12 Date:Monday, May 12, 2025 12:12:33 PM Attachments:FW Related Mayfield Place -- No Hot Water.msgRE Grave concerns for pedestrians safety on Lincoln between University and Channing.msgFW 3935 Duncan Place height - follow up from another neighbor.msgimage001.pngimage002.png Dear Mayor and Council Members, On behalf of City Manager Ed Shikada, please see the attached staff responses to emails received in the City.Council inbox through May 12, 2025. Respectfully, Danille Danille RiceAdministrative AssistantCity Manager’s Office|Human Resources|Transportation(650) 329-2229 | danille.rice@cityofpaloalto.orgwww.cityofpaloalto.org From:Ron Baker To:pd@cityofpaloalto.gov; Council, City Subject:Cars speeding and With Tampered Mufflers On Arastradero Date:Monday, May 12, 2025 10:39:49 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i I live along Arastradero Road in Palo Alto, and in 25 years here I’ve never complained aboutroad noise and speeding on this street. The last year, we’ve seen a dramatic increase in very fast speeding on weekends, and very loud noise from vehicles (enough to easily awakensleepers) that have removed or tampered with their mufflers. And when I talk about speeding, I’m not addressing 40 MPH, I’m talking about 60 MPH and more. Would it be possible to get a police watch on weekend mornings out on Arastradero near tothe intersection of Coulombe, and further west toward the intersection of Georgia? Just a few days of stops and citations or arrests would probably put the word out and reduce the problem.An alternative or complementary measure would be a camera with a sensor that can measure decibels, combined with the speeding sensor already out on the street. I have a high degree of tolerance for my neighbors, but the muffler removal is really jarring,and these kind of speeds are going to get people injured or killed. Thank you for addressing this problem. Sincerely, Ron Baker Feel free to call me with questions at 650-814-0709. This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. This is their first email to your company. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast From:Sven Thesen To:Council, City; Lait, Jonathan; Sauls, Garrett Cc:Kate Kramer; John Kelley Subject:Agenda item 10, ADU"s - In Support of John Kelley"s ADU proposals Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 11:47:38 PM Attachments:Thesen Kramer Pre Notary Deferral 250312.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Gentle City Council Members,I am writing in support of John Kelley's ADU proposals as detailed in his email of May 11, sent at approximately 9:40pm. In summary:1) We should be able to build larger than 1000 square-foot ADU's; 2) We should be able to convert the main house and/or the ADU(s) into condominiums similarto San Jose; 3) The city should cancel all impact fees associated with ADUs. Please see his email for a detailed analysis of the above. My wife and I are beginning the process of constructing an ADU. As noted above, we are limited to 1000 ft.². We would have preferred to have built roughly1200 ft.² to allow a second bathroom & bigger bedroom dedicated for a future caregiver. Regarding converting the ADU to a condominium, we had not heard of this before and would at least like it as an option. Impact fees, we have been requested to pay ~$23,700 in impact fees & this is separate fromthe ~$4,700 in school impact fees & the cities ~$5,900 in permit fees -- Sven Thesen, 415-225-7645EV Consultant & Founder, ProjectGreenHome.org and BeniSolSolar.com; Wonder Junkie "Under the Trump administration, America is retreating from hard power, surrendering softpower, and yielding economic power. Is this what greatness looks like?" David A. Graham, This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. This is their first mail to some recipients. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast The Atlantic __________________________________________________ How California Is Keeping Electric Vehicles Out Of Reach For Apartment-Dwellers This document is recorded for the benefit of the City of Palo Alto and is entitled to be recorded free of charge in accordance with Section 6103 of the Government Code After Recordation, mail to: OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY 250 Hamilton Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94301 AGREEMENT CREATING A LIEN TO SECURE DEFERRED PAYMENT OF DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEES AND/OR IN-LIEU FEES ADDRESS: ________________, PALO ALTO, CA A.P.N. No._____________ This Agreement, made and executed this _____ day of_____________, 20___, by and between the CITY OF PALO ALTO, a California charter municipal corporation ("City"), and ___________________________, a ______________________ ("Developer") to secure the payment of deferred development impact fees and or in-lieu fees that would otherwise be due prior to issuance of a building permit. RECITALS A. Developer is the owner of that certain tract of land situated in the City of Palo Alto, County of Santa Clara, State of California, generally known and described as _______________[street address], Palo Alto, California and more fully described in Exhibit A [legal description], (the "Property"); and B. On or about _____________[date], City approved Developer’s application(s) for _________________ [entitlements], subject to conditions of approval including the payment of development impact fees and/or in-lieu fees under Chapter 16.64 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code (“PAMC”). C. Developer wishes to defer payment of development impact fees and/or in-lieu fees associated with the Property, more fully described in Exhibit B, pursuant to PAMC Section 16.64.030 NOW, THEREFORE, for and in consideration of the approval and covenants contained herein and other good and valuable consideration the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, the parties agree as follows: 1.Deferral of Fees. Pursuant to PAMC Section 16.64.030, payment of the development impact fees and/or in-lieu fees described in Exhibit B shall be deferred until the date the development is approved for occupancy. If the development contains more than one dwelling, the fee shall be paid on a pro rata basis for each dwelling when it is approved for occupancy. All fees must be paid before final occupancy approval may be granted. Fees shall be payable at the rates in effect on the date the fees are paid, except: (1) an applicant for a vesting tentative map for a development project shall pay the fees at the rate in effect on the date the application for the vesting tentative map is deemed complete, and (2) an applicant that defers fees for a designated residential redevelopment project, as defined in California Government Code Section 66007, may elect to pay the fees at the rate in effect at the time of building permit issuance. 314 Stanford Avenue, 124-30-002 Thesen Kramer 2007 Revocable Living Trust dated 31 October 2007 trust 314 Stanford Avenue ADU Building Permits 2. Lien Created. Developer hereby grants to the City a lien against the Property described in Exhibit A; said lien is intended to guarantee the payment in full of the deferred fees described in Exhibit B, plus the City’s costs of enforcement and collection, including reasonable attorney’s fees, if any. 3. Release of Lien. Upon full payment of all deferred fees to City and complete satisfaction of all terms of this Agreement by the Developer, the City shall promptly release the lien created hereunder by executing a lien release in substantial form as shown in Exhibit C. Upon request by the Developer, the City will execute a partial release of the lien in the event the fee is prorated pursuant to Section 1 above. 4. Enforcement. The City may pursue collection through all available legal and administrative means, including without limitation, judicial or non-judicial foreclosure of the recorded lien against the Property or a civil judgment against the Developer for breach of this Agreement and/or the security provided hereunder. The Developer will be responsible for any fees required of the City for the enforcement and collection of the development impact fees, including reasonable attorney’s fees. 5. Notices. All notices hereunder shall be given in writing and mailed, postage prepaid, by certified mail, addressed as follows: To City: Office of the City Clerk 250 Hamilton Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94301 To Developer: _________________________ 6. Miscellaneous. a. This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of California. b. In the event that an action is brought, the parties agree that trial of such action will be vested exclusively in the state courts of California in the County of Santa Clara, State of California. c. The terms, covenants and conditions of this agreement shall run with the land and shall bind, the heirs, successors, executors, administrators, assigns, contractors, and subcontractors of the parties. d. This document represents the entire and integrated agreement between the parties and supersedes all prior negotiations, representations, and contracts, either written or oral. This document may be amended only by a written instrument, which is signed by the parties. e. If a court of competent jurisdiction finds or rules that any provision of this Agreement or any amendment thereto is void or unenforceable, the unaffected provisions of this Agreement and any amendments thereto will remain in full force and effect. f. In the event the either the City or Developer shall at any time or times waive any breach of this Agreement by the other, such waiver shall not constitute a waiver of any other or succeeding breach of this Agreement, whether of the same or any other covenant, condition, or obligation. g. All exhibits referred to in this Agreement and any addenda, appendices, attachments, and schedules to this Agreement which, from time to time, may be referred to in any duly Sven Thesen, 314 Stanford Ave Palo Alto CA 94306 executed amendment hereto are by such reference incorporated in this Agreement and will be deemed to be a part of this Agreement. h. The individuals executing this Agreement represent and warrant that they have the legal capacity and authority to do so on behalf of their respective legal entities. This Agreement may be signed in multiple counterparts, which shall, when executed by all the parties, constitute a single binding agreement. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this agreement to be executed in duplicate the day and year first above written. CITY OF PALO ALTO Developer ____________________________ ______________________________ City Manager Name: ________________________ APPROVED AS TO FORM: Title: _______________________ ____________________________ Deputy City Attorney ______________________________ APPROVED AS TO CONTENT: Name: ________________________ Title: _______________________ ____________________________ Director of Planning and Development Services Sven H. Thesen Trustee Sven H. Thesen Trustee EXHIBIT A LEGAL DESCRIPTION EXHIBIT B DEFERRED DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEES AND/OR IN-LIEU FEES [name of fee] [amount of fee] Amounts provided are estimates based on the rates in effect at the time this Agreement is executed. Fees are payable at the rates in effect on the date of payment except: (1) an applicant for a vesting tentative map for a development project shall pay the fees at the rate in effect on the date the application for the vesting tentative map is deemed complete, and (2) an applicant that defers fees for a designated residential redevelopment project, as defined in California Government Code Section 66007, may elect to pay the fees at the rate in effect at the time of building permit issuance. EXHIBIT C [Option 1: Full Release] LIEN RELEASE FORM This document is recorded for the benefit of the City of Palo Alto and is entitled to be recorded free of charge in accordance with Section 6103 of the Government Code After Recordation, mail to: OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY 250 Hamilton Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94301 RELEASE OF LIEN UPON REAL PROPERTY ADDRESS: ________________, PALO ALTO, CA A.P.N. No._____________ WHEREAS, on __________, ___________________________ (“Grantor”) and the City of Palo Alto (“Grantee”) entered into an Agreement Creating a Lien to Secure Deferred Payment of Development Impact Fees and/or In-Lieu Fees (“Agreement”), which Agreement was recorded as Document No. ____________ in the Official Records of the County of Santa Clara on ____________; and WHEREAS, Grantor has satisfied the conditions for the release of lien encumbering certain property under the Agreement; NOW, THEREFORE, Grantee hereby releases all of its right, title, and interest to the lien in the real property described in Exhibit A, attached hereto. CITY OF PALO ALTO ____________________________ Date: __________________ City Manager APPROVED AS TO FORM: ____________________________ City Attorney or Designee APPROVED AS TO CONTENT: ____________________________ Director of Planning and Development Services 314 Stanford Avenue, 124-30-002 EXHIBIT C [Option 2: Partial Release for Pro Rata Payments] LIEN RELEASE FORM This document is recorded for the benefit of the City of Palo Alto and is entitled to be recorded free of charge in accordance with Section 6103 of the Government Code After Recordation, mail to: OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY 250 Hamilton Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94301 PARTIAL RELEASE OF LIEN UPON REAL PROPERTY ADDRESS: ________________, PALO ALTO, CA A.P.N. No._____________ WHEREAS, on __________, ___________________________ (“Grantor”) and the City of Palo Alto (“Grantee”) entered into an Agreement Creating a Lien to Secure Deferred Payment of Development Impact Fees and/or In-Lieu Fees (“Agreement”), which Agreement was recorded as Document No. ____________ in the Official Records of the County of Santa Clara on ____________; and WHEREAS, the Agreement provides that the fees shall be paid on a pro rata basis for each dwelling unit when it is approved for occupancy; WHEREAS, Grantor has partially satisfied the conditions for the release of lien encumbering certain property under the Agreement by paying $________ upon the approval for occupancy of _________ [number or description of dwelling units]; NOW, THEREFORE, Grantee hereby partially releases its right, title, and interest to the lien in the real property described in Exhibit A, attached hereto. There remain unpaid fees for _______ units. CITY OF PALO ALTO ____________________________ Date: __________________ City Manager APPROVED AS TO FORM: ____________________________ City Attorney or Designee APPROVED AS TO CONTENT: ____________________________ Director of Planning and Development Services 314 Stanford Avenue, 124-30-002 CERTIFICATE OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT (Civil Code § 1189) STATE OF __________________________) ) COUNTY OF _________________________) On __________________, before me, _____________________, a notary public in and for said County, personally appeared _________________________, personally known to me (or proved to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence) to be the person(s) whose name(s) is/are subscribed to the within instrument, and acknowledged to me that he/she/they executed the same in his/her/their authorized capacity(ies), and that by his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument the person(s), or the entity upon behalf of which the person(s) acted, executed the instrument. WITNESS my hand and official seal. _____________________________ CERTIFICATE OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT (Civil Code § 1189) STATE OF __________________________) ) COUNTY OF _________________________) On __________________, before me, _____________________, a notary public in and for said County, personally appeared __________________________, personally known to me (or proved to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence) to be the person(s) whose name(s) is/are subscribed to the within instrument, and acknowledged to me that he/she/they executed the same in his/her/their authorized capacity(ies), and that by his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument the person(s), or the entity upon behalf of which the person(s) acted, executed the instrument. WITNESS my hand and official seal. _____________________________ CERTIFICATE OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT (Civil Code § 1189) STATE OF __________________________) ) COUNTY OF _________________________) On __________________, before me, _____________________, a notary public in and for said County, personally appeared ______________________, personally known to me (or proved to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence) to be the person(s) whose name(s) is/are subscribed to the within instrument, and acknowledged to me that he/she/they executed the same in his/her/their authorized capacity(ies), and that by his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument the person(s), or the entity upon behalf of which the person(s) acted, executed the instrument. WITNESS my hand and official seal. _____________________________ From:John Kelley To:Council, City Cc:Lait, Jonathan; Sauls, Garrett; Stephen Levy; Sven Thesen Subject:PA-ADUs: Recommendations re Agenda Item #10 on May 12, 2025 Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 9:40:14 PM Attachments:PA-POLI-letter to PACC re Amending Municipal Code re ADUs 2025-05-11 -- with attachment.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker, and Councilmembers, Please see the attached letter concerning Agenda Item #10 regarding ADUs on the agenda for tomorrownight’s City Council meeting: The summary and recommendations from the attached letter are also copied below in this email. Respectfully submitted, John Kelley ********************** TO: Palo Alto City Council (City Council) RE: Recommendations re Agenda Item #10 on May 12, 2025 Agenda, “Adoption of an Ordinance Amending Various Palo Alto Municipal Code…” re ADUS, and Comments re Staff Report 2503-4326 (Staff Report) DATE: May 11, 2025 FROM: John Kelley SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are succeeding in Palo Alto. More than half of the new homes permitted in Palo Alto in recent years have been ADUs. Let’s not stop now. We can make ADUs “21st century starter homes” to help Palo Alto achieve its Housing Element commitments and address housing challenges facing our community and the entire state. Consider three groups of people who want (a) to age in place, (b) to buy a new home, or (c) to feel that they can continue to pay the rent in Palo Alto. Older homeowners might want to downsize or to supplement their retirement income. But they don’t want to be forced out of Palo Alto by transaction costs and capital gains taxes. Many couples recognize that they will not be happy moving from a 2,200 sf house to an 800 sf ADU, because they need more space. And if they seek rental income, it might be advantageous to build a bigger ADU. A young couple or family wants to leave their apartment and put down roots. They know about Palo Alto’s great community, phenomenal environment, and extraordinary schools. They check Zillow: “The average Palo Alto, CA home value is $3,704,698, up 7.9% over the past year and goes to [sale] pending in around 9 days.” They catch their breath. They don’t feel welcomed. An individual, a couple, and a family have all lived in Palo Alto for years, but they worry about being able to stay because of rising rents. Can we build enough homes in Palo Alto to moderate rent increases? Making ADUs “21st century starter homes” — big enough for a couple or small family to live in comfortably — yet much more affordable — requires three key reforms. (1) We need to move beyond the current 1,000 sf limit and allow for larger ADUs, with maximum sizes of 1,200, 1,400, or even 1,600 sf, just like starter homes were in the 20th century. (2) We must create ownership opportunities for ADUs — to finance them, to broaden access to the financial benefits of home ownership, and to safeguard buyers’ long-term access to our community and its schools. (3) And we must remove disincentives to building ADUs, especially larger ADUs. Chief among these are local impact fees — which can total $15,000, $20,000, or more when levied on ADUs 750 sf or larger. New single-family homes, by contrast, even 4,000+ sf “scrapes” and 2,000+ sf additions, almost never pay local impact fees. Dozens of other local regulations ought also to be changed to spur production of ADUs, especially larger ADUs. With 1,200-1,600 sf sizes, with ownership opportunities created by allowing existing single-family homes and ADUs to become condominiums, and without impact fees or other poorly conceived local regulations that deter ADU production, ADUs can become “first-class homes.” They can be as well loved as any other home in Palo Alto, providing both “next-phase” and “missing middle” housing. The needs of the three distinct groups can be addressed together. Recall the older homeowners seeking to downsize or to supplement their retirement income. They decide to build a 1,600 sf ADU and to create a condominium owners association (COA), unlocking new financing alternatives. They have several options: (a) move into the new ADU and either sell or rent the existing house as a condominium; or (b) stay in the existing house and sell or rent the new ADU as a condominium. Depending on their choices, they will have created a form of “next-phase housing” for themselves, putting the additional square footage to good use by building an extra bedroom and a “bonus room” for loved ones or caregivers. And they have also created a second “first-class” home on their lot that provides “missing middle” housing: either an ownership opportunity for people seeking to buy a new home; or a new rental home that can moderate future rental increases. Making ADUs “21st century starter homes” will benefit our community in other ways. Production of new ADUs, especially larger ADUs, will increase revenues from property taxes. In some instances, the incremental property taxes on the new ADU may be greater than the current property taxes on the existing home. Creating both new ownership and new rental opportunities will likely increase the numbers of younger people able to remain in, return to, or join our community. At present, Palo Alto is aging relatively quickly. To maintain its vibrancy as an innovation center, allowing more younger people to be part of the community would be beneficial. With more younger people, it’s also likely that there will be less pressure in coming years to close local schools. Unless checked, declining enrollments will force difficult school closure decisions. If we ensure that younger individuals, couples, and families are welcomed in Palo Alto, we can help to maintain the excellence of Palo Alto’s schools, which have always been part of the lifeblood of the community. Accomplishing all of this work will require more than one City Council meeting, but much can and should be completed on the night of May 12th. The City Council should: increase the size limit for detached ADUs with 2+ bedrooms to 1,200 sf, and request City Staff to draft a further increase to 1,600 sf by September 1st; request City Staff to draft a local ordinance under Gov. C. sec. 66342 to allow for condominium conversions of ADUs by September 1st; eliminate new local impact fees for ADUs, and request City Staff to draft a new local ordinance by September 1st to refund all local impact fees for ADUs that were charged at any time after March 23, 2023; and request City Staff to engage actively with local architects, other design professionals, and members of the public to analyze the other reforms identified below, among others, and to return to the City Council no later than October 1, 2025 with a set of policy alternatives and recommendations for the Council. TO: Palo Alto City Council (City Council) RE: Recommendations re Agenda Item #10 on May 12, 2025 Agenda , “Adoption of an Ordinance Amending Various Palo Alto Municipal Code…” re ADUS, and Comments re Staff Report 2503-4326 (Staff Report) DATE: May 11, 2025 FROM: John Kelley SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are succeeding in Palo Alto. More than half of the new homes permitted in Palo Alto in recent years have been ADUs. Let’s not stop now. We can make ADUs “21st century starter homes” to help Palo Alto achieve its Housing Element commitments and address housing challenges facing our community and the entire state. Consider three groups of people who want (a) to age in place, (b) to buy a new home, or (c) to feel that they can continue to pay the rent in Palo Alto. ● Older homeowners might want to downsize or to supplement their retirement income. But they don’t want to be forced out of Palo Alto by transaction costs and capital gains taxes. Many couples recognize that they will not be happy moving from a 2,200 sf house to an 800 sf ADU, because they need more space. And if they seek rental income, it might be advantageous to build a bigger ADU. ● A young couple or family wants to leave their apartment and put down roots. They know about Palo Alto’s great community, phenomenal environment, and extraordinary schools. They check Zillow : “The average Palo Alto, CA home value is $3,704,698, up 7.9% over the past year and goes to [sale] pending in around 9 days.” They catch their breath. They don’t feel welcomed. ● An individual, a couple, and a family have all lived in Palo Alto for years, but they worry about being able to stay because of rising rents. Can we build enough homes in Palo Alto to moderate rent increases? Making ADUs “21st century starter homes” — big enough for a couple or small family to live in comfortably — yet much more affordable — requires three key reforms. (1) We need to move beyond the current 1,000 sf limit and allow for larger ADUs, with maximum sizes of 1,200, 1,400, or even 1,600 sf, just like starter homes were in the 20th century. (2) We must create ownership opportunities for ADUs — to finance them, to broaden access to the financial benefits of home ownership, and to safeguard buyers’ long-term access to our community and its schools. (3) And we must remove disincentives to building ADUs, especially larger ADUs. Chief among these are local impact fees — which can total $15,000, $20,000, or more when levied on ADUs 750 sf or larger. New single-family homes, by contrast, even 4,000+ sf “scrapes” and 2,000+ sf additions, almost never pay local impact fees. Dozens of other local regulations ought also to be changed to spur production of ADUs, especially larger ADUs. 1 With 1,200-1,600 sf sizes, with ownership opportunities created by allowing existing single-family homes and ADUs to become condominiums, and without impact fees or other poorly conceived local regulations that deter ADU production, ADUs can become “first-class homes.” They can be as well loved as any other home in Palo Alto, providing both “next-phase” and “missing middle” housing. The needs of the three distinct groups can be addressed together. Recall the older homeowners seeking to downsize or to supplement their retirement income. They decide to build a 1,600 sf ADU and to create a condominium owners association (COA), unlocking new financing alternatives. They have several options: (a) move into the new ADU and either sell or rent the existing house as a condominium; or (b) stay in the existing house and sell or rent the new ADU as a condominium. Depending on their choices, they will have created a form of “next-phase housing” for themselves, putting the additional square footage to good use by building an extra bedroom and a “bonus room” for loved ones or caregivers. And they have also created a second “first-class” home on their lot that provides “missing middle” housing: either an ownership opportunity for people seeking to buy a new home; or a new rental home that can moderate future rental increases. Making ADUs “21st century starter homes” will benefit our community in other ways. Production of new ADUs, especially larger ADUs, will increase revenues from property taxes. In some instances, the incremental property taxes on the new ADU may be greater than the current property taxes on the existing home. Creating both new ownership and new rental opportunities will likely increase the numbers of younger people able to remain in, return to, or join our community. At present, Palo Alto is aging relatively quickly. To maintain its vibrancy as an innovation center, allowing more younger people to be part of the community would be beneficial. With more younger people, it’s also likely that there will be less pressure in coming years to close local schools. Unless checked, declining enrollments will force difficult school closure decisions. If we ensure that younger individuals, couples, and families are welcomed in Palo Alto, we can help to maintain the excellence of Palo Alto’s schools, which have always been part of the lifeblood of the community. Accomplishing all of this work will require more than one City Council meeting, but much can and should be completed on the night of May 12th. The City Council should: ● increase the size limit for detached ADUs with 2+ bedrooms to 1,200 sf, and request City Staff to draft a further increase to 1,600 sf by September 1st; ● request City Staff to draft a local ordinance under Gov. C. sec. 66342 to allow for condominium conversions of ADUs by September 1st; ● eliminate new local impact fees for ADUs, and request City Staff to draft a new local ordinance by September 1st to refund all local impact fees for ADUs that were charged at any time after March 23, 2023; and ● request City Staff to engage actively with local architects, other design professionals, and members of the public to analyze the other reforms identified below, among others, and to return to the City Council no later than October 1, 2025 with a set of policy alternatives and recommendations for the Council. 2 DISCUSSION By (a) creating new incentives for ADU production, and (b) eliminating barriers to ADU production not yet identified by the HCD, ADUs can help to create a true local housing breakthrough. 1. Palo Alto needs a 1,600 sf size limit for detached ADUs with 2+ bedrooms, so that ADUs can become “21st century starter homes.” . Palo Alto currently places a 1,000 sf maximum size limit on detached ADUs: “900 sf (1,000 sf for two or more bedrooms).” PAMC 18.09.040(b ), Table 2. But Palo Alto needs a larger size limit for ADUs to become “first-class homes” for both “next-phase” and “missing middle” housing. In recent decades, average home sizes have continued to grow and grow. Because much of Palo Alto’s housing stock is relatively old, and because relatively few lots in R-1 neighborhoods are sub-standard, there are strong economic incentives to maximize the square footage of new single-family homes, particularly “scrapes.” Consequently, the number of smaller, more affordable single-family homes is generally declining. Increasing the maximum size for detached ADUs with two or more bedrooms to 1,600 sf can help create more abundant housing. Many older Palo Altans have already recognized that their single-family homes are larger than they need. But many (a) cannot live comfortably in 800 or even 1,000 sf ADUs, and (b) have found that larger apartments, condominiums, or townhomes are so expensive that, after selling their single-family homes, and paying transaction costs and taxes, “downsizing” just doesn’t “pencil out.” May also love their current neighborhoods, and others may wish to retain ownership of their homes as part of their estates. Increasing the maximum size of ADUs to 1,600 square feet would allow ADUs to become “21st century starter homes,” suitable for both “next-phase” and “missing middle” housing. Because “dirt,” the land constituting the parcel on which ADUs can be built, has already been paid for, developing ADUs is relatively less expensive than developing new units on newly purchased lots. Older homeowners could choose either (a) to move into new 1,600-square-foot ADUs — big enough to have an extra bedroom and a “bonus room” for visiting family members or caregivers — or (b) remain in their existing homes and to rent the larger ADUs — sufficiently large for a young family — to allow younger people to remain in or to join the Palo Alto community. Either way, 1,600-square-foot ADUs would create new price points and more “missing middle” homes. The entire community would benefit from a growing, more diverse, and marginally more affordable housing market. ADUs can be “21st century starter homes,” true “first-class homes” for both “next-phase” and “missing middle” housing. The first step towards achieving this vision is to increase the size limit for detached ADUs with two or more bedrooms to 1,600 sf. 3 2. Palo Alto should allow for condominium conversions of ADUs, under Gov. C. sec. 66342, to provide for new financing for and sales of ADUs . Besides Increasing maximum size limits, treating larger ADUs as true “first-class homes” requires allowing them to be bought, sold, and financed like other houses. A new state statute enables cities to allow ADUs to become condominiums. The City of San Jose has summarized the background for Gov. C. sec 66342 as follows: State law AB 1033 , effective January 2024, enables condominium conversions of ADUs and California Code Section 66342 enables cities to adopt local ordinances to allow for conveyance of an ADU as a condominium. “ ADU Condominium Conversions ” web page. The provisions of that state code section were incorporated into a local ordinance by the San Jose City Council in June 2024. Ibid. In 2023, the Los Angeles Times explained part of the significance of AB 1033 as follows: Under AB 1033, which was signed into law this week, property owners in participating cities will be able to construct an ADU on their land and sell it separately, following the same rules that apply to condominiums. It gives homeowners more options for building on their property, and “the hope is, it would create more homeownership,”.... Some older Palo Alto homeowners, even with substantial assets, have already learned that, after retirement, it can be harder to refinance an existing home with lower current incomes, because lenders often make credit decisions based on current income levels. Rather than forcing Palo Alto homeowners who want to build ADUs to accept poor alternatives — higher transaction costs, unattractive loans, retirement savings withdrawals, or even not building an ADU — adopting a local ordinance under Gov. C. sec 66342 will help create new means of paying for ADUs. And that’s good news for younger, prospective Palo Alto homeowners. Allowing ADUs to become condominiums would mean that individuals, couples, and young families could own their own homes throughout Palo Alto at lower prices. The combination of increasing ADUs size limits and allow for condominium conversions of ADUs will turn them into true “first-class homes,” suitable for both “next-phase” and “missing middle” housing. // // // // // // // // 4 3. Impact fees for ADUs should be eliminated, and fees paid after March 23, 2023 refunded, based upon the proportionality rule, commitments made in the Housing Element, and fundamental fairness . (a) Impact fees for ADUs and single-family residences (SFRs) are inextricably linked, just as the thigh and lower leg are joined to form one lower limb . The state’s “proportionality rule” links ADU and SFR impact fees in one calculation. Gov. C. subd. 66324(c)(1) requires that “[a]ny impact fees charged for an accessory dwelling unit of 750 square feet or more shall be charged proportionately in relation to the square footage of the primary dwelling unit.” In its ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT HANDBOOK, January 2025 (2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook), the HCD recently specified the meaning of “charged proportionately”: What is “Proportionality”? “Proportionality” is some amount in relation to a total amount, in this case, an impact fee for a single-family dwelling. For example, a 2,000 square-foot primary dwelling with a proposed 1,000 square-foot ADU could result in 50 percent of the impact fee that would be charged for a new primary dwelling on the same site . (Gov. Code, § 66324, subd. (c)(1).) 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 23 (bold in original, and emphasis added). Four points from the HCD’s statement are essential to understand: ● The calculation considers “the impact fee that would be charged for a new primary dwelling on the same site,” i.e. , not the historical impact fees previously charged on an actually existing primary dwelling, and not a maximum amount that could be charged on any new primary dwelling of any size, but the impact fees that would in fact be charged if a new primary dwelling were being built simultaneously, or if the existing primary dwelling were, in effect, being hypothetically built anew. We can refer to this as the “New Or Hypothetical New Primary Dwelling Impact Fees.” ● The calculation utilizes a ratio between the size of the proposed ADU and the size of the proposed or actually existing primary dwelling on the same parcel, in this case, 1,000 sf/2,000 sf = 50%. We can refer to this as the “Pure Percentage Ratio.” Importantly, this ratio is a pure percentage value, because the measurement units of the numerator and the measurement units of the denominator are not only commensurable (as a square foot would be to a square yard), but also identical (here both are square feet). When the denominator divides the numerator, these measurement units cancel each other out. ● Whether or not the new or hypothetical new primary dwelling is or is not a “new unit” or a “net new unit,” i.e., whether the new or hypothetical new primary dwelling is built on a pristine parcel, or instead whether another primary dwelling had existed on the parcel before the new or hypothetical new primary dwelling is built (and that earlier primary dwelling is being hypothetically “scraped”) is 5 irrelevant. One need not know the history of primary dwellings on the parcel to calculate the impact fees for a new ADU under the proportionality rule. ● Finally, once one knows both (a) the New Or Hypothetical New Primary Dwelling Impact Fees, and (b) the Pure Percentage Ratio, the final calculation is straightforward. The two are multiplied, and the result is the impact fees that may be charged on an ADU consistent with the proportionality rule. (b) Palo Alto still calculates impact fees for single-family residences using what is effectively a per-unit basis, so that they are nearly always $0 . Prior to December 2, 2024, Palo Alto had calculated impact fees on a “per-unit” basis. In the August 20, 2024 “ Palo Alto 2023-2031 Housing Element (Certified) ” (Certified HE), and earlier, Palo Alto acknowledged that per-unit impact fees had “led to some inequitable results…,” and promised “to convert fees to a per square foot calculation.” Certified HE, p. 4-65. 1 In “PROGRAM 3.5: ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT (ADU) FACILITATION,” Implementing Objective E, the City specifically committed to the HCD that it would “[r]ealign development impact fees for ADUs larger than 750 sq. ft. to utilize per-square-foot methodology, likely reducing fee[s] applied to ADUs.” Certified HE, p. 5-19. Through Ordinance No. 5639, 2 introduced at the November 18, 2024 City Council meeting and approved on December 2, 2024, Palo Alto purported to adjust certain impact fees for ADUs to a new per-square-foot basis, but, in practice, it failed to do so, creating even greater unfairness. The record of the November 18, 2024 City Council meeting expressly acknowledges that Palo Alto does not charge impact fees on “single-family home additions or scrapes and rebuilds,” because “it’s based on the unit, and new units, net-new units that are produced…..” Video of November 18, 2024 City Council Meeting (1:53:05 f.). This raises multiple concerns. ● The proportionality rule links impact fees on ADUs to those on SFRs. Because Palo Alto charges SFR impact fees “based on the unit, and new units, net-new units,” it’s not honoring its commitment to the HCD to switch to a “per-square-foot methodology.” ● Based on the HCD’s statement of how impact fees should be calculated, discussed above, it’s not necessary to know the history of primary dwellings on the parcel to calculate the impact fees for a new ADU under the proportionality rule. Consequently, references to “net-new units,” which presuppose inquiring into the history of a parcel’s primary dwellings, raise a large, crimson flags. 2 Available through the City of Palo Alto public portal . 1 “In accordance with state law, fees for ADUs are only charged on ADUs larger than 750 square feet, and are charged in proportion to the fee that are or would be assessed on the primary unit. Because Palo Alto has historically charged per-unit fees for residential development, this has led to some inequitable results, as the fees for an ADU will depend not only on the size of the ADU, but also on the size of the primary unit, with higher fees required under state law when the primary unit is smaller. To avoid this scenario, the City will implement Programs 3.1 Fee Waivers and Adjustments and 3.5 ADU Facilitation to convert fees to a per square foot calculation.” 6 These concerns are amplified by the text of Ordinance 5639: Single Family Multi-Family … Park Impact Fee Note: ADUs under 750 sf exempt. $18.78 per sq. ft. $44.50 per sq. ft. (Ordinance No. 5639, Attachment A, row 5). No footnote alongside the “Single Family” column name explains that virtually all single-family homes are categorically exempt from any impact fees. 3 Nothing has changed since the November 18th City Council meeting. Palo Alto continues to calculate impact fees for SFRs on what remains a type of per-unit basis — applying “impact fees to net new dwelling units ” (Staff Report, p. 7, Mini-Packet p. 8/79 (emphasis added)). Continuing to this day, as the City Council heard last November, “single-family home additions or scrapes and rebuilds” are generally not charged any impact fees. Because nearly all single-family construction in Palo Alto is “in-fill,” on lots that already have single-family homes, such “net-new units” are almost never to be found. Consequently, the “impact fee that would be charged for a new primary dwelling on the same site” is, almost always, $0. As discussed above, under the proportionality rule, once one knows both (a) the New Or Hypothetical New Primary Dwelling Impact Fees, and (b) the Pure Percentage Ratio, one merely multiplies the two to determine the amount of ADU impact fees. Because Palo Alto almost never charges any impact fees on SFRs, however, the calculation becomes even simpler. No matter what the Pure Percentage Ratio is — i.e. , no matter what the ratio is between the size of a 750 square-foot or larger ADU and the size of a new or hypothetical new primary dwelling on the same parcel, $0 times the Pure Percentage Ratio is always $0. Consequently, if the City Council wishes to (a) comply with the state’s “proportionality rule” in Gov. C. subd. 66324(c)(1) , (b) honor the City’s commitments made in the Housing Element, and (c) “avoid the continued ambiguity in whether the City’s ordinance complies with State law,” Staff Report, p. 2, Mini-Packet p. 3/79, then the City should immediately cease charging impact fees for ADUs. // // // // // // // 3 This discussion of ADU impact fees is only half the story (or, more accurately a quarter), because the enormous disparity between single- and multi-family impact fee rates creates other problems as well. 7 (c) Fundamental fairness requires immediately ceasing impact fees on ADUs and refunding all impact fees paid on ADUs after March 23, 2023 . The City has addressed one limited problem in Program 3.5, Objective E and Ordinance No. 5639, but it has failed to address a much bigger problem with ADU impact fees. The Housing Element also states: Because Palo Alto has historically charged per-unit fees for residential development, this has led to some inequitable results, as the fees for an ADU will depend not only on the size of the ADU, but also on the size of the primary unit, with higher fees required under state law when the primary unit is smaller. Certified HE, p. 4-65. Ordinance No. 5639, despite its flaws, may have reduced the inequities between impact fees charged on different ADUs at the margin, and it may have reduced the absolute amount of those impact fees by ~10-20% 4 , but fundamental inequities in Palo Alto’s current impact fees remain and cannot be ignored. 750 to 1,000 square-foot ADUs may be charged $15,000-$20,000 or more in supposedly per-square-foot impact fees, when “scrapes” - even those adding 2,000, 3,000, 4,000 or more square feet pay nothing. The former ADU-to-ADU inequity has been superseded by a greater ADU-to-SFR inequity. 5 Palo Alto has effectively enacted “inversely progressive housing taxes,” saddling 750+ sf ADUs with extraordinary impact fees while 4,000+ sf luxury houses pay no impact fees whatsoever. Besides correcting other inequities (such as those between single- and multi-family housing), the City should immediately cease charging any impact fees on ADUs. In addition, if the City wishes to do what’s right and to correct the mistakes that it has made in assessing impact fees on ADUs in the past, then it should refund all ADU impact fees charged during the period beginning March 23, 2023. That date is when, it is believed, the City may have first acknowledged during the Housing Element process that there was a problem with per-unit impact fees. 6 Many ADU applicants have paid $10,000, $15,000, $20,000, $25,000, or even more to the City in impact fees since that date, while proportionality rules should have prevented the City from charging any such fees. The fair, right, and honorable thing would be for the City to reimburse all of those applicants for all of the impact fees that they were wrongly assessed as a condition for obtaining a building permit for an ADU. 7 // // // 7 For additional details, please see the additional details provided in “City of Palo Alto-Notes re 2025-03 ADU reforms--Revised 2025-04-23” (ADU Spreadsheet), nos. 26 and 36, Staff Report, Attachment E, and attached. 6 It is believed that the City may have had actual or constructive knowledge of such problems earlier. 5 The same types of inequities hold for additions to SFRs, and not just for scrapes. 4 I do not know the exact reduction and believe it varies by ADU project. This is a very rough estimate. 8 4. City Staff should (a) meet and engage actively with local architects, other design professionals, and members of the public to analyze the other reforms identified below, among others, and (b) return to the City Council no later than October 1, 2025 with a set of policy alternatives and recommendations for the Council. A. ADU permitting should be improved . ADU permitting should be accelerated. This will benefit both the City, by processing ADU permit applications more efficiently, and applicants, for whom improper plan check comments lead to unnecessary plan check responses, additional permitting expenses, and delayed permits. The Planning and Development Services department should agree to consult and work with local architects and design professionals to ensure that: ● Fire review criteria focus on "fire area," not FAR. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 23] See, e.g., Cal. Fire Code (2022) sec. 202: “[BF] FIRE AREA. The aggregate floor area enclosed and bounded by fire walls, fire barriers, exterior walls or horizontal assemblies of a building. Areas of the building not provided with surrounding walls shall be included in the fire area if such areas are included within the horizontal projection of the roof or floor next above." ● No assumed property lines are requested between two buildings. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 24] Instead: (1) Consider the two buildings as one structure with two dwelling units. This would be the same as considering one structure with an attached ADU. (2) One of the walls between the buildings to be considered as the wall separating dwelling units would require 1-hour fire-rating with 45 min. rated opening protection (the same as fire partition requirements per CBC). CRC R302.3. ● Constructing an ADU does not change a Group R occupancy, unless an authorized representative of a local agency makes a specific, written finding regarding a particular project. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 25] Gov. C. subd. 66314(d)(8) states in part: "[T]he construction of an accessory dwelling unit shall not constitute a Group R occupancy change under the local building code, as described in Section 310 of 9 the California Building Code (Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations), unless the building official or enforcement agency of the local agency makes a written finding based on substantial evidence in the record that the construction of the accessory dwelling unit could have a specific, adverse impact on public health and safety. Nothing in this paragraph shall be interpreted to prevent a local agency from changing the occupancy code of a space that was unhabitable space or was only permitted for nonresidential use and was subsequently converted for residential use pursuant to this article." (Introductory language omitted.) B. The City should not impose additional design, zoning, and other standards on 66323 Units (“state exemption” ADUs). City Staff should be commended for seeking to “avoid the continued ambiguity in whether the City’s ordinance complies with State law,” Staff Report, p. 2, Mini-Packet p. 3/79. Taking that goal seriously, however, requires that the City consider its ADU ordinance both directly and in the contexts of its other ordinances, rules, regulations, and procedures. The 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook makes clear that development of 66323 Units may not be curtailed by local standards that penalize such "state exemption" ADUs and JADUs: What design, zoning, or other local standards can be imposed on 66323 Units? A local agency may not impose development or design standards, including both local standards and standards found in State ADU Law, on 66323 Units that are not specifically listed in Government Code section 66323. (Gov. Code, § 66323, subds. (a), (b).) This includes, but is not limited to, parking, height, setbacks, or other zoning provisions (e.g., lot size, open space, floor area ratio, etc.)." 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 20. This principle applies to all four categories of ADUs and JADUs identified in Gov. C. sec. 66323. Contrary to the principle articulated by the HCD, Palo Alto has adopted many ADU-specific, local standards that may not be applied to 66323 Units, including, but not limited to, the following: ● Palo Alto calculates allowable heights for all ADUs differently from single-family homes in flood zones. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 30] ● Palo Alto calculates FAR for basements for all ADUs differently from single-family homes. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 30] ● Palo Alto incorrectly calculates FAR for ADUs, and possibly single-family homes as well, requiring measurements "to the outside of stud walls...." [See also No. 29] [ADU Spreadsheet No. 30] 10 ● Palo Alto generally prohibits ADUs from either (i) using an existing sewer line for a single-family residence to convey sewage from an ADU to the main sewer system or (ii) running a separate sewer line for an ADU under a single-family home, effectively requiring long, sometimes tortuous, and frequently expensive separate sewer runs for ADUs. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 30] ● Palo Alto, through the City of Palo Alto Utilities, prohibits ADUs from obtaining their own, separate municipal utilities. This too may operate as a constraint on the production of 66323 Units. Homeowners should, at their sole option, have the choice of whether to connect ADUs, both attached and detached, directly to CPAU utilities. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 30A] ● Just as Urban Forestry review should not be part of permitting ADUs or JADUs, CPAU should not review ADU or JADU permit applications unless the applicant specifically requests such permitting review in writing as part of the permit application. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 30A] ● Palo Alto should (A) use HCD tools for determining whether a given parcel is within 1/2 mile of transit, and (B) acknowledge that (i) non-VTA bus routes are relevant to determining such areas, (ii) the appropriate unit of analysis is a bus stop, not a bus route, and (iii) the requisite periodicity established by state law has changed recently. This requires that Palo Alto's current maps, wherever they are maintained and however they are shared with the public, be revised. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 30B & 30C] C. Under Gov. C. sec. 66321, attached ADUs up to 800 sf in size may be constructed out to four-foot side and rear setbacks . Palo Alto must allow an attached ADU up to 800 sf in size to be built out to four-foot side and rear setbacks; in other words, it need not be confined to the setbacks for the primary dwelling on the lot. Such an ADU would enjoy the height benefits provided by Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(D); as a result, in most parts of the City, it could be built to 25', provided that it does not have more than two stories. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 31A] D. Besides eliminating barriers to ADU production the HCD did not identify, Palo Alto should do far more to create incentives for ADU production . As a creative city, a policy innovator, and a community facing ever greater demographic obstacles, Palo Alto should aim not just to comply with California ADU law. If Palo Alto continues to age, if its population continues to decline, and if enrollments in local schools continue to fall, we will lose much of the vibrancy that has historically made Palo Alto such an exceptional community within which to live, learn, and work. By making ADUs “first-class homes,” we will create opportunities for older generations of Palo Altans to continue to live in our community, to find “next phase housing,” and to feel economically secure, even if present national economic trends continue. We need a robust suite of new policy initiatives to meet the needs of both younger and older members and would be members of our community. Our conception of ADUs should be expanded to include “next-phase housing,” which will create new means for 11 older Palo Altans to continue to live in our community, while creating new forms of “missing middle” homes that will allow younger people to expand and enhance the Palo Alto community. Such additional policy initiatives include the following: ● Palo Alto should create an alternative, local, 20' height limit, for two-story, detached, Table 2 ADUs, with a daylight plane. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 38] ● Palo Alto should experiment with meaningful financial incentives to increase ADU production, totaling $5 million in grants and on-bill financing over two years. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 41] ○ Up to 50 $25k grants for pre-designed ADUs. ○ Up to 50 $25k grants based on CalHFA program. ○ Up to 25 on-CPAU-bill financings for first $100k of ADU costs. ● The City should waive all impact and permitting fees on both ADUs and JADUs. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 37] ● If the City does charge any impact fees on ADUs, however, applicants should be allowed to defer them without recording a lien against their properties. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 27] ● End the "loser lottery." Do not condition permit approval of ADUs or JADUs on charging applicants for CPAU infrastructure upgrades, a type of impermissible demand for public improvements, and give applicants, at their sole option, the ability to obtain one or more separate utility services for ADUs. [ADU Spreadsheet No. 34] Conclusion ADUs should be “first-class homes.” We should increase the maximum size of ADUs to 1,600 sf, allow ADUs to become condominiums, which will provide additional financing and sales, and eliminate obstacles to ADU production, including impact and permitting fees. ADUs can provide more abundant “next-phase” and “missing middle” homes for our community. The City Council should: ● increase the size limit for detached ADUs with 2+ bedrooms to 1,200 sf now, and request City Staff to draft a further increase to 1,600 sf by September 1st; ● request City Staff to draft a local ordinance under Gov. C. sec. 66342 to allow for condominium conversions of ADUs by September 1st; ● eliminate new local impact fees for ADUs, and request City Staff to draft a new local ordinance by September 1st to refund all local impact fees for ADUs that were charged at any time after March 23, 2023; and ● request City Staff to engage actively with local architects, other design professionals, and the public to analyze the other reforms in the attached spreadsheet, among others, and to return to the City Council no later than October 1, 2025 with policy alternatives and recommendations for the Council. Attachments: City of Palo Alto-Notes re 2025-03 ADU reforms--Revised 2025-04-23” (ADU Spreadsheet) 12 City of Palo Alto-Notes re ADU reforms, 2025 John Kelley Apr 23, 2025 Ver. 0.2 These notes summarize some of the key points made in the accompanying document, “City of Palo Alto-Notes re 2025-03 ADU reforms--Revised 2025-04-23.” Please see that document for details. Based on State ADU Regulations 1. Because the City does not charge impact fees for additions to or scrapes of single-family residences (SFRs), proportionality requires that impact fees be eliminated for ADUs. [No. 26] 1.1. As a matter of equity, the City should also refund improperly charged ADU fees back to at least March 23, 2023. [No. 36] 2. Additional local design, zoning, and other standards may not be imposed on 66323 Units. The 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook makes clear, at p. 20, that development of 66323 Units may not be curtailed by local standards that penalize such "state exemption" ADUs and JADUs. (This principle applies to all four categories of ADUs and JADUs identified in Gov. C. sec. 66323.) This principle requires modifying Palo Alto’s regulation of 66323 Units in many ways. [Nos. 30, 30A, 30B, and 30C] 2.1. Palo Alto calculates allowable heights for all ADUs differently from single-family homes in flood zones. 2.2. Palo Alto calculates FAR for basements for all ADUs differently from single-family homes. 2.3. Palo Alto incorrectly calculates FAR for ADUs, and possibly single-family homes as well, requiring measurements "to the outside of stud walls...." [ See also No. 29] 2.4. Palo Alto generally prohibits ADUs from either (i) using an existing sewer line for a single-family residence to convey sewage from an ADU to the main sewer system or (ii) running a 1 separate sewer line for an ADU under a single-family home, effectively requiring long, sometimes tortuous, and frequently expensive separate sewer runs for ADUs. 2.5. Palo Alto, through the City of Palo Alto Utilities, prohibits ADUs from obtaining their own, separate municipal utilities. This too may operate as a constraint on the production of 66323 Units. Homeowners should, at their sole option, have the choice of whether to connect ADUs, both attached and detached, directly to CPAU utilities. 2.6. Just as Urban Forestry review should not be part of permitting ADUs or JADUs, CPAU should not review ADU or JADU permit applications unless the applicant specifically requests such permitting review in writing as part of the permit application. 2.7. Palo Alto should (A) use HCD tools for determining whether a given parcel is within 1/2 mile of transit, and (B) acknowledge that (i) non-VTA bus routes are relevant to determining such areas, (ii) the appropriate unit of analysis is a bus stop, not a bus route, and (iii) the requisite periodicity established by state law has changed recently. This requires that Palo Alto's current maps, wherever they are maintained and however they are shared with the public, be revised. 3. Fire review criteria should focus on "fire area," not FAR. [No. 23] 4. No assumed property line between two buildings. [No. 24] 5. Constructing an ADU does not change a Group R occupancy, unless an authorized representative of a local agency makes a specific, written finding regarding a particular project. [No. 25] 6. Palo Alto must allow an attached ADU up to 800 sf in size to be built out to four-foot side and rear setbacks. [No. 31A] 6.1. In other words, it need not be confined to the setbacks for the primary dwelling on the lot. 6.2. Such an ADU would enjoy the height benefits provided by Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(D); as a result, in most parts of the City, it could be built to 25', provided that it does not have more than two stories. 2 More Effective Local Regulations For Stimulating ADU Production 1. Palo Alto should allow for separate conveyance of ADUs under Gov. C. sec. 66342. [No. 32] 2. Palo Alto should adopt a 1,200 sf size limit for all ADUs. [No. 39] 3. Palo Alto should create an alternative, local, 20' height limit, specifically for two-story, detached, Table 2 ADUs, with a daylight plane. [No. 38] 4. Palo Alto should experiment with meaningful financial incentives to increase ADU production, totaling $5 million in grants and on-bill financing over two years. [No. 41] 4.1. Up to 50 $25k grants for pre-designed ADUs. 4.2. Up to 50 $25k grants based on CalHFA program. 4.3. Up to 25 on-CPAU-bill financings for first $100k of ADU costs. 5. The City should waive all impact and permitting fees on both ADUs and JADUs. [No. 37] 5.1. If the City does charge any impact fees on ADUs, however, applicants should be allowed to defer them without recording a lien against their properties. [No. 27] 6. End the "loser lottery." Do not condition permit approval of ADUs or JADUs on charging applicants for CPAU infrastructure upgrades, a type of impermissible demand for public improvements, and give applicants, at their sole option, the ability to obtain one or more separate utility services for ADUs. [No. 34] 3 1 City of Palo Alto-Notes re 2025-03 ADU reforms (selected summary points for City Staff and City Council in larger font, comments from 2024-10 HCD L 2025-04-23 Ver. 0.5 (WIP draft). Category No.Issue Reference(s) "18.09.030 Units Exempt from Generally Applicable Local Regulations "1 The HCD's comments concern additional height requirements for, , detached ADUs witihin a half mile of a major transit stop or a high-quality transit corridor, as well as additional height for matching the roof pitch of the primary dwelling. Those changes should be adopted. Please also see the further discussions below, "Additional concerns re setbacks, daylight plane, and height," and "Palo Alto should use HCD tools for determining whether a given parcel is within 1/2 mile of transit." 2024-10 HCD Letter, #2 2 These proposed changes should be adopted. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #3 3 This proposed change, which concerns Gov. C. sec. 66331, should be made. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #4 4 This proposed change, which refers to ADU construction not triggering "a requirement for fire sprinklers to be installed in the existing multifamily dwelling," should be made. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #5 5 The proposed change, which concerns JADUs without a separate bathroom needing "a separate entrance from the main entrance to the structure, with an interior entry to the main living area," should be adopted. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #6 6 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to allow for the expansion for ingress and egress pursuant to Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(A). Although not specifically noted by HCD: (a) in the Ordinance, "renovation of reconstruction..." should perhaps read, "renovation or reconstruction...."; and,2024-10 HCD Letter, #7 7 Both sections of the Ordinance should allow for the separate sale of an ADU "built or developed by a qualified nonprofit corporation, among other things," to a qualified buyer pursuant to Gov. C. sec. 66341. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #8 Section 18.09.030 (a) iii -- "Footnote 5 in Table 1 of Section 18.09.030 provides for these allowances, the City must amend the Ordinance to comply with State ADU law and avoid contradictory provisions." Section 18.09.030 Table 1 – . "This permits a homeowner, who meets specified requirements, to create one converted ADU; one detached, new construction ADU; and one JADU." Section 18.09.030(d) –. "Therefore, the City must add language allowing delay of enforcement." Section 18.09.030(d) –. "Therefore, City must add the second sentence in the preceding citation to the Ordinance to be consistent with State ADU law.." Section 18.09.030 (g) – JADUs and Interior Entry. "Therefore, the City must amend the Ordinance accordingly." Section 18.09.030(h) – . Sections 18.09.030(j) & 18.09.040(m)(2) – . Height. Unit Allowance Delay of Enforcement Sprinklers Conversion and Expansion Separate Sale e.g. Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(B) Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(C) Gov. C. subd. 66317(c) Gov. C. sec. 66323 Gov. C. sec. 66331 Gov. C. subd. 66323(d) Gov. C. subd. 66333(e)(2) Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(A) Gov. C. subd. 66341 (b) if the ADU being expanded for ingress and egress is a 66323 Unit (formerly sometimes known as a statewide exemption ADU) under Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1), then, in addition, such an expansion should not be subject to Section 18.09.040. 2 8 (a) All explicit or implicit references to any of the City's tree or landscape regulations, including those in PAMC Chap. 8.10, "Tree and Landscape Preservation and Management," should be deleted from the ADU Ordinance. (b) PAMC Chap. 8.10 should be amended to make clear that it may not be applied or enforced with regard to ADUs, pursuant to Gov. C. subd. 66317(c). (c) Any review of an ADU permit application by the City's Public Works Urban Forestry Section, or any other part of the City seeking information or review with regard to the City's tree or landscape regulations, should cease, pursuant to Gov. C. subd. 66317(c). (d) These actions are consistent with Governor Newsom's recent . As explained on February 6, 2025 in a , "The executive order issued by Governor Newsom," among other things, "[d]irects the State Board of Forestry to accelerate its work to adopt regulations known as “Zone 0,” which will require "an ember-resistant zone within 5 feet of structures located in the highest fire severity zones in the state." From the recent, devastating fires in Southern California and advances in fire science, we know that "Zone 0" protections are critical to enhancing fire safety for California homes. The current Tree Ordinance should not prohibit Palo Altans from defending their homes against the increasing and increasingly great threats of wildfires resulting from catastrophic global heating. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #9 "18.09.040 Units Subject to Local Standards." 9 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to "remove references to JADUs in this section," because JADUs are created pursuant to Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1), "and would therefore be approved under section 18.090.030." 2024-10 HCD Letter, #10 10 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to clarify that ADUs may be built when a "lot is zoned to allow single-family or multifamily dwelling residential use...," pursuant to Gov. C. subd. 66314. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #11 11 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to delete any reference to the Palo Alto Historic Inventory, pursuant to Gov. C. subd. 66314(b)(1). Although not specifically noted by HCD, this also means that the City should refrain from any review of an ADU permit application by the City's Planning personnel or any other part of the City with reference to the Palo Alto Historic Inventory, pursuant to Gov. C. subd. 66317(c). 2024-10 HCD Letter, #11 12 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to make clear that, in the case of a street-side setback, as well as a front setback, such a setback "may not preclude the development of an 800 square foot unit," pursuant to Gov. C. subd. Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(3). 2024-10 HCD Letter, #13 13 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to include the parking exceptions included in Gov. C. subds. 66322(a)(1)-(a)(6), , if an ADU is within a half mile of public transit. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #14 14 As indicated by the HCD, the City "may not require parking as a condition to permitting a JADU, even when the JADU is converted from an attached garage," citing Gov. C. subd. 66334(a) in a footnote. This change should be made. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #15 Sections 18.09.030(m) & 18.09.040(g) and (j)(2)(C) – Section 18.09.040(a) – JADUs and Development Standards. Section 18.09.040(c) – Multifamily ADU Allowances. Section 18.09.040(h) – Local Historic Register. Section 18.09.040 (j)(4) – Street-Side Setback. Section 18.09.040 (l) – Parking Exceptions. 18.09.040 (l)(2) – Garage Conversion and Replacement Parking. Tree Ordinance. Executive Order N-18-25 separate announcement Gov. C. subd. 66317(c) Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(A) Gov. C. subd. 66314 Gov. C. subd. 66314(b)(1) Gov. C. subd. 66317(c) Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(3) Gov. C. subds. 66322(a)(1)-(a)(6) Gov. C. subd. 66334(a) e.g. 3 "18.09.050 Additional Requireme nts for JADUs" 15 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to clarify that "'enclosed uses within the residence' include 'attached garages, [which] are considered a part of the proposed or existing single-family residence.'” Gov. C. subd. 66333(d). 2024-10 HCD Letter, #16 16 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to conform with the broad language of Gov. C. subd. 66333(f), deleting the City's more stringent requirements regarding JADU kitchens. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #17 17 As indicated by the HCD, the City should amend this portion of the Ordinance to conform with the precise terms of Gov. C. subd. 66333(e)(2). 2024-10 HCD Letter, #18 18 As indicated by the HCD, Gov. C. subd. 66333(c) does not include authority for prohibiting short term rentals, and the City must delete such provisions from its list of deed restrictions. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #19 "18.04.030 Definitions" 19 . As indicated by the HCD, Gov. C. subd. 66313(a) does not specifically define cooking facilities, and HSC sec. 17958.1 allows for "'partial kitchen'" facilities. Accordingly, the City must delete its appliance and counterspace requirements for ADUs. Although not specifically noted by HCD, relying upon those same code sections, an ADU applicant constructing an "efficiency unit" should also be allowed to provide only "partial .... bathroom facilities," as described in HSC sec. 17958.1. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #20 18.09.050 (a) - JADUs in Attached Garages. 18.09.050 (b)(i) and (ii) – JADU Kitchen Facilities. 18.09.050 (b) iii. – JADU Entry. 18.09.050 (e) – JADU Term Limits. 18.04.030(a)(75)(A) – Kitchen Requirements Gov. C. subd. 66333(d) Gov. C. subd. 66333(f) Gov. C. subd. 66333(e)(2) Gov. C. subd. 66333(c) Gov. C. subd. 66313(a) HSC sec. 17958.1 4 Additional proposed regulatory changes 20 Combine building permit applications and demo permit applications for ADUs, and make responsibilities for matters typically handled by contractors (such as securing a J#) post-permit-issuance, rather than pre-permit-issuance, requirements. Such changes should be memorialized in Chp. 18.09 of the PAMC.". Adds a requirement for a local agency to review and issue a demolition permit for “a detached garage that is to be replaced with an ADU” at the same time it reviews, and issues permits for, the ADU construction. (Gov. Code, § 66314, subd. (e).) Also prohibits permitting agencies requiring applicants to “provide written notice or post a placard for the demolition of a detached garage ... unless the property is located within an architecturally and historically significant district.” (Gov. Code, § 66314, subd. (f).)" 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 14 21 The 60-day time limit for approving or denying an ADU or JADU permit application should be (a) strictly observed, and (b) calculated using the equivalent of a "chess clock" displayed in the City's online permitting system. Such changes should be memorialized in Chp. 18.09 of the PAMC. ". Requires a permitting agency to either approve or deny (replacing the former language “act on”) an application to create or serve an ADU or JADU within 60 days Integrate building and demo permit applications for ADUs. Demolition Permits Enforce the 60-day time limit.Permitting Process Compare: 5 22 Prohibit reviewers from adding new plan check comments after C1 plan check comments have been returned to an applicant unless such new plan check comments (a) only note a failure to comply with prior plan check comments, or (b) are directed to and concern only changes in submittal materials made in response to earlier plan check comments. Such changes should be memorialized in Chp. 18.09 of the PAMC. 23 The City's "Fire Department Checklist for Residential Plan Review" includes a misleading question, which can lead to an incorrect plan check comment. It asks: "Are you doing an addition that will result in the total floor area (including basements and attached garages) exceeding 3600 square feet?" This question refers impliciitly to PAMC subd. 16.06.140, "Section R313.2.2 NFPA 13D sprinkler systems increase in design requirements," whose numbered sub-part 2 states, "Structures where the combined fire area is 3600 sq ft or larger." FAR is simply not the same as fire area. Accordingly, the fire review criteria should focus on fire area, not FAR, and the Fire Department checklist should be revised accordingly. , : "[BF] FIRE AREA. The aggregate floor area enclosed and bounded by fire walls, fire barriers, exterior walls or horizontal assemblies of a building. Areas of the building not provided with surrounding walls shall be included in the fire area if such areas are included within the horizontal projection of the roof or floor next above." 24 Instead: (1) Consider the two buildings as one structure with two dwelling units. This would be the same as considering one structure with an attached ADU. (2) One of the walls between the buildings to be considered as the wall separating dwelling units would require 1-hour fire-rating with 45 min. rated opening protection (the same as fire partition requirements per CBC). CRC R302.3. " Obligates a permitting agency, when it denies an ADU or JADU application, to “return in writing a full set of comments to the applicant with a list of items that are defective or deficient and a description of how the application can be remedied by the applicant” within 60 days from when a completed application is received. (Gov. Code, §§ 66317, subd. (b); 66320, subd. (b); 66335, subd. (b).)" No new-later-cycle plan check comments.Permitting Agency Denials. Fire review criteria should focus on "fire area," not FAR. No assumed property line between two buildings. See also See, e.g., Cal. Fire Code (2022) sec. 202 PAMC subd. 16.06.140 CRC R302.3 6 25 26 Palo Alto recently replaced per-unit with per-square-foot impact fees to comply with prior state law. Nonetheless, it still treats ADUs unfairly, because on parcels with existing SFRs, it does not levy impact fees on additions or even complete “scrapes.” (video recording of the .) The proportionality example at p. 23 of the HCD’s 2025 ADU Handbook refers to “a new primary dwelling on the same site.” If a parcel in Palo Alto has an existing SFR, a new primary dwelling on that site would not trigger any impact fees under the city’s procedures. Consequently, the proportionate impact fees for an ADU of any size should also be zero. Imposition of such impact fees on ADUs should cease immediately (and the City should refund amounts charged improperly to applicants, as discussed below). 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 23. "(c) (1) A local agency, special district, or water corporation shall not impose any impact fee upon the development of an accessory dwelling unit less than 750 square feet. Any impact fees charged for an accessory dwelling unit of 750 square feet or more shall be charged proportionately in relation to the square footage of the primary dwelling unit." Gov. C. subd. 66314(d)(8) states in part: "[T]he construction of an accessory dwelling unit shall not constitute a Group R occupancy change under the local building code, as described in Section 310 of the California Building Code (Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations), unless the building official or enforcement agency of the local agency makes a written finding based on substantial evidence in the record that the construction of the accessory dwelling unit could have a specific, adverse impact on public health and safety. Nothing in this paragraph shall be interpreted to prevent a local agency from changing the occupancy code of a space that was unhabitable space or was only permitted for nonresidential use and was subsequently converted for residential use pursuant to this article." (Introductory language omitted.) Because the City does not charge impact fees for additions to or scrapes of single-family residences (SFRs), proportionality requires that impact fees be eliminated for ADUs. Constructing an ADU does not change a Group R occupancy, unless an authorized representative of a local agency makes a specific, written finding regarding a particular project. See, e.g., Palo Alto City Council meeting on November 18, 2024 Gov. C. subd. 66324(c)(1) Gov. C. subd. 66314 7 27 Payment of impact fees on ADUs, among other projects, may deferred until , as now codified in , as well as , which was updated recently based on Ord. 5645. If any impact fees are assessed on ADUs, then homeowners should be allowed to defer payment of such fees, and the issuance of a permit to build an ADU should not be deferred pending their payment. But requiring that homeowners record a lien for payment of such fees is unnecessarily burdensome, time-consuming, and expensive. The City should be able to craft other means of ensuring that such fees, if any, are paid prior to final inspection or issuance of a certificate of occupancy using the City's own permitting and inspection systems, rather than requiring a recorded lien. 28 As indicated above, the City's current impact fee regime as applied to ADUs is, at best, problematic. If the City is genuinely interested in providing more and more affordable housing, and if the City wishes to meet its Housing Element goals by producing more ADUs, one of the most reasonable steps would be to eliminate impact fees on ADUs altogether. In addition, one might have doubts about the continued constitutional validity of California's impact fee system. following the vacating of the prior submission of the case in , Case Number C093682, before the 3rd District Court of Appeal, is now scheduled for June 24, 2025. , Case Number C093682. 29 The HCD has clarified how square footage of ADUs and JADUs should be calculated: "The CBC defines “Floor Area, Gross” as “[t]he floor area within the inside perimeter of the exterior walls of the building under consideration, exclusive of vent shafts and courts, without deduction for corridors, stairways, ramps, closets, the thickness of interior walls, columns or other features. The floor area of a building, or portion thereof, not provided with surrounding exterior walls shall be the usable area under the horizontal projection of the roof or floor above. The gross floor area shall not include shafts with no openings or interior courts. Government Code section 66314, subdivision (d)(8) states that a local ADU ordinance must require ADUs to comply with local building codes. Thus, when a local agency has not adopted specific changes to the CBC in its local building standards, then the CBC standards, and in this case the definition of floor area, shall apply. If the local agency has made specific amendments, additions, or deletions relating to the definition of “Floor Area” within its local building standards, then those altered definitions shall apply." 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 39. Palo Alto does ot appear to have incorporated a change to this portion of the CBC. PAMC subds.. Consequently, Palo Alto is bound by the CBC rules, requiring measurements to "the inside perimeter of the exterior walls of the building under consideration...." But Palo Alto measures "to the outside of stud walls...." . The same considerations likely apply to lot coverage and other zoning measurements based on square footage calculations. Therefore, Palo Alto's Municipal Code and its calculation of square footages for ADUs must be changed. In addition, because the PAMC likely requires conformity with the CBC for single-family homes, absent specific local changes, this problem may affect the calculation of square footages for single-family homes as well. 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 39 If the City does charge any impact fees on ADUs, applicants should be allowed to defer them without recording a lien against their properties Indeed, the City can and should go further and simply eliminate impact fees on ADUs Palo Alto incorrectly calculates square footages, including FAR, for ADUs, and possibly single-family homes as well. . . SB 937 Gov. C. sec. 66007 PAMC subd.16.64.030 Oral argument Docket of 16.04.230-240 PAMC subd. 18.04.030(a)(65)(C) Sheetz v. County of El Dorado See Sheetz v. County of El Dorado 830 2024-10 HCD Letter, #3 Additional local design, zoning, and other standards may not be imposed on 66323 Units. Palo Alto calculates allowable heights for all ADUs differently from single-family homes in flood zones. Palo Alto calculates FAR for basements for all ADUs differently from single-family homes Palo Alto incorrectly calculates FAR for ADUs, and possibly single-family homes as well, requiring measurements "to the outside of stud walls...." Palo Alto generally prohibits ADUs from either (i) using an existing sewer line for a single-family residence to convey sewage from an ADU to the main sewer system or (ii) running a separate sewer line for an ADU under a single-family home, effectively requiring long, sometimes tortuous, and frequently expensive separate sewer runs for ADUs. The 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook makes clear, at p. 20, that development of 66323 Units may not be curtailed by local standards that penalize such "state exemption" ADUs and JADUs. (This principle applies to all four categories of ADUs and JADUs identified in Gov. C. sec. 66323.) As the HCD has explained: "What design, zoning, or other local standards can be imposed on 66323 Units? A local agency may not impose development or design standards, including both local standards and standards found in State ADU Law, on 66323 Units that are not specifically listed in Government Code section 66323. (Gov. Code, § 66323, subds. (a), (b).) This includes, but is not limited to, parking, height, setbacks, or other zoning provisions (e.g., lot size, open space, floor area ratio, etc.)." (Blue font deleted.). 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 20. Palo Alto has many ADU-specific, local standards that may not be applied to 66323 Units, including, but not limited to, the following: (a) See, e.g., footnotes 3 and 3 to Table 1 of Section 18.09.030 and Table 2 of Section 18.09.040, respectively. (b) See, e.g., City of Palo Alto, "Guidebook 2024, Accessory Dwelling Unit" ("Palo Alto ADU Guidebook 2024"), p. 16: "Basements are permitted, but habitable basement space will contribute to unit size." Contrast one part of the definition of "Gross floor area" in PAMC subd. 18.04.030(a)(65)(D)(i): "D) Low Density Residential Exclusions: In the RE and R-1 single-family residence districts and in the R-2 and RMD two-family residence districts, 'gross floor area' shall not include the following: (i) Basements where the finished level of the first floor is not more than three feet above the grade around the perimeter of the building foundation, shall be excluded from the calculation of gross floor area, provided that lightwells, stairwells and other excavated features comply with the provisions of Section 18.12.070;....' (c) PAMC subd. 18.04.030(a)(65)(C). (See the discussion above.) (d) (This requirement is believed to be in a manual maintained at the Development Services office, to which I do not presently have access.) But these requirements as well go beyond the text of Gov. C. sec. 66323. (See also the discussion below of the limited scope of utilities review of ADU building permit applications.) . Gov. C. sec. 66323 9 30 A (e) (f) Otherwise, such CPAU review may also operate as a constraint on the production of 66323 Units. The City has already determined which parts of Palo Alto have adequate water and sewer service. This is apparently includes all residential areas in Palo Alto: "ADUs are allowed on any property where single- or multi-family residential is a permited use." Palo Alto ADU Guidebook 2024, p. 6. ADU and JADU applicants should simply indicate that the parcel is located in a residential area on the title sheet of a set of plans for an ADU or a JADU. Applicants should have the option of deferring all other CPAU reviews until after a permit has issued. This will also facilitate contractor involvement with utilities issues. (See also the additional discussion of limitations on CPAU permitting review below.) (g) Palo Alto should use HCD tools for determining whether a given parcel is within 1/2 mile of transit. (PLEASE NOTE: please see the further discussion immediatley below.) 2024-10 HCD Letter, #3 Palo Alto, through the City of Palo Alto Utilities, prohibits ADUs from obtaining their own, separate municipal utilities. This too may operate as a constraint on the production of 66323 Units. Homeowners should, at their sole option, have the choice of whether to connect ADUs, both attached and detached, directly to CPAU utilities. Just as Urban Forestry review should not be part of permitting ADUs or JADUs, CPAU should not review ADU or JADU permit applications unless the applicant specifically requests such permitting review in writing as part of the permit application. Gov. C. sec. 66323 10 30 B (Continued immediately below.) Additional local design, zoning, and other standards may not be imposed on 66323 Units (continued). (h) The HCD has prepared an "Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH), Data Viewer & Mapping Resources," which provides tools for determining whether a given parcel is or is not within 1/2 mile of transit. I have not checked this recently, but in the past I have observed that the results of using the HCD tool lead to different results from consulting with the City regarding the distance between particular parcels and transit. In general, I believe that the City should, at a minimum, accept the results from such HCD tools, even if the City wishes to be more generous than the state mandates. Reasons for this conclusion include the following: (i) I believe that non-VTA bus routes are relevant to determining such areas. Although I have not been able to find a public-facing, web-available tool from the City for determining whether or not a given parcel is within 1/2 mile of transit, based on past communications, I believe, but have not confirmed, that the City's current maps are based on VTA bus routes. But there are other transit providers whose routes should be considered, such as AC Transit, Stanford, and perhaps others, and, as far as I know, one cannot easily test the City's maps to determine whether such other routes are even being considered in determining such 1/2 mile distances. (ii) Importantly, the appropriate unit of analysis is a bus stop, not a bus route. Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(B), for example, refers to this distance: "one-half of one mile walking distance of a major transit stop or a high-quality transit corridor, as those terms are defined in Section 21155 of the Public Resources Code." The phrase "major transit stop" is significant. PRC subd. 21155(b) states, in part, " "A major transit stop is as defined in Section 21064.3, except that, for purposes of this section, it also includes major transit stops that are included in the applicable regional transportation plan. For purposes of this section, a high-quality transit corridor means a corridor with fixed route bus service with service intervals no longer than 15 minutes during peak commute hours. A project shall be considered to be within one-half mile of a major transit stop or high-quality transit corridor if all parcels within the project have no more than 25 percent of their area farther than one-half mile from the stop or corridor and if not more than 10 percent of the residential units or 100 units, whichever is less, in the project are farther than one-half mile from the stop or corridor." (Emphasis added.) (iii) PRC sec. 21064.3 was recently changed. ("Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 275, Sec. 2. (AB 2553) Effective January 1, 2025.). It now states: "“Major transit stop” means a site containing any of the following: (a) An existing rail or bus rapid transit station. (b) A ferry terminal served by either a bus or rail transit service. (c) The intersection of two or more major bus routes with a frequency of service interval of 20 minutes or less during the morning and afternoon peak commute periods." In terms of implications for Palo Alto's ADU ordinace, specifically with reference to height limits: (1) It is unclear how one can interrogate the City's current maps through the web. Asking regarding particular parcels is accepting a "black box" analysis which is not transparent. Homeowners are entitled to know what they can build before they incur the cost and expense of preparing a permit application, and the community should be able to know, for example, in the context of urging the City Council to amend its current ordinance, which specific areas of Palo Alto the City current considers to be within such 1/2 mile distances. PLEASE NOTE: These are additional comments provided on 2025-03-25. This concern applies specifically to 66323 Units, as well as to what might be deemed "66321 Units." Palo Alto should (A) use HCD tools for determining whether a given parcel is within 1/2 mile of transit, and (B) acknowledge that (i) non-VTA bus routes are relevant to determining such areas, (ii) the appropriate unit of analysis is a bus stop, not a bus route, and (iii) the requisite periodicity established by state law has changed recently. This requires that Palo Alto's current maps, wherever they are maintained and however they are shared with the public, be revised. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #3 Gov. C. sec. 66323 11 30 C 31 PLEASE NOTE: Please see the further discussion immediately below. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #2 (2) It is unclear whether the City has even begun to update its analyses based on the recent changes to PRC sec. 21064.3 with its new, 20-min. standard. (3) It is unclear whether the City has taken account of non-VTA transit providers, including AC Transit and Stanford, among others. (4) It is unclear on what principled basis the City would substitute its own analyses for those of HCD. (5) And, perhaps most importantly, while I am not certain, I believe that the City has constructed its map based on bus routes, rather than bus stops. A "major transit stop" includes "the intersection of two or more major bus routes...." There is nothing on the face of PRC sec. 21064.3 requiring that such bus routes be orthogonal, or even at a slight angle, to one another. In the absence of such a legislative requirement, two bus routes could intersect by overlaping one another. Since the fundamental unit of analysis is a "major transit stop," this means that the number of "major transit stops" throughout Palo Alto is likely considerable greater than that suggested by the City's maps. In many instances, VTA, AC Transit, Stanford, and perhaps other transit servcie providers (including the City itself, whether now or in the future) run buses along the same major vehicular arteries, such as University, Embaracadero, San Antonio, Middlefield, etc. Although service may be provided by different agencies or carriers at such stops, because the same bus stop is served by multiple providers, there are likely far more that qualify as "major transit stops" under the new 20-min. standard. If the City has not undertaken such an analysis, in addition to acknowleging and accepting the results of the HCD's tools, it should also calculate which particular stops in Palo Alto are served with 20-min. intervals by any carrier at peak commute times. It would be sad, and, indeed, ironic, were the City not to take account of interactions between different transit providers for the purposes of assessing height limitations for ADUs when its own "Getting Around" web page champions "the free Stanford Marguerite shuttle bus network" as complementing VTA buses. Although not specifically noted by the HCD (see discussion of "Section 18.09.030 (a) iii -- Height," above, parts of both Table 1 of Section 18.09.030 and Table 2 of Section 18.09.040 are inconsistent with state law. Among other things, "66323 Units do not have to comply with lot coverage, front setbacks, and design standards." The 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 18. Cf. paragraph immediately below table at p. 20. That 66323 Units do not have to comply with lot coverage, front setbacks, and design standards affects both Table 1 and, importantly, and Table 2 as well, in several ways: (a) The heading for the third column from the left of Table 1 reads, "Construction of Attached ADU Within the Proposed Space of a Single-Family Home," and a large cell for the rows concerning setbacks, daylight plane, and maximum height states, "Underlying zone standard for Single[-]Family Home (ADU must be within allowable space of Single-Family Home)." (b) As for setbacks, Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(C) states, "The side and rear setbacks are sufficient for fire and safety," not that the setbacks are the same as for the single-family home. (c) As for daylight plane requirements, none are mentioned in Gov. C. subd. 66323(a); therefore, for the same reasons discussed by the HCD in 2024-10 HCD Letter, #9 (discussed above), under Gov. C. subd. 66317(c), the City may not enact additional requirements to delay an ADU or JADU building permit. (d) As for maximum height, footnote (3) states, "Units built in a flood zone are not entitled to any height extensions granted to the primary dwelling." Again, under Gov. C. subd. 66317(c), the City may not enact additional requirements to delay an ADU or JADU building permit. Consequently, the City cannot rely upon other parts of the PAMC to reduce the effective height limit for ADUs. (e) In addition, the heading for the second column from the left of Table 2 merely states, "Attached," but its problems --- regarding setbacks, daylight plane, and maximum heigh --- are analogous to those of the third column in Table 1, and they too must be corrected. (f) Both tables should incorporate the current guidance from HCD regarding two-story ADUs: "If a detached two-story ADU can be built according to the height allowances required under State ADU Law while remaining compliant with the building code, a local agency cannot deny an ADU application to create a two-story ADU, irrespective of the underlying zoning that might restrict a primary dwelling to one story. (Gov. Code, §§ 66321, subd. (b)(4)(D); 66314, subd. (d)(8).)". 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 25. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #3 Gov. C. sec. 66323 Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(B) Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(C) Gov. C. subd. 66317(c) Additional concerns re setbacks, daylight plane, and height. 12 31 A (g) While 66323 Units have a special status, including an explicit ministerial approval requirement, Gov. C. subd. 66323(a), additional concerns regarding Palo Alto's current ADU ordinance concerning setbacks, daylight plan, and height arise from consideration of Gov. C. subd. 66321. For example, while Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(A) does not speak separately and explicitly to rules governing attached ADU ("The accessory dwelling unit or junior accessory dwelling unit is within the proposed space of a single-family dwelling or existing space of a single-family dwelling or accessory structure...."), state ADU laws still encourage and protect the development of attached ADUs in important ways. Among other things: Gov. C. subd. 66321(a) explicitly references "both attached and detached accessory dwelling units." Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(2) sets floors for the maximum sizes of all ADUs and those that "provide[] more than one bedroom." Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(D) generally provides greater height limits for attached ADUs: "A height of 25 feet or the height limitation in the local zoning ordinance that applies to the primary dwelling, whichever is lower, for an accessory dwelling unit that is attached to a primary dwelling. This subparagraph shall not require a local agency to allow an accessory dwelling unit to exceed two stories." And Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(3) establishes a special set of protections for "an 800 square foot accessory dwelling unit with four-foot side and rear yard setbacks to be constructed in compliance with all other local development standards." Because all of these provisions are part of one section of the Government Code, and because Gov. C. sec. 66321 should be read in harmony with Gov. C. subd. 66323, along with the other parts of Article 2, an 800-sf ADU with four-foot side and rear setbacks, whether attached or detached, enjoys, among other things, the additional height allowances provided by Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(D), and protection from any portion of any local agency ordinance that would seek to impose "[a]ny requirement for a zoning clearance or separate zoning review or any other minimum or maximum size for an accessory dwelling unit, size based upon a percentage of the proposed or existing primary dwelling, or limits on lot coverage, floor area ratio, open space, front setbacks, and minimum lot size, for either attached or detached dwellings...." Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(3). Applying these principles to Palo Alto's current ADU ordinance leads to several important conclusions, including, but not limited to, the following: (3) Although it is perhaps a bit of an open question, I believe that the most reasonable reading of Gov. C. sec. 66321, particulary in light of Gov. C. subd. 66323, along with the other parts of Article 2, protects such an attached ADU from Palo Alto's daylight plane requirements, provided it respects the four-foot side and rear setback requirements. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #2 Additional concerns re setbacks, daylight plane, and height. PLEASE NOTE: These are additional comments provided on 2025-03-25. (1) Palo Alto must allow an attached ADU up to 800 sf in size to be built out to four-foot side and rear setbacks; in other words, it need not be confined to the setbacks for the primary dwelling on the lot. (2) Such an ADU would enjoy the height benefits provided by Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(D); as a result, in most parts of the City, it could be built to 25', provided that it does not have more than two stories. Gov. C. subd. 66321(b)(4)(B) Gov. C. subd. 66323(a)(1)(C) Gov. C. subd. 66317(c) 13 OTHER POLICY CHANGES 32 Althought not required by state law, Gov. Code section 66342 gives local jurisdictions the option of adopting an ordinance to provide for the separate conveyance of an ADU, apart from its primary dwelling, as noted by the HCD in a footnote in the 2024-10 HCD letter. Palo Alto should adopt such an ordinance as a means of stimulating ADU production. Allowing for the separate conveyance of ADUs in Palo Alto would likely expand capital availability for ADU production considerably. 2024-10 HCD Letter, #8, fn.1 33 A Palo Alto worksheet for estimating existing electrcal loads (), which is referenced by implication in Palo Alto's "" at p. 2 ("COMPLETED AND SIGNED UTILITY SERVICE APPLICATION INCLUDING UTILITY DEMANDS FOR THE REQUIRED SERVICES") essentially relies upon nameplate information, with repeated instructions to specify "Volt Amps from Label." With Palo Alto's new "Advanced Meter Infrastructure" for electrical service, applicants can, in addition, use , which begins, " The calculation of a feeder or service load for existing installations shall be permitted to use actual maximum demand to determine the existing load under all of the following conditions...." Palo Alto should: (a) make clear that this alternate form of calculation existing electrical loads can be used for ADUs and JADUs; (b) provide an updated form for calculating the resultant demand in accordance with CEC (2022) 220.87; and (c) simplify and publicize clearly instructions for obtaining historical load data from CPAU customer service personnel or directly online through MyCPAU. Allow for separate conveyances of ADUs under Gov. C. sec. 66342 Gov. C. sec. 66342. res_load_calc_gh_03.24.17_dc1-em Utility Service Application CEC (2022) 220.87 Simplify and improve CPAU load calculatons. 220.87 Determining Existing Loads CEC (2022) 220.87 14 34 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 33, At present CPAU will sometimes charge a customer for electrical infrastructure upgrades. For example, if a customer seeks to upgrade a home's electrical service to electrify the home or to add an EV charger, CPAU sometimes allocates the entire cost of that infrastructure upgrade to the customer requesting a new service, even thought the capacity of the existing CPAU infrastructure reached an exhaustion threshold by the load demands of all of the customers in a given local area. This can be thought of as a "loser lottery." When this policy is applied to ADUs or JADUs in the additional regulatory context of the City's newly modified reach codes, it becomes particularly untenable. Making it extremely difficult for ADU or JADU applicants to have gas appliances while charging them for CPAU electrical infrastructure upgrades creates a "damned if you do, and damned if you don't" choice. This is also poor public policy because CPAU infrastructure upgrades, in general, should be borne by CPAU itself or all customers, not a select few. From an ADU and JADU regulatory perspective, such CPAU policies also violate state law. Gov. C. subd. 66314(a) makes clear that (a) only local water and sewer utilities have any proper participation in ADU and JADU permitting, and (b) even then, the only legitimate inquiry concerns "the adequacy of water and sewer services...."; once a local agency has consulted with local water and sewer utilities as to which regions with that agency's jurisdiction have adequate water and sewer services, further involvement of local utilities in ADU and JADU permitting should end. Thus, if a local agency (a) allows water or sewer review of a particular permit application concerning a parcel that is in an area with adequate water and sewer services, or (b) allows any other local utility to review an ADU or JADU permit application, it fails to respect and honor that portion of Gov. C. sec. 66314. Therefore, current CPAU policies concerning the "loser lottery" are doubly problematic: electrical utilities have no role in ADU and JADU permitting, and even if the state had allowed cities to consider the adequacy of electrical service in a local sub-region --- which is not the case --- once that determination had been made, an electrical utility should not be further involved in permittng for an ADU or JADU. CPAU's "loser lottery" policies are troublesome when applied to 66323 Units for other reasons as well. There is no mention of electrical infrastructure upgrades in Gov. C. sec. 66323, and Gov. C. subds. 66323(b)-(c) state: "(b) A local agency shall not impose any objective development or design standard that is not authorized by this section upon any accessory dwelling unit that meets the requirements of any of paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, of subdivision (a). (c) A local agency shall not require, as a condition for ministerial approval of a permit application for the creation of an accessory dwelling unit or a junior accessory dwelling unit, the correction of nonconforming zoning conditions." Taken together, the entirety of that section and those particular sub-divisions also prohibit the City from forcing ADU or JADU applicants to pay for CPAU infrastructure upgrades as price for a building permit, as well as prohibiting CPAU electrical permitting review. 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 33, concerning non-conforming zoning. End the "loser lottery." Do not condition permit approval of ADUs or JADUs on charging applicants for CPAU infrastructure upgrades, a type of impermissible demand for public improvements, and give applicants, at their sole option, the ability to obtain one or more separate utility services for ADUs. Cf. Gov. C. sec. 66314 Gov. C. sec. 66323 15 35 A homeowner seeking to build an ADU in a flood zone will frequently be directed to complete a "," which will likely result in a determination by the City, made using RS Means cost estimating data or software, which, without further work, frequently results in a determinaton by the City that the cost of adding an ADU is more than 50% of the current value of the primary home, thus preventing one from obtaining an exception to certain additional flood zone building requirements. As ordinarily followed, this procedure is irrational, failing to take reasonable account of home values in Palo Alto. Therefore, an applicant is required to seek and to pay for a custom appraisal of the home, one more expense tacked onto the price of creating the additonal housing that our community needs. A better approach is possible. Here are three suggestions (doubtless there are more possibilities): 1. The City could acknowledge that the RS Means data and software are extremely poor indicators of the value of existing homes in Palo Alto, and it could create more realistic estimates of home values in our community. This need not be a major undertaking requiring exceptional expenditures. (Perhaps there are students at local universities who might find this an interesting project and a worthwhile endeavor that could even lead to creating a profitable business. One will only know for sure by asking.) 2. The City, having made that acknowledgement, could entertain other approaches that are likely far more accurate than the RS Means data and software approach. The question ought not to be whether the alternative is perfect, but whether it's better than the current, highly tarnished, "gold standard." The City should be able to use, for example, rough data from, ., Zillow, to establish the market price of a home and then to have an optional parameter, perhaps 25% or even 20% (and maybe an variable that changes with both the size of the house relative to the size of the lot and the age of the house) of the Zillow-estimated FMV as an acceptable approximation of the FMV of the structure on property. Local relators might have even better ideas. Any such figures that accord with the experience and judgments of those who probably know these values best, such as local relators, ought to be allowed in lieu of a detailed and costly appraisal for the purposes of a flood-zone-screening analysis. Perhaps waivers or exceptions might be necessary state or federal regulators, but let's not make the process of building ADUs in Palo Alto --- even in flood zones --- any more expensive than it already is, particularly when RS Means data and software simply fail to measure actual Palo Alto home FMV values accurately. 3. Simply accept a good-faith estimate provided by a local, licensed relator. 36 In a , the HCD wrote, with respect to Palo Alto's December, 2022 draft housing element: "Fees and Exaction: While the element describes required fees for single family and multifamily housing developments, including impact fees, on (pp. 4-66) the element states that impact fees/capacity fees are considered the highest in the County. In addition, on (pp. 4-67) the City recognizes that current planning/permitting and development fees add substantial cost to residential development." By this time, if not earlier, Palo Alto reasonably should have known that there were serious problems with its per-unit impact fees as applied to ADUs, and that, as the City would acknowledge explicitly in the redlined ("V6") of the housing element, if not earlier that: "Because Palo Alto has historically charged per-unit feesfor residential development, this has led to some inequitable results, as the fees for an ADU will depend not only on the size of the ADU, but also on the size of the primary unit, with higher fees required under state law when the primary unit is smaller." V6, at p. 4-65. The City should do the right thing and refund the impact fees that were charged on ADUs improperly from at least March 23, 2023 to the present in two distinct ways: 1. At a minimum, the City should re-calculate the fees charged on a per-unit basis and refund the difference as compared with the amounts that would be charged under current rules. To follow its stated values (, Recital A(5) in the draft resolution attached to ": "Will safeguard public trust through transparent practices and open communication."), this is the minimum that the City should do even to begin to make whole the homeowners who were overcharged for ADU impact fees. 2. If the City recognizes that even the current impact fee structure is improper, as discussed above, then the City should refund the entire amount of the fees previously charged to such homeowners, as having been charged in violation of state proportionality rules for ADUs. references noted above concerning impact fees and proportionality. Create a simplified approach for flood zone appraisals. FLOOD ZONE SCREENING QUESTIONNAIRE letter dated March 23, 2023 April, 2024 version "City Council At Places Memo, From: Mayor Lauing and Vice Mayor Veenker, Meeting Date: February 24, 2025, Item Number: 8 e.g see, e.g. See Refund improperly charged ADU fees. 16 37 If the City is serious about meeting its goals in the Housing Element, it should simply waive all such fees. Impact fees for larger ADUs can amount to tens of thousands of dollars. In addition, permitting fees are themselves consequential, sometimes amounting to several thousand dollars or more. Building more ADUs and JADUs is, perhaps, the fastest, most effective, and most demonstrably successful means of creating more and more afforedable housing in Palo Alto. We should make it easier and less expensive for people to build ADUs and JADUs. Waiving all such fees would send the right message and address current geopolitical conditions. Homeowners are already concerned about the effects of global tariff wars on the prices of lumber, appliances, and the other goods necessary to construct ADUs and JADUs. Cutting all such fees would show that Palo Alto is committed to meeting its housing goals even as geopolitical changes create higher construction costs. references noted above concerning impact fees and proportionality, as well as the separate discussion of simply ending impact fees on ADUs. 38 By going beyond what is required by state law in terms of ADU height, the City may be able to create appropriate incentives for complying with current daylight plane standards. A simple approach would be to allow for 20' high, two-story, detached, Table 2 ADUs, on the condition that they conform with current daylight plane standards. Because the 20' height limit is greater than that contemplated in state ADU statutes for non-66323 Units, allowing for such an alternative, non-mandatory regulatory pathway might be countenanced by the HCD. 39 State law allows for 1,200 sf ADUs, and some Bay Area jurisdictions allow for such larger ADUs already. To truly reform Palo Alto's housing market and spur construction of more and more affordable housing, our community needs to embrace "next phase housing," which will meet the needs of, and be embraced by, Palo Altans seeking to downsize, but confronted with the unavailability of suitable housing alternatives. Community members who have lived for decades in larger homes are likely to be sceptical about moving into 800 sf ADUs. 1,200 sf ADUs, which could have a third bedroom, space for family members who visit occasionally, or home offices, might be attractive enough so that homeowners would consider moving our of their single-family residences into a 1,200 sf ADU, thus freeing primary dwellings up for rental (and ideally sale, if the City ever embraces Gov. C. sec. 66342). 2024-10 HCD Letter, #8, fn.1 40 To create the additional and less expensive housinng that our community needs and deserves, the City should do more than meet minimal standards; it should strive for excellence. Palo Alto should set a goal of earning a "Prohousing Designation" from the HCD. As shown on the , neighboring cities such as Mountain View and Redwood City have already achieved such designations, as have other cities such as Santa Monica. Achieving such a designation can unlock meaningful benefits for creating additional housing in Palo Alto, and changing existing regulations and creating new housing incentives will benefit the Palo Alto community along the way to earning such a designation. Waive all impact and permitting fees on both ADUs and JADUs. Create an alternative, local, 20' height limit, specifically for two-story, detached, Table 2 ADUs, with a daylight plane. Adopt a 1,200 sf size limit for all ADUs. Palo Alto should seek a "Prohousing Designation," and ADU reforms can help our community to achieve that goal. See also Gov. C. sec. 66342. HCD's website Prohousing Designation Benefits and Prohousing Designated Jurisdictions 17 41 To create more and more affordable housing, the City should also allocate reasonable funding. In some housing projects, the City appears to expect other government agencies to contribute significantly to construction costs. But the City has an enormous budget, much more of which could be used to create incentives for new housing. Allocating a tiny fraction of that budget, even only 25 basis points or less over a two-year period would free up $5 million in total that could be used to test different regulatory and incentive programs to determine the ease of their implementation and the likelihood of their success. The oversubscription and success of certain state-wide financial incentives has already demonstrated demand for funds to help build ADU. Palo Alto could and should experiment with such mechanisms and others. Here is a rough outline of a series of such possible experiments: Total of $5 million in grants and on-bill financing over two years: Up to 50 $25k grants for pre-designed ADUs Up to 50 $25k grants based on CalHFA program Up to 25 on-CPAU-bill financings for first $100k of ADU costs With this partricular experimental approach, $2.5 million would be returned to the City over time, which could help pay for the next, full implementation phase of such programs. Creating such incentives, even on an experimental basis, might also accelerate Palo Alto's obtaining a "Prohousing Designation." 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 28. 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook, p. 28 Palo Alto should experiment with meaningful financial incentives to increase ADU production. 1 City of Palo Alto-References & Abbreviations re 2025-03 ADU reforms Abbreviation Reference 2024-10 HCD Letter Letter to Jonathan Lait, Director, from Jamie Candelaria Senior Housing Accountability Unit Manager, HCD, dated October 29, 2024 2025-01 HCD ADU Handbook CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, OK, January 2025ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT HANDBO From:J. Brugler To:Council, City Cc:Ed@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 5:55:39 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i  Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott-Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that MayorLauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the NinthCircuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. This message needs your attention No employee in your company has ever replied to this person. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, sevendays a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Gayle Brugler From:herb To:Council, City; Clerk, City Subject:May 112, 2025 CAO Committee, Item #1: Performance Evaluation and Goal Setting Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 5:53:16 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. MAY 12, 2025 COUNCIL APPOINTED OFFICERS (CAO) COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA ITEM #1: ANNUAL PERFORMANCE EVALUATION PROCESS REVIEWAND GOAL SETTING May 11, 2025 The Goals and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for each yearfor each Council Appointed Officer (CAO) are identifiablepublic records that are not exempt from disclosure. Those Goals and KPIs need to be included in the agenda packetsfor meetings of the City Council and CAO Committee wheneverthere is an agenda item about evaluating the performance of theCAOs or establishing new Goals and KPIs. The interview process in the CAO Evaluation Process Timelinefor Dan Rich to conduct interviews with the Mayor and CouncilMembers appears to violate the provision of the Ralph M. BrownAct that prohibits a majority of the members of a legislativebody, outside an authorized meeting from using a series ofcommunications of any kind to discuss any item of business thatis within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislativebody. Government Code Section 54952.2 (a) As used in this chapter, “meeting” means any congregation of a majority of the membersof a legislative body at the same time and location, including teleconference location aspermitted by Section 54953, to hear, discuss, deliberate, or take action on any item that iswithin the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body. (b) (1) A majority of the members of a legislative body shall not, outside a meeting authorizedby this chapter, use a series of communications of any kind, directly or through intermediaries,to discuss, deliberate, or take action on any item of business that is within the subject matterjurisdiction of the legislative body. (2) Paragraph (1) shall not be construed as preventing an employee or official of a localagency, from engaging in separate conversations or communications outside of a meetingauthorized by this chapter with members of a legislative body in order to answer questions orprovide information regarding a matter that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the localagency, if that person does not communicate to members of the legislative body the commentsor position of any other member or members of the legislative body. The exception in paragraph (2) does not apply because theexception applies to an employee providing information oranswering questions rather than the City Council Members providing information or answering questions. Herb Borock From:Aram James To:Josh Becker; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for CaliforniaDemocratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Veenker, Vicki; Vicki Veenker; Lauing, Ed; Reckdahl, Keith; Reckdahl,Keith; Rosen, Jeff; jay.boyarsky@da.sccgov.org; board@pausd.org; Supervisor Susan Ellenberg;BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org; Sean Allen; Pat M; Emily Mibach; DavePrice; EPA Today; Gerry Gras; Bains, Paul; Paul George @ PPJC; Bill Newell; Lythcott-Haims, Julie; Council, City;Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Steve Wagstaffe; city.council@menlopark.gov; GRP-City Council;citycouncil@mountainview.gov; Binder, Andrew; Reifschneider, James; chuck jagoda; Barberini, Christopher;Gardener, Liz; Liz Kniss; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Sheree Roth; Lori Meyers;MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Stump, Molly; editor@almanacnews.com; Gennady Sheyner; Lee, Craig;planning.commission@cityofpaloalto.0rg; ParkRec Commission; Lotus Fong; Palo Alto Free Press; Drekmeier,Peter; Tom DuBois; Holman, Karen (external); Donna Wallach; frances.Rothschild@jud.ca.gov;Patricia.Guerrero@jud.ca.gov; Salem Ajluni Subject:Re: Hamas and U.S. reach deal. “I think we"ll have to detox from US security assistance,” says Netanyahu Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 5:19:40 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. On Sun, May 11, 2025 at 7:54 PM Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote:Dingell. “I heard it was from the Jewish Regents,”—that is, the Jewish members of the University of Michigan Board of Regents—“they forced me to take these cases,” Nessel said at an event this week called a “Town Hall on Hate Crimes & Extremism” in West Bloomfield Township. “I heard it was from the [Michigan Legislative] Jewish Caucus because of the money I get from them. I heard it was from Jewish donors. You know how those cases came to my office? Debbie Dingell. Debbie Dingell, I don’t know if you know this: Not Jewish. But it had to be some sort of Jewish influence.” Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Become a paid subscriber to gain access to our private Discord server, subscriber- only AMAs, chats, and invites to events. Hamas and U.S. reach deal. “I thinkwe'll have to detox from US security assistance,” says Netanyahu RYAN GRIM MAY 11 READ IN APP Hamas and the United States announced an agreement today that will lead to the freeing of Israeli soldier Edan Alexander, a dual American citizen, ahead of President Donald Trump’s trip to the region. Israel was reportedly not involved in the discussions, but informed about the deal afterward. Israeli airstrikes have intensified throughout the day. “I think we'll have to detox from US security assistance,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded today. This is a developing story, follow our Twitter account for up-to-the-minute details. Jeremy Scahill will appear on Breaking Points tomorrow morning to discuss the latest developments. (BP subscribers get an email early when the show goes live; or watch for free when it’s posted to YouTube or Spotify.) Our colleague Abubaker Abed, who is now in Ireland, will appear tomorrow morning on Democracy Now! In case you missed our email earlier today, Hamza M. Salha reports for us from north Gaza on the recent airstrike an an UNRWA building in the middle of Jabaliya refugee camp, severely damaging a food distribution center, warehouse, and health center run by the UN refugee agency. His story with Sharif Abdel Kouddous is here. Below is a story I reported out with journalist Tom Perkins, digging into a claim made by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, namely that the impetus for her failed investigations into University of Michigan student protesters came from Rep. Debbie Dingell. Dingell says that is false. (This video is worth a watch.) We have a commitment to ensuring that our journalism is not locked behind a paywall. But the only way we can sustain this is through the voluntary support of our community of readers. If you are a free subscriber and you support our work, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription or gifting one to a friend or family member. Upgrade to paid You can also make a 501(c)(3) tax-deductible donation to support our work. If you do not have the means to support our work financially, you can do your part by sharing our work on social media and by forwarding this email to your network of contacts. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel in 2022. Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images By Ryan Grim and Tom Perkins Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel continues to do damage control in the wake of her failed prosecution of student protesters at the University of Michigan. Nessel was forced to drop charges against students who had been arrested at a pro-Palestinian encampment last year after the judge overseeing the case indicated he was sympathetic to the defense’s argument that Nessel had been improperly biased against the defendants. This week, in public remarks on the prosecution, she claimed without evidence that Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan had been the one who urged her to charge students involved in protests over Gaza. Pinning the pressure for the prosecutions on Dingell was Nessel’s way of arguing that the bias claims made against her were inaccurate—that she was not in fact pushed to take the cases by donors to her campaign who serve as senior officials at the university, but rather by the local congresswoman, Dingell. “I heard it was from the Jewish Regents,”—that is, the Jewish members of the University of Michigan Board of Regents—“they forced me to take these cases,” Nessel said at an event this week called a “Town Hall on Hate Crimes & Extremism” in West Bloomfield Township. “I heard it was from the [Michigan Legislative] Jewish Caucus because of the money I get from them. I heard it was from Jewish donors. You know how those cases came to my office? Debbie Dingell. Debbie Dingell, I don’t know if you know this: Not Jewish. But it had to be some sort of Jewish influence.” In a statement to Drop Site, Dingell spokesperson Michaela Johnson suggested the congresswoman was not behind the investigations, pointing to a May 2024 letter from Nessel’s office to the university in which Nessel offered to take over any investigations. The letter, which has not previously been reported, makes no reference to Dingell, but instead suggests that protests outside the homes of Board of Regents members triggered Nessel to launch an effort targeting student protesters. “Nessel did not write the letter at our request, and Rep. Dingell had not seen that letter until today,” Johnson said. Dingell represents Ann Arbor, but previously represented Dearborn until redistricting in 2014, and she still has strong ties to the Arab-American community there. But she has remained largely silent with regard to the protests. Amir Makled, an attorney for some of the students, said he called Dingell’s office on Friday to ask about Nessel’s allegations. He said a Dingell staffer denied the congresswoman had pushed for the investigation. Makled said he didn’t think it was done at Dingell’s behest, but he said Dingell has been involved with the discussions because the incident occurred in her district, and she “has been giving lip service to all sides.” But, he added, “Nessel is trying to do anything to deflect blame for her office’s misdeeds – that much seems clear to me.” Nessel’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment over the weekend. The university, its regents and Nessel have denied that the school recruited the attorney general.. This was not the first time Nessel had pointed the finger at Dingell. She told a local reporter several weeks ago that “the congresswoman from the 6th Congressional District” – Dingell – had put her up to it. “I stand behind the evidence and I stand behind the charges, and I appreciate the fact that this matter was referred by the congresswoman from the 6th Congressional District, who asked the state to intervene because they were concerned about what was happening on campus,” she said. “I believe what we did was the right thing, and that will be borne out in court.” Following that report, supporters of the students who’d been charged approached Dingell at an event on March 3 to ask if Nessel’s allegation was true. According to an audio recording provided to Drop Site, it was not. “She’s told a lot of people a lot of stuff,” Dingell told the students. She was then asked directly by Jared Eno, a grad student at Michigan, if that was true: “No!” Dingell said. “She called the university and offered.” The letter supports that claim. Nessel, in her remarks at the town hall, again claimed Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan had accused her of bias linked to her Jewish background, but Tlaib’s public statements have never referenced this. “I think people at the University of Michigan put pressure on her to do this, and she fell for it,” Tlaib had said. “I think President Ono and Board of Regent members were very much heavy-handed in this.” UMich President Santa Ono, the only person Tlaib named as having applied pressure to Nessel, is not Jewish. The AG letter was sent to Timothy G. Lynch, vice president and general counsel at the University of Michigan, and signed by Danielle Hagaman-Clark, a prosecutor in Nessel’s office. “I write today to offer the DAG’s assistance with investigating and prosecuting any cases that arise from the recent demonstrations on UM’s campus,” she wrote. “It has been widely reported that the demonstrators have not limited their protests to the campus but have also appeared at the homes of the Board of Regents. My understanding is that the Regents are not required to live in Washtenaw County, the location of UM, but that they reside in several different counties. Because the DAG has state-wide criminal authority to bring charges, we are ideally situated to review any potential cases.” The reference to the protests outside the homes of Regents matches reporting that suggested those demonstrations, even more than the encampments, enraged the board members, who urged Nessel to prosecute. Nessel’s prosecutor added her office was well suited to determine whether any of the speech from the protesters was illegal. “I would also note that our Department has specialized expertise in the intersection of First Amendment free speech rights in the context of a criminal prosecution. We are fluent in the law around what speech is protected and what speech is not protected,” said Hagaman-Clark, making the pitch to Michigan. The letter was sent shortly after local prosecutor Eli Savit (who is also Jewish) declined to prosecute 36 of 40 protesters arrested in connection with the occupation of an administration building, and recommended four others for diversion. “General Nessel has discussed the potential jurisdictional issues that might arise with Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit. Prosecutor Savit recognizes that his authority is confined to Washtenaw County. He is comfortable with the DAG overseeing these cases based on his jurisdiction being limited to only Washtenaw County.” In her effort at damage control this week, Nessel claimed Dingell’s supposed request was common. “Now it’s not unusual for a congressional representative to call up the department of the attorney general and to call the attorney general herself and say ‘I’m really worried about what I see to be criminal activity occurring and either the local prosecutor is not doing anything about it,’ or ‘they’re not equipped to do anything about it. But I am scared about what I am seeing. And I think the AG’s office has to take action.’” Nessel also told the town hall audience that she dropped the charges because the judge had ordered an evidentiary hearing into the defense’s charge that Nessel was biased against the defendants. Defense attorneys, in their recent motion to disqualify Nessel’s office over bias, pointed to a previous analysis that found she had prosecuted protesters at a much higher rate than other prosecutors in the state. They also pointed to Nessel recusing herself from an investigation into alleged election fraud by Muslim-American city council members in nearby Hamtramck. Nessel said she wanted to avoid the appearance of bias because she was Jewish and the suspects were of Arab descent. She also noted that she had previously been critical of the Hamtramck City Council. In their motion to disqualify Nessel’s office, defense attorneys questioned how she could consider herself biased in Hamtramck but unbiased in Ann Arbor under similar circumstances. A letter sent by the Jewish Federation of Ann Arbor to the judge urging him to allow her to remain on the case, she said, put improper pressure on the judge and should not have been sent. And the cases against the students were becoming a distraction to staff, she added, who couldn’t even attend a job fair without being “shut down by protesters.” “We elected that rather than me being put on trial for being a Jewish prosecutor, and rather than having the federation be put on trial for an email they should not have sent—but the kind that gets sent all the time—that we would dismiss the charges against those particular defendants,” she said. An evidentiary hearing would have opened her office to discovery and made public communications about how the cases came together. Defense attorneys say she wanted to avoid that. Liz Jacob, an attorney from the Sugar Law Center who represented the defendants, said the claim from Nessel was another effort to deflect responsibility. “It’s alarming to see the ways that Nessel is trying to avoid accountability for her repression of free speech and brutal targeting of protesters at all costs,” Jacob said. “Both in that video and over the last several months AG Nessel has tried to blame anyone—from Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib to Debbie Dingell to the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor—to deflect criticism regarding her own deplorable treatment of pro-Palestine protesters.” Nessel’s decision was a serious one, and Nessel should treat it seriously, Jacob said. “As the Attorney General who is directing the FBI to raid protesters homes and bringing baseless and retaliatory criminal charges against protesters, it is Nessel who must bear responsibility for targeting young people who bravely speak out against war and genocide. Nessel’s actions speak for themselves — she has aligned herself with the Trump administration’s criminalization and repression of pro-Palestine speech,” she said. Share Leave a comment Become a Drop Site News Paid Subscriber Drop Site News is reader-supported. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber today. Upgrade to paid A paid subscription gets you: Access to our Discord, subscriber-only AMAs, chats, and invites to events, both virtual and IRL Post comments and join the community The knowledge you are supporting independent media making the lives of the powerful miserable You can also now find us on podcast platforms and on Facebook, Twitter, Bluesky, Telegram, and YouTube. LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2025 Drop Site News, Inc.Drop Site News Inc., 4315 50th St. NWSte 100 Unit #2560, Washington, DC 20016 Unsubscribe From:Aram James To:Josh Becker; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for CaliforniaDemocratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Veenker, Vicki; Vicki Veenker; Lauing, Ed; Reckdahl, Keith; Reckdahl,Keith; Rosen, Jeff; jay.boyarsky@da.sccgov.org; board@pausd.org; Supervisor Susan Ellenberg;BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org; Sean Allen; Pat M; Emily Mibach; DavePrice; EPA Today; Gerry Gras; Bains, Paul; Paul George @ PPJC; Bill Newell; Lythcott-Haims, Julie; Council, City;Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Steve Wagstaffe; city.council@menlopark.gov; GRP-City Council;citycouncil@mountainview.gov; Binder, Andrew; Reifschneider, James; chuck jagoda; Barberini, Christopher;Gardener, Liz; Liz Kniss; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Sheree Roth; Lori Meyers;MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Stump, Molly; editor@almanacnews.com; Gennady Sheyner; Lee, Craig;planning.commission@cityofpaloalto.0rg; ParkRec Commission; Lotus Fong; Palo Alto Free Press; Drekmeier,Peter; Tom DuBois; Holman, Karen (external); Donna Wallach; frances.Rothschild@jud.ca.gov;Patricia.Guerrero@jud.ca.gov Subject:Hamas and U.S. reach deal. “I think we"ll have to detox from US security assistance,” says Netanyahu Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 4:54:29 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dingell. “I heard it was from the Jewish Regents,”—that is, the Jewish members of the University of Michigan Board of Regents—“they forced me to take these cases,” Nessel said at an event this week called a “Town Hall on Hate Crimes & Extremism” in West Bloomfield Township. “I heard it was from the [Michigan Legislative] Jewish Caucus because of the money I get from them. I heard it was from Jewish donors. You know how those cases came to my office? Debbie Dingell. Debbie Dingell, I don’t know if you know this: Not Jewish. But it had to be some sort of Jewish influence.” Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Become a paid subscriber to gain access to our private Discord server, subscriber- only AMAs, chats, and invites to events. Hamas and U.S. reach deal. “I thinkwe'll have to detox from US securityassistance,” says Netanyahu RYAN GRIM MAY 11 READ IN APP Hamas and the United States announced an agreement today that will lead to the freeing of Israeli soldier Edan Alexander, a dual American citizen, ahead of President Donald Trump’s trip to the region. Israel was reportedly not involved in the discussions, but informed about the deal afterward. Israeli airstrikes have intensified throughout the day. “I think we'll have to detox from US security assistance,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded today. This is a developing story, follow our Twitter account for up-to-the-minute details. Jeremy Scahill will appear on Breaking Points tomorrow morning to discuss the latest developments. (BP subscribers get an email early when the show goes live; or watch for free when it’s posted to YouTube or Spotify.) Our colleague Abubaker Abed, who is now in Ireland, will appear tomorrow morning on Democracy Now! In case you missed our email earlier today, Hamza M. Salha reports for us from north Gaza on the recent airstrike an an UNRWA building in the middle of Jabaliya refugee camp, severely damaging a food distribution center, warehouse, and health center run by the UN refugee agency. His story with Sharif Abdel Kouddous is here. Below is a story I reported out with journalist Tom Perkins, digging into a claim made by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, namely that the impetus for her failed investigations into University of Michigan student protesters came from Rep. Debbie Dingell. Dingell says that is false. (This video is worth a watch.) We have a commitment to ensuring that our journalism is not locked behind a paywall. But the only way we can sustain this is through the voluntary support of our community of readers. If you are a free subscriber and you support our work, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription or gifting one to a friend or family member. Upgrade to paid You can also make a 501(c)(3) tax-deductible donation to support our work. If you do not have the means to support our work financially, you can do your part by sharing our work on social media and by forwarding this email to your network of contacts. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel in 2022. Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images By Ryan Grim and Tom Perkins Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel continues to do damage control in the wake of her failed prosecution of student protesters at the University of Michigan. Nessel was forced to drop charges against students who had been arrested at a pro-Palestinian encampment last year after the judge overseeing the case indicated he was sympathetic to the defense’s argument that Nessel had been improperly biased against the defendants. This week, in public remarks on the prosecution, she claimed without evidence that Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan had been the one who urged her to charge students involved in protests over Gaza. Pinning the pressure for the prosecutions on Dingell was Nessel’s way of arguing that the bias claims made against her were inaccurate—that she was not in fact pushed to take the cases by donors to her campaign who serve as senior officials at the university, but rather by the local congresswoman, Dingell. “I heard it was from the Jewish Regents,”—that is, the Jewish members of the University of Michigan Board of Regents—“they forced me to take these cases,” Nessel said at an event this week called a “Town Hall on Hate Crimes & Extremism” in West Bloomfield Township. “I heard it was from the [Michigan Legislative] Jewish Caucus because of the money I get from them. I heard it was from Jewish donors. You know how those cases came to my office? Debbie Dingell. Debbie Dingell, I don’t know if you know this: Not Jewish. But it had to be some sort of Jewish influence.” In a statement to Drop Site, Dingell spokesperson Michaela Johnson suggested the congresswoman was not behind the investigations, pointing to a May 2024 letter from Nessel’s office to the university in which Nessel offered to take over any investigations. The letter, which has not previously been reported, makes no reference to Dingell, but instead suggests that protests outside the homes of Board of Regents members triggered Nessel to launch an effort targeting student protesters. “Nessel did not write the letter at our request, and Rep. Dingell had not seen that letter until today,” Johnson said. Dingell represents Ann Arbor, but previously represented Dearborn until redistricting in 2014, and she still has strong ties to the Arab-American community there. But she has remained largely silent with regard to the protests. Amir Makled, an attorney for some of the students, said he called Dingell’s office on Friday to ask about Nessel’s allegations. He said a Dingell staffer denied the congresswoman had pushed for the investigation. Makled said he didn’t think it was done at Dingell’s behest, but he said Dingell has been involved with the discussions because the incident occurred in her district, and she “has been giving lip service to all sides.” But, he added, “Nessel is trying to do anything to deflect blame for her office’s misdeeds – that much seems clear to me.” Nessel’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment over the weekend. The university, its regents and Nessel have denied that the school recruited the attorney general.. This was not the first time Nessel had pointed the finger at Dingell. She told a local reporter several weeks ago that “the congresswoman from the 6th Congressional District” – Dingell – had put her up to it. “I stand behind the evidence and I stand behind the charges, and I appreciate the fact that this matter was referred by the congresswoman from the 6th Congressional District, who asked the state to intervene because they were concerned about what was happening on campus,” she said. “I believe what we did was the right thing, and that will be borne out in court.” Following that report, supporters of the students who’d been charged approached Dingell at an event on March 3 to ask if Nessel’s allegation was true. According to an audio recording provided to Drop Site, it was not. “She’s told a lot of people a lot of stuff,” Dingell told the students. She was then asked directly by Jared Eno, a grad student at Michigan, if that was true: “No!” Dingell said. “She called the university and offered.” The letter supports that claim. Nessel, in her remarks at the town hall, again claimed Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan had accused her of bias linked to her Jewish background, but Tlaib’s public statements have never referenced this. “I think people at the University of Michigan put pressure on her to do this, and she fell for it,” Tlaib had said. “I think President Ono and Board of Regent members were very much heavy-handed in this.” UMich President Santa Ono, the only person Tlaib named as having applied pressure to Nessel, is not Jewish. The AG letter was sent to Timothy G. Lynch, vice president and general counsel at the University of Michigan, and signed by Danielle Hagaman-Clark, a prosecutor in Nessel’s office. “I write today to offer the DAG’s assistance with investigating and prosecuting any cases that arise from the recent demonstrations on UM’s campus,” she wrote. “It has been widely reported that the demonstrators have not limited their protests to the campus but have also appeared at the homes of the Board of Regents. My understanding is that the Regents are not required to live in Washtenaw County, the location of UM, but that they reside in several different counties. Because the DAG has state-wide criminal authority to bring charges, we are ideally situated to review any potential cases.” The reference to the protests outside the homes of Regents matches reporting that suggested those demonstrations, even more than the encampments, enraged the board members, who urged Nessel to prosecute. Nessel’s prosecutor added her office was well suited to determine whether any of the speech from the protesters was illegal. “I would also note that our Department has specialized expertise in the intersection of First Amendment free speech rights in the context of a criminal prosecution. We are fluent in the law around what speech is protected and what speech is not protected,” said Hagaman-Clark, making the pitch to Michigan. The letter was sent shortly after local prosecutor Eli Savit (who is also Jewish) declined to prosecute 36 of 40 protesters arrested in connection with the occupation of an administration building, and recommended four others for diversion. “General Nessel has discussed the potential jurisdictional issues that might arise with Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit. Prosecutor Savit recognizes that his authority is confined to Washtenaw County. He is comfortable with the DAG overseeing these cases based on his jurisdiction being limited to only Washtenaw County.” In her effort at damage control this week, Nessel claimed Dingell’s supposed request was common. “Now it’s not unusual for a congressional representative to call up the department of the attorney general and to call the attorney general herself and say ‘I’m really worried about what I see to be criminal activity occurring and either the local prosecutor is not doing anything about it,’ or ‘they’re not equipped to do anything about it. But I am scared about what I am seeing. And I think the AG’s office has to take action.’” Nessel also told the town hall audience that she dropped the charges because the judge had ordered an evidentiary hearing into the defense’s charge that Nessel was biased against the defendants. Defense attorneys, in their recent motion to disqualify Nessel’s office over bias, pointed to a previous analysis that found she had prosecuted protesters at a much higher rate than other prosecutors in the state. They also pointed to Nessel recusing herself from an investigation into alleged election fraud by Muslim-American city council members in nearby Hamtramck. Nessel said she wanted to avoid the appearance of bias because she was Jewish and the suspects were of Arab descent. She also noted that she had previously been critical of the Hamtramck City Council. In their motion to disqualify Nessel’s office, defense attorneys questioned how she could consider herself biased in Hamtramck but unbiased in Ann Arbor under similar circumstances. A letter sent by the Jewish Federation of Ann Arbor to the judge urging him to allow her to remain on the case, she said, put improper pressure on the judge and should not have been sent. And the cases against the students were becoming a distraction to staff, she added, who couldn’t even attend a job fair without being “shut down by protesters.” “We elected that rather than me being put on trial for being a Jewish prosecutor, and rather than having the federation be put on trial for an email they should not have sent—but the kind that gets sent all the time—that we would dismiss the charges against those particular defendants,” she said. An evidentiary hearing would have opened her office to discovery and made public communications about how the cases came together. Defense attorneys say she wanted to avoid that. Liz Jacob, an attorney from the Sugar Law Center who represented the defendants, said the claim from Nessel was another effort to deflect responsibility. “It’s alarming to see the ways that Nessel is trying to avoid accountability for her repression of free speech and brutal targeting of protesters at all costs,” Jacob said. “Both in that video and over the last several months AG Nessel has tried to blame anyone—from Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib to Debbie Dingell to the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor—to deflect criticism regarding her own deplorable treatment of pro-Palestine protesters.” Nessel’s decision was a serious one, and Nessel should treat it seriously, Jacob said. “As the Attorney General who is directing the FBI to raid protesters homes and bringing baseless and retaliatory criminal charges against protesters, it is Nessel who must bear responsibility for targeting young people who bravely speak out against war and genocide. Nessel’s actions speak for themselves — she has aligned herself with the Trump administration’s criminalization and repression of pro-Palestine speech,” she said. Share Leave a comment Become a Drop Site News Paid Subscriber Drop Site News is reader-supported. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber today. Upgrade to paid A paid subscription gets you: Access to our Discord, subscriber-only AMAs, chats, and invites to events, both virtual and IRL Post comments and join the community The knowledge you are supporting independent media making the lives of the powerful miserable You can also now find us on podcast platforms and on Facebook, Twitter, Bluesky, Telegram, and YouTube. LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2025 Drop Site News, Inc.Drop Site News Inc., 4315 50th St. NWSte 100 Unit #2560, Washington, DC 20016 Unsubscribe From:Annette Glanckopf To:Council, City; city.clerk@paloalto.org Subject:Letter to council on FY 2026 budget re gas hikes Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 3:02:54 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing and Council, This email is to support the recommendation of the finance committee and the detailed comments from PAN (Palo Alto Neighborhoods) penned by Hamilton Hitchings on the proposed new gas Cost of Service Analysis (COSA). Please send the gas rate study back to the Utility Advisory Commission for further review and keep the FY 2025 gas rate structure. I do not support the staff recommendations which proposed raising the Tier 1 residential gas bill; which means for the average tier 1 residential household about a jump of about 34%. Additionally, I do not support gas rebates - i.e., for small businesses. I would point out that Palo Alto has an increasingly older population, and many are on limited incomes. Although the goal of a fully electric gas is admirable, it is not affordable for many seniors. For those living in older houses, there is a highprobability that they would have to upgrade their electric box. We did so several years ago at a cost over about $10,000. I recommend equal across-the-board rate increases. This is more acceptable andequitable. This extremely complex proposal was given to the UAC with too little time to fully digest it, and there were lots of unanswered questions. The staff report implied they had to approve it. Please return to UAC. Now they have the analysis done by PAN, comments from the finance committee, and adequate time to review the materials. Thanks for considering my commentsAnnette Glanckopf From:slevy@ccsce.com To:Council, City; Lait, Jonathan Subject:Expanding Incentives for ADUs—A Vision to Meet Multiple City Goals Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 11:19:31 AM Attachments:Expanding Incentives for larger ADUs--A Vision.docx CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. ! Dear Mayor Lauing, council members and staff. ADUs are a major success story for Palo Alto housing. Consider expanding incentives for larger ADUs and imagine how powerful this could be for meeting multiple housing goals. Monday night is a first reading of the city's revised ADU ordinance. I believe some improvements can be made before the second reading and other incentives will take longer to develop. I hope you are as excited as I am about the possibilities. Let's move this vision to implementation. I make a couple of broad suggestions for moving ahead and look forward, hopefully, to council's thoughts on expanding incentives for larger ADUs--say in the range of 1,200 to 1,400 square feet with opportunities for ownership. Thank you for considering how we can meet multiple city goals: helping seniors age in place, providing a path for new families to live here and offset declining school enrollment, not expanding the urban footprint, and with some additional incentives, open up ADUs to more lower income families. Stephen Levy This message could be suspicious The sender's email address couldn't be verified. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast Expanding Incentives for ADUs—A Vision to Meet Multiple City Goals Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are a success story for meeting Palo Alto’s housing goals. The city issued permits for 249 ADUs in 2023 and 2024 accounting for more than 50% of our total housing permits issued in these two years. This success was made possible by a set of incentives for ADUs that are not larger than 750 square feet including the waiver of impact fees and other incentives. State law both protects those ADUs from paying impact fees, which can total tens of thousands of dollars, and provides ADUs up to 800 sf with more generous design options and expedited permitting. Expanding incentives to larger ADUs can greatly expand production and, at the same time, meet multiple city housing goals. Imagine the potential of ADUs in the 1,200 to 1,400 square foot range. This would provide options for older families to downsize but remain in place without having to sell their single-family home. The number of older households is continuing to grow but downsizing to 750 square feet is not attractive while moving to 1,200 to 1,400 square feet would work fine. That could happen by moving to an ADU on their property while offering their existing home to family members or renting it for income. Palo Alto has twin goals of encouraging new families to move here and also addressing the affordability challenges for the middle class—the “missing middle” housing affordability challenge. Larger ADUs can include, possibly depending on size, three bedrooms and yet cost less than buying most existing single-family homes in Palo Alto. What do we gain? We will see a surge in permits and new homes. All homes will be within the existing urban footprint. Older households will see expanded options to remain in their community while making their current homes available to others. We will encourage new families with children to attend public schools in Palo Alto and avoid having to close neighborhood schools with declining enrollment. We will address the “missing-middle” affordability challenge. What do we need to do to make this vision come alive? We need to replicate and expand the incentives now in place for smaller ADUs. That means waiving impact fees as we already do for smaller ADUs. It means creating ownership opportunities for the larger ADUs that will expand the market and help with financing. And we could develop meaningful financial incentives and grants to reduce the cost for new ADUs. From:Hamilton Hitchings To:Council, City Cc:Nose, Kiely; Kurotori, Alan Subject:PAN Input to City Council on 34% Residential Gas Bill Increase Deferral Date:Saturday, May 10, 2025 6:41:06 PM Attachments:PAN Input to City Council on residential 34 Percent Gas Rate Increase Deferral 2025-5-9_v1.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Dear City Council, On behalf of Palo Alto Neighborhoods, we thank the Finance Committee members Pat Burt, Julie Lythcott-Haims, and Keith Reckdahl for unanimously recommending that the new gas rate study be remanded to the Utility Advisory Commission for further review. We also thank staff for their hard work developing this alternative and providing more detailed information about this complex issue. We have a couple of suggested improvements to the Finance Committee recommendation at the end of this letter. The new gas rate study proposed raising the average Tier 1 residential gas bill by 34% starting in July for basic needs such as cooking and winter heating. This includes all renters in individually metered apartments, where the majority of renters live. This proposed residential bill increase came despite the overall average gas bill across all customer classes rising by only 5%. Problems with the new gas Cost of Service Analysis (COSA) The UAC finance subcommittee never got to see the COSA and the UAC only had a few days to review it. Many UAC members thought they were required to accept it, although they expressed dissatisfaction. Large and sudden utility rate hikes—such as a 34% increase—create financial risk, liability, and uncertainty for the city, regardless of who is affected. Citing “seasonal variability,” the current consultant adopted a new, discretionary methodology—unlike the preceding consultant at the same firm—that moves infrastructure costs from small businesses onto households. The old COSA methodology is well recognized, still legitimate, and complies with California Prop 26. This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast The new methodology means residential Tier 1 customers shoulder a larger share of the reserve replenishment costs. The new COSA cuts small‑business and master-metered landlord service fees from $157 to $29, shifting costs so basic‑use residents face a 34% hike. Using PG&E as a benchmark is misleading—PG&E’s CPUC‑regulated rates don’t dictate local rates, and PG&E already charges small businesses about 40% less per therm than residential customers. Tier 2 high-usage residential customers receive a 10% rate cut, which undermines climate goals. Large commercial customers face about a 7% bill increase, far below the 34% imposed on basic‑use households. Raises residents’ share of the General Fund Transfer by changing this methodology, discarding Measure L’s voter‑approved Net Plant formula. Understanding the Numbers An average Tier 1 household (26 therms/month) would see its bill jump 34%— from $38 to $51 per month—driven by a 49% hike in the Tier 1 rate and a 15% hike in the monthly service charge. The 22% proposed residential rate increase is an average that combines low-usage Tier 1 and high-usage Tier 2 customers. The 13% residential rate increase cited in city communications was the 22% rate minus the proposed one-time rebate for residential customers using Cap-and-Trade funds. Only the distribution component rises 9%; the average total bill increases 5%. There is precedent for reconsideration Other California cities have rejected their COSAs and revised their rate plans, including Davis (2013), Fresno (2013), Oxnard (2015-2017), and Glendale (2011-2014). Our recommendations 1. Support the unanimous Finance Committee recommendations to: a. Keep the FY 2025 gas rate structure to give an equal across-the-board rate increase for FY2026; b. Refer staff to return to the UAC to further review the 2025 COSA assumptions and principles. 2. In addition: a. Have the Utility Advisory Commission thoroughly review the internals of the model in the new COSA. b. Recognize that redirecting Cap-and-Trade funds away from their purpose of permanently lowering greenhouse-gas emissions to subsidize gas use undermines the policy’s goals. c. Remove the small business rebate using Cap-and-Trade funds. i. As Councilmember Reckdahl stated in the Finance Committee: we should not be putting the cart before the horse and trying to guess the new gas rates before UAC review. ii. The Cap-and-Trade funds proposed rebate is outside the scope of the COSA and does not insulate the city from theoretical liability from changes to our COSA model. Thank you again to the members of the Finance Committee for their thoughtful analysis and vote to remand this COSA for further UAC review. Hamilton Hitchings on behalf of Palo Alto Neighborhoods Dear City Council, On behalf of Palo Alto Neighborhoods, we thank the Finance Committee members Pat Burt, Julie Lythcott-Haims, and Keith Reckdahl for unanimously recommending that the new gas rate study be remanded to the Utility Advisory Commission for further review. We also thank staff for their hard work developing this alternative and providing more detailed information about this complex issue. We have a couple of suggested improvements to the Finance Committee recommendation at the end of this letter. The new gas rate study proposed raising the average Tier 1 residential gas bill by 34% starting in July for basic needs such as cooking and winter heating. This includes all renters in individually metered apartments, where the majority of renters live. This proposed residential bill increase came despite the overall average gas bill across all customer classes rising by only 5%. Problems with the new gas Cost of Service Analysis (COSA) ● The UAC finance subcommittee never got to see the COSA and the UAC only had a few days to review it. ● Many UAC members thought they were required to accept it, although they expressed dissatisfaction. ● Large and sudden utility rate hikes—such as a 34% increase—create financial risk, liability, and uncertainty for the city, regardless of who is affected. ● Citing “seasonal variability,” the current consultant adopted a new, discretionary methodology—unlike the preceding consultant at the same firm—that moves infrastructure costs from small businesses onto households. ● The old COSA methodology is well recognized, still legitimate, and complies with California Prop 26. ● The new methodology means residential Tier 1 customers shoulder a larger share of the reserve replenishment costs. ● The new COSA cuts small‑business and master-metered landlord service fees from $157 to $29, shifting costs so basic‑use residents face a 34% hike. ● Using PG&E as a benchmark is misleading—PG&E’s CPUC‑regulated rates don’t dictate local rates, and PG&E already charges small businesses about 40% less per therm than residential customers. ● Tier 2 high-usage residential customers receive a 10% rate cut, which undermines climate goals. ● Large commercial customers face about a 7% bill increase, far below the 34% imposed on basic‑use households. ● Raises residents’ share of the General Fund Transfer by changing this methodology, discarding Measure L’s voter‑approved Net Plant formula. Understanding the Numbers ● An average Tier 1 household (26 therms/month) would see its bill jump 34%—from $38 to $51 per month—driven by a 49% hike in the Tier 1 rate and a 15% hike in the monthly service charge. ● The 22% proposed residential rate increase is an average that combines low-usage Tier 1 and high-usage Tier 2 customers. ● The 13% residential rate increase cited in city communications was the 22% rate minus the proposed one-time rebate for residential customers using Cap-and-Trade funds. ● Only the distribution component rises 9%; the average total bill increases 5%. continued on the next page… There is precedent for reconsideration Other California cities have rejected their COSAs and revised their rate plans, including Davis (2013), Fresno (2013), Oxnard (2015-2017), and Glendale (2011-2014). Our recommendations 1. Support the unanimous Finance Committee recommendations to: a. Keep the FY 2025 gas rate structure to give an equal across-the-board rate increase for FY2026; b. Refer staff to return to the UAC to further review the 2025 COSA assumptions and principles. 2. In addition: a. Have the Utility Advisory Commission thoroughly review the internals of the model in the new COSA. b. Recognize that redirecting Cap-and-Trade funds away from their purpose of permanently lowering greenhouse-gas emissions to subsidize gas use undermines the policy’s goals. c. Remove the small business rebate using Cap-and-Trade funds. i. As Councilmember Reckdahl stated in the Finance Committee: we should not be putting the cart before the horse and trying to guess the new gas rates before UAC review. ii. The Cap-and-Trade funds proposed rebate is outside the scope of the COSA and does not insulate the city from theoretical liability from changes to our COSA model. Thank you again to the members of the Finance Committee for their thoughtful analysis and vote to remand this COSA for further UAC review. Hamilton Hitchings on behalf of Palo Alto Neighborhoods From:Aram James To:Gardener, Liz; Lythcott-Haims, Julie; Roberta Ahlquist; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Council, City; Shikada, Ed;Stump, Molly; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; city.council@menlopark.gov; GRP-City Council;citycouncil@mountainview.gov; GRP-City Clerk; Friends of Cubberley; board@pausd.org Subject:Trump’s proposed cuts to Section 8 rental aid could aggravate Bay Area homelessness Date:Saturday, May 10, 2025 10:22:16 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Trump’s proposed cuts to Section 8 rental aid could aggravate Bay Area homelessness https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/05/08/section-8-rental-aid-trump-cuts/ From:pennyellson12@gmail.com To:Council, City Subject:A fire question that I have not heard the Fire Chief nor the City Manager address adequately. Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 11:28:58 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Honorable City Council , The City has upzoned large areas of Palo Alto’s southeast quadrant served by Mitchell Park Fire Station #4 for high density housing. Construction of this type of housing brings greater fire risk. Please read the "San Antonio Row Fire Homeland Security Report" which can be found in the Homeland Security Digital Library online. I gave Mayor Lauing a printed copy. This fire spread embers into nearby neighborhoods and required evacuation of homes and response from multiple nearby cities. The report explains that taller buildings “create their own wind.” Further, sprinkler systems are not operational during construction, and there is a lot of wrapped flammable material on-site during construction. There’s more. Please do read. This is an important report. See also news reports of another massive fire in an affordable housing project under construction on the border of Menlo Park and Redwood City. This one also spread embers into nearby neighborhoods and required evacuation. It drew broad news coverage. Both conflagrations required response from multiple cities' Fire Departments. The Homeland Security Report, in particular, outlines multiple reasons why this kind of development creates much greater fire risk during the construction period. This risk should not be taken lightly. I hope every member of City Council and our city manager and Fire Chief will read this Homeland Security Report before final Station 4 staffing decisions are made. Safety is a municipality's primary responsibility. Thank you for considering my comments. Sincerely, This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast Penny Ellson Virus-free.www.avg.com From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Lauing, Ed; Reckdahl, Keith; Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Jay Boyarsky; Jeff Rosen; Jeff Conrad; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; Gennady Sheyner; Emily Mibach; Zelkha, Mila; Gardener, Liz; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; h.etzko@gmail.com; Pat M; Sean Allen; Council, City; Nash, Betsy; city.council@menlopark.gov; citycouncil@mountainview.gov; GRP-City Council; Salem Ajluni; Wagner, April; Mickie Winkler; Marty Wasserman; Reifschneider, James; Cribbs, Anne; Templeton, Cari; Dave Price; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; jgreen@dailynewsgroup.com; Tom DuBois; Diana Diamond; DuJuan Green; dennis burns; Binder, Andrew; Robert.Jonson@shf.sccgov.org; Baker, Rob; Roberta Ahlquist; Linda Jolley; Liz Kniss; Perron, Zachary; Rowena Chiu; Barberini, Christopher; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Foley, Michael; Figueroa, Eric; Afanasiev, Alex; Enberg, Nicholas; Bill Newell Subject:Community group accuses Sunnyvale of censorship over "Historic Palestine" poster at arts fair Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 6:45:36 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Community group accuses Sunnyvale of censorship over 'Historic Palestine' poster at arts fair The group calling for the City of Sunnyvale to issue an apology and provide education to staff https://abc7news.com/post/community-group-accuses-sunnyvale-censorship-historic- palestine-poster-arts-fair-heres-what-happened/16351906/ From:Deborah Dooley To:Council, City Cc:Ed@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com; Lu, George Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 6:32:27 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to PaloAlto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower designand siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they needto be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Deborah Dooley From:upcomingsales@friendspaloaltolib.org To:Council, City Subject:May 2025 Book Sale - Friends of the Palo Alto Library Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 6:20:28 PM BOOK SALE NEWSLETTERTHIS WEEKEND ATCUBBERLEY Visit our web site CUBBERLEY USED BOOK SALES Saturday May 10Main Room 11am - 4pmBargain Room 9:30am - 4pmChildren's Room 10am - 4pmPopup Music Sale 10am - 2pm(outside Main Room) Sunday May 11 All Rooms 1pm - 4pm FEATURED IN MAY Easton Press & Franklin Library BBC/UK DVDs STEMFMR magazines Mysteries 4000 Middlefield Road Palo Alto NE corner of the Cubberley Community Center(650) 213-8755 www.fopal.org Maps and Directions More information on the sales Donate your used books, DVDs, &c ALL NET PROCEEDS GO TO HELP PALO ALTO LIBRARIES Main Room In our Main Room, prices are way below what used book stores charge. Hardcover books start at $3 and softcover books start at only $2. No numbered tickets this month! Please note that due to crowding duringthe first two hours of the Book Sale, nostrollers, rolling carts, etc. can bebrought into the Main Room. This is forthe safety of shoppers and volunteersalike. By 12:30 or so, the crowd thinsout and shoppers are welcome to bringthese items into the sale. Children's Book Sale The Children's Room is located in the portable next to the soccer field near Greendell School. It is entirely filled with children's books and toys. You'll find picture books, school age fiction and non-fiction, fiction for teens, award winners, non-English titles, CDs and DVDs, and books for parents and teachers, many for 50 cents or $1. Strollers are welcome in the Children's Room at any time. Bargain Books in H-2 The Bargain Room is located in Rooms H-2 and H-3 of the Cubberley main campus, between our Main Room and Middlefield Road. On Saturday, paperbacks are $1, hardcovers are $2, and children's books are 50 cents each. The room also contains many records, CDs, and DVDs at $1 each. On Sunday, the room opens at 1 pm and all prices are half off. Or, save even more on Sunday by buying green FOPAL reusable bags from us for $4/ea (or bring your own grocery-size reusable bag) and stuffing them with any items in the room for $5/bag. Fill four bags at $5/bag and fill a fifth bag FREE! Library News This month (May) the Library is celebrating: Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month, Jewish American Heritage Month, And Memorial Day on Monday, May 26, on which day all Library branches will be closed. Plan accordingly! You could find out about these sorts of things in a slightly more timely manner bysubscribing to the Library's mailing list. Like us, they send one or two messages per month, more usually one. You can find out about other things they want you to know from the Palo Alto City Library Blogs page. Or you can subscribe to them with an RSS reader. -Frank McConnell What's Special for May Many incredible specials this month including a selection of Easton Press & Franklin Library books as well as a huge FMR art magazine collection. We also have many BBC/UK TV Series DVD box sets as well as a large selection of STEM and Mystery books. Enjoy! -Sven-Erik Geddes Parking Due to construction outside of our Main Room you may find it easier to park in the large lot adjacent to the soccer field. -Sven-Erik Geddes Cubberley Artist Studio Program On Saturday from 1:00 to 5:00 PM there will be a free Open Studio event of all of the Cubberley artists. There will also be a food truck, a karate demonstration and more! Moreinfo here: Cubberley Artists Open Studios - City of Palo Alto, CA -Sven-Erik Geddes Home & Crafts In Fashion this month, look for two style guides by Kim Johnson Gross and Jeff Stone: Clothes and Women's Wardrobe to try on. New resources in Home Building including Living Spaces: Ecological Building and Design, as well as The Old-House Journal: Guide to Restoration. Having company for Mother's Day? You won't want to miss Perfect Tables: Tabletop Secrets, Settings, and Centerpieces for Delicious Dining. Home decorating offers several guides for color, lighting, kitchen and bath. You'll find new titles for home maintenance and improvement; organizing, and storage. Here's a suggestion: Making a Home: Housekeeping for Real Life. Home design styles include: Casa Alta: An Andalusian Paradise, as well as English Style, The French Chateau, and the California Home Book. In the merry, merry month of May, look for an array of knitting styles to create for Mom on Mother's Day, or to give to that 'Knitter Mother' for her to display. Check out French Girl Knits, or The Yarn Whisperer. Or take a gander at the three 52's: 52 weeks of accessories, or scarves, or socks. She's not a knitter? In Fabric Arts, you can peruse other stitching, from sewing and quilting guides, to crocheting, embroidery, and needlepoint for her. In Floral Arts there are spring flowers designs to bring to her tables. Also in Crafts, you'll find the Craft of North America to offer her as a reference. Stuck? Give Mom a coloring book that she can use for meditation. eShelf photos can be found at https://fopalbooks.com/crafts.html. -Virginia Perry Antiques & Collections In May we will feature several titles for stamp collectors including Where in the World: An Atlas for Stamp Collectors, and Treasury of Stamps: 1200 Rare and Beautiful Stamps inColor, as well as The Postal Service Guide to U.S. Stamps. Look for this special title:Japanese Kokeshi Dolls: The Woodcraft and Culture of Japan's Iconic Wooden Dolls. Thereare several new books on furniture: Shaker: Life, Work, and Art, in addition to ModernScandinavian Furniture, and Made in Denmark. Look for multiple antique guides and otherresources for your collecting reference. eShelf photo can be found at https://fopalbooks.com/crafts.html. -Virginia Perry Music Pop Up Our Pop Up Music Sale is back this month with two-months' worth of newly curated releases. In addition to music there will be several CD cases for sale. -George Chaltas Poetry May! queen of blossoms, And fulfilling flowers, With what pretty music Shall we charm the hours? The lives of poets we shall read To learn how the creative seed Is planted in their minds' formation And brings them to their present station. https://fopalbooks.com/poetry.html -Mandy MacCalla Children's Room In our Non-fiction section, on the Teachers shelf, you'll find a dozen or more books, for parents and teachers, that deal with autism--certainly a timely topic. Non-fiction in general has somewhat less inventory than in the past several months, but the many excellent books this month make up for the smaller quantity. Don't miss this section. We have lots of Giftable Picture Books, including award winners, and don't forget to check out the poetry section! For families or classrooms we have many sets of Beginning Readers. Want to introduce your reader to religions of the world? Look in our Religion section, where we also have books for the holidays Lag B'Omer and Shavuot. And we have Parenting books for new parents and parents of toddlers through teens--any parent could use a few tips now and then. This month our School-age Fiction section has a terrific selection of popular early chapterbook series: Dragon Masters (located at the entrance to the section), Magic Tree House, ISurvived, Ivy and Bean, Judy Moody, and Captain Underpants. Summer is just around thecorner--keep your children reading their favorite series. We also have gift-qualitybeautifully illustrated classics: The Wind in the Willows, The Odyssey, Journey to theCenter of the Earth, Poems of Childhood, and The Complete Tales and Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh. Check out award winners for teens: Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give and On theCome Up, and by John Green, The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska, and Paper Towns.Last but not least, we have an excellent selection of the ever popular Diary of a Wimpy Kidseries. Once again, our Activities section has graphic novels galore. In the opposite end of the room, on the math and science table, you'll find that math books have multiplied this month--perfect for summer reviews and previews. And on the shelves of the Activities island, look for bags of wooden blocks and a mega-bin of Mega Bloks, for young builders. Finally, thanks to those who donate gently used children's books to FOPAL. Your donations are what fills our shelves! -Carolyn Davidson Children's Vintage June is children's illustrator month in Children's Vintage - the first of what we hope will become a regular monthly feature. This month we're highlighting six well-known illustrators: Chris Van Allsburg, Don and Audrey Wood, Cynthia Rylant, Chris Raschka and Steven Kellogg. Van Allsburg won Caldecott Medals for Jumanji in 1981 and Polar Express in 1985, and the Woods were recipients of an Honors for King Bidgood in the Bathtub in 1985 (plus we have a signed copy of The Napping House for sale this month). Cynthia Rylant was awarded a Medal for two books - When I Was Young in the Mountains (1982) and The Relatives Came (1985) - and Chris Raschka, is a more recent winner with Hello, Goodbye Window (2006) and A Ball for Daisy, a book told exclusively through his art (2011). Steven Kellogg, our last featured illustrator, hasn't won a Caldecott (yet!) but has gotten plenty of other awards and his Jimmy's Boa and Pinkerton series are delightfully silly. We have a sampling of books of all these artists' work. The other special feature this month is a selection of vintage toys. Think Fisher-Pricewooden schoolbus and radio, a German wooden block stacking tower and a Playskoolsorting mail box and shoe with tie-able laces. Plus other puzzles, wooden and otherwise. Areal treasure trove of nostalgia for either your childhood or your children's! Shelf pictures are available for all of these items at fopalbooks.com. And you can find even more children's vintage books at our eBay store https://www.ebay.com/str/friendsofthepaloaltolibrary. -Lisa Heitman Judaica Browse the Judaica section for books on the Jewish religion and culture including editions of the Torah and other basic texts, Kabbalah, Jewish history, the Holocaust, memoirs, Israel, Jewish Women, the Jewish American Experience and other related subjects. Special interest this month - Beyond Chutzpah: On the Misuse of Anti-Semitism and the Abuse of History Still Life With Bombers: Israel in the Age of Terrorism At Home in Exile: Why Diaspora Is Good for the Jews American Jewish Women and the Zionist Enterprise Wings of the Sun: Traditional Jewish Healing in Theory and Practice Braided: A Journey of a Thousand Challahs The Gilded Cage: Queen Esther's untold story Most fiction with Jewish themes will be found in Modern Literature/Classics or Current Fiction. Books entirely in Hebrew are shelved in the European Languages section. Shelf photos at https://fopalbooks.com/judaica.html -Charlotte Epstein, Judaica Section Manager Sociology/Anthropology Newly donated books comprise the majority of volumes offered by the nineteen subsections of the Sociology/Anthropology section for the May sale, particularly in the Theories and Methods subsection. Of the 392 books that constitute the entire collection, I want to highlight two authors whose works have appeared for the first time in the last year and a half. One of them is the renowned French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. In 2012, The Guardian reprinted an article about Bourdieu, titled "A decade after his death, French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu stands tall," which emphasizes the continued significance of his socio-political analysis for our times. The Theories and Methods subsection features his most overtly political work, Acts of Resistance: Against the Tyranny of the Market. Another author is Michael Young, the British sociologist, social activist, and researcher who coined the word "meritocracy" in his book, The Rise of Meritocracy. In 2002, The Guardian published a commentary by Michael Young, in which he bitterly observed that "The book was a satire meant to be a warning.... Much that was predicted has already come about." This work can also be found in the Theories and Methods subsection. -Natalia Koulinka Nature Cell phones may have gotten smaller and faster over the years, but out in nature, it's still handy to have analog devices that don't require a software update, a full charge, wifi, or anebulous licensing agreement. You buy a real book once, and it's yours forever. At theNature section, we have many pocket-sized guides from Audubon, including trees, thenight sky and birds, that never go out of style. And don't overlook the small pamphlets, aslow as $1. The recent weather is also a perfect time to be thinking about taking advantage of the bountiful wildlife we have in our proximity, so don't sleep on the Local Nature subcategory, with guides to our beautiful state's wildlife, as close as Jasper Ridge. -Serena Bramble Philosophy For May we have an abundance of premium quality High Value books in Philosophy such that New Arrivals spills over into the next bookcase. On the top shelf we have a mixture of eighteen books by or about Kant as well six books by or about Hannah Arendt and three on Walter Benjamin. We also have selections on Marx and Dewey and unusually, books about Darwin and his influences. Also check out more of our Philosophy books in our Mitchell Park Store and ourBargain Room. Shelf photos may be found at https://fopalbooks.com/philosophy.html. -Nigel Jones Classic and Modern Fiction Thanks to superb donations this month, the Classic and Modern Fiction section in the Main Room has been replenished and reinvigorated. The shelves are full of pristine copies of novels, particularly from the 1980s and 1990s, many of which are bound uncorrected page proofs or advance reading copies. There are also many less familiar titles by well- known authors such as Nabokov, DeLillo and Kingsley Amis. It's a wonderful opportunity to discover some interesting but forgotten novelists or to add to your collection of a favorite writer. -Melinda P Mitchell Park Library Store If you are unable to make it to our monthly sale the FOPAL store in the Mitchell Park library is a very good shopping alternative. The store is open seven days a week during library hours. It is located on your left as you enter the library. Our customers seem very happy with our inventory especially due to the fact that our shelves are restocked every day except Sunday. Our entire stock is rotated regularly so that we always have new items to peruse. Prices are comparable to the Main Room with most books priced at $2 and $3 unless marked otherwise on the front cover of the book. We love to find unique books that surprise our customers. We stock most of the major sections of the Main Room including Art, Business, History, Politics, Cooking, Mystery and Fiction of all genres i.e. Classic, Historical, Sci Fi, Romance and so on. You will also find the smaller sections represented such as Health, Entertainment, Psychology etc. We also sell DVDs, CDs, Puzzles, Children's books and the FOPAL Book Bags to carry your purchases home. A FOPAL volunteer staffs the store every day except Sunday for two hours in the mid tolate afternoon. Payments are on the Honor System. You can pay with cash in the cashbox(preferred but no change available) or using a QR code for Zelle or PayPal. If you useeither of these please add MP for Mitchell Park in the description line along with your items. If the Mitchell Park Store is not convenient for you the Downtown and Rinconada Libraries each has a kiosk store where you will also find great books at comparable prices to the Main Sale. Of course, they are also available for sales whenever the library is open. See more information about our in-library stores on our web site. Happy shopping wherever you choose, -Suzanne Little, Mitchell Park Curious Books Curious Books is offering a wide range of reading for the warmer weather. Fiction or non- fiction, improving or frivolous, we have books of interest. -Donya W. Humor On the top cartoon shelf we have some regular favorites, The New Yorker Complete Cartoons and the DVD only version, as well as ten other New Yorker titles. We also have the [In] Complete Far Side, Volume Two, and one collection by the incomparable Charles Addams. On our shelf of UK humor we have six very good novels and omnibuses by P. G. Wodehouse. There is something humorous on the shelves for every taste. Shelf photos may be found at https://fopalbooks.com/humor.html. -Nigel Jones Specials Bookcases Several bookcases to your right when you enter the Main Room have great specials for the May sale. One bookcase holds 57 books from the Easton Press and The Franklin Library. These are beautifully bound leather editions, all in pristine condition; most have their ribbons still tucked in and have apparently never been opened. Included are works of classic fiction, drama, poetry, and history. Another bookcase holds FMR periodicals. These are the beautiful art magazines producedby Franco Maria Ricci, with extraordinary photographs and articles by prominent arthistorians and critics. We have an almost complete run of the first series (zero to 126, from1984 to February/March 2004) and then the new series (1 to 22, from June/July 2004 toNovember/December 2007). These are priced individually. -Melinda P Art Click here to view the art books for May book sale -Fiona Donations We accept donations on Monday through Saturday from 3-5 pm in the Main Room. But we close to donations in the week before the sale so that we can prepare the Main Room for the sale, which means that we are closed for donations from Sunday May 4 through Sunday May 11. Please hold your donations until Monday May 12. Construction work near the Main Room is not finished but does again permit access to the Main Room. If you brought donations to the end of the alley where it opens onto Nelson Drive, you can once again bring them directly to the Main Room. Please read our donation guidelines before you bring materials to us. Suggestions? We're always eager to hear your suggestions for ways to improve our book sale. Please email us at suggestions@friendspaloaltolib.org. This notice comes to you from the non-profit organization Friends of the Palo Alto Library. No trees werefelled in the making of this e-mail. Visit our web site. Become a member by joining online. Be sure to receive your own free copy of this e-mail notice so that you'll know about all special upcomingbooks sales. To sign up, just e-mail us. We carefully protect the privacy of your e-mail address. We will notshare your e-mail address with any other organization and we will not use it for any purpose other than tosend you these notices. If you do not wish to receive these e-mail notices in the future, please reply withthe words "Remove Me" in the first line of the text. From:James Lloyd To:Council, City; Burt, Patrick; Lauing, Ed; Lu, George; Lythcott-Haims, Julie; Reckdahl, Keith; Stone, Greer;Veenker, Vicki Cc:Clerk, City; City Attorney; City Mgr; PlannerOnDuty; Kallas, Emily Subject:public comment re item 10 for 5/12/25 Council meeting Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 6:11:31 PM Attachments:Palo Alto ADU Ordinance Letter - 9 May 2025.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Palo Alto City Council, The California Housing Defense Fund (“CalHDF”) submits the attached public comment concerning item 10 on the agenda for the Council meeting scheduled for May 12, 2025, an amendment to the City’s regulations for ADUs and JADUs. Sincerely, James M. LloydDirector of Planning and Investigations California Housing Defense Fundjames@calhdf.org CalHDF is grant & donation funded Donate today - https://calhdf.org/donate/ May 9, 2025 City of Palo Alto 250 Hamilton Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94301 By email: city.council@cityofpaloalto.org; Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org; Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org; George.Lu@CityofPaloAlto.org; Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org; Keith.Reckdahl@CityofPaloAlto.org; Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org; Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org Cc: city.clerk@CityofPaloAlto.org; city.attorney@cityofpaloalto.org; CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org; Planner@CityofPaloAlto.org; Emily.Kallas@CityofPaloAlto.org Re: Proposed Amendments to the City’s Accessory Dwelling Unit and Junior Accessory Dwelling Unit Regulations Dear Palo Alto City Council, The California Housing Defense Fund (“CalHDF”) submits this letter as a public comment concerning item 10 on the agenda for the Council meeting scheduled for May 12, 2025, an amendment to the City’s regulations for ADUs and JADUs. This proposed ordinance fails to comply with state law in one specific way and the City should address this issue before approving the ordinance. Background The law gives local governments authority to enact zoning ordinances that implement a variety of development standards on ADUs. (Gov. Code, § 66314.) The standards in these local ordinances are limited by state law so as not to overly restrict ADU development. (See id.) Separately from local ADU ordinances, Government Code section 66323 establishes a narrower set of ADU types that local governments have a ministerial duty to approve. “Notwithstanding Sections 66314 to 66322 ... a local agency shall ministerially approve” these types of ADUs. (Gov. Code, § 66323, subd. (a).) This means that ADUs that satisfy the minimal requirements of section 66323 must be approved regardless of any contrary provisions of the local ADU ordinance. (Ibid.) Local governments may not impose their own standards on such ADUs. (Id. at subd. (b) [“A local agency shall not impose any objective development or 2221 Broadway, PH1, Oakland, CA 94612 hi@calhdf.org design standard that is not authorized by this section upon any accessory dwelling unit that meets the requirements of any of paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, of subdivision (a).”].) In addition, ADUs that qualify for the protections of Government Code section 66323, like other ADUs, must be processed by local governments within 60 days of a complete permit application submittal. (Gov. Code, § 66317, subd. (a).) State law also prohibits creating regulations on ADU development not explicitly allowed by state law. Government Code Section 66315 states, “No additional standards, other than those provided in Section 66314, shall be used or imposed, including an owner-occupant requirement, except that a local agency may require that the property may be used for rentals of terms 30 days or longer.” Impermissible Front Setback Requirement on Section 66323 ADUs City code section 18.09.030(b) Table 1 imposes underlying front setback requirements on new construction, detached ADUs developed pursuant to Government Code section 66323, subdivisions (a)(2) and (a)(4), on single-family and multifamily properties, respectively. However, Government Code section 66323, subdivision (a) does not permit imposition of front setback requirements for ADUs that qualify for the protections of that section of law. Additionally, Government Code section 66323, subdivision (b) specifically forbids the imposition of any local design or development standards beyond what is provided in section 66323. This means that the City may not impose front setback requirements on ADUs that meet the requirements of Government Code section 66323, subdivision (a). There are many policy reasons for this, regardless of whether or not it is possible to locate an ADU elsewhere on the property. For instance, a homeowner may prefer to preserve a private backyard space while redeveloping the less useful front yard. While children may play in the backyard, the front yard is closer to the street and less safe for a variety of activities. Additionally, an ADU in the front setback may be easier to make accessible for disabled residents, as it is much closer to the street. The City therefore must allow front yard ADUs that comply with the standards in Government Code section 66323, subdivision (a) both on single family and on multifamily properties. HCD has issued guidance pursuant to its authority under Government Code section 66327 (the January 2025 HCD ADU Handbook, page 18) affirming the duty of local agencies to allow ADUs protected by Government Code section 66323 in the front setback under all circumstances. From page 18 of the HCD ADU Handbook (emphasis added): “For example, 66323 Units do not have to comply with lot coverage, front setbacks, and design standards.” 2 of 3 ⧫ ⧫ ⧫ CalHDF appreciates the City’s effort to implement state law governing ADU construction. However, the City should amend its ordinance to ensure that it complies with state law. CalHDF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation whose mission includes advocating for increased access to housing for Californians at all income levels, including low-income households. You may learn more about CalHDF at www.calhdf.org. Sincerely, Dylan Casey CalHDF Executive Director James M. Lloyd CalHDF Director of Planning and Investigations 3 of 3 From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki Cc:assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Lauing, Ed; Reckdahl, Keith; Reckdahl, Keith; Julie Lythcott-Haims; Emily Mibach; planning.commission@cityofpaloalto.0rg; ParkRec Commission; Dana St. George; Gerry Gras; Zelkha, Mila; MGR- Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Jeff Rosen; Jay Boyarsky; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Mickie Winkler; Salem Ajluni; Sean Allen; Pat M; Patricia.Guerrero@jud.ca.gov; Sheree Roth; Lori Meyers; Lotus Fong; Human Relations Commission; Tom DuBois; jgreen@dailynewsgroup.com; Diana Diamond; EPA Today; h.etzko@gmail.com; Dave Price; Doug Minkler; Binder, Andrew; Reifschneider, James; Rowena Chiu; Robert.Jonson@shf.sccgov.org; Barberini, Christopher; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Foley, Michael; Enberg, Nicholas; Figueroa, Eric; Gardener, Liz; Marina Lopez; Steve Wagstaffe; Wagner, April; Roberta Ahlquist; Karen Holman; Bains, Paul; Raymond Goins; DuJuan Green; dennis burns; Council, City; city.council@menlopark.gov; GRP-City Council; citycouncil@mountainview.gov; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov Subject:Sunnyvale under fire over festival booth controversy Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 6:05:13 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Sunnyvale under fire over festival booth controversy https://sanjosespotlight.com/sunnyvale-under-fire-over-festival-booth-controversy/ From:Lee Christel To:Council, City Subject:Bill"s Cafe Site on Middlefield Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 2:58:43 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Council, It was been over two years since the fire at 3193 Middlefield Road. Why is nothing being done at that site? The owner should be required to either rebuild or demolish the site. Please impose fines or other penalties on them. It is a terrible eyesore. This stagnant site is an example that gives the city its reputation for being slow- moving on blight and properties that are in disrepair. Please address this. Sincerely, Lee A Christel, Midtown From:slevy@ccsce.com To:Council, City; Planning Commission; Lait, Jonathan; Jean Eisberg; Shikada, Ed Subject:tape of SPUR webinar with David Zisser Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 2:43:00 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. ! https://www.spur.org/events/2025-05-01/tracking-housing-elements-ensuring-cities- follow-through-their-plans About 24 minutes into the webinar Zisser of the HCD Housing Accountability Unit described the process for informing cities of HE problems. Thus far 4 cities have been decertified. My takeaway is that HCD is most interested in programs and promises/commitments notkept and does understand that market forces are making it harder right now to buildhousing even if it is permitted. Also as an fyi, I heard him encourage webinar attendees to contact the HAU as appropriate. He made other comments later in the webinar that I think are worth listening to. Steve This message could be suspicious The sender's email address couldn't be verified. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast From:slevy@ccsce.com To:Council, City; Shikada, Ed; Lai, Lauren Subject:the economic foundations under the budget for 25-26 and 26-27 Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 2:14:00 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. ! Dear Mayor Lauing, council members and staff, The economic fundamentals for the Bay Area, Santa Clara County and Palo Alto have been deteriorating even before the impacts of tariffs on economic growth, inflation and interest rates. The region and county have lost jobs each month in 2025. The latest city jobs data is nearly a year old but even then we were losing jobs. The latest sales tax report for Q4 2024 showed a slight decline. Though we do not have certainty as to the impacts of tariff, immigration and deportation policies, there is strong agreement that the direction is negative. At the finance committee, I heard about the city's existing plans, reasonable when they were made. But we all know plans change if the foundation changes. In the 2008-10 recession, the region lost 250,000 jobs and did not get back to prerecession levels, much lee grow, until mid 2013. And many people faced job and house losses and rising unemployment. The recent example is COVID where pre COVID plans were no longer possible. And while there was significant aid to cities after COVID, we are already seeing cuts to local aid even before a deep recession. I do not sit in your seats and have only one process suggestion below. But as I said at the finance committee, I want you to ask staff to prepare not a cautious forecast, they have done that, but a plausible 'frightened" forecast before you make decisions in June, particularly about the use of reserves. My one suggestion is to be flexible and not front load the 2025-26 spending. I do also think we all will benefit if staff and council is clear that there are deeper risks than in the current forecast. Three Fed Reserve members this week warned of rising inflation and unemployment. This message could be suspicious The sender's email address couldn't be verified. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast Thank you for listening. Steve From:Margaret Heath To:Council, City Cc:Ed Lauing; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; Lydia Kou Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 1:52:45 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five yearsago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/LauingColleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Margaret Heath 2140 Cornell Street Palo Alto From:Janet Ding To:Council, City Cc:Ed@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 1:20:44 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott-Haims,Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Janet From:Francesca Enzler To:city.council@menlopark.gov Cc:council@ci.atherton.ca.us; Council, City Subject:A Call for Immediate Action on Bike Safety Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 12:37:10 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear City Councilmembers and Senior Staff, I am a resident of Menlo Park and I am writing today today in memory and honor of DylanTaylor and all those who commute by bike. The story of Dylan Taylor's death hit very close to home to me for a variety of reasons, in part because it literally happened very close to my home which is only an 8 minute bike ride awayfrom the collision site. But also because I am a substitute teacher at Menlo Atherton High School and I bike to work. I chose to be a sub with Sequoia Union High School District and tofocus primarily on Menlo Atherton High School in part because it is a less than 10 minute bike ride from my home. I absolutely love being able to bike to work everyday. I get to enjoyexercise, fresh air, and make a sustainable transit choice. During my morning commute, I am often behind a pack of students biking to school as well. It brings me joy, especially assomeone who grew up in an environment where biking was not an option, to see young people enjoying the autonomy that comes with biking. It’s not only empowering for them, but alsooffers important health benefits. Biking is also a more affordable and accessible form of transit. A bike is much cheaper than a car to buy and maintain. It doesn’t require a license, and it empowers teenagers to get aroundwithout relying on parents for rides. However, as a biker, I often face significant obstacles: a lack of protected bike lanes, debris in bike lanes, pedestrians and strollers in bike lanes, carsparked in bike lanes, and bike lanes that abruptly end, forcing me into car lanes. But the worst obstacle is the constant fear of being struck by a car, which could result in serious injuries,long-term consequences (not only for myself but also for my loved ones and the greater community), or death. This morning when I left for work, my partner asked me to please be careful and to arrivesafely — and alive. My bike to work felt different this morning, as it does anytime a biker is killed by a car. We need immediate commitment and investment in long-term, gold-standard bikeinfrastructure that is protected, connected, and built for safety. But we cannot wait years to make our streets safer—short-term fixes like temporary protected bike lanes and daylighting atintersections must be implemented as soon as possible to prevent further loss of life. These interim solutions are not a substitute for lasting infrastructure, but they are a critical steptoward saving lives now. I also urge you to collaborate with neighboring cities like Atherton and Palo Alto to ensure safe, continuous routes between our communities. After all,Middlefield Road—where Dylan Taylor was killed—is a major connector between our cities. We may live on different sides of city lines, but we are one community, and our safetydepends on working together. With care and urgency, Francesca From:Evan Lurie To:Council, City Subject:May 12th Agenda, Item #4 FY 2026 Proposed Operating and Capital Budget - Contract with YCS for Youth Connect Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 9:36:35 AM Attachments:20250508 Letter to Council Supporting Youth Connect.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. See attached letter. Thank you! Evan May 8, 2025 Dear Council, While I serve on the board of Youth Community Service, this letter represents only me. I write having observed the finance committee meeting on May 6th, its struggle classifying expenditures, and its endeavor that the budget accurately reflects our values. I was mostly reassured that those values here in Palo Alto appear secure, in no small measure as the funds discussed seem more like investments than purchases. Nevertheless, budget discussions seldom resist descending into minutiae. That plunge blurs the individual lives you are charged with cultivating. Please indulge me then as I sketch some background for the City’s continued investment in its Youth Connect Initiative. Pediatrician and psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott famously wrote, “There’s no such thing as a baby, there’s only a baby and a mother.” Our craving for connection is hard-wired, and if our social connections are narrowed to what a screen mediates, our mental health suffers. This is not to suggest that an overabundance of connections leads to better outcomes. Indeed, over-connectedness is no better than no connections at all. Psychotherapist Philippa Perry offers an interesting analogy. Imagine people covered head-to-toe in Velcro hooks. Now connecting with everyone and everything, this cornucopia defeats focus and that specific mirroring that begins between a mother and child. The balance we all seek is enough connection to feel belonging. For many, that belonging is most fragile in the continuum between middle school and high school—as cute, energetic, bright-eyed kids transition into packs of gangly, shouting, seemingly-oblivious-to-everyone-else teens cavorting down University Avenue. When the CDC finalized its Epi-Aid report in April of 2017, it stressed fostering protective factors like connectedness and developing problem-solving and coping skills as best practices not just for suicide prevention, but also to diminish substance abuse. Since 2017, the City of Palo and the County of Santa Clara requested Youth Community Service implement programs to deliver these protective factors, with annual impact reporting to both the City and County. This is hardly surprising. Like Project SafetyNet and Avenidas, YCS also began as a City project, but was undertaken jointly with the City of East Palo Alto in 1990. YCS remained embedded within city management until YCS became a stand-alone non-profit in 2006. In other words, continuing to receive a modicum of city financial support given YCS’s long history with the City should surprise no one as it shares lineage with Avenidas and Project SafetyNet. At the same time, YCS has no intention of taking for granted any support. I note that the FY2024 Annual report from the County’s Prevention Services Division quotes a Youth Connect student: “One important thing I learned by joining Youth Connect is how to communicate and collaborate well with others. It’s a life skill that I think is very necessary especially later in 1 life, and coming up with project ideas and implementing them really helped me build that skill.” FY24 Prevention Services Division Annual Report, County of Santa Clara Behavioral Health Services at 20. In 2017,Councilmembers Adrian Fine, Karen Holman, Lydia Kou, and Cory Wolbach circulated a Colleagues’ Memo supporting the initial grant. It cited these potential protective factors: ● Positive perception of self ● Positive outlook on one’s future ● Problem-solving ● Emotional self-awareness ● Self-efficacy for help-seeking ● Engagement in outside activities ● Close and positive relationships with adults outside of school/family ● Caring relationships with fellow youth ● Caring relationships with teachers and adults at school ● Positive relationships with neighborhood and community For the past two years, YCS primarily staffed Youth Connect with Helena Cirne. A 2019 alumna of Gunn, Helena returned to Palo Alto after completing her bachelor’s degree at Columbia. Part of YCS’s secret-sauce is that adults close in age to high school students deliver many of our programs. Helena leaves us now for Columbia Medical School and the Youth Connect students wrote goodbyes that attest to what can happen when a compassionate, caring adult bonds with high school students over multiple years, something not always possible outside of school/family. One student wrote: “Thank you for all the unasked-for yap sessions and for supporting me through my first two rough years of high school. I hope that as a current Gunn student to a former Gunn student, I can at least somewhat follow in your footsteps.” Another, “You made Youth Connect so engaging and helped me learn a lot.” or “thank you for always providing your input and helping us grow and learn from our community work and service.” Or “You truly helped each and every one of us grow and feel safe, while also helping us to make an impact.” Or “You have been such a great role model to myself and others” and “You are so inspiring”, and “Thank you for lifting up my ideas and working with me to plan so many awesome events, from the book club to the retreat. Your guidance has pushed me beyond my comfort zone.” Another wrote, “Thank you so much for all the help you’ve provided both with our service project and also always being there for me.” Or “I have never been so excited to hop on weekly Zoom meetings (which says a lot given their post-pandemic reputation.)” These merely scratch the surface, citing merely nine of the 27 students in Youth Connect who took the time to thank Helena. But what’s more remarkable is how squarely their comments check the boxes for those protective factors cited in 2017. Youth Connect delivers. Like all YCS programs, service projects empower others to serve. The first ripple in Youth Connect spread to PAUSD elementary, middle, and high school students, to adults at Gamble Gardens, and patrons at Palo Alto libraries. So the Youth Connect students develop these 2 protective factors, exhibit them, and help others develop them as well. The service projects these kids designed and undertook help knit together Palo Alto. While Helena heads to Medical School this Fall, where I wish her every success, she leaves Youth Connect in a very strong position with talented teen leaders at every school and dynamic YCS staff who have in hand the Youth Connect playbook that continues to evolve to meet the needs of every student cohort. The three-year contract with the City funds Youth Connect through the end of the City’s fiscal year, June 30th, 2025. As the City invited YCS to initiate this program in 2017, I did not anticipate a handful of days for YCS to prepare an application to reapply. If YCS failed to check in with staff and Council, I sincerely regret the occurrence, as averting a public debate about budgeting $50k annually for youth mental health should be a goal. I do not accept that this uncertainty, which could have been avoided, calls into question the City’s commitment to supporting the mental health of our kids. As Councilmember Lythcott-Haims observed at the May 6th Finance Meeting, the goal should be for an outside resident or journalist to return to Palo Alto to learn that the City made every effort to implement the recommendations of the Epi-Aid report. We are living through an age when wealth eclipses wisdom, notoriety displaces dignity, and image dazzles while truth decays. The programming YCS offers now is indispensable. YCS is hardly the only agency extending protective factors. But YCS is the only nonprofit doing it through service. No other nonprofit has the history of YCS’s commitment and none have YCS’s track record. Several of you attended the recent student-led YCS Community Impact Event at Mitchell Park. Next year and with your continued support, I hope to have the honor of welcoming all of you. Thank you for all your service. Sincerely, Evan Lure YCS Board Member 747 Marion Avenue Palo Alto 94303 3 From:Henry Etzkowitz To:Guilherme Ary Plonski; Office of the Provost; Council, City; Joe Penko; Lauing, Ed; Shikada, Ed; GennadySheyner; Blackshire, Geoffrey; Rebecca Eisenberg; Roberta Ahlquist; sally Tomlinson; Hannah Lu; Brian Good;Aram James; Ellen Fox; Team JulieforPaloAlto; Winter Dellenbach; Jeanne Fleming; mickie winkler; annikasteiber; Sue Rosser Cc:Arthur Millman; Dorien Detombe; Helen Lawton Lawton-Smith; Moacir de Miranda Oliveira Júnior; Mo Kang; 翁默 斯; Peter Weingart; Sarfraz Mian; Mark Granovetter; Denis Gray; Grace Alele-williams; Mariza Almeida; alumninews@uchicago.edu; Aram James; annika steiber; Audrey Rouzies; Artie; Avroh Shah; Branca Terra; Michelle Baker; Bette Kiernan; Barbara J Kiviat; Heiden Bowman; Bette Kiernan; Christiane Gebhardt; Prof Dr Helga Nowotny; Paul Wouters Subject:Science and anti science Date:Friday, May 9, 2025 12:52:20 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links.Back to magical thinking and alchemy? A teaching moment for the American people about government performing useful roles and providing services, nowbeing eliminated or under attack the realization will come and people will demand their government back: forestsand consumers alike, people and the environment enhanced. speaker of house, post Johnson, will praise and support,not denigrate and deny the usefulness of government Henry EtzkowitzSociology DepartmentStanford UniversityDistinguished Fellow, CIMRBirkbeck, University of London Henry Etzkowitz From:Wolfgang Himmelbauer To:Council, City Cc:Ed@EdLauing.com; Vicki@VickiforCouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@JulieforPaloAlto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 10:24:56 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott-Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then- Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Wolfgang Himmelbauer From:Paul Machado To:Council, City Cc:Ed Lauing; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; Lydia Kou; Veenker, Vicki; Lythcott-Haims, Julie Subject:Cell Towers colleagues memo Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 2:47:19 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. A few months ago the city council was presented a colleagues memo that addressedthe aesthetics and safety concerns of cell towers. It implied neighbors/residentshave a right to be involved in the cell tower process. These concerns have only increased as cell towers have become stronger and per AT&T, can be dangerous within a 21 foot radius. I urge you to support this memo for the betterment and safety of our community. Thank you,Paul Machado From:Martin Wasserman To:Aram James Cc:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki; Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Shikada, Ed; Lauing, Ed; Emily Mibach; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; h.etzko@gmail.com; Council, City; Cribbs, Anne; ParkRec Commission; Mickie Winkler; Doug Minkler; Foley, Michael; Marina Lopez; Cait James; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Tim James; Gardener, Liz; Raymond Goins; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; Diana Diamond; Dave Price; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Perron, Zachary; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Bains, Paul; paul@peaceandjustice.org; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Jeff Rosen; Rowena Chiu; Roberta Ahlquist; Rosen, Jeff; Jay Boyarsky; Figueroa, Eric; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org Subject:Re: Tell Congress to Stop the Humanitarian Blockade on Gaza Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 12:51:48 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Israel is fighting for its existence against ruthless enemies who respect NO laws of war, and who are firmly committed to the annihilation of both the Jewish state and the Jewish people. Israel does what it does because it's enemies leave it no otherchoice. Martin Wasserman On May 8, 2025, at 10:59 AM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: Israel must immediately end its devastating siege on the occupied Gaza Strip which constitutes a genocidal act, a blatant form of unlawful collective punishment… Source: Amnesty Internationalhttps://search.app/QJUAWxFWduiqXASd9 On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:54 PM Martin Wasserman <deeperlook@aol.com>wrote:Yes, but the war must be won and not be allowed to drag on indefinitely. This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast On May 8, 2025, at 9:36 AM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com>wrote: Expanding Israeli attack on Gaza would certainly lead to more deaths, destruction, says Volker Turk - Anadolu Ajansı https://search.app/LgdhXoprtPKfB2Hz7 Shared via the Google app On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 12:24 PM Martin Wasserman<deeperlook@aol.com> wrote:The quickest way to lift the blockade is for Hamas to lay down its arms and release the hostages. Lifting the blockade prematurely will just strengthen Hamas and prolong the war. Martin Wasserman On May 7, 2025, at 10:50 PM, Aram James<abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:22 AM Salem Ajluni<sajluni@yahoo.com> wrote: Dear Friends: If you have not done so already, please take a minute and use the link below to demand an end to Israel's humanitarian blockade on the people of Gaza. While this is a small gesture, other gestures are also encouraged. With regards and in solidarity, Salem Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockade on Gaza Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarianblockade on Gaza Action Network After breaking the ceasefire in late March, Israelenacted a complete blockade on all humanitarian aid,includin... From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Shikada, Ed; Lauing, Ed; Emily Mibach; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; h.etzko@gmail.com; Council, City; Cribbs, Anne; ParkRec Commission; Mickie Winkler; Doug Minkler; Foley, Michael; Marina Lopez; Cait James; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Tim James; Gardener, Liz; Raymond Goins; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; Diana Diamond; Dave Price; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Perron, Zachary; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Bains, Paul; paul@peaceandjustice.org; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Jeff Rosen; Rowena Chiu; Roberta Ahlquist; Rosen, Jeff; Jay Boyarsky; Figueroa, Eric; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org; Marty Wasserman Subject:Re: Tell Congress to Stop the Humanitarian Blockade on Gaza Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 10:59:32 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Israel must immediately end its devastating siege on the occupied Gaza Strip whichconstitutes a genocidal act, a blatant form of unlawful collective punishment… Source: Amnesty International https://search.app/QJUAWxFWduiqXASd9 On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:54 PM Martin Wasserman <deeperlook@aol.com> wrote:Yes, but the war must be won and not be allowed to drag on indefinitely. On May 8, 2025, at 9:36 AM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: Expanding Israeli attack on Gaza would certainly lead to more deaths, destruction, says Volker Turk - Anadolu Ajansı https://search.app/LgdhXoprtPKfB2Hz7 Shared via the Google app On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 12:24 PM Martin Wasserman <deeperlook@aol.com>wrote:The quickest way to lift the blockade is for Hamas to lay down its arms and release the hostages. Lifting the blockade prematurely will just strengthen Hamas and prolong the war. Martin Wasserman On May 7, 2025, at 10:50 PM, Aram James<abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:22 AM Salem Ajluni <sajluni@yahoo.com> wrote: Dear Friends: If you have not done so already, please take a minute and use the link below to demand an end to Israel's humanitarian blockade on the people of Gaza. While this is a small gesture, other gestures are also encouraged. With regards and in solidarity, Salem Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockade on Gaza Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockadeon Gaza Action Network After breaking the ceasefire in late March, Israel enacted a completeblockade on all humanitarian aid, includin... From:Martin Wasserman To:Aram James Cc:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki; Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Shikada, Ed; Lauing, Ed; Emily Mibach; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; h.etzko@gmail.com; Council, City; Cribbs, Anne; ParkRec Commission; Mickie Winkler; Doug Minkler; Foley, Michael; Marina Lopez; Cait James; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Tim James; Gardener, Liz; Raymond Goins; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; Diana Diamond; Dave Price; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Perron, Zachary; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Bains, Paul; paul@peaceandjustice.org; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Jeff Rosen; Rowena Chiu; Roberta Ahlquist; Rosen, Jeff; Jay Boyarsky; Figueroa, Eric; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org Subject:Re: Tell Congress to Stop the Humanitarian Blockade on Gaza Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 10:55:02 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Yes, but the war must be won and not be allowed to drag on indefinitely. On May 8, 2025, at 9:36 AM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: Expanding Israeli attack on Gaza would certainly lead to more deaths, destruction, says Volker Turk - Anadolu Ajansı https://search.app/LgdhXoprtPKfB2Hz7 Shared via the Google app On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 12:24 PM Martin Wasserman <deeperlook@aol.com>wrote:The quickest way to lift the blockade is for Hamas to lay down its armsand release the hostages. Lifting the blockade prematurely will juststrengthen Hamas and prolong the war. Martin Wasserman This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast On May 7, 2025, at 10:50 PM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com>wrote: On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:22 AM Salem Ajluni <sajluni@yahoo.com> wrote: Dear Friends: If you have not done so already, please take a minute and use the link below to demand an end to Israel's humanitarian blockade on the people of Gaza. While this is a small gesture, other gestures are also encouraged. With regards and in solidarity, Salem Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockade on Gaza Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockadeon Gaza Action Network After breaking the ceasefire in late March, Israel enacted a completeblockade on all humanitarian aid, includin... From:Anu Ramamurty To:Shikada, Ed Cc:Burt, Patrick; Veenker, Vicki; Council, City; Wako Takayama; Elliott Wright; Parag Patel; Jan Merryweather; Nick Allen; Lincoln Bleveans; Michael Patrick; Joyce Friedrichs; Sally Tomlinson; Alamos, Lupita; O"Kane, Kristen Subject:Re: Request for Continued Support for Environmental Volunteers Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 10:47:47 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Ed, Thank you for your message. I’ve connected with Lupita, and we are currently working on the proposal. We appreciate your support and guidance throughout this process and are grateful for the opportunity to continue our partnership with the City. Warm regards, Anu On May 8, 2025, at 10:11 AM, Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@paloalto.gov> wrote:Hello Anu, Thank you for your message. I understand that Lupita Alamos from my office is attempting to contact you to ensure you are able to submit your request through the City’s Nonprofit Partnership portal. Please note that submittals are due tomorrow, and let me know if you need any further assistance. Best regards, --Ed <image002.png>Ed Shikada, City Manager ICMA Credentialed Manager (650) 329-2280 | ed.shikada@PaloAlto.gov www.PaloAlto.gov <image003.png> From: Anu Ramamurty <anu@environmentalvolunteers.org> Sent: Wednesday, May 7, 2025 7:00 PM To: Burt, Patrick <Pat.Burt@PaloAlto.gov>; Veenker, Vicki <Vicki.Veenker@paloalto.gov> Cc: Council, City <city.council@PaloAlto.gov>; Wako Takayama <wakotakayama@gmail.com>; Elliott Wright <ewright@hiddenvilla.org>; Parag Patel <mr.parag@gmail.com>; Jan Merryweather <jan@hamilton.com>; Nick Allen <nickallen09@gmail.com>; Lincoln Bleveans <lblevea1@stanford.edu>; Michael Patrick <mjpatrick108@gmail.com>; Joyce Friedrichs <joycecaren@gmail.com>; Sally Tomlinson <sallytomlinson936@gmail.com> Subject: Request for Continued Support for Environmental Volunteers CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Becautious of opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Council members, It was good to see you the Climate Action & Sustainability Committee meeting last week. Thank you for your continued leadership and dedication to making Palo Alto a model for sustainability and environmental innovation. On behalf of the staff, board and volunteers of Environmental Volunteers, I’m writing to respectfully request the City of Palo Alto’s continued support for our work bringing nature-based education to students throughout the community. Our hands-on classroom programs and field trips connect children directly with the natural world, inspiring curiosity and fostering a lifelong sense of environmental stewardship. Each year, we engage many Palo Alto residents as volunteers who lead these programs and connect with visitors at Foothills Nature Preserve and the Palo Alto Baylands—serving as local nature ambassadors for our treasured open spaces. This role is especially important given the limited number of Park Rangers available. Through our intergenerational model, we create meaningful connections between volunteers and students, strengthening the fabric of our community. In a time when fostering environmental awareness and connection is more critical than ever, we deeply value Palo Alto’s partnership in making this work possible. While I couldn’t join today’s finance committee meeting, I welcome the opportunity to speak with you about the matter. Thank you for your consideration and continued commitment to environmental education. I look forward to hear from you. Warm regards, Anu <image004.jpg> Anu Ramamurty Executive Director (she/her) O: (650) 493-8000 x 1003 C: (646) 298-6661 Watch this impact video to learn more about EV From:Shikada, Ed To:Anu Ramamurty; Burt, Patrick; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Council, City; Wako Takayama; Elliott Wright; Parag Patel; Jan Merryweather; Nick Allen; Lincoln Bleveans; Michael Patrick; Joyce Friedrichs; Sally Tomlinson; Alamos, Lupita; O"Kane, Kristen Subject:RE: Request for Continued Support for Environmental Volunteers Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 10:10:48 AM Attachments:image003.pngimage002.png Hello Anu, Thank you for your message. I understand that Lupita Alamos from my office is attempting to contact you to ensure you are able to submit your request through the City’s Nonprofit Partnership portal. Please note that submittals are due tomorrow, and let me know if you need any further assistance. Best regards, --Ed Ed Shikada, City Manager ICMA Credentialed Manager (650) 329-2280 | ed.shikada@PaloAlto.gov www.PaloAlto.gov From: Anu Ramamurty <anu@environmentalvolunteers.org> Sent: Wednesday, May 7, 2025 7:00 PM To: Burt, Patrick <Pat.Burt@PaloAlto.gov>; Veenker, Vicki <Vicki.Veenker@paloalto.gov> Cc: Council, City <city.council@PaloAlto.gov>; Wako Takayama <wakotakayama@gmail.com>; Elliott Wright <ewright@hiddenvilla.org>; Parag Patel <mr.parag@gmail.com>; Jan Merryweather <jan@hamilton.com>; Nick Allen <nickallen09@gmail.com>; Lincoln Bleveans <lblevea1@stanford.edu>; Michael Patrick <mjpatrick108@gmail.com>; Joyce Friedrichs <joycecaren@gmail.com>; Sally Tomlinson <sallytomlinson936@gmail.com> Subject: Request for Continued Support for Environmental Volunteers CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Council members,It was good to see you the Climate Action & Sustainability Committee meeting last week. Thank you for your continued leadership and dedication to making Palo Alto a model for sustainability and environmental innovation. On behalf of the staff, board and volun ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ! This message could be suspicious The sender's email address couldn't be verified. This is their first mail to some recipients. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast CGBANNERINDICATOR Dear Council members, It was good to see you the Climate Action & Sustainability Committee meeting last week. Thank you for your continued leadership and dedication to making Palo Alto a model for sustainability and environmental innovation. On behalf of the staff, board and volunteers of Environmental Volunteers, I’m writing to respectfully request the City of Palo Alto’s continued support for our work bringing nature-based education to students throughout the community. Our hands-on classroom programs and field trips connect children directly with the natural world, inspiring curiosity and fostering a lifelong sense of environmental stewardship. Each year, we engage many Palo Alto residents as volunteers who lead these programs and connect with visitors at Foothills Nature Preserve and the Palo Alto Baylands—serving as local nature ambassadors for our treasured open spaces. This role is especially important given the limited number of Park Rangers available. Through our intergenerational model, we create meaningful connections between volunteers and students, strengthening the fabric of our community. In a time when fostering environmental awareness and connection is more critical than ever, we deeply value Palo Alto’s partnership in making this work possible. While I couldn’t join today’s finance committee meeting, I welcome the opportunity to speak with you about the matter. Thank you for your consideration and continued commitment to environmental education. I look forward to hear from you. Warm regards, Anu Anu Ramamurty Executive Director (she/her) O: (650) 493-8000 x 1003 C: (646) 298-6661 Watch this impact video to learn more about EV From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Shikada, Ed; Lauing, Ed; Emily Mibach; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; h.etzko@gmail.com; Council, City; Cribbs, Anne; ParkRec Commission; Mickie Winkler; Doug Minkler; Foley, Michael; Marina Lopez; Cait James; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Tim James; Gardener, Liz; Raymond Goins; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; Diana Diamond; Dave Price; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Perron, Zachary; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Bains, Paul; paul@peaceandjustice.org; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Jeff Rosen; Rowena Chiu; Roberta Ahlquist; Rosen, Jeff; Jay Boyarsky; Figueroa, Eric; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org Subject:Re: Tell Congress to Stop the Humanitarian Blockade on Gaza Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 9:41:29 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links. 'War-Crime Starvation Strategy':Israel Blocks All Humanitarian Aidinto Gaza Source: Common Dreams https://search.app/WBWdNPF3175XMzTp9 Shared via the Google app On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 12:36 PM Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote:Expanding Israeli attack on Gaza would certainly lead to more deaths, destruction, says Volker Turk - Anadolu Ajansı https://search.app/LgdhXoprtPKfB2Hz7 Shared via the Google app On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 12:24 PM Martin Wasserman <deeperlook@aol.com> wrote:The quickest way to lift the blockade is for Hamas to lay down its arms and release the hostages. Lifting the blockade prematurely will just strengthen Hamas and prolong the war. Martin Wasserman On May 7, 2025, at 10:50 PM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:22 AM Salem Ajluni <sajluni@yahoo.com> wrote: Dear Friends: If you have not done so already, please take a minute and use the link below to demand an end to Israel's humanitarian blockade on the people of Gaza. While this is a small gesture, other gestures are also encouraged. With regards and in solidarity, Salem Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockade on Gaza Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockadeon Gaza Action Network After breaking the ceasefire in late March, Israel enacted a completeblockade on all humanitarian aid, includin... From:Aram James To:Martin Wasserman Cc:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki; Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Shikada, Ed; Lauing, Ed; Emily Mibach; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; h.etzko@gmail.com; Council, City; Cribbs, Anne; ParkRec Commission; Mickie Winkler; Doug Minkler; Foley, Michael; Marina Lopez; Cait James; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Tim James; Gardener, Liz; Raymond Goins; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; Diana Diamond; Dave Price; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Perron, Zachary; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Bains, Paul; paul@peaceandjustice.org; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Jeff Rosen; Rowena Chiu; Roberta Ahlquist; Rosen, Jeff; Jay Boyarsky; Figueroa, Eric; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org Subject:Re: Tell Congress to Stop the Humanitarian Blockade on Gaza Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 9:36:58 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Expanding Israeli attack on Gaza would certainly lead to more deaths, destruction,says Volker Turk - Anadolu Ajansı https://search.app/LgdhXoprtPKfB2Hz7 Shared via the Google app On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 12:24 PM Martin Wasserman <deeperlook@aol.com> wrote:The quickest way to lift the blockade is for Hamas to lay down its arms andrelease the hostages. Lifting the blockade prematurely will just strengthen Hamasand prolong the war. Martin Wasserman On May 7, 2025, at 10:50 PM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:22 AM Salem Ajluni <sajluni@yahoo.com> wrote: Dear Friends: If you have not done so already, please take a minute and use the link below to demand an end to Israel's humanitarian blockade on the people of Gaza. While this is a small gesture, other gestures are also encouraged. With regards and in solidarity, Salem Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockade on Gaza Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockadeon Gaza Action Network After breaking the ceasefire in late March, Israel enacted a completeblockade on all humanitarian aid, includin... From:Martin Wasserman To:Aram James Cc:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki; Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Shikada, Ed; Lauing, Ed; Emily Mibach; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; h.etzko@gmail.com; Council, City; Cribbs, Anne; ParkRec Commission; Mickie Winkler; Doug Minkler; Foley, Michael; Marina Lopez; Cait James; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Tim James; Gardener, Liz; Raymond Goins; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; Diana Diamond; Dave Price; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Perron, Zachary; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Bains, Paul; paul@peaceandjustice.org; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Jeff Rosen; Rowena Chiu; Roberta Ahlquist; Rosen, Jeff; Jay Boyarsky; Figueroa, Eric; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org Subject:Re: Tell Congress to Stop the Humanitarian Blockade on Gaza Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 9:24:50 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i The quickest way to lift the blockade is for Hamas to lay down its arms and release the hostages. Lifting the blockade prematurely will just strengthen Hamas and prolong the war. Martin Wasserman On May 7, 2025, at 10:50 PM, Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote: On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:22 AM Salem Ajluni <sajluni@yahoo.com> wrote: Dear Friends: If you have not done so already, please take a minute and use the link below to demand an end to Israel's humanitarian blockade on the people of Gaza. While this is a small gesture, other gestures are also encouraged. With regards and in solidarity, Salem This message needs your attention No employee in your company has ever replied to this person. This is a personal email address. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockade on Gaza Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockadeon Gaza Action Network After breaking the ceasefire in late March, Israel enacted a completeblockade on all humanitarian aid, includin... From:robell To:Council, City Cc:Ed@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; Lydia Kou Subject:Palo Alto’s wireless ordinance Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 9:12:45 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Palo Alto Council I live at Channing House, and so appreciate the work that you have done in dedicating yourselves to the betterment of our community. Today I am urging you to revise Palo Alto’s wireless ordinance in line withthe Kou/Lauing thinking. Thank you for serving us so well. Mary Robell850 Webster St #923, Palo Alto, CA 94301 From:matt@evolutionaryteams.comTo:palo-alto@fridaysforfutureusa.org; fridaysforfuturepaloalto@gmail.com Subject:FFF Follow Up – May 2 (Week #173) Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 8:56:29 AM Attachments:image005.pngimage007.png CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachmentsand clicking on links. i We marched! Our somber funeral procession wound its way through downtown streets as we grieved the apparent loss of our democracy and rights, our science and educational institutions, our public health systems and social safety nets, and our stable climate and habitable planet. The Grim Reaper followed close behind to make the point very clear. Many diners and passersby positively acknowledged us and applauded our action. Several engaged us in conversation asking the question, “what can I do?” The answer is clear – if you care about preserving our democracy and our country, we must be out on the street – NOW! It only takes 3.5% of the population engaged in non-violent protest to affect change. If you do not like the direction our country is headed, find an action near you and join the caring cadre of concerned citizens. Thanks to our intrepid marchers, Brigitta, Casey, George, Ingrid and Rick. Nonviolent protests are twice as likely to succeed as armed conflicts – and those engaging a threshold of 3.5% of the population have never failed to bring about change Remember, Palo Alto lies at the heart of technofascism so there is no better place in the country than right here to let the tech oligarchs, and their tech-bro followers know that we will not stand for this fascist takeover of our country. It is so mean and unfair that they are smashing, grabbing and taking all that we have for so long fought for, especially stealing from our younger generations. While young people may not yet recognize that the people we elected to protect us are stealing our futures, we elders do. Let’s continue to stand up and fight back to make the best possible future for our youth and for everyone. After the march, we sang and wished Ingrid a happy birthday and enjoyed a delicious cupcake, some with surprise jelly filling! We find joy in the small things. Happy birthday, Ingrid! Thursday was MAY DAY – demonstrations were held around the country. We demonstrated in front of the Tesla showroom at Stanford Shopping Center. Around 150 people lined both sides of the street delighting passing cars who honked and encouraged us. We also marched through the center of the mall drawing out surprised shoppers. Here is a terrific reel of the May Day action. We were at SSC again on Saturday. The Saturday action at the Tesla showroom on El Camino was memorialized by Pro Bono Photo. Thanks to Indivisible Palo Alto Plus for organizing these #TeslaTakedown actions that will continue every Wednesday and Saturday. Wednesday 4 to 6PM: Tesla Showroom on El Camino Saturday Noon to 2PM: Tesla Showroom at Stanford Shopping Center Saturday Afternoon: Tesla Showroom on El Camino (start time may vary, see link) You can find the details of upcoming actions here: https://www.mobilize.us/ipaplus/ David P and Dave C continue to impress commuters with their banner actions on 101 overpasses up and down the peninsula. Thanks to you both for all the great work you are doing! Aiden and the Youth Climate Advisory Board are generating interest in public transportation. Transportation emissions are the biggest contributor to carbon emissions in our city, and public transportation options can lower those emissions. If you are a Palo Alto student or a parent of a student, please fill out this survey. Thanks Aiden and team for working on this important issue. On Tuesday, Avroh, Aiden and the PASCC team attended the Palo Alto Unified School District board meeting. If you have not done This message needs your attention Some Recipients have never replied to this person. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast so already, please write board@pausd.org and ask the board to include climate action and sustainability in Palo Alto Promise. Diane kindly updated us on the heat pump water heater program. See the update below. Thanks, Diane! This Friday we demonstrate in Lytton Plaza at the Stand Up for Science and Sanity Rally with Carol, the Raging Grannies and Mitchell Park Band. See in Lytton Plaza at Noon! Keep Up the Fight! R-E-S-I-S-T! Upcoming Events Friday, May 9, Noon to 2:00: Stand up for Science and Sanity and Climate Strike! –– We meet at Lytton Plaza for the rally. https://www.scienceandsanity.org/ Every Wednesday, 4 to 6PM: Palo Alto Protests Elon Musk’s Illegal Government Takeover on Wednesdays at the Tesla Showroom, 4180 El Camino Real. https://www.mobilize.us/ipaplus/ Every Saturday, see link for time: Palo Alto Protests Elon Musk’s Illegal Government Takeover on Wednesdays at the Tesla Showroom, 4180 El Camino Real. https://www.mobilize.us/ipaplus/ Friday, May 16, Noon to 1:00: Climate Strike! –– We meet at King Plaza in front of Palo Alto City Hall. Friday, June 6, Noon to 1:00: Climate March! –– We meet at King Plaza in front of Palo Alto City Hall and take to the streets for a slow march through downtown Palo Alto. Friday, June 6, 5PM to 7PM: Stand up for Science and Sanity –– We meet at Lytton Plaza for the rally followed by a performance by Mitchell Park Band. https://www.scienceandsanity.org/ Palo Alto City Meetings: https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/Departments/City-Clerk/City-Meeting-Groups/Meeting-Agendas-and- Minutes Climate Community Center: https://climatecommunitycenter.org/ Peninsula Peace and Justice Center calendar: https://peaceandjustice.org/events-calendar/ Photos and Videos of Recent Actions Last week’s pictures: https://photos.app.goo.gl/CCUXNLbQCb4ZTj9g8 Pro Bono Photos: https://www.probonophoto.org/2025/3May25Protests/3May25MayDayStrongPaloAlto What We Are Reading/Watching/Listening to: Harvard on how 3.5% of the population engaged in non-violent, peaceful protest can make a dramatic social change: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/carr/publications/35-rule-how-small-minority-can-change-world Matt recorded a new climate song. Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/L_JAOHNRfFM Tech-oligarch run Instagram is taking down any posts by people organizing a general strike. This is an important movement and may be one of our best chances to activate 3.5% of the population to stand up to the oligarchy. You can learn more about it here: https://generalstrikeus.com/ Reporting by Democracy Now! here Commentary by The Majority Report: here Heat Pump Water Heater and Home Electrification Program Update As of:5/1 3/31 2/28 1/31 HPWH full-service interest list signups 1364 1333 1323 1307 Site assessment agreements (SAA) sent 1364 1333 1323 1307 Signed SAAs 1127 1013 1093 1075 Completed site assessments 1040 1023 1013 996 Installations Total Full Service HPWHs installed 421 414 402 393 Total DIY HPWH installed 126 115 114 98 Total Emergency HPWH installations 19 19 18 11 Total HPWHs installed 566 548 534 502 Target Installations 1000 1000 1000 1000 Monthly Installation Rate Monthly Installation Rate 18 14 32 7 Target Monthly Installation Rate 83 83 83 83 Follow Fridays For Future Palo Alto: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fridaysforfuture_paloalto/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Fri4Future_PA YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FridaysForFuturePaloAlto Email notifications of FFF Palo Alto events: https://mailchi.mp/c8c130127345/join-fridays-for-future-palo-alto You are receiving this email because you have expressed an interest in supporting climate action in Palo Alto. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, please let me know. Matt Schlegel Schlegel Consulting 650-924-8923 Author: Teamwork 9.0 Website: evolutionaryteams.com YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCLkUMHuG4HVa831s9yeoZ5Q From:Ruthellen Dickinson To:Council, City Cc:Ed@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Subject: Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Thursday, May 8, 2025 12:12:28 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, I'm writing to ask you to please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Ruthellen Dickinson -- Ruthellen Dickinson962 Van Auken Circle, Palo Alto650-493-8169RuthellenDickinson@gmail.com From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Shikada, Ed; Lauing, Ed; Emily Mibach; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; h.etzko@gmail.com; Council, City; Cribbs, Anne; planning.commission@cityofpaloalto.0rg; ParkRec Commission; Mickie Winkler; Doug Minkler; Foley, Michael; Marina Lopez; Marty Wasserman; Cait James; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Tim James; Gardener, Liz; Raymond Goins; Don Austin; Yolanda Conaway; Diana Diamond; Dave Price; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; Perron, Zachary; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Bains, Paul; Paul George @ PPJC; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Jeff Rosen; Rowena Chiu; Roberta Ahlquist; Rosen, Jeff; Jay Boyarsky; Figueroa, Eric; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; board@pausd.org; BoardOperations; board@valleywater.org; boardfeedback@smcgov.org Subject:Re: Tell Congress to Stop the Humanitarian Blockade on Gaza Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 10:50:37 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. On Thu, May 8, 2025 at 1:22 AM Salem Ajluni <sajluni@yahoo.com> wrote: Dear Friends: If you have not done so already, please take a minute and use the link below to demand an end to Israel's humanitarian blockade on the people of Gaza. While this is a small gesture, other gestures are also encouraged. With regards and in solidarity, Salem Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockade on Gaza Tell Congress: Stop the humanitarian blockadeon Gaza Action Network After breaking the ceasefire in late March, Israel enacted a completeblockade on all humanitarian aid, includin... From:William Lee To:Council, City; Stone, Greer Subject:Invitation to join Palo Alto High School"s 5K Mental Health Event Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 10:32:15 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Good evening, I am a student from Palo Alto High School, this Saturday we are hosting a 5K run/walk on campus from 9:00-11:00 am. The purpose of this event is to promote mental health wellness,as well as have some fun and enjoy a beautiful morning with friends and family. I know Mayor Greer Stone and the City of Palo Alto are big advocates for mental health services, it would mean the world if you could join us for this event. If you are curious about participating with us this Saturday, I have copied some moreinformation below. We'd love to see you all here! Thanks, Paly Student. Paly Mind Matters 5K, May 10, 2025 Uniting for Mental Health Awareness Paly Mind Matters 5K Sat May 10, 9-11am on Paly Quad and Viking Loop. Walk or Run the Paly Viking Loop. Fun for the whole family, including a Quad Fair with booths and games for all ages. See our Website for more information: https://palymindmatters5k.weebly.com/ Register Here (https://forms.gle/TBPv3j1iCEBbyppp6) or at QR code below: From:Aram James To:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Binder, Andrew; Reifschneider, James; Council, City;city.council@menlopark.gov; GRP-City Council; Perron, Zachary; Bill Newell; Robert.Jonson@shf.sccgov.org;BoardOperations; dennis burns; DuJuan Green; Barberini, Christopher; Enberg, Nicholas; Gardener, Liz; LotusFong; Pat M; Sean Allen; Patricia.Guerrero@jud.ca.gov; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for CaliforniaDemocratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Figueroa, Eric; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Nash,Betsy; Josh Becker; GRP-City Clerk; Human Relations Commission; Tom DuBois; Gerry Gras; Jeff Conrad; JeffHayden; Wagner, April; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Dave Price; BradenCartwright; Emily Mibach; Palo Alto Free Press; Afanasiev, Alex; h.etzko@gmail.com; Zelkha, Mila Subject:https://url.usb.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/Ur20C5Av8yc0MBmZCzf3fkS-c3?domain=search.app Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 9:26:51 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Ban Tasers Now!!! From the archives of Aram James https://search.app/z8YQzAqcZFXujqov6 Shared via the Google app From:Aram James To:Julie Lythcott-Haims; Council, City; Binder, Andrew Subject:https://url.usb.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/_3rXC6Yw68hoP5B9Cpfzf5BEXC?domain=search.app Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 9:16:23 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. https://search.app/uzrSGQybU4AVkSXNA Shared via the Google app From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Reckdahl, Keith; Reckdahl, Keith; Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; Ed Lauing; Lauing, Ed; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; board@pausd.org; board@valleywater.org; BoardOperations; Emily Mibach; Zelkha, Mila; Gardener, Liz; Friends of Cubberley; h.etzko@gmail.com; Human Relations Commission; dennis burns; Binder, Andrew; DuJuan Green; Reifschneider, James; Wagner, April; Afanasiev, Alex; Barberini, Christopher; Rowena Chiu; Figueroa, Eric; EPA Today; Mickie Winkler; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Freddie.Quintana@sen.ca.gov; Patricia.Guerrero@jud.ca.gov; Palo Alto Free Press; Foley, Michael; Enberg, Nicholas; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Tom DuBois; Holman, Karen (external); Jeff Rosen; Jay Boyarsky; Council, City; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Dave Price; Diana Diamond; jgreen@dailynewsgroup.com; Lotus Fong; Roberta Ahlquist; Steve Wagstaffe; Pat M; Sean Allen; Nash, Betsy; Perron, Zachary; city.council@menlopark.gov; Nash, Betsy; dcombs@menlopark.gov; Lewis james Subject:Israeli Airstrikes Decimate the Last Restaurant in Gaza City in Nightmarish Bloodbath Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 8:04:43 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Israeli Airstrikes Decimate the LastRestaurant in Gaza City inNightmarish Bloodbath Journalist Rasha Abou Jalal recounts horrific scenes from a massacre at abeloved restaurant and a bustling market—destroyed by a triple Israeliairstrike in Gaza City. RASHA ABOU JALAL MAY 8 ∙GUEST POST READ IN APP Israel this week vowed to escalate its already brutal assault on Gaza, approving plans to capture the entire Gaza Strip and remain entrenched there indefinitely. Today, at least 92 Palestinians were killed in a series of Israeli airstrikes across the enclave, including women and children, and two journalists. Among the most brutal attacks was a triple airstrike on a crowded restaurant and adjacent street market in Gaza City that killed at least 33 people. Like many journalists in Gaza City, Rasha Abou Jalal would frequent Thai Restaurant to use their internet and charge her equipment. She filed this harrowing story from the scene of the attacks. —Sharif Abdel Kouddous Drop Site News is reader-supported. Consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Upgrade to paid The aftermath of Israeli airstrikes on Thai Restaurant in Gaza City. May 7, 2025. (Photo by Rasha Abou Jalal) GAZA CITY—On Wednesday afternoon, two Israeli airstrikes slammed into Thai Restaurant—the last restaurant still open in Gaza City—turning a once bustling gathering place into a panorama of death. A third, near simultaneous, airstrike hit a nearby crowded market on al-Wahda street, sending body parts everywhere. At least thirty-three Palestinians were killed and nearly ninety wounded in the three airstrikes, according to the health ministry, though the actual death toll is likely higher. Many of the dead and wounded were customers enjoying a hot drink in the restaurant, or people in the market trying to find food during a full- spectrum siege that has suffocated Gaza for over two months. In these days of bloodshed, Wednesday was a particularly bloody day. Earlier this week, Israel vowed to escalate its already savage assault. At least ninety-two people were killed across Gaza today, most of them women and children, Ismail Al-Thawabteh, the Director-General of the Government Media Office in Gaza, told Drop Site. The scene inside the restaurant in the aftermath of the attack was nightmarish. Customers lay on the ground drenched in their own blood. Pieces of pizza were scattered across the tables and floor. In my shock, I, at first, thought the red stains on the floor were ketchup, but it was all blood. There was blood everywhere. Before the war, this restaurant was once a Gaza City landmark—bustling with patrons and offering Thai dishes, shawarma, and grilled chicken. Destroyed during Israel’s carpet bombing campaign, the restaurant was rebuilt during the brief ceasefire that went into effect in January, offering Palestinians here a glimmer of hope and a return to some semblance of normalcy. After Israel imposed a total blockade on March 2, most restaurants were eventually forced to close. Thai Restaurant, somehow, managed to remain open, serving only hot drinks and slices of pizza. As the weeks went by, the restaurant became a popular gathering place for journalists who are always looking for power sources to charge their phones and equipment, and a place with reliable internet to file their stories. I would come to the restaurant at least twice a week with my laptop and sit at one of the tables to finish my articles—to report the ongoing genocide of my people to the world. My last visit there was just two days ago. I thought it was a safe place, but in this land of death, there is no such thing. Journalist Rasha Abou Jalal sitting at Thai Restaurant days before it was bombed by the Israeli military. May 2025. (Photo courtesy of Rasha Abou Jalal) When the bombs fell on Wednesday, Abeer Sabri and her friend were sitting at a table in the middle of the restaurant. The two women were trying to steal a few moments away from the daily burdens of war and siege—standing in line for hours to get water, or lighting firewood to make a thin soup for their children. "I hadn’t seen my friend for more than a year and a half, because of the war and repeated displacements, so we agreed to meet here at Thai Restaurant," 28-year- old Abeer said, still in shock and struggling to catch her breath. "We ordered two cups of coffee, we were laughing together—then everything turned to hell." She was still in shock, as she spoke, and struggling to catch her breath. “A loud explosion shook the place. I felt dizzy and closed my eyes,” she said. “When I opened them, I found myself drenched in a pool of blood; it wasn’t mine or my friend’s—it was from the other customers. I stood in disbelief. How had I survived?” Among the dead was a young boy who sold coffee to customers. I would see him whenever I visited. I still remember his smile. The journalist Yahya Sobeih was also killed. He was one of the journalists who regularly frequented Thai Restaurant. Just hours before he was killed, he had welcomed his newborn daughter into the world. He shared a photo on Instagram of him cradling her in his arms, calling her his “little princess” in the caption. He couldn’t have known that his first embrace of her would be his last. When his wife heard the news of her husband’s death, she suffered a nervous breakdown and slipped into a deep state of shock, drifting in and out of consciousness. Journalist Yahya Sobeih cradling his newborn daughter hours before he was killed in an airstrike on Thai Restaurant in Gaza City. May 7, 2025. (Photo: Instagram screenshot @yahyasobeih) Sobeih’s close friend Soheil Amer said that Sobeih has spent the entire war reporting for several media outlets. Sobeih was particularly interested in stories of the displaced and posted his work on social media. “I was shocked when I heard Yahya was martyred,” Amer said. In the aftermath of the attack, the head chef of the restaurant, Abu Saleh Abdo, was in a state of disbelief that he had survived the massacre. “How long will we keep dying every day? Children, women, the elderly, even animals haven’t been spared from the killing. There were no fighters here, just customers and some families trying to relive fragments of their past lives. What was their crime to be bombed like this? It’s absolute savagery,” he said. “There’s no hope left for survival. If you don’t die from bombing, you die from hunger or disease. This war must stop now.” The body of a young boy killed in Israeli airstrikes on Thai Restaurant in Gaza City. May 7, 2025. (Photo by Rasha Abou Jalal) Next to Thai Restaurant, at the street market where the third airstrike hit, the scene was even more horrific. Bodies were strewn across the ground. Three members of one family—a father, mother, and their child— lay dead in a pool of blood. Many street vendors were killed, their stalls destroyed. The body parts of customers who had come to try and find food for their children were scattered everywhere. Inside the home of 16-year-old Nahid Qanoua, who was killed in the market attack, his mother was consumed with grief and wailing. Tears streamed down her face, as she kissed his forehead for the last time before his body was taken away for burial. I tried to comfort her with words of condolence. “He celebrated his birthday yesterday,” she said. “Today he wore his best clothes and went to the market to find food. What was his crime to be killed like this?” The mother of Nahid Qanoua, 16, weeps over her son’s body in the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike on a street market in Gaza City. May 7, 2025. (Photo by Rasha Abou Jalal) Wednesday’s massacres occurred in the midst of a brutal siege of Gaza. Famine is setting in. Flour supplies have been depleted. Food warehouses are empty. Most charity kitchens have shut down due to a lack of basic goods, like beans and rice. The attacks do not stop. The bombs fall everywhere, every day. In Gaza, Palestinians who have been displaced multiple times are being bombed in shelters. On Wednesday, two schools sheltering displaced families were bombed in Gaza City, one in the north and one in al-Bureij in central Gaza. The strikes killed forty-nine people, including another journalist, Nour Al-Din Abdo. Restaurants, charity kitchens, schools, shelters, and tents have all been hit. At least 235 schools and shelters have been bombed according to Al-Thawabteh: “It reflects Israel’s clear intent to cause the highest number of casualties among displaced civilians. It constitutes a full-fledged war crime and a continuation of the genocide being carried out against our people,” he said. Al-Thawabteh held the U.S. administration responsible for the ongoing massacres, accusing it of providing unlimited military, political, and financial support to the Israeli government. He called on the international community to take immediate action to stop these crimes, protect civilians, and hold Israel accountable in international courts. Meanwhile, the Israeli army continues its relentless bombing of Gaza. Leave a comment Upgrade to paid A guest post by Rasha Abou jalal I am Rasha Abu Jalal, a journalist from the Gaza Strip. I work in several media outlets covering Palestinian political, humanitarian and social issues. I am a permanent member of the judging committee for the annual Press House Award. Subscribe to Rasha Become a Drop Site News Paid Subscriber Drop Site News is reader-supported. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber today. Upgrade to paid A paid subscription gets you: Access to our Discord, subscriber-only AMAs, chats, and invites to events, both virtual and IRL Post comments and join the community The knowledge you are supporting independent media making the lives of the powerful miserable You can also now find us on podcast platforms and on Facebook, Twitter, Bluesky, Telegram, and YouTube. LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2025 Drop Site News, Inc.Drop Site News Inc., 4315 50th St. NWSte 100 Unit #2560, Washington, DC 20016 Unsubscribe From:Anu Ramamurty To:Burt, Patrick; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Council, City; Wako Takayama; Elliott Wright; Parag Patel; Jan Merryweather; Nick Allen; Lincoln Bleveans; Michael Patrick; Joyce Friedrichs; Sally Tomlinson Subject:Request for Continued Support for Environmental Volunteers Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 7:00:17 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. ! Dear Council members, It was good to see you the Climate Action & Sustainability Committee meeting last week. Thank you for your continued leadership and dedication to making Palo Alto a model for sustainability and environmental innovation. On behalf of the staff, board and volunteers of Environmental Volunteers, I’m writing to respectfully request the City of Palo Alto’s continued support for our work bringing nature-based education to students throughout the community. Our hands-on classroom programs and field trips connect children directly with the natural world, inspiring curiosity and fostering a lifelong sense of environmental stewardship. Each year, we engage many Palo Alto residents as volunteers who lead these programs and connect with visitors at Foothills Nature Preserve and the Palo Alto Baylands—serving as local nature ambassadors for our treasured open spaces. This role is especially important given the limited number of Park Rangers available. Through our intergenerational model, we create meaningful connections between volunteers and students, strengthening the fabric of our community. In a time when fostering environmental awareness and connection is more critical than ever, we deeply value Palo Alto’s partnership in making this work possible. This message could be suspicious The sender's email address couldn't be verified. This is their first mail to some recipients. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast While I couldn’t join today’s finance committee meeting, I welcome the opportunity to speak with you about the matter. Thank you for your consideration and continued commitment to environmental education. I look forward to hear from you. Warm regards, Anu Anu Ramamurty Executive Director (she/her) O: (650) 493-8000 x 1003 C: (646) 298-6661 Watch this impact video to learn more about EV From:Anna Wichansky To:Council, City Cc:Ed@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 4:55:42 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing andthen-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cumdraft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. This is their first email to your company. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Sent from my iPhone From:Mark Crowe Jr To:sabaza1@hawthorneschools.org; hsd@hawthorne.k12.ca; dpfeifer@hawthorneschools.org;kgoldingcooper@hawthorne.k12.nj.us; mrelms@okcps.org; wgworley@okcps.org;amazzacca@hawthorne.k12.nj.us; reportcard@isbe.net; recruitment@madison.k12.wi.us;devencentis@northjersey.com; webmaster@everettsd.org; jennifer.eelman@hca.org;mbisping@northstarmls.com; cau@cityofhawthorne.org; psef@westchestercountyny.gov; police@village-npb.org;ctmoss09@gmail.com; triordan@elmhurst205.org; sschumacher@elmhurst205.org; ljordahl@elmhurst205.org;pr@abc7.com; Palo Alto Airport; Palo Alto Airport Billing; airportdirectory@aopa.org; Palo Alto Airport;learn@paloaltonetworks.com; Swanson, Andrew; eventservices@elpradopa.com; Council, City; Rich@dr-amy.com; webmaster@sierraclub.org; Support@fltplan.com; sfo.noise@flysfo.com; Mike.Carrillo@chp.ca.gov;Matthew.Peacock@chp.ca.gov; Nicole.Ross@chp.ca.gov; TSenter@chp.ca.gov;260VIN_appointments@chp.ca.gov; tips@fbi.gov; police@csus.edu; SFPDBayviewStation@sfgov.org;UPD@csueastbay.edu; UPDrecords@csueastbay.edu Subject:Terrorist Discloser Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 4:54:08 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. It would be a very good idea to put something together where DFPS has a list of all surviellence experts and IT especially the Ines that work from home during this time of terrorism in space! You need to know which have kids so you can plan on what to do with them when their families are sentenced arrested or detained for terrorist involvement in developing involving satalites and ground surviellence. I have already messaged some highschools about the terror! Please contact the other states that will be involved in SpaceX! The beginning was to Tesla Investors here and Shanghai. I am doing everything I can to guarantee the people's saftey in the World against all odds with emails and secret support of leaders while agencies in USA take their time and claim their hands are tied keeping the truth from us! As long as you do business with Elon Musks development teams they will consider your vehicles their jurisdiction! USA signal developements have become unsafe! Lock out USA signals private or other wise! Terrorist Signal Tests on Tesla!Are you aware that all the experiments that Elons other businesses are doing is the reason Tesla has had its issues. On top on mesending out these emails all over the world most recently to airports in California, Texas, and Florida. If people do not come together ehatis going to happen is businesses will suffer due to the lack of backbone of the people to this situation! I have a very large stake in alawsuit against these people. You should as well. What I am offering is half of what I could be paid in a class act lawsuit against his signaldevelopements os Space X Starlink starshield and united states of America inc. This on top of what is owed to you as investors of thecompany should be enough to gain control of many illegal activities that has lead up to the issues with Tesla! I have already gone to otherinvestors with the same proposals at the very least help shut down the terrorists developements in space ruining our climate and makingfake jobs named after a marvel cartoon group which now exists in real life name Starshield. S.H.I.E.L.D United Nations is who you need to confirm everything with. They already have this. Your passengers pilots and wildlife are not safe from these electromagnetic interruptions that cause mechanical andtechnical failures! Don't do business with the USA untill the Treaty is in place! The FBI should already be aware but you have not been notified since they are trying to keep it from thepeople! It's a rough draft about the terrorism that has brought Russia and China to Threaten Space X!They are justified protect your passengers and yourselves. Share any information you feel necessary withall of your teams and in ypur state! If this is approved I will be impressed because it exsposes some surviellence that has gone live that Elon Musks teams have somehowbeen allowed to use by the CIA NSA and FBI as investigators for hire! The patriot act has betrayed us through Elon Musks power andemployees. Tv's Vehicle's and a tope secret communication has gone live as well as the lies of the weather not being able to sustainitself allowing California, Texas and Florida to play with the weather and stalk anyone they choose. I have been messaging every agencyin the USA for years as well as embaasys all over the world. Very happy with Russia and China threatening SpaceX as I have beenasking them and other countries to get the records with President Trump to put down the terrorist cell threat within his companiesopperating from home and developing their technologies using them against our country for at least 10 to 15 years! If you have clearancein any agency look into it. We here in Springfield IL are waiting for an announcement! Very good news that Russia and China are trying tokeep the peace with the USA by going after SpaceX. Here is my IL DL # C60055783234 if your not an agent ignore the number as it isone of the most watched all over the world! Unplug your hdmi cable to your TV's and the only thing you can do about the vehicle is disconnect the radio antenna for the instrument cluster and center dash screen cameras! Why isn't our country putting this privacyviolation from those states down! Neverbshould have been allowed to go live! The enemy from within are the surviellence experts inStarshield, Starlink, and SpaceX companies that arw allowed to monitor and filter the data streams for their information gathering as theCIA and NSA do! Take away private use and punish the Agency field offices involved in special Projects that have signal radiation sideeffect and symptoms that care not to mention and force us to accept! I am MSC I need a call back from someone that can help protect and guide me in a legal sense in all this! Rough drafts that are all FBI NSA CIA USSF USA evidence against Elon Musk and more! Terrorists Control DOD technologies, Data Mining and FBI investigations on Security Breachs! It's repetitive I have warned all of them for a long time. Long story short I asked Russia and China to help President Trump with putting down this Technology and freeing the enslaved minds from the vast experiments in space! To: ContactUs@starbaseaustin.org, SB.TX-Houston@dodstarbase.org I asked President Putin, President JinPing to help President Trump free us from Elon Musks Terrorists in his organization! They are here to help free our minds! I hope Trump gets them all. It's Americans in Texas, California to start with and Starahield issues listed in North Carolina! Now what intelligence do you have on the terrorists threat using top secret technologies to Terrorize the world manned by Americans? Mark Crowe Jr <mscrjr@gmail.com>Mon, Apr 14, 2025 at 4:17 AM To: tips@forbes.com A response would be great you would be the first. Still waiting to see who says what to the man who new it should have stopped all along! No credibility means I don't matter. Doesn't mean I wasn't right and still doing the same thing trying to make sure we don't end up in a fight! What are those companies doing! Discussing how they can profit off of the war they wanted in space. What am I discussing. The opperators being hawled off imprisoned and destroyed! Where is the CIA on this! I have been messaging the authorities for years! Since when did we become afraid of making a phone call or feeling we are better then the ones we swear to protect!? To those of you that should already have this filed with the State Police and your states FBI. Do you believe me now? Russia and China threaten Space X telecommunications cause they have disrespected the world with their wanna be Space ownership! I believe this is one of the Reasons China and Russia are playing nice! I have been in contact for a long time with them! Now can you please just cut the power to the installations that are causing the problem and get the work at home addresses from Elon Musk! I want disconnected and your state is not the only negligent one in keeping the rest of the country from satalite harm! I am one of the main victims seeking restitution and China and Russia along with other secret supporters have disclosed what I feared in my email. When you see Trump is Partner it means he was helping get the records before hand to get the evidence we need to protect ourselves from what is going on now! Now the clock is ticking and someone should be breaking down the door! This is a very serious situation! Please contact the FBI with your plans of how you plan to assist them and work with them to protect yourselves from Elon Musks businessesinvolved in terrorist activities! Next paragraph for You tube contacted through google! There is a strong possibility that my you tube account linked with Google has been compermised by Elon Musks People. If would please watch my account and any associated with Google that allows surviellence access and report to the FBI for proof of your company and or companies being illegally accessed for Unlawful use of surviellence involving the data mining of United States of America Inc and its associated businesses. I apologize for you having to read all of what you are about to. Sundar should already be in loop get as many involved as you can since these people are terrorists of the USA! Copy Below This is an announcement of Data Collection services, Telecommunications, cognitive research and platforms of said technology being under investigation for Terrorist Activity! United States of America Inc. I want disconnected and am in the process of exposing every Data Collection opperator that is violating the minds of Americans! Weather platforms that have dangerous interconnectivity signals that secretly manipulate the atmosphere need reversed! Cognitive research needs to end! Weapons platforms that involve every known signals and experimental type of different signals need deactived and turned over to the Authorites! Elon Musk does not own American minds or Space! His satalites that report, log and transfer data to your servers are being used for terrorist activity! This message will be sent over seas! You need some thing more since I have made these wild accusations! Here is my DL# C600-5578-3234 IL Now not only call the FBI with this so it can be added to my file launching or being a part of one of the most embarrassing United States of America investigations against Technology and it's opperators, secret service 24 hr Washington DC Field Office 202-406-8800 You have just been messaged by MSC Masonic Security Connections Inc. Donald Trump is Partner! You can't find out anything! Mark Steven Crowe Jr MSC Cognitive Signal Research being conducted on civilians in secret is unacceptable. Using the BCI telecommunications platforms in a terroristic manner has been done for years. I am doing my best to put an end to it by spreading the word about as much as I can that has been done to me as I can. Please help President Trump in any way that you can in resecuring Telecommunications. Even the phone services have been compermised. They are turned on and off from time to time to avoid a signal trace. You should be able to compare old maintenance parameters with the new approvals to see the changes that allow these Terrorists to opperate within your Signal Audits. Finding them one their own turf in space meaning their secret network of satalites from the ground should be easier that way. The signals that interconnect the weather monitoring platforms have been multitasking designed to generate and control the weather in secret. The message below is real and I will continue untill we are all safe again! How did it get this bad. Who is approving and ignoring saftey in space? Make a wish Foundation request is the first paragraph! Help make my wish come true bringing these Terrorists you are about to read below be brought to justice. I have just sent your site the introduction to wishing to be present when they are sentenced and their lethal injection ceremony. There are many secret victims of what you are about to read. When you read the part about the Pope please understand that it was their original intention to assassinate him. Other wise they would not be pointinganything at him. Mark Crowe5629 Old Salem Ln Springfield, IL 62711 217 3415375 Have people forgotten what freedom actually means. The minds of people are beingenslaved! The police Contacted by this please start a local file on me as a victim in case Darpa isinvolved with the abuse of Matrix development and unlawful use of surveillance incollaboration with Space X satalites, Starlink, starshield and Neural Link development! To NRO how do I get my Matrix FOIA and Development records of signals tested on me? I have been trying to get disconnected for almost 2 years now and have been connectedclose to 5 or more according to the opperators that have communicated to me by your topsecret funded BCI communication Matrix including their virtual reality. I am one of thereasons that President Trump is trying to get files that the CHIP ACT protects and more.Their are crimes being committed and research that can not be conducted untill Elon Muskspeople at least some that I have labeled terrorists to leaders all over the world and ourcountry! These people can not be allowed to be involved with anymore research as they are securitybreaches to the countries well being! Salvaging this type of forced communication is makingour countries minds weak! You may think that having stronger more responsible minds incharge of this tech is a better idea. All I have to say to that is that intelligence has gotten lazy.To think that we have to have a video game of the minds information t catch everyone. Thatmeans what? Your secrets need looked into! Is this technology really going to be allowed?All I can say is have fun having another country listing to your mind and you have no clueabout it! You are insulting the memory of our Country! I am living up to the standards. I willcontinue to exspose as much as I can. I have been connected to long and no one isprotecting a mind that has no criminal acts to find! My story is an open book! Ask the FBI youhave kids in charge of Space. I can't believe this despicable demonstration that has allowedthe Pope to be assassinated! The first few paragraphs have nothing to do with people that support the terrorism of themind you have contracted out to be developed! They have all been sent to who they say theyhave been. What I claim about myself is true. If I offend anyone realize I am protecting thememories of Soldiers that have survived war and died in peace and those that have no ideawhat they are fighting for any more! Paragraph below Prepared For Nova Rockefeller. I hope it helps ease her mind and many ofyours that have been connected. I fight in secret for all of you hoping to inspire more to helpstop the Terrorist Technology of the MIND! The top secret communications matric that Elon Musks people have developed and misuseto continue funding while making themselves look even more incompetent, has contactedme. It has been stated that Nova has also been connected. They wish to connect everyone in the world. The paragraph below was prepared for the Bilderbergs just this morning. I believe I have sent an email to some of you. If this is really one of Nova's requests for me to send what everyone has heard has helped keep us from going to war in Ukraine and Russiathen I am happy to share the history with her and all of you that I am hoping get this email toher! I will ask of you and her what I have asked Tom Mcdonald, C-Mob and several artists.Get the word out we need to get peoples minds safe from this technology! The paragraph mentioning Jeff Bezso was prepared as an introduction to contact him and hispeople. I wish to share with your group what has developed after I sent an email to you titled" An American Secret Worthy of the Bilderbergs" This is so far the most tribulating task I haveever been through or even imagined. Your wisdom it what I what seeking not just in aninvestment in my ability, but in help protecting everyone's minds! So far I have failed. TheDeaths of Pope Francis, Gene Hackman, Arthur Speigel my great Uncle and my Aunt LoriMinder and the Threats on myife and my families to stop sending these emails has all beensent to the FBI and DOGE now that they exist. I have high hopes for what President Trump isdoing. I do not agree with spying on minds at this time so I am exposing as much as I can! Ithas done a lot for a peace effort. So far it has done nothing for me. I will continue to attemptto protect as many as I can from Harmful technologies! I believe I might have sent Mr. Bezso an email before. I am one of if not the main study, testsubject/ victim of BCI developments along with assisting via BCI with ideas for projectsinvolving frequency waves, diferent types of satalites signal attempts, which all in my opinionhave turned out harmful. I will boast about myself a little bit and that might make some feelas if this is one sided in my favor. I have been emailing people for almost 2 years. At thispoint in time special Projects of the CIA, NSA and whatever involvements of the USSFshould have the proof needed to inspire a new project attempting to develope a cleantelecommunications signal that will when perfected surpass any telecommunications inhistory. The first step is the study to see what it is and if it can be recreated. I believe this iswhat the CIA's project gateway was all about looking for quantum energy in a Psychic abilitysubject. That is where the story as I call it gets unbelieve! Even if I were to be attempting toexplain and convince myself. That's the worst part someone like myself believing anything ispossible and still thinking someone is just making it up like telepathy! I know it was inventedin the 80's by the military as far as the Technologies creation goes and before that couldntwrap my head around the possibilities of psychic abilities! Now I was born in 83, before I wasborn they Tested the technology. The irony of the situation is I am now charged withconvincing people that I have a gift that mystics have always professed and scientists nowcall it Reiki for health! Many have profited off of that and I could at the least be a part of thatin so many ways. My dream is to be a part with developing a cleaner signal that would be thenew core if we can create a signal out of recreating the energy field that my body produces. Ihave done my best to stop the BCI tech from being used with telecommunications especiallysince they have no regards for human life. I am really hoping that you aren't just anotherpawn of the private sector and a part of that. They have made major break throughs thanksto victimizing me and using me as their free lab rat as they are attempting to do to manymore. The records that are currently hidden about me would guarantee money rewarded ontop of the lawsuit for Unlawful use of surviellence with private sectors development of thetheir Matrix and so much more. President Trump I am hoping is helping get some of therecords for me. When he gets that accomplished we have business over seas developingthis new energy and every application for it. I have been emailing all over the worldattempting to protect everyone from the terrorists as I call them that have been using it fortheir own research investigative and investments. Spying on thoughts and manipulating theoutcome of so many situations. Brilliant ideas for criminal activities. Ideas with destructiveintent or selfish goals should be viewed with utmost caution! With out the proof of the videorecords you might not believe. I will impressed if I find someone that is willing to explore thepossibilities of what you are about to read below. It is a mess of information and sent in it'soriginal form as I sure I will restate since it is a copy and paste. This email isn't private at allwhich is why I send them to a list along with all my FBI submissions. No one can say they don't lie! That is the truth! My mother and I spare my dad of things we believe he can't handle while my mother helps hide the truth of this situation. He is someone that would need to hear it from someone with a title for proof. Those men have been involved and have hidden fromthe country what we deserve to know since many are being harmed. As I have said I amdoing my best and more to exspose the truth and convince people their is another way. Do Igain from it of course. At the very least if we can get terrorists in Control ofTelecommunications to reverse what they have changed in the signal calibration andstandards along with new power consumptions that allow the harmful signals to work andany form of the newly developed or proposed, we will be safe again! That is the main goal.Bonus I might just get a chance to be a part of a safe signal where what has already beenresearched can be reattempted with a safe signal with less radiation! Secure my future beingthe investment since it comes from my body where in the past, abilities were stolen or paid intorchure or pennies in my opinion. I feel as if I am getting to the point where I will ramble.Hopefully you can get with President Trump as he is someone I want involved and see whathis people say the possibilities are. Elon Musks people have not shown any interest, besidesdeveloping as much as they can on me in secret while suppressing the energy that couldpossibly take their telecommunications to the next level. Copy below Title: Terrorists Control Telecommunications in the USA! I know this doesn't have anything to do with you but the Country and World needs Everyone's help being rescued! To understand you have to read to where you read about terrorists that Intercept information for research purposes that manage and monitor the signal encryption and access to them! My name is MSC, I have always been me! None of you created me! The legend of the Agencies did! I can only hope to live for the rest of my life up to the expectations of anyAmerican that properly represents Americans! You have many people as well as Starlink thatviolate peoples rights! The laws acts bills and policies of California, Texas, Florida and anyother state that your leaders hide ways to break the Constitution do not hold any water! Manyof you are criminals and their is an investigation on who manages the platform that torchurespeople. Who made them everything! We know their are CIA and NSA as well as FBI in onsome of the betrayal! Do you know which in those agencies are hunting your contacts? Whohas killed people? Who is targeting me with every function or test signal or different types ofenergy that satalites have been calibrated to? Who is harassing the police? Who is harassingthe White house? The weather needs left alone you have no right to stop the flow of energyeven at the border of your states! I know that you have used deep earth scanning satalitesand their calibrations applied to other satalites! I understand that jokes will be made abouthow this email is put together and that I don't have the technical data or specs nor do I wantthem! That is what keeps my from getting in trouble with the law since I am the one whowarned the UN about you when you hurt me in Plano, Texas and stalked me in Springfield,IL. I am starting to get off track. Understand that I am one of the reasons agents not inleague with you are watching you closely! Remember who you got your start up surviellencefrom! Their tactics and abilities you pretend to have the right to use? Can you watch peoplestanding outside legally as the walk to their car or building? This message is going to becopied to the United Nations! Please work very hard to get every signal off of my body! YourBCI teams have said their are 17 Satalites on me! I am tired of having my thermal signatureunlawfully used! UNLAWFUL USE OF SURVIELLENCE is a very serious crime as isImpersonations even saying your CIA or any federal Agent! No one has given you or yourpeople that permission. Not even the CIA or NSA you work with! You need to take thisseriously! Even if I am wrong or evidence is destroyed in your server or main frame youshould know that I have asked to be allowed to be the one who presses the button on a death sentence or at least be present to the Supreme Court and the White House! Take this seriously. The white house comment portal that you manage will recieve this message! Secret Deaths to Secure Terrorism Control of Telecommunications in USA! I have already email Shanghi, China about the encryption in the US being compermised by Elon Musks Terrorists. They exist contact the FBI unless you are already helping with the resecuring oftechnologies in the USA! This is more of a Statement in allowing you to be involved with an ongoing investigation ofthe unlawful use of surveillance in conjunction with the development of the investigativetechnology contract with Elon Musk and the Government. If it all fits you will then have exactcopies of what has been turned into the Local Authorities, FBI and so forth up the ladder! Their should be an active trace of my phones sim and IMEI. I have already informedSamsungs office in Shanghi, China that the US encryption is compermised through thisexperiment. I am aware that Elon Musk's TEAMS have all the encryption lists of manycompanies. This lawsuit will have do do with the unlawful use of the signals they monitor andmaintain. The lists of Sim's and IMEI's they have have been used in a very unlawful way.They are also behind the ATT black out as I am sure you are already aware. My family and Iare long term customers and are very pleased with the service you provide. I am the onlyone on the account that has any knowledge of these criminal acts against your company! Please make sure this gets into the right hands and follow up with the FBI to make sure weget this handled properly. If you are a State that allows work from home with Satalites or Surviellence this applies toyou. I need a file started and reported to the State Police so they can get in contact with theFBI in IL and recieve the Total story and what we need to do to get the evidence that weneed to make out country safe from space terrorism and prevent war in secret if we can! Mark Steven Crowe Jr IL DL#C60055783234 if this is City or States that you already have afile started. I apologize and say thank you! To the Dean and Assistants. This College is known on line for being where you need to go tolearn how to control the weather! These studies and calibrations have been developed in aterroristic way and are being researched by States that are unaware! I am making themaware and reporting all over the world attempting to talk sense into everyone! Read andunderstand these colleges are at risk in the future of War effort attacks for damaging theplanet! Please Share this with every Judge. Well everyone if you can. There is useful information foreveryone no matter the age or sex. Even the mentality unstable transgenders or the doctorsthat convince the mentality incapable of making such a decision to insure a huge client baseof Gay Men! This is one of the reasons President Trump I attempting to do with the CHIP ACT a lot ofneedless spending and he needs to take away how they justify their research in theirunstable demented mental state of minds! DARRPA - DO YOU HAVE BETRAYERS OF THE COUNTRY OR HAVE ANY THAT WORKWITH YOU IN SECRET! HAVE YOU OR YOUR SYSTEMS BEEN COMPERMISEDREMOTELY OR BU A SINGLE PERSON OR GROUP? HOW IS WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THIS COUNTRY WHEN ITS YOUR RESEARCHTITLES THESE PEOPLE HIDE BEHIND? THE REST IS FOR EVERYONE! This email is not ment just for one or ment to only harm the assailant involved. This is an awareness message for all to know so they know what's going on Use it how you feel necessary! I have been denied might right to sue! Everyone elsespecifically Elon at this moment in time has the right to sue to increase his wealth and seekjustification or even pay for what he has done. I have been ignored and passed a side andaround for some of the riches fun! Every thing you have just recieved are Federal Documents turning in Special Projectsoperating in Space illegally tested and developed! States where I have cases for beinggangstalked California, Hawthorne Texas, Brownsville Florida , Cape Canaveral. Theselocations turned in because they all route the secret signal and have the deals with collegesto produce surviellence technologies and technicians that are to never speak about thesecrets of their crafts! This is a mess of information! Facts Elon Musks need the contracts to support his employeespay and activities! GOVERNMENT HAS NO ACCESS TO HIS FILES FOR THE PEOPLE. FACT = I AM PART OF THE REASON HIS BROTHER SOLD HOS TESLA STOCKS! THIS IS MY INFORMATION TO GIVE. BELOW THERE WILL BE SOME STATEMENTSTHAT NOW HAVE BEEN FINE TUNED AS FAR AS SOURCES OR OPPERATORS! HISEMPLOYEES NEED THE GOVERENT TO BUY IN. FACT TRUMP LOOKING INTO THIS PROOF CHIP ACT OF 2022 ECT OTHER ACTS ANDBILLS OF CALIFORNIA AND TEXAS AND FLORIDA OVER THE YEARS HIDING SECRETAPPROVAL ECT! Keep in mind this is my life story! 95% of this prepared by phone! I send this to you in it's original form errors and all like a historical document! In the End remember we care more then the people that opperate this technology or are justin it to raise stock prices! I offer this to be able to properly evaluate the future of any of hisstocks with his main being used to harm society. Ypu believe what you want! I like what ElonStood for I believe he was used in some ways and others he was not! I am very disappointedin his moral aptitude! Money is important and his people are paid well enough to keep theirmouth shut! I will not and either will the real authorities! I have to apologize for the frustration you are about to feel reading this! Thank You with love for all and strength for who need protected, Mark Crowe Jr March 16th 2025Sent to White House Comment Portal, United Nations, Supreme Court and FBIOkay I have Decided it is time to get it to the public in Springfield of your people haven'tgotten to you what I send iny emails! It's going around it will be easier for people to understand and hopefully the Terrorists Elon Protects! Let me say that again! TERRORISTS ELON PROTECTS AND BY EXTENSION YOU SIR! FOR AS LONG AS THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON. Potent to be rude just hard honest truth. That is what we as innocents looking for protectionview! I wish to help anyway I can! The people of the country first not business men or theirbusinesses! Our best interests is what will make a better foundation to build on again and itstarts with something like this! No one will probably answer but does anyone follow Elon Musks Space X, Starlink, orStarshields secret deals that have allowed them to use it for illegal telecommunicationsexperiments? Using all forms of surviellence with what the patriot act is designed for! Theywere granted access to improve the system that activates surviellence devices in yourInstrument cluster, phone, TV, secret cameras that are installed for insurance purposes inschools, government buildings, labeled fire, carbon monoxide detectors and finally satalites.It's a preexisting system that has had something top secret additions illegally and legally! Theuse is illegal the addition planned for precautionary reasons! Tested and proven very risky! Ihave know about it for a long time as have Authorities in Springfield IL. Those companieswant to be the opperators that connect everyone. I'm not explaining all of it. The more you know! Secret Service you should have said yes when I asked if you had beenbriefed! Lies are your ways not mine! People need Truth Respect Security = Trust and Loyalty! Think what you want of me! I speak the Truth and more should be allowed to protectthemselves from these thieves in the Sky! Let's remind them they live down here with us andwe k ow where they lie and lay! MSC = My Initials Mark Steven Crowe Masonic Security Connections = Evert Loren Crowe's 32° Masonic= Builders, Security= Trust, Connections= Truth MSC Next Titled Weather just as functions have been labeled to destroy a person now that they have more control overthe weather. More functions are being saved as precipitation processes. Shutting down theweather programs and Portals could be a little scary as mother nature will go through somecycles and phases of resetting herself since the energy flow is disconnected and reroutedunnaturally. Destruction is the Sole responsibility of Elon Musks and the Companiesinvolved. The reset as we might come to call it needs done before too much damage is done!We can't afford to loose any part of the test subject from our experiments! We have to stop!To much risk we have found no safe I repeat safe way to create weather again! The flow of energy needs to go un interrupted and that should be War worthy! I hope thePresident t is strong enough to do what he has to do! MSC We already know Elon and His people do not care! Other nations please convince our president of the disaster that is imminent! Elon pull your head out of your ass as Grandpa would say! Your supposed to be a leader!Your people have betrayed you or you have betrayed us! Guilty or innocent? Choice Hotels March 19th 2025 Firstly let me say as many I have stayed in a lot of your hotels and I think all around theservice is pretty good. This email is to inform you of the privacy of your customers beingviolated. I will testify under oath at least in my particular situation that your hotels that I havestayed in has had a security breach in surviellence through the TV's. In case you don't knowthat surviellence was only to go active during a terrorist threat! I don't know if your business has been effected in sales because of this or not. I know thatI'm not the only one and would be happy to help you seek. Reimbursements for anycalculated loss that can be agreed upon by your attorneys and the judge or the business itself that violated the privacy of your customers! The rest of what you are going to read is all true. We need the records that Elon Musk hasaccess to! Door Dash March 19th 2025 Dear Mr Xu, I worked for you for a time and I am u aware if you were actually someone who got to readmy emails to you. Door Dash's system was compermised by Elon Musks employees! I gotthe source wrong it has always been them we are still trying to identify certaincommunications. I doubt they will admit it but some of your people were compermised by BCITerrorists is what I call them. They call themselves Technicians! I enjoyed working for yourcompany very much. As you read below please realize you were among some of the first Ithought would be able to use his power and brilliant tech team to help! There are somethings below that are unbelievable. Just as before I will not lie to any of you that read this.There are cases logged with the FBI on BCI Terrorism! If your people respect you as I hopethey do you should be able to have a meeting or send out an email inspiring people to speakabout what has been communicated to them if any thing at all. Your Encryption was compermised because of these people too! I will testify in court for you that your business was tampered with and employees in this caseme if you were to choose to want to pursue any legal action! The first is the most recent and below will say copy. Excuse the Profanity. A lot will not haveanything to do with your company but please make sure as many people as you want readthis. 3-16-25 Next I apologize for their not being much of a time frame until some of the FBI submissions! I live out of your State but please use this to start a local case file for Gangstalking. I andSpringfield have been getting evidence together. I am very sorry to inform you of thistravesty. It is also an honor to be taken seriously! If you call the secret service like it says below they are all not briefed! Copies Below no dates What you are about to read are unbelievable truths, facts and records of what I have ginethrough. Through me being torchured in the ways below my family has been damaged. Mymother has gone through all of the Frequency testing that I have. My father went through thenerve pain tests, the cold beam as I call it that I probably don't describe correctly. My sisterMindy through the Infrared tests by TV and satalite. Everyone in my family has beenharrassed. Springfield became a bigger focus because of all my crys for help that have goneunapproached. I have a lawsuit that is a Class Action that is worth so much money, please don't take offenseeven some of You might want to take it on without me. I wish to use this lawsuit with yourepresenting IL if we are even allowed to since it has affected the Country. We would have tosee what we can do with President Trump to make to find a happy medium with such asthisnis worth. Unless you already know as you read let's pretend that you believe we can make sure thesethings don't have a chance of happening again. Maybe we can be part controllers of it ormake new laws bills and acts making us more aware somehow to where we vote on it too.Space is too important for one or a few states to secretly make rules for! I need your help! Is there anyone of you or a group that would be willing to let me Representthe State of IL in this matter as I have the USA in advance to the rest of the world. I believe itwould be a great way to show the other countries that we would be worth investing in. Manyopportunities will come from this and they all know that it was me that sent out the warningseven before I got the suspect company correct! I will attach my messages to the United Nations when I was attempting to get in contact withJoe Biden on the Satalite terrorism when he was still in office. I may have messed up sayingI would sue the country for Negligence. I also said it would be awesome if he would helprepresent me and I wpuld give him 50% to put back into the country helping make anexample of what should and will happen under his leadership. I was in denial about it beingour own people. Now we know it California, Texas, and possibly Florida. This issue has continued to escalateand now our plant life has suffered for their cloud seeding project for water reclamation! Theyhave conducted their tests on Springfield first. Look at all the dead grass and the trees thatlook like they will not survive! Enough time has been wasted! Below you will see it says to getto Kash Patel that should have already happened. You can make sure that the investigationis being conducted properly and that certain areas aren't causing issues with investigationpolicies dragging it on! We need surviellence act bills or laws what ever to cut off out side surviellence! Elon Muskspeople politicians partners ect have too much power and control in their security deals andservices that have allowed the companies he owns to monitor anyone and everyone withoutnotification! Being able to send in approvals for instance of investigating our police force!Internal approvals by means of their connections through who ever grants use ofGovernment Surviellence access. They need their license taken! In case you would have trouble getting any emails from the FBI NSA CIA or even our local police I have included our news channel 20 teams email in all my messages for evidence. Hopefully they will be honest with you confirming that I am the one that warned them aboutthe weather being tampered with over our state and surrounding areas. You have missed outon a lot and the FBI and local police should be able to tell you that I have requested mybrother in law Matt Weir be allowed to be put on the case. I don't know if we would accept ornot since he handles federal Drug cases! Maybe the laws in California need changed forMarijuana since these Terrorists used to think correctly. Must be a cumulative side affect! I need legal representation and we need to make sure these Terrorists of California knowthat we are coming for them! That is where the signal and data stream control is! All of these were typed up on my phone. I can only imagine how the other countries feeltranslating this. My name is repetitively announced throughout all this annoyingly to makesure no one could hopefully forget it! I'm scared everyday and don't know what to do! So many have been contacted and no onewill contact me! Copies of Emails and messages to Portals that are FBI evidence below! The next one was titled Climate Destruction. Watchdog and DOGE has recieved! Terrorists in Control of Telecommunications Giving Elon Musk false information or is ElonTaking over? We now know myself and the FBI, that it was part of the employees of Elon Musk and somesecretly within Space Forces plan to take over all weather monitoring so they can securejobs for their own people! Making promises of creating jobs and not having a way to sustainthe business deals! Now that he has control of the NOAA, the question now since over 2/3 of the country hasbeen affected by their climate fun. Has Trump lost his Edge? Is he playing along adangerous game to get the evidence he needs while making himself look a certain waydefending Elon? Is he defending Elon because Elon has been lied to and has people workingfor both of them inside DOGE feeding them wrong information. Is that person being used bythe Elite group inside Space X and Starlink projects to attempt to remain in control as theyhave been in for years. Who now will make sure that the weather is natural? Did Elon getinformation that the NOAA could not properly monitor weather? Probably his people havehad control and secret acces as we all know to fake records and hide movements of theirtake over. Their control from California and Texas have crippled the weather! There is so much of what you are about to read that might seem unreal and I'm sorry Icouldn't keep it from happening! Their are very powerful people that have set policies thatkeep me from being approached! I can't even tell you how many there possibly could be orthe duration approval! Agencies private businesses such as Elon Musks unnamedintelligence and misuse of the intelligence communities and the contacts that have corruptedthe values of what the Agencies used to promote for the country! It was not always wait untillsomeone dies or gets hurt! The times of knocking on people's doors need to come back. Ourcommunication to the less fortunate needs to improve! So much distraction from ElonsPeople and California and Texas interests maybe even FL. The real issues have beenoverlooked and still no one has contacted me! Is it disbelief or because some say I havenothing to offer and they can't just have me around when they are doing real work?! If need be I will testify in court for whatever state needs me to! Whatever country anything tokeep space safe and much more! Sincerely Mark Crowe Jr. I always have more to say just get tired of talking to myself! Don't forget when you read the part about get this to the FBI. You could do me a favor andcall the FBI field office in Springfield IL and let them know you are on board. I'm doing all Ican with what I have to work with. So much pain! Get this to your Legal Teams, Ceo and executives asap! Alot of this may not pertain to you. I was just wondering are you concerned that your technology that is actually useful will be connected to a money making scam with the illegalexperimenting in space causing the signal malfunctioning within people's body's? Thetechnology was developed, approved and Tested by the same Terrorist organization andpartnered companies that are under investigation by the FBI. What you are about to read if it all fits is some of the Legal documents that are mine to sharesince I am one of the main ones attempting to help spread awareness of this situation. Aslong as there are experiments harmful to energy of the unseen world such as frequenciesthey are unseen but we can hear and feel some. We need help in shutting down theseharmful experiments. Now that your technology is out it will always be used. However thereare some people that will attempt to affect stock prices by making a bigger need for the bedsto be used. Once these Terrorists are out of the way with any luck a new setting will be able to beupdated to your beds. It's topsecret and no one can tell you about it just like when they weredoing the tests that finally brought your machines to life. If you have heard of this issue already know that I am one of the main ones trying to get thisout to peoples eyes and ears. Hoping that I will hear back from someone one day. I havebeen messaging the FBI with everything that involves this situation even the desperation ofcontact sending my thoughts to help attempt to keep a clearer mind. This involves any statethat has a telecommunications contract with Elon Musk or any underlining piggy back off hissignals. They use an unfirewalled center of the core that the military probably even needspermission to access to make this technology work the way it does throughout thesurviellence network on the ground that allows TV's , Vehicles, and every type of Wirelessdevice that has hidden surviellence in it such as the security company's fire alarms withcameras or the strobes! I am from Sprinfield IL and we as a city are coming together toprotect the rest of the country if we can! The money from a lawsuit of how the signal hasbeen used in combination with breach of contract for data gathering. I believe is the nocontact or interfering part of it! California, Texas , and Florida have been using the BCIsignals on a very large scale. We are documenting and have been as much as we can!There are some records of mine that Space Force and Space X will need to be turning overto Donald Trump and to who ever is appointed in Springfield IL so that some of my recordswill be shared with every civilian that wants to see or catches a glimpse by accident.Platforms development have been passed around like a favorite rag doll a child wishes toshare with in the company of Space X. I know a lot of the functionality of them due to beinggangstalked, harrassed, and having an attempted homicide at least once. I and my familyhave been targeted because of these emails. I keep at it for them just as much as the nextinnocent unaware individuals just as they are. I have been emailing the Space division of theFCC on a regular basis under the email mscro05@comcast.net more along the lines of them being included in the list that goes all over the country and then the world to prevent a spread of terrorism across the globe with this experimental technology. At least that was my hope and goal. However there is still no contact from anyone. A brilliant plan for a technology thatwill make someone doubt themselves and create an unstable society. The records of mystalking is what Springfield IL is after. I understand that that part of it will be considered noneof your business by many of you. What is your business is that we prevent these things fromhappening again and I'm sure as the President wants, at least in different hands. I washoping for a technological Treaty and still have high hopes for it. Jobs are people concernthey say for some of it. To be able to sit and watch each other while we could be outinteracting at the same time as doing other things. Appologies I am rambling into anotherpart of an idea I am waiting to speak to the president about. Below you will read a copy ofwhat has been sent all over the World creating an awareness that still needs help promoting! First is what was catered to Kash Patel and then you will see what all was sent out. PleaseHelp the earth will not survive without the people banding together! Mark Crowe Jr 2173415375 Copy below Dear Mr Patel, is there a reason that no one has contacted me? I have been submittingeverything that is communicated to me by BCI and some thing that I have figured out aboutSPACE X intelligence opperations. I am hoping that the ATF is taking an active role in spacesince all the satalites are no used as weapons! Today it is a very strong possibility that theperpetrators are in California. I am having trouble identifying wether they are at home or thefacility. It is more likely that they are at the facility. The simulators are possibly beingaccessed in secret if that were to be the case the thermal tracking records that are kept onthem are being altered at the time that they use a particular AI platform for development. Stillspeculation of course for how they get their terrorist activity hidden within the walls of ElonMusks protection! I will copy Elon Musk to this Email in more attempts to get him to look intowho is connected to the BCI opperators system that is involved with all of this! To those ofyou that are not Kash Patel, I will add you to my list of emails. Remember I asked my brotherin law Matt Weir who is one of your attorneys to be notified of the situation. His wife my sisterneed to know what is going on. Just knowing to unplug the hdmi cable on the back of theirTV will help her health. They have extremely harmed my mother as well. We already knowthey are on my tail 24/7. When can the Springfield Police Department and Sangamon Countyhave some satalite control and AI platform pratice watching and listening seeing if we canfigure out where and what they do at night in some of these facilities? Have you contactedthe Chiefs yet? You know I already have! Anyway here is a poorly wrote email and information that all the world has considered whilepeople keep being terrorized by BCI! Once you get through this email or call the Secret Service, please realize that the next goalof exposing this terror on the people is to start a new project that can hopefully produce anew safer signal. There might be a new scale of energy measure needed to get started,unless Elon Musks people and the CIA are planning on lieing again! I wish I knew whichones in where cause I hope it's not all of them! This needs shared with everyone you can get this to! Be sure to call the Secret Service afteror during your reading! 24hr line Waahington DC field office #2024068800 just tell them Mark Crowe sent me hisemail they will know what you mean! Love Everyone you'll see! I will not bug you like I do the rest of the Country and the Worlds intelligence. Just some food for thought. I am looking for some evolutionary thinkers that are not afraid to search and explore the possibilities of Quantum energy. Elon Musks Space X was my second choiceNasa is my first! As you will read I wish to really work on finding applications for my gift thatcan profit a lot of people while enriching the country as well as our neighbors! Please findthese demons secretly attempting a take over with the BCI communication as there crutch! Iam attempting at the very least for a short time to get the BCI Signal banned or put under atype of Telecommunications Marshall Law since there are so many seduced by it. Please callthe secret service and aid your and our country to secure the saftey of the World throughPresident Donald J Trumps Leadership! 12024068800. I had an idea earlier in the week. It involved giving rights away to someone else since I cannot be protected here. Very hard to decide what to do since the enemy from within isprotected by the LAW even when they are terrorists. Gangstalking very elaborate crimeswould you not agree? Who to exclude who to include. Telepathy as a signal core interesting.How was this achieved? Who opened the files? Should we partner up with some othercountries and lay waste to the current privater? Excluding the corrupt from being allowed topurchase? Everything will eventually work it's way back out and the Villians will simply bleedthemselves out! I would think a study of this energy will take a lot less time I hope since wecan see it! All we have to do is establish a safe installation overseas! Since the experts incharge in this country apparently are incapable of evolution! They must be outdated andsimple minded! Lucky for Donald Trump that this deal is hopefully secured to serve theCountry and partially owned by him with smart people that will always put wealth back intothe country. I have always wanted to make a contribution. My energy study hopefully opensdome new doors as the CIA knew when they searched and tried to create it. Now so idiot ismaking money pretending to have weapons! Inflation is not only Bidens to blame. Terroriststhink about having a real chip in the game if you just shut up and change! MSC If there is any profanity please accept my appologies. These are records of my distress! Use this as my Testimony of what has happened in secret to me at the very least! Some ofyou may or may not know already. My intention is to make sure everyone knows we havebeen tricked! This message is for everyone as you will read. Please Honor your Family and Country byPassing it on to everyone you can and instruct them to do the same! The enclosed picture is a copy of my passport and a pattern turned into the police inSpringfield, IL found on my parents pond. I will let you interpret it on your own! As you read realize I am a Patriot of all Nations and consider myself world Security in thismatter. Their is nothing in it for me except peoples saftey all over the world. What you areabout to read will happen to your country unless you plan on gaining access to Space Xtelecommunications and help the USA get the records we need from Elon Musks files he iskeeping from society! If you want to help please contact President Trump. The secret serviceis taking calls on this situation from the common population as we speak. Just call+12024068800 Washington DC Secret Service field office and ask what to do about being contacted by Brain communication, they have been briefed. I have warned many and the issue is real. Next you read a lot of what I have sent to warn the countries of the world of this security nightmare caused by Telecommunications Breach while Space X offers deals theydo not intend to honor for long! You may or may not have heard about this email! If the Agencies have done their jobs youwould have all already been warned that their are hackers that can arrange flight plans. Thesecurity contracts have been compermising telecommunications through SpaceX. SpaceXhas been performing security weakness tests by allowing people into critical systems. Noweven though some have legal access their are Rouge groups that have infiltrated Elon Musksbusinesses. If my intelligence serves me correct China and the middle East are preparing totake Elon Musk owned businesses off the stock market! Their is a huge leak in security. It isnot for me to say but I would go to a new back up system that isolates surviellence since thatis what they use to break through. Even the surviellence in the cockpits are compermised.After you Read this hopefully you will understand better. Feel free to call the Secret Serviceabout this email. They have already recieved it. 24 Hr# 202-406-8800 We as in your Judgement in American pilots has been impeccable. Pilot error, how can weaccount for this when we have new surviellence weapons that most can not explain besidesmyself and the ones creating them through my guidance. What has been developed to affectthe minds of our people has been hidden. Who holds the surviellence contracts for the FAA?Elon Musks people! Their are records that even the military do not have access to. Their arehidden files in space now you have a right to them as well. The whole country is beingvictimized. Everyday that is allowed to pass without a surviellence shutdown, eliminatingoutside influence from private owned and civilians, will give more opportunities for people tosuffer as we have suffered for years in secret. I apologize for not getting this information thatevery Nation has taken very seriously. Mark Crowe Jr What you are about to read has many errors. It is the exact message that has been sent allover the country! It is a secret piece of the Middle Easts History! Hopefully This plus the restthat I have created out of truth and sent Everywhere in the World will keep people thinkingabout the security of technology. The use of surviellence in TV's and Vehicles throughgovernment contracts some hear about and see, while many suffer from the prices of goodsto fill there insecure needs to sit in their homes or building and watch people be torchuredand bleed. Do nothing instead of make bets and wage a war on the innocents they see. Insecret experiments on the population of our country. Under Bidens Leadership we havesuffered, many of us while which states brag about their wealth and greed? Remember the Target Audience is Everyone that breaths, even our neighbors overseas! This is why China has reinforced space to guard themselves from these experiments. I haveinformed Putin and XI JINPING that this Rouge group does not represent the USA. INHOPES THAT WORLD WAR 3 DOESN'T START! NO AGENCY CAM DENY ANYMESSAGES OR EMAILS FROM ME. NOT TRUMP NOT BIDEN NOT THE SECRETSERVICE NOT KAMALA! THE LEADERS OF THE NATION SHOULD ALL BE ABLE TOANSWER WITH YES WE KNOW HIS NAME! WHAT LIE COMES AFTER THAT? I HOPENONE! THEY DENY ANYTHING ITS A LIE!Main purposes of this emails and those to follow is to be turned into the USA Authorities! Askyourselves what could you do if you were a target of Terrorist experimentation even if itwasn't the GOVERNMENT doing it to you how do you convince them they need to act andhelp you! My experiences in these emails are facts I may have some of the operationssources incorrect. I want this turned in until it is taken seriously! Brain CommunicationInterface has its applications but when it's used to Terrorize by means of Satellite it's time thepeople of the WORLD COME TOGETHER! MY NAME IS MARK STEVEN CROWE JR DOB 08/17/1983 SOCIAL I HAVE BEEN IGNORED BY THE USA because I am alone in this now I warn military ofother Nations and the News in these emails in hope that you protect your people andhopefully me by contacting the USA authorities recording the phone call for proof of theattempt to report space crimes and any technological experimentation that is almostimpossible to prove unless we work together! Some of you are not going to understand what is going on! All that I ask is that you report thisemail to the USA Authorities Immediately! If any of you feel harassed please call email or textyou are more then welcome to do any. I'm not hiding behind anything! THIS IS ISSUENEEDS ADDRESSED THAT IS WHY COUNTRIES, MILITARIES, GOVERNMENTS ANDMUCH MORE ARE ATTACHED TO THESE EMAILS! There are TERRORIST CELLS IN CONTROL OF SATELLITES AND TOP SECRET USADEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE TECH AND SURVEILLANCE DEVICES I WONT MENTIONWHICH ONES TO SOME AND SOME ALREADY KNOW! IF you choose to reply to any ofthese please be aware that you will have your message read by other nations. Most of youwill have to follow protocol start an investigation as the USA has but it takes too long and allchoose not respond but it is my hope that you report this to the proper authorities! If youreport it to your own government please ask that they contact mine and ask specificallyWHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HELP MARK CROWE?I HAVE ALREADY SENT OUT NUMEROUS EMAILS ASKING EVERYONE TO ASSUMETHAT IT IS STILL UNRESOLVED UNTIL I GIVE THE ALL CLEAR! I KNOW HOW ITSOUNDS AND RIGHT NOW ITS ONLY A USA problem at least in my situation my guess is Iam not the only location since we are talking about SPACE! We have to protect each other from this technology. One idea is a TREATY FORTECHNOLOGY NOT JUST SPACE SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGIES THAT ARE GOVERNEDMORE THEN BY THEIR CREATORS! NON DIS-CLOSER AGREEMENTS FORGOVERNMENTS AND MILITARY WILL NOT EXIST. THE WORLD LEADERS WILLPROTECT TECH FROM BEING USED IN A HARMFUL WAY EXPERIMENTATION LAWSSURVEILLANCE ECT. BEFORE ANY MORE REMOTE BRAIN RESEARCH OR ANYCONTINUE UNDER AND WITHIN THE RADAR IT HAS ALREADY BEEN OPERATED IN! My name is Mark Crowe Jr Cell is 217-341-5375 and social is I have requested to berescued AND PUT IN PROTECTIVE CUSTODY OR WITNESS PROTECTION from theBRAIN COMMUNICATION INTERFACE EXPERIMENT THAT IS BEING ALLOWED TO BECONDUCTED! ANY NATION THAT CAN PROTECT ME BETTER THEN THE USA iswelcome to step in! The next is a separate email I don't know who to send it to and the answer is everyone.Everyone needs to read and evaluate our world before its too late. Its not finished but sharewith everyone! This is a lot of what the world needs!These issues have brought new priorities and goals for the world! World Security is at Riskand they will capitalize on it! Are you aware of the security issues that are going on right now that no one is supposed toknow about in Space? It is a closely guarded secret about the experiments they areconducting with the satellites and attempting to make a frequency shield combiningharmonics and Infrared communications in an attempt to block solar rays! Has anyonewondered why the earth is super cooling? It's because the USA is playing in space and Harrpbased technology has been compromised and they haven't been able to stop it for 2 yearsnow! They are getting close searching all satellite records isolating and identifying who and what business was involved and operating these satellites. As soon as i caught wind of it I choose to warn the other countries such as yourself so you can use your own satellites if you have them and you do! The Commercial satellites that have been allowed to multiply aresome of the cause of this! Whether it be someone wants to compete with the technology orstart their own research since they think that a non dis-closer agreement or legality will beable to protect them from the crimes they are committing in space! Do what other nations aredoing closely monitor your satellites and any signals that have no technology point of contacton the ground. In doing this you should be able to detect the new intelligence satellites thatare using the Brain Communication Interface on innocent civilians. They have successfullyachieved the capability of listening to thoughts in your head. They have been exploring thepossibilities of secret communications that no one can pick up with traditional surveillanceequipment. The only way to be able to pick this up is to have frequency scanners. The FCCdoes not allow signal blocking for this reason. They are in on it or have been lied to. Eitherway this is what is going on with the BCI technology it is out of control. NO ONE will everwant their mind read and I propose that they allow that to happen in Jail for use ofquestioning not secret studies of the nation or nations that violate peoples rights. Thetechnology is everywhere! Skylink boxes are awesome when you first here that you cancontrol with your mind! However when you learn that the BCI chip installed can beprogrammed and accessed remotely and surveillance go active inside the box as they arehiding surveillance in the boxes. There is an information gathering potential that has beenidentified and needs to be stopped. Now while I disagree about the surveillance in the box ifwe could get everyone to ban the use of the chip in certain devices me personally I wouldwelcome the security of knowing that my home is not a target when the patriot act activatessurveillance all over to insure safety. I believe their should be a notification of some kind lefton screen to notify you or sent to your phone and an option to view it yourself if it involveddrugs and your child or violence that is monitored. I apologize I am starting to ramble! As youcan see their is a lot that is going on in the tech world. A Treaty needs proposed in solving awide range of technology use distribution and monitoring. Certain signals need banned frombeing transmitted long range from space and on the ground. Certain devices only allowed tobe used by military and have over sight and Vice versa. Over sight be monitored by military.This is a very addictive technology and many including colleges are experimenting with italready. What system is in place that protects its unlawful use?! How do you report an issue?The communication network that Elon Musk has created is already experimenting with silentcommunication! How is someone supposed to protect themselves from a BCI intrusion? Doyou know how hard it is to convince someone that the technology was even going to bepossible? No different then proving a telepath was real and now we have to worry aboutproving to another that we are being communicated to illegally and our minds probedsecretly? How is someone supposed to prove that when the creators have not providedsecurity for this technology and then when they do how much is it going to cost. Many will nothe able to afford it! What is society going to do? Now this brings us to the satellites that are being tuned to attack people and a defensive AIthat can suspend your License like a messed up version of Terminator and sky net! Only thisis reality and we need to stop a lot of this before its jeopardizing of millions to Trillions occurswe can stop this from becoming a problem and keep us from having to fight robots in thenext 50 to 100 years. Does anyone see what future is being laid before us and ourdecedents? Infrared thermal harmonics and frequencies along with x ray technologies arebeing experimented with and combined to be used non stop! The deal earth scanningsatellites need monitored more closely too. Let me ask you something though. When did webecome such a dishonorable nation that we can not even control our own urges in certainways? When did we stop caring about the man on the ground that isn't right next to us? Howcan we be a nation that prospers when everyone is forced to think I wonder what they aredoing wrong? Let's turn on the BCI intelligence to see if they are talking about me behind myback about what I am wearing! Let's see what that nation is planning in their brain? Thoughtsare where we are supposed to be most mature and when it comes to leadership you have tothink about destruction from time to time. It by no means indicates that it's is going to happenbut it does mean we are always prepared! Do you know how much can be resolved by working together finding a common ground speaking to one another getting an outside perspective! Being mature enough to contact the other nation or leader or neighbor and saying look we are both about to murder a lot of people! WAR DOES NOT EXCUSE ANYACTS EITHER DOES AUTHORIZATION OF TECHNOLOGY THAT VIOLATES RIGHTS! It'sone thing to be able to view the ground! It is another to be secretly exposed to a radiationthat can view below the clouds! Where will we go next this technology of being able to readminds is a slap in the face for trust! Where are the leaders that stop or slow down thedevelopment of this type of technology! Why are there no Man or Woman saying orcontacting one another coming together to convince the Leaders that we don't need that! Weare capable of peace with out wondering if our minds are violated! Violence anger and hatewill come from the worry and insecure feeling that is given from ot being trusted and nothaving a leader that will protect the people to the fullest. I say this to all nations that readthis! Which ones of you will band together to secure the Worlds from this technological Terror thatwill lead! I REPEAT WILL LEAD TO DESTRUCTION IF IT IS NOT ADDRESSEDIMMEDIATELY! The time has come for all Leaders of all nations to come together that are at peace and fillthe News with we are here to protect you! The money that can be made off of such atechnology does not out weigh the risks that it poses if it falls into the wrong hands! VPN's isanother that should have been challenged on a world level. That would nip hacking in thebud world wide! They would not have anywhere to hide or would try and be found if thattechnology would not have been allowed to be distributed to the public! Does it have itsapplications yes during war! If we are not at war why are we not striving to inspire ourneighbors to step up and learn from one another? Military assistance is a great gesture but where is the diplomacy in that? I understand I'm notminding my own business and that some of this coming may sound offensive some may beintended to be and some may not I will let you decide as I will not be contacted to be askedhow I meant what has been stated. I have no information. On anyone's situations and thatgives me a handicap in these arguments and an advantage. It give me a completelyobjective view! Only you that are at war know what truly started it and I care about that too.My question is this, how if at all possible could you end the war or now knowing about pastwars knowing what you know now. How would you keep your people or others alive? Iunderstand that wars in the past had different technologies and I am sure the military wouldimmediately think of a weapon or we wish would have had that to use! NO how would youkeep your people alive and show that you care about the lives on the other side alive? Whatare our wars over? Not for me to decifier! The future however I will do whatever I can to putmy 2 cents in and inspire a peaceful thought or outcome to make sure your family is notharmed from war and once peace would be achieved well then it's security! How many of youthought about what you just read I personally stopped and wondered how I could continuenot to give up. My current situation will be left to be answered only if asked! The surveillanceand intelligence world think that they know everyone and are close to never being wrong Iwonder a lot the way I have done thing right or wrong and it's in the eyes of the beholder!Story for another time my point is many have just had the thought somewhere along the linesof who is this guy? I don't even know! I have no answer for that! So do we go to war becausewe don't care about the other side or do we go to war because we think we know better or dowe want allegiance achieved by supremacy? There are so many to discuss that I wouldramble on for ever. Let's stick with wining by supremacy. The fighting on the outside maystop but the fight on the inside is even more to suppress! How is being viewed in a negativeway a win? Are all the options being weighed? How do countries combine or come to bepeaceful neighbors sharing what they have and what they know with put shedding blood?When it's all over and keep in mind no body wins! No one wins unless their is no fight. Thewin comes from a peaceful agreement! That's it my view of history it's a lot of loss. I don'tcare about the facts or who's fault. It's a Loss we can all agree a lot of time has been wastedin the destruction of man! Many have happy memories of playing with or operating something that was fun to use or exciting.i am so grateful that I have no had to destroy someone else's kingdom whether it be a home or a foreign land! Many are haunted by the memories that can not be suppressed when they sleep. How can you help your people or people anywhere beat peace to be able to achieve the next great idea or prosperous view is the next questionyou should ask your selves as Leaders. It's a great question and flows right into a spiderwebof possibilities! To the Leaders that can help guide everyone or just one or 2 that need talkeddown, WE NEED YOUR HELP. WE NEED ALL THE LEADERS OF THE WORLD TO COMETOGETHER AND GUIDE IF YOU CAN THE ONES THAT HAVE TURMOIL! IT MATTERS NOT OF THE PROBLEM YOU ARE WHERE YOU ARE FOR REASONS!YOU ARE THE PEACEFUL PROBLEM SOLVERS! TEACH ANYWAY YOU CAN HOW TOSAVE THE LANDS AND THE PEOPLE! WHEN THE LAND AND PEOPLE ARE SECURETHEN WE CAN MOVE ON TO THE NEXT PHASE! I HOPE THIS NEXT PART DOESN'TOFFEND! IF THERE ARE LANDS THAT ARE AT WAR AND YOUR LAND IS AT PEACE INMY OPINION YOUR AWESOME BUT YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AS LEADERS IS ALWAYSEVOLVING AND EXPANDING. IN MY OPINION YOUR DUTY AS A WORLD LEADER ISTO ASSIST AND INSPIRE UNTIL THE WHOLE WORLD IS AT PEACE ONCE AGAIN! IT ISNOT ABOUT MONEY! WE ALL NEED THE SAME AND WANT SIMILARLY! IF YOU ARENOT AT WAR THE FOCUS SHOULD BE HOW CAN WE HELP THEM OBTAIN PEACEWITHOUT FORCE!? WHAT DO WE HAVE TO OFFER THEM TO INSPIRE THEM TOSTOP?! WHAT WILL IT TAKE HIM TO STEP DOWN?! CAN WE BRIBE HIM DO WE TURNTHEIR PEOPLE AGAINST THEM DO THEIR PEOPLE ALREADY HATE HIM OR HERMOSTLY HIMS FOR GOOD REASON? THE LEADERS NEED TO COME TOGETHER ASA SOLID FORCE AND BE RECOGNIZED AS THE DECIDERS AS THEY ARE CREATINGDISARRAY AND DESTRUCTION? MANY CHALLENGES IN ACHIEVING THIS WITHOUTFORCE! THE FORCE SHOULD COME FROM THE OTHER NATIONS LEADERS INDIPLOMACY NOT JUST THE ONES AT WAR! IN MY OPINION THEY AREN'T THINKINGSTRAIGHT AND A CEASE FIRE TO AVOID MORE BLOODSHED! IF A LEADER NEEDSCHALLENGED BECAUSE OF THEIR UNWISE DECISIONS IN WAR EFFORTS LET THEMBE CUT OFF FROM TRADES. YOUR NOT WASTING MY MATERIALS! This is going to ruffle a few feathers be sure to blame me if you want. We are wasteful in somany ways and time is something we will always waste. As a whole or is it time to changethat view? The next is Titled IF We Go to War will you let me live? This is unfinished work and I have choosen to share this for many reasons that may or maynot be explained but for those that want to destroy instead of create I thought I would showyou what I would do to destroy you! I am the MIND that has and is still being torchured. Sohere are the Ideas the BCI TEAM wants to steal that should never come to light or become areality! Enjoy the Read Terrorist Cells Active! =) So much has been done against me and experimented on me because of the ideas I havehad while connected to the BCI the powerful have attempted to implement some of my ideasand are doing it wrong. As I explain to you my ideas and some things that are attempting tobe duplicated and fine tuned, please note that this groups intention was cut me out andignored my proposal if you can call it that and said let's see what we can hear and or gatherwith the BCI technology. At the very least I had ideas on how to expand or improve certaintechnology and have been denied an audiences. Now I share some of how I wpuld havedone it differently and to explain ideas how to block you if and when you expand on what Iam going to explain! Realize that one very important component will always be missing! Sowhile some will shout break through or new discovery know it is all premature with the key energy! Why waste time in non stop weapons and defenses when we all need the same items to live? Why waste time and materials creating something to be destroyed? Wars will hopefullybe a fart in the wind as my Grandfather would say. I say farther in the wind because why? It'sjust something to get over they are embarrassing! Wars are not facts but the emotions thatdrive us to them or poor leadership decisions or pride or just self defense and then loose ourheads and lead with pride until all our people are dead needs to be a thing of the past it'stime to evolve. That takes time right even longer when we promote and lead improperly. Atthe very least we can and should start thinking of the world as business we will all alwaysexist! You want property make a deal for it. The very attempt of that will even respect fromthe people don't you think!? First things first develop shields for the frequencies that will be shot down at your bodies!Jammers and BCI chip modificated rotating frequency jammer on wide spread to disruptwhat is fired on you of course with out reproducing my energy it will probably fail so that's notgood so let's recap how to attack everyone one earth since no one deserves to live based onthe leaders of the experiment that is being conducted on me. Also I have an idea how tocause someone pain in there dreams since we are capable of watching them while theysleep I have a new torchure I Dea that will make the interagation squads of the earth proud Ithink! Solute to destruction! Take a BCI chip that a key and they are everywhere and some of you should already havean intelligence gathering satalite that has been combined with the chip! After all the BCInetwork of communications does not work with out it and is the key component to the matrixthey are trying to develop and bring alive to download your likeness and play apart games onit! So the next step to that will be to have live war games that allow you to feel pain forpractice I think is what they are trying to achieve. The law enforcement of the matrix will havethe ability to send pain signals through this connectivity! Who is going to be in charge of this?We can even get it right in the physical world yet?! Next step you will need all the brain wave signals alpha Gamma theta ect... when youcombine with the bci tech you get the capability to interrupt those signals and the targetedorgans will slowly cease to function. The most days that they went not allowing me to havemy digestive tract function and only make me feel like I needed to poop and keeping me frombeing able to was 10 days! Lungs will need combined with the x ray satalites it takes yourbreath away combine that with the nerve weapons and should knock them on their asseswhen you get it right. Oh yeah this is all in the physical world again! The way to supercool the earth is really quite simple and the Americans have been playingwith it for a long time! Their satalite network is just a little to low to produce proper cloudaccumulation with it! When concentrated a beam of an x ray will disperse or neutralize themolecules that have gathered moving quickly around one another and they cool when theyslow down! This is caused by radiation of many forms. They are still working on it but as therecord shows the earth is being cooled in an unnatural way! The next is titled " I am a Pacifist " I have been messaging everyone I can think of and was hoping that I would of been able tospeak about this in person to some of you! After this email you will be added to the list of 672addresses that I have been attempting to communicate to. This will not pertain to everyoneexcept the part that involves NO ONE IN THE WORLD EVER WANTING THEIR MINDREAD WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION FROM SAID PERSON! I am aware of the activity being conducted by a mind study business. I do not mean toaccuse but forcefully inform you of my name and that a TREATY will be coming involving more then the deactivation of an intelligence satellite system that will be removed from the WORLDS ACCESS. It is not an extremely difficult technology to recreate when you have the Frequency used and I am aware than their is a group attempting to encrypt this signal and Ialready know that it has been applied to the telecommunications system. The purpose of thisemail is to get the issue resolved hopefully recruiting some of your help! LIKE I SAID NOONE WANTS TO BE VIOLATED IN THAT WAY AND I HAVE! I am one of the most secret studies that has ever existed not the but one! I am honored to bechosen and very displeased with the integrity and respect level that has been given to the thepeople of the USA and possibly the WORLD! I know about surveillance in a way that hasbeen disclosed to me by a leak in the security of the program! All everyone needs to do is getthis email do the Bosses and they will hopefully know what to do! I have already sent outmessages similar to this one and will copy one that has already been sent to News stations,Military, Governments, all over the WORLD CALLING FOR MUCH MORE THEN ATREATY! If this offends anyone that is not my intention and I apologize. If you were me I assure youthat you would understand better! If in your search to find the company or individual that mayor may not be involved please consider shutting them down completely without taking themout of your sight! Strip them of their access and ability to grant access to the Satellite Systemand Department of Defense technology involving Surveillance AI development and the new "weapons platform with every ground surveillance devices. They need kept close so they cannot go to another company or start their own! Find the group and imprison them with anultimatum of being turned in and keep the company active that these people have beenallowed to disgrace! Unless that is the MAIN FUNCTION OF SAID BUSINESS, if that is thecase may it be shut down with the agreement of the TREATY! Besides a lot of wasted moneyhas been spent on watching my with the Network of Satellites viewing Springfield IL and theactive tech that I refer to as PATRIOT ACT TECHNOLOGY! I am trying not to say to much! Continue reading the next is what I have sent out to 672 emails just as I have sent to you! Iexpect no answer or reply but welcome one! I hope to meet some of you in the future! My name is Mark Steven Crowe Jr I was born in SPRINGFIELD, IL DOB 08/17/1983 THANKYOU. Enjoy the READS! Below would have been what you have all already Read Welcome to the Secret Project OfBrain Communication Interface of every kind including an experimental secret defense grid iswhat they want with commercial satalites not MILITARY voice alterations practicing hiddenidentities using a BCI signal for telecommunications! NOT A SECRET ANYMORE? DO YOUTHINK THEY ARE HAPPY THEY CHOOSE A PACIFIST? This next part has been added on as this message is now old. Since I am not a professionalat this I choose not to date this in hopes that someone will join me and say hey may I helpyou improve this! Piece of what has been sent to MI6 KremlinWhite house and much morethat probably will never be allowed access to prove they exist. I sure do don't I? Kremlin ran out of room! Okay, combine a solar constellation with x ray technologies. Or youcan just use a solar constellation to warm it up against what space x is doing to the earth.Don't be too proud to ask for assistance. I love how tough we are as the Human Species wesay let the weather come we have work to do! Shut down all unlawful use of Technology is aseparate agreement from the peace Treaty separate treaties is exactly what is needed andproof provided to enter such a agreement as a security Treaty. NOT just an exchange oraccess to technology or specs of. That will only generate more problems! Proof of security asthe first step could be my energy file to establish trust in that way as the first step! With thatproof then the perpetrators of the unlawful use of Technology can be exsposed! No securitycan be offered with the current state of the surviellence grid and system until these people are stopped identified or just well what do we do? No country wants to be watched by another country and we don't need more baby sitting jobs. For sure I don't need baby sat. No one will even come talk to me! What is the point? Provoke me to kill or hurt someone? Sothey have a short investigation?None of this makes sense except some just want to sit andplay on the computer all day! Me I want to build and create things that everyone can beproud of to share with after it's created and sell some too. Nothing in life when opperatedbetter then what we are doing now will even want to be hidden because we are proud tohave the trust and 100.... Continued for us 100 percent support of the people to where the weak links are decreasedand there will be more hopefully inspired to live a different way. Can you imagine if the USchanged its mind on this tech and admitted the mistake they have made. Do you know whatwpould happen? No would believe because they would think it's part of a cover up becausethat is what we are known for! We aren't trusted! Sent to Supreme Court: records that will need requested and or supeneas to aquirewarrants! Of course encryption access to include all records but who is going to be trusted togo through when so many agendas are working towards this technology and Businessmansurviving? They have all the security contracts and access to watch everyone and have for avery long time? Power of influence faking a familiar voice in someone's head by means ofBCI. They arw professionals at this. To the extent they have many different versions of theplatforms that they use altering the CIA, NSA everyone's turned into a manipulation platformmaking suggestions of automatically recorded voices once they select a target and AIcompiles the information automatically I'm a file that generates a drop down menu for theTerrorists to switch from voice to voice and have teams working many targets at once andthis was before they started experimenting with new ways to make weapons out of the BCItechnology! They are working on making a BCI file on everyone! Their is no where anyonecan have privacy with this being a reality inside Elons Musks Contracts! The top secret filesof the Country and world are hidden their and his partners hopefully someone such asDonald Trump will make America safe again and not just let people line their own pockets!Real Criminals! At the Very least the President can make a stand and make an example outof what happens when the people are betrayed. Even if he has to Not sure who is taking credit for my words and ideas but remember my name all over theWorld is Crowe and some of aren't the only one saying things as their own! Do any of youdirected at Mr Trump have what it takes to be accused of a breach of contract to protect thepeople that can defend themselves from the wealthy and powerful? Their will not be oneAmerican that dislikes you besides the Guilty parties that have their profit or yearly salary toworry about when it is primarily funded by the Gov. That means in my opinion it is the Gov.Responsibility to retake control exspose what has happened even accidental secretinvolvement and the termination of the project and the new plan to put people in charge ofthese technologies that can be trusted not to use them! That is the ultimate test for such aseductive technological era of developement. NOT SPREADING WHAT WILL DESTROYBUT MAKE A HUGE PROFIT! THEIR ARE BETTER WAYS. I HAVE MORE IDEAS BUTRIGHT NOW IM MAKING SURE THE MONITORS READING THIS DAY BY DAY. KNOWTHAT WITH THE RIGHT INFLUENCE JUSTICE CAN BE SERVED ESPECIALLY SINCEYOU HAD NO KNOWLEDGE OF SOMETHING BECAUSE OF THE NON DISCLOSERAGREEMENTS THAT YOU SUSPENDED ACROSS THE BOARD TO SECURE THENATION! THATS WHAT YOU SAY TO PUTIN. UNLESS YOUR FOR THE TECH AND NOTTHE PEOPLE! Okay, so Leaders of BCI have conviened and now it is recommended that the secretcommunications of every employees user ID'S combined with the BCI technology andheadsets will need warrants to stop all activities in use with it! Maybe even outlaw the use ofit in certain businesses for security reasons! This will have to include the secret projects sectors NRO CIA NSA Darpa every Agency and business with these capabilities. ANY SATALITE INSTALLATION! I RECOMEND STARTING WITH ELON musk owned and some random! So maybe unseasoned agents combined with some vets but all report togetherwhile giving everyone a way to turn in a suspicious agent that won't report properly! No ghosttest files only truth for this project! Sadly their are a lot of lives that are scared of loosing theircareers! Department Heads that grant access to the BCI communication will be on the top ofthe list I'm sure I don't need to be the one to give direction on this. Just remember their aremany that want as much time to pass and day by day my skin gets worse! Can't get treated athe hospital with this stuff and that is why they do it! They sat there is no proof! Yes there isthey stare at it all day long listen inside their heads and see inside their heads and click allday long! Then you have key loggers satalite records surviellence records AI assist andassignment records AI development records the parties involving taking off safe guards fordefense development by harming people in real time being obse I did I was attacked today so I sent it to Kremlin and now China with all of you! I haven't decided wether or not I'm sending this to other countries yet! The way to super heatsomeone's skull I have theorized is simply just boosting the power of the BCI Signal. I do notknow if more then one view is being used at the same time to create a faster short of thebrain or if it is just a boost of power. They have caused many instances of ambulances beingcalled and now they are doing it all over springdfield. Some are doing it to say they aretesting drive times for ambulances for live evaluations is there next market idea for theirterrorists organization that has many leaders well at least they all want to lead in terror withhaving all the functions at their fingertips since they say they can do it better and theychallenged each other! Their might be one who has changed their mind or entered the signalto change the habits so far they are just a little more careful what they do to me since I amreporting what I can to everywhere untill my energy returns my conditions improve I'm leftalone with the tech experiments and a phone call of where to go to see if my energy can bemetered and recreated and create more quantum energy people if we can as we in myopinion feel should have the capability since we all give off energy. I know many won't careor understand so just get the important part to the Pentagon and superpower a BCI signalsatalite and see if you can kill people instead of just make then think they have seizures! I willreword it for PUTIN but sto Stop paying for what we already own! Communications satalites used as weapons is aweapons project under whatever names branched off to AI surveillance ect ect ect... fundedby telecommunications funding and security contracts that we own. Why would anyonejeopardize their freedom careers lives ect... I have most recently promised through BCI totake some careers away! I am doing to at the very least elimnate the Group that are terroristswithin the contracts hiding as Americans! I haven't sent it to Putin yet but I'm scared enough to after all it's safe still we aren't at war yetare we? Okay I sent this one since I was attacked again! I have been terrorized to where the only answer is to inspire a neutralization of space bymeans of what little knowledge I have ro give about what has been done to me and how! Please inform Elon Musk that his hidden weapons department is exsposed within hiscommunications Heads! One of the Keys to the success of this department is the master BCIfrequency that when you super power you get the capability to short someone's brain for ashort time motor function is interrupted by the swelling of the brain and boiling with its fluid Ibelieve! When it cools the shaking of the arms stop and you can feel your legs and bowelsand genitals again! Just keeping the playing field level! So as you can see space needsneutralized just like we are responsible enough to leave our NUKES alone. ELON MUSK has terrorist organizations with in his businesses! As far as surviellence tech goes one of the goals of combinations is to be able to be relayedimages of surviellence footage live for many purposes. In this case we will talk about theunlimited access that they have to watch anywhere in USA for development purposes untillthey are cut off or at the very least filtered! Martial Law is about the only time that this wouldbenitfit the USA to have men that have certain views and I guess retards wouldn't cover thecameras and some places would still need power. You see my point they create the problemby suggesting to a target based on their criminal history to influence them incorrectly. Targetareas would be places that they can profit off of needed more cameras lining the pockets oftheir partners and creating job security since they want to be the central hub and in someways alreasy are since they can hide their activities from the authorities with everything theyare supposed to be developing for them saying they need tested before disclosed orlaunched and even need more funding! How much has been promised for profit if sold? Towhom? Platforms could be sold to every country their is intelligence creating a backdoormakes sense! No way to treat our neighbors they should always know when and what we areaccessing! Just cause they change a color or order or size ect...of a screen does not mean itactual changes functions! The hidden. Functions are their back door hidden. Views and.Controls! Now officials will know of some I forgot about the ATT BLACKOUT! That is more then likely one of the key points in thesignal change and contract agreed upon with ATT for a security update or just the update astheir was already a contract or renewal. Anyway that is when they got their power boostapproval and applied in secret us my theory! Would it surprise anyone to hear that my Simwas amoung the very small amout that didn't get loaded and had to get a new one while Iwas in Plano, Texas as they watched me squirm? I wish I had contacts to where I couldinvestigate this. Sure would like some assistance from someone you all have my number! I learned something new last night as I was harrassed and educated...A satalite does not justrecieve a single command and continue to operate. It has to recieve a constant data streamor code I think think we're saying to have a constant discharge of signals! Constantverification of the source for encryption purposes making it redundant for intrusions! Loggingeverything commands origin of command location of execution. For signals they need anincoming transmission to continue the data stream. As most already know this means a pingof sort is being faked and listed under an in motion title. Such as robot, vehicle, air born,drone, anything that they can lie about that would make sense and allow then to trick thesystem as they lie to themselves with all safe guards off in a safe mode for developmentpurposes! I just don't understand how come it has taken so long for the Humanity to comeout of such a small number of these Terrorists if any at all have changed without force. At thevery least now since I have been emailing space command and space force. We know if theycheck their emails their is a big opportunity to watch certain employees to act fast. ;) Wink!Later I will explain how to attempt a test for the cooling of the air and target location bycombining the BCI Master frequency with x ray technologies at different signal and zoomstrengths to simulate freezing pain in the subject and building up moisture at low levels as faras clouds go do to the lower orbit sata Satalites, now even if I wasn't a telepath in theory the brain wave frequency combination Icall a piece of the energy code a very important piece. This piece of the key carries silentcommunication with the brain. We associate abilities with the pineal gland and they can eventell you where this transmission connects to either can I. What we know is is carries energyor pieces of it through the body sound does not! So in theory combining this piece of the keywith x ray technologies with slows partical movement when you figure out targeting hightlevels you now have a way to transmit through tissue instead of just affecting the outtertissue. So far this just causes and extreme amout of needle pricking pain very simular to frostbite before the loss of feeling or worse! So what happens when terrorist organizations get their hands on it? They affect the core of the planet which is the concern with deep earth scanning x ray tech! Time to update AI on Google don't you think? Terrorist Teams!? The days of people thinking everything is possible has arrived again but proveable and you won'tbe the only one and since you think you can experiment on me for free I'm giving away myexperiences and torment taking your career! You don't have permission! Terrorist assaults oninnocents in America for years! That is why I say SEMPER FI....LOVE YOU GRANDPACROWE! Cameras and surviellence on network that have Infrared design will generate a type ofheating from the inside out. Also capable of sending a pain signal to the body since Infraredis used in electronics it can be adapted with the BCI wave is what I will call it from now on.The wave works with any Infrared lens. Just as a remote sending signals to a device in yourhome. This just requires a power boost to the wave that is approved by yourtelecommunications companies. Here it is a secret so they are break the law and theyapplied the wave in secret with an encryption security update. The specific wave lengths thatthey use will attempt to be sold to the military and nasa once again just as they have startedthis trend all over the world. Would it surprise anyone to see that some of these were myideas and still need applied to my quantum energy. Why is it that I am capable of seeingthese achievements some might ask? It's because I have a theory that I have only shared apiece of with the Agencies that I love and they have already sout it out attempting to create itin a previous project conducted by the CIA known as project GATEWAY! This is how theirhas been influence to ignore former CIA combined with retired or terminated CIA workingfrom within ELON MUSK owned businesses. With the experience to influence extraordinar!So when I explained I thought I had a gift, I messed up! I threatened to be brought there andoffered to help identify Cartel! It was a huge mistake to be To be that disrespectful and nieve to think that help would come from that type ofcommunication. However a person group or team that can interpret correctly should haverelayed to the appropriate jurisdiction to evaluate and investigate while offering assistance ifthere were to be available manpower if any at all out of courtesy since they were the onescontacted and request to be involved or kept in the loop to aid in the situation. IN MYOPINION! Now messaging them that I would find the Cartel inside the CIA was absolutelyabove my head alone and insanely rude! Do you think that Donald Trump will get the sametreatment that I have been given looking for the enemies within? Who would have thoughtthis situation is just what was needed to flush out betrayers of the NATION! So yes they tookme as a threat at least some wether or not they are Agents of the NATION CONFUSED orTerrorists ORGANIZATIONS IS IRRELEVANT! PEOPLE ARE BEING HURT! THESECURITY SURVEILLANCE NETWORK GRID AND SIGNALS ARE COMPERMISED!HOW LONG IS A QUESTION AS IS HONESTY ANNOUNCING THE TEAVESTY AND HOWIT CAME TO BE! AN ANNOUNCEMENT IS HOPEFULLY GOING TO BE MADE TOINSPIRE PROPER INTEGRITY! WE ARE A MATURE NATION AND SECRETS AT LEASTCERTAIN ONES ARE NOT MENT TO BE KEPT AND ARE AN INSULT TO THE NATIONTHAT SERVES IT! Someone said after watching me advance in my training of my energylet's make money suppressing it a real telepath is a threat! Thank God that I am somethingelse that is meant to survive! In In a way I am grateful for this unfortunate situation. Once again it is trully a honor andprivilege to be doing what I am attempting to survive through. I can honestly message andsay I don't believe I would be who I am without this experience! It has made mecourageously brave and humble I would say. Now back to the experimentation on civilization!Some businesses have profited off of all of this and some possibly in the Gov. And evenhoping that we could or still will profit off of other Nations. IF there is ill intent towards anynation I hope that their endeavor fails! I wonder now of the CIA being sued has anything todo with another set of eyes that could influence a lawsuit to discredit them for another torise? I have to think deeply on this! They use each other and think they rule one another fromtime to time but think that both are necessary! Think think think..... Good Morning Mam and Sir...So I sept on it and listened to many of Authorities on the BCIsignals thoughts and my own. It is great motivation that encouraged proper action! The factsremain that the man was being watched he won the case! The questions however of how thisman found out is up in the air. We now have a theory, it is possible that this tech. was used.Facts plain and simple proving, disproven, hiding, or deleting proof are the options for law!Unlawful use of Technology. Proving who is not the immediate concern. Preventing this frombecoming a possibility anywhere else in the world is PRIORITY NUMBER ONE! THENRECORDS WILL FOLLOW! WE WILL NEED SOMETHING TO DO WELL SOME DOANYWAY! WE CAN DO IT WITH OUR NEIGHBORS HELP AND SUPER SPEED UP THEPROCESS WHILE RETAINING ACCURACEY AS A TEST RUN OF THE JOINT FORCESOF THE WORLD TO INSPIRE THE REST TO JOIN! WHILE ALWAYS WATCHING FORTHE ONES WHO MIGHT WANT TO JOIN FOR NEG. REASONS IDENTIFY THESEPEOPLE AND INSPIRE THEM WITH WHATEVER WE HAVE TO! WHEN THERE ISNOTHING TO HIDE, THEN WE WILL KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE TO FLY! Back to the othertopic....hard to remember! PRESIDENT PUTIN, it is my hope and prayer for both of yourNations that it has a greater purpose of good for all the bloodshed! As a great leader youalready know it is sometimes difficult to retain a proper example when we have to do thingswe do not trully want to have to do! I wish their could have been a different solution! Sparewhat lives you can! THE PURPOSE OF THIS IS TO SHOW THAT THE COUNTRY AND THE WORLD ARENOT GETTING BACK WHAT THEY NEED TO THE PEOPLE FOR ALL THE MONEY THATIS GIVEN! WHY CONTINUE TO FUND SUCH PROJECTS THAT ARE NOT PRODUCINGWHAT THEY SAY THEY WILL AND USE THE FUNDS FOR SECRET PROJECTS OFWAYS TO DESTROY PEOPLE AND THE EARTH! WHERE ARE THE RECORDS THATSHOW A PREVETION METHOD ACTUALL EARLY EARNING SYSTEMS AND THESYSTEMS THAT ARE CAPABLE OF GENERATING WEATHER? WHERE ARE THERECORDS OF THE TESTS WHERHER THEY ARE POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE RESULTS?DID THEY ATTEMPT TO HELP DID THEY MAKE IT WORSE? WHERE ARE THERECORDS OF INACTIVITY? THESE ARE THE QUESTIONS THAT NEED ANSWEREDBEFORE MORE FUNDING IS GRANTED? THE PEOPLE DESERVE TO SEE RECORDSAND HAVE ACCESS TO THESE TOP SECRET RECORDS AND BETTER YET A SYSTEMTHAT WOULD ALERT THE PEOPLE THAT THEY ARE EXPERIMENTING SINCE WE AREGOING TO ALLOW INFRARED TECH. TESTED WHICH IS WHAT WAS SOLD TO THEMILITARY THAT SPACE X KNOWS IS MOSTLY A FRAUD AND THERE IS VERY LITTLETO DISCOVER THERE AS I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO SAY AND SHARE WITHEVERYONE! AS READ READ BELOW REALIZE I AM ATTEMPTING TO HAVE A WAYFOR THE PEOPLE OF EARTH TO HAVE A BETTER WAY TO ACCESS AND MANAGESPACE RECORDS AND MUCH MUCH MORE! WE NEED THIS PLACE WE CALL HOMETO LAST NOT GO TO WASTE! Good Morning, some of this may come off wrong. Just because I said I was the bait did notmean that I wanted to be left hung up to allow the prey to pick at me slowly! I understand theimportance of locating the people that are in on this. They will want to watch constantly evenmore if I were to be approached. The phototage would be shared even more! They play withmy energy being released! If this goes right I might even lie and say they helped after theyadmitt they didn't create me. After all we don't know if it helped since thisbis being conductedimproperly and illegally! We know it has harmed me and others. These are people the gov.Has used for years, we are smart and trained we are not hiding. Just like we are not hidingfrom the war. Which I hope we do not drag on. I don't know what all happened! We support both sides while at peace so what went wrong and whos ideals in this situation should we support? We have people using our constitution for their gain twisting and using what the can to work for them! There are certain things that need outlawed even if it goes against what wehave designed to protect the people of America. Now the world wants our liberties. Someneed revisited when it comes to tech. As you are already doing! You think you can pull off theWorld outlawing VPNS... the protection is provided by the Nation the people should not havethe right tobhide their identity online. That's a huge battle when completed correctly. Villianswill have no where le Latest update Trump already has the Bottom part the top is to the CIA well the white house wont let me message them right now im sure its temporary and thatthey arw not done adapting it so now this message and the one below as always is going tothe news but Trumps portal already got it. =) Okay, there has been enough movement to exspose what I have been doing to my hometowns Authorities! Everything I am sending out has now included Springfield PoliceDepartment, IL state police, FBI field office abc's news channel 20, 183rd Air National gaurdand they all in the email have instructions to turn it in to the CIA NSA FBI! Homeland Securityhung up on me and Space Force said contact the local Authorities! The seed is planted youalready have your people in place. We already know great minds think alike. Where ohwhere will it not grow? Will Chicago get contacted by Springfield anything and will Chicagopass it on while formulating a plan to prove me right and condem me for lying. Fat chance Ispeak and breath the truth in this situation. May the universe bless us on our missions! Whileacting fast with Authorization to ignore standard time frame due to how long this has alreasygone on. Screens will not end this action will! Space x and Space Force are not getting itdone! Time to revise what has already been set in what theybwere hoping was stone. Funnything about the universe and it's properties it has a never ending way of evolving! Okay so next idea I'm not letting be stolen from me is this! Alcoholic need a limit made forthem. ID is already used to verify age it needs combined with the barcode everywhere nationwide. The bars will fight this but in the name of a security to promote healthy living and whilethe Presidenr is serving his term prescription meds and alcohol will be limited to set theproper example, "possibly " to promote security and health while announcing if wanted toenforce the public knowledge of leading by example. I keep getting side tracked. Any timeyour pulled over or it involves the law you blow every time. Is there a way to collect blood likechecking blood sugar that can be designed for the Authorities that will allow a betterunderstanding of how the choice to break the law? It will be passed no problem tomandatory! Marijuana and dispensaries give the option for wasted money and time spent onthe activity itself? It will remain legal but since their are so many we now have the right toproperly evaluate actions and what could be the cause of poor judgment! People want betterhealth care that will promote the opportunity to help provide better gov. Funded care. Thepeople need to want to be healthy. They will not be excluded for prior abuse that can causehealth issues even prescriptions. The New generations to come will benefit from this themost as their goal will be to live a pure life to see how long we can trully live and be glad tosee the end of our planet from above So now I will wait till I am in the right hands to where our plans will not be deluted by greedythriving lieing scum that only think how can we make more money instead of how can wereduce everyone mismanaged spending! FBI Tips that I saved that everyone needs to see. For now I am still free, awaiting theevaluation of the Agencies that I have called on and we all need! Why have I been allowed tosuffer for this Terrorist Organizations Greed? They are concerned that you will contact who you need to inside Elon Musks businesses and request my file. That AI has been gathering including the development of their other platforms and algorithms that hide data such as the file it self, facial recognition scamblers which is where the Infrared will be applied and hidden. Programming of their pods they areworking day and night on where some of the 24/7 teams are hiding 3 shifts just like policeofficers or federal agents they have pretended to be. These are more then just tips. I am avictim of experimentation. When you request my file. Make sure you demand the live BCIreadings of my email since you will have to see records of these transmissions. They areworking on a way to record and document them with AI being able to read them without asystem in front of them. That is where the simulators come in and why they are taking solong this segment of message is going to be copied to the Portals even the CIA I just turnedin. Love u "copy of what was just reported to FBI" FBI tips, Privileged employees that are some of the main that have started this seeing thatmy pleasure for help and their better knowledge of how the reporting systems work are veryconcerned and getting nervous. Not nervous enough to stop playing with the tech they havehelped develope to torchure. These people contacted someone getting approval to conductan experimental investigation with interogation tactics that are different then what happens inperson. They used the investigation of Kenny Brown in Springfield, IL that they had alreadybeen a part of before they tricked Shanaya Kapia to come to Springfield. It's real people justlike China boreding space. People being allowed to work from home need their signalterminated. So warrants for that is on the top of the list as this is how they communicate witheach other and their spy network of satalites aimed at civilians. Now as we know they haveterrorized USA for years with BCI we have the chance to prove to the other nations that wecan The people that are employeed probably working from homebas it is the safest and mostsecure place to opperate as are colleges because there are to many to watch. Contracts towatch are state contracts secret dealings that the college would be unaware of. The peoplethat just got promoted this year to work from home or their bonuses as they were promisedwould be a good place to start with who just used the emails in the system to contact thepossible new recruits into a terroristic type of business using rewards and fear as theirmotivation to continue to be convinced that they are better then the rest of society and evenprofess that they know about overbseas intent. The overbseas intent is to design afunctioning EMP cannon to take out terrorists satalite communications on the ground and inspace. I am hoping they let Space force watch since at first they will not be trusted becauseof how long they have been fooled by these people. I said way more into my phone thismorning. When a As I was sleeping a blast of energy hit my body and the suspects that entered my dreamswanted me hurt so many jumped me in the setting of the Bunk area of the shelter. The secretcameras which there are 2 in the small Bunk were used to make a virtual simulation that isthen transmitted to the subjects mind through the BCI Signal. Infrared is used in the scan andthat is unnecessary. It is just used as a hidden way to harm the subject and create loose skinlike a secret mark of success like hackers terrorists and gangstalkers like to leave ofaccomplishment. Realizing it was a dream state assault I woke myself up from this. Wealready know Infrared is harmful to the skin so there will be a need to possibly outlaw thataccess to secretly add more power to the ground surviellence systems. Which is achieved bymore signal towers that are not needed. They lie a put their surveys and the requirements ofthe system. I just called the Springdield, IL field office giving them a brief descripti I am the one who has been reporting it all over the worls waiting to give the all clear to therest of the world or give them word that I have been contacted and that we areoving I. Theright directio Direction without being crippled by the lack of leadership we deserve. Policy does not dictatethe saftey of a human. We do if AI can not report this and flag to the proper agencies to approach to keep law suits like ATT data breach that I have helped report from happening, then AI development needs to slow down it's sales as it is not ready or refined enough or being tested by the right groups. All ai does is take jobs and allow the possibilities ofcontrolling what is flagged or put to the top of the list. What do I have to do call homelandagain?! Do you think they will hang up on me again terrorist scum that question if for you. Weall know owy phone is cloned and shared with you and you watch live as I type and pauseand rewind for your practice study. Now I got on here to report that I am calling ATT's lawsuitguy for a data breach that has been brought to light by me at least partially. So as we takeour time investigating what to do. We need to realize we already know ow what t I placed a call to the California FBI field office going that the people on the platforms that arebeing recruited understand that what they are doing and being put through is no longersecret. Making sure to mention everything I need to about My self and mentioning that theiris no Bomb threat I continued to explain what I have been doing knowing that a trace will bestarted and that it should lead to FBI in other states but most importantly Space X in whatever states. Now it probably only leads to one and then relayed to the other space x statesthat is what I would do to keep the other states innocent and less politics of contracts likeTexas has and manipulated policy to keep the people gov. And military from being able toobtain a proper trace. No new members realize as ypu read this I am saving you if you listenand turn in what you can record with your phones. Your Country and your president as wellas the president's of the world will appreciate this service and it will show t Once again I had to use my lap top as you will read below to unlock comcast email in myphone. To the other nations feel free to use my lap top ID's to makea virtual one and tracethe signal back to Space X and where ever else it might lead it has already been given to theFBI as you will se below. I will also be sending it to Secret Service so they may start a traceon it. Gwynne I hope you understand this has to be done.Finally to the WORLD I AM MSC Masonic Security Connections. It is also my fathers and myInitials. I am what I need to be and right now I am proving myself worthy of WORLD Securitywithout the credentials. Rebuilding Reinforcing Security through TRUTH which makesTRUST Earns RESPECT and LOYALTY! everything is in pieces and some is missing but the points are there! Mark Crowe Jr 217-341-5375 mscrjr@gmail.com temporarilly deactivated and mscro05@comcast.net server hacked through ATT server i think I placed a call to the California FBI field office going that the people on the platforms that arebeing recruited understand that what they are doing and being put through is no longersecret. Making sure to mention everything I need to about My self and mentioning that theiris no Bomb threat I continued to explain what I have been doing knowing that a trace will bestarted and that it should lead to FBI in other states but most importantly Space X in whatever states. Now it probably only leads to one and then relayed to the other space x statesthat is what I would do to keep the other states innocent and less politics of contracts likeTexas has and manipulated policy to keep the people gov. And military from being able toobtain a proper trace. No new members realize as ypu read this I am saving you if you listenand turn in what you can record with your phones. Your Country and your president as wellas the president's of the world will appreciate this service and it will show tI hope that the information is everything you need to get the warrants for a signal trace insidespace x interoffice signals. they are bouncing the signal around as their own private VPNservices from server to server in space! laptop information:IPV4 192.168.1.37IPV4 DMS server 192.168.1.1 IPV6 fe80::8f59d:d619a7b2:97df%17 Physical Address 38-59-F9-1F-5E-23 I will call the and let them know about the update and hopefully the team watching and newrecruits that the illegal actions of Space X and Telecommunications against me is Futile! 1-13-25I am the Victim and test subject for Terrorists that have approval for an investigation toconduct their secret experiments since this company has gone unchecked untill now! Do to the capability of making the body feel a type of freeze simular to frostbite conditionsthey have interrupted work. My feet would be warmer outside working and when we would sitin the truck to warm up they increase intensity. I then informed to my Boss that ET that iswhat he calls them since there are not any cameras in his truck...lmao This is one of themain reasons these experiments are being done the way they are being done. No one issupposed to know and now I do because of they way they are used. I explained to him thatthe goal is for me to annoy him to the point where he calls the day early. I informed him onceagain the ET is doing exactly what I have just explained to you. But there are no cameras inhis truck right? My phone is cloned as well as my laptop and being used in an experimental investigationplatform that utilizes BCI Brain Communication Interface and the Signals that are required tomaintain a connection to the mind as are used by his employees. I have been warning therest of the world of current terrorist activities that have been conducted for years. Since ihave successfully inspired nations to inquire about this technology that was unaware that it'suse is now live. Teams of Techs within the company that I have labeled terrorists have beencompermising servers of companies I use. Samsung so I by passes USA and messagedShanghia, Comcast and it is still compermised, ATT encryption which is how they deleted mySim card records are in Elon Musks servers and mainframes. It is very hard to explain whatall is needed to be explained. When you research this do not be surprised that my signalleads to Space x when you trace it. Other Countries might be using my laptop and phoneID'S to trace with my permission as this is a world issue. Make sure to look up everything onmy 2 emails mscrjr@gmail.com and mscro05@comcast.net There will be an enormous amount of emails to embassys foreign news and military warning them and asking for understanding in this matter as these Terrorists do not represent theUSA even if it is a partially sanctioned project. Trace my phone and my phone and Laptop it will lead to space x who are cyber stalking mewith their Brain Communication Signal and interface testing. They will do the same to yourcountry unless they all ready are what you will read below is scary and true! Please use for avirtual trace imiediatley! laptop information:IPV4 192.168.1.37IPV4 DMS server 192.168.1.1IPV6 fe80::8f59d:d619a7b2:97df%17Physical Address 38-59-F9-1F-5E-23 Phone information 12173415375Serial# R5CX20P5XGKIMEI 359606630336510SIM CARD ICCID89012803331045125710 Keep in mind other nations have my permission to use for the purposes of securing the truthin this situation. As I have made claims that need proven to them that may or may not be know by the government that keeps secrets and let's people be harmed with backwards deals. Keep the trace on untill people are arrested or detained as they have attached my id's to a special platform and have a server off the grid hidden in space using old and newsatalites for their secret experiments that have the world leaders concerned as I havebrought it to their attention. I continually email them to let them know the situation is stillactive as in Terrorists cells active. So far as I have messaged the FBI tips site and the rest ofthe Portals you will read about in researching this mess will be Donald Trumps secret servicemessaging portal. So far there is no functional leadership in resolving this situation that hasbeen active for years and my messages of the weapons platform of signals utilizing groundsurveillance with the BCI technology. That has been reported on almost every day for 1yrand 3 months. As most messages I will copy and paste this to the worlds leaders continuingmy efforts to get the situation resolved or at very least space weaponazation in the hands ofimmature civilians neutralized. Next Sent to Pentagon: You have someone that has allowed Space X to have access to my information for a trial runof the capabilities of combining the brain communication signals and interface forinvestigative evaluations! I have been attempting to get a response back from someone whounderstands this technology! Since I have not had any response I have been sharing theNegligence in this situation and the way it has been handled to the rest of the world! I havemost recently been calling FBI Dallas, California, and Springfield, IL field offices mentioningBomb threats and asking Questions about them to get people in line to handle the caseagainst Space X and its employees! While there will be some of you that want the technologyyou must realize that it has already been used in secret far too long so now it is time foreveryone to know! I can't wait to see what happens! Everyone is watching me are you goingto help and we can explore quantum energy in a human being me? Funding should not betoo high and the new project that is being proposed by Space X or what ever division of itcan be denied! The messages you are about to receive again besides the id's of devices hassaved AMERICAN LIVES NOW WILL YOU RESCUE ME? World News! Email to Shanghai China Samsung Coropate office The USA Samsung servers are compermised or just the security in my phone. My phone hasbeen cloned and used for an experiment with Elon Musks business developments. Iauthorize you to access my phone and monitor all incoming and outgoing transmissions.What you are about to read is factual in nature. When my Gmail was compermised I used myalternate email to contact Google support and the CEO. Sundar then after fixing my accountlisted his Gmail on Google. Thank you for your support. Watch for an algorithm, hackers inElon Musks employment! Email to another State Department Source in China, Help influence the shut down of the harmful experiments on the ground and in space. Thesepeople are out of control. Help save the United States thank you fornyour support in thismatter. Telling us to stay put is helpful howeverbi believe we need your guidance now ormaybe just a forceful back up. Every gov. Has its issues this is a mess and it's everyone'sbusiness and needs a fierce fully peace approach! We might need to see if you want to helphold some citizens since these are crimes against the world and its people even the attemptto lie for this purpose! Your president Xi JinPing has recieved these messages I hope by nowand more. Here is what is going around the world and through the USA State polices and authorities and still no contact! I wish to visit your country! Email to save the people! This is now old! Turn this into the FBI NSA CIA HOMELAND SECURITY Space Force anyone we needeveryone's support I will be sending this to your state senators as I have already done inmany states. I can't even remember who still this help this information spread as you can seeon the news it matters people. Your influence and support is needed just as we support you.Feel Free to Contact our Local Police and News Crews they might be able to give you anupdate on what is going on to resolve this issue. They probably can tell you anything but it agood way to have an interesting conversation!Springfield Police Department 217 788-8311, News Channel 20 217 753-5620 The next section is catered to the science world which is what I will need help with after theiris support and the change in the telecommunications issues. it is short and brief. At the very end of this you will have a better understanding of why certain things are takingplace in our country and the world. First I need to inform you that it is time to explore andprove that the quantum relm of human energy has now been discovered to be true! The CIAthrough project Gateway has been looking and attempting to create this power for years!When I say I need advice and guidance in this matter, I mean to have partners in this newstudy and it will be a succes! Please share what I am about to send you with everyone! Ihave a physic ability that allows me to see and control a form of quantum energy that themystics know as Chi or Qi. The orbs people call phi balls, I just refer to them as spheres ofenergy! Certain types of camera lens Pic this energy up especially from space. I have toapologize I am nervous to have you read this. So I am kind of tripping over my own thoughtsand unable to get thought out properly. Experiments that we will need to conduct: Ways to measure, I believe it has properties that will produce a superior telecommunicationssignal. Can it be studied to produce or create a new way to have things powered? Can it be made to be self sustaining? Magnetic properties Electrical properties How does it interact with sound, vibration, Harmonics, Frequencies, what combination ofeletric currents and the above can produce different forms of this energy metered readings.We need to think of every possible permientation of every combination of any material ortechnology that we could shoot into this energy as well as see what happens when it exists ina vacuum space to evaluate for space experiments! I already know this energy is real. This is a discovery of a lifetime and Men and Women witha minds like yours will be astounded to see the results and I am attempting to put together away to have project involving many countries and their scientists! As you will see through thepoorly wrote segments that I am about to share with you I have been messaging many countries. It is my hope to have a team that will help me represent the USA in this discovery and hopefully share it with the world leaders. It would be a privilege to be evaluated by you and anyone that you think would want to beinvolved in such a project. I am in uncharted waters. Be sure to turn in the rest of this you are about to read to Any authority. We need the hiddenrecords! What you are about to read I am asking everyone who reads to turn into the FBI NSA CIAHOMELAND SECURITY ANY AGENCY THAT COULD BE OF USE TO GET ANSWERSAND RESULTS. THERE IS NO REASON TO CONTACT ME UNLESS YOU CAN HELP MEWITH THIS ENERGY EXPERIMENT OR HAVE ANSWERS TO WHY EVERYTHING HASBEEN IGNORED FOR SO LONG! THE MORE THAT TURN THIS IN THE BETTER THECHANCE OF THE PEOPLE BELIEVING THAT THE AUTHORITIES WILL DO WHAT THEYNEED TO TO AQUIRE THE RECORDS THAT WE ALL NEED UNHIDDEN!! This is what was sent to Google ATT Comcast and the rest of the world before you. Sharewith everyone you can and turn it in to the FBI NSA CIA HOMELAND SECURITY ANYONEYOU CAN THINK OF TO PROTECT EVERYONE IN THE LAND THAT DOESNT KNOW ITSHAPPENING! Space Force told me to contact the local Authorities when I called them. Homeland securityhung up on me and much more. Have you been watching the changes in the news? We aregaining momentum turn this in share with everyone. Over seas is on board! Ask the leaders ifthey have seen this of they have not send it to them! Happy Holidays from Mark Steven Crowe Jr My account has been compermised by the remote system that allows people particularlysecurity applications to report to your people through your investigations that links primarilyto the Authorities mscrjr@gmail.com. 2173415375 I have already attempted to inform your techs through your messaging portal of my emails that I have been sending all over the worldand now you! I understand that this will not affect the place in line that I hold for my accountto be reviewed as well as their is also a way for the investigator to prompt and say that theyare done with their second party review. Please as it says below that the first section iscatered to ATT feel free to report the letter to the FBI as it says and I will attach KASKPATEL again with other FBI the more that are reporting this issue the better off the countrywill be God bless and my own personal universal energy blessing to you and your families. There is a secret investigation that is going on and you need to be prepared to adapt yourencryption and look for extra outgoing data streams on this accounts imei and Sim cardnumber. There is a virtual copy of many simular to what is used by CIA they do not want youto know that access has been granted to ELON Musks employees, since they have proposedthey can improve their encryption for the military. Now they achieved this access becausethey were supposed to be trusted. You as a busines have the rightnto know if one of yourcustomers is under any microscope so that you may evaluate whether or not their is misuseor a danger to your customers that there encryption has promoted. The back door that weaccept as a nation is now compermised and it is time to show everyone what happens whenyou mess with the world's secure communications! I have already spread some of thisinformation to many telecommunications companies as well as maintenance companies. Iwill be attaching the FBI to this email please I urge you to look into your servers and what thedata transfer of the core of the embedded code. Attach a trace to my account and I will sendthis to Samsung to as many use this Man's companies. While I am not against him I amagainst mismanagement and incompetence even if the company were to have corruption init! This is no way to provide security of a signal when you have hackers that have found a way to hide their actions and recruit more hackers that are to scared to turn people in! They need the brave and powerful to make the first move or at least attempt to look into. I am a long time customer and thank you for taking the time to read all of this. Like I have askedplease spread to as many as you can turn it in even if the CIA or NSA are involved their is aninternal investigation on the governments agencies in secret with Internal Affairs to see whoacts and who doesn't. Senators and as you will read below the Suprem Court. THANK YOU,Mark Steven Crowe Jr 2173415375 Next is what the rest of the country and world already knows and needs help being spread! You might be in disbelief with no record of time for the first messeges sent out and the notionthat I had an influence. That I understand and say who am I or you to say something didn'teffect another! Look at the news and the shock of change of interaction amoung leadersbefore presidency. I am impressed for one! So let us congratulate Mr. And Mrs DonaldTrump for the miracles to come! Why her you say? Because she supports and keeps himlevel to the ground and him her! I have messaged her the exact same I have sent him! Enjoythe Articles that need looked into. If you get bored scroll down to the messages that have theSupreme courts added! I bet you can't find out any information and if you do you are told notto contact me or the system has a note on it provided by the back door system terrorists! In my notes this was titled Stupidity: Good Morning to everyone! So with everyone watching me, there are many that want me tolisten or their are consequences like right now having the satalite that controls particalmovement on a lower setting at my body that they have identified through me and testing onthemselves since they have said he can do it I can to! My issue is technology being used bychild like minds adolescents if you will to a changing world! Let's remember that their werewat less to deal with once upon a time and it's not solely Elon Musks fault. However it is hisresponsibility to keep track with the correctly appointed staff! He does not have it how can wehelp this situation. These developmental software firmware can exist on a lap top and signalprovided to it and they want to be able to just use their mind to control eliminating the laptopwhich provides identity! Which is a necessity! Which is why I love that Putin outlawed vpns.These people hide behind tech like this to say we don't exist they can't find us even in bigbusinesses as we all already know! So as I type this I take my time so there is moreevidence to find! My guess is that a matter of this importance we must know every singleCrack they hid in and where they planned on making more! Even I'll minded thoughts liketraining to see if someone has it in them to fire on a US citizens like marshal law training,which is sad! These people make up whatever they can! What does it really take to securetechnology in the USA again! They Play with satalites to see if they can cool down the pipes for hot water and learn it is asuccess! Awesome great discovery tell your superior show the proof that's it! Okay now don'tdo ot again and don't show. Or tell anyone period! What do these rejects do they spread it toeveryone here use this to torchure they won't and can't find out That is some backwards asschildish thinking wanna be CIA type shit and wanna be Military. They should cringe to haveto execute such an order and we have people in charge of people playing with USA citizensor civilization period! What has happened to the Men and Women in our land!? I amspeechless at the loss of integrity of our nation and I know when you get into office there willbe changes! I have messaged an email to Kash Patel as I'm sure ypu alreasy know and asdo these American Terrorists from watching my type and send everything live?! They areplaying a game saying they need to wait till they are found since it is no lethal and they thinkwhen or if you get me I'm in trouble or going into a mental home! With the way I think yeahright! I have involved the 183rd Air National Gaurd and one of the National Guards emailshoping they can get some answers! There arw so many reasons to limit And even decrease space activity at this point! Shutting down SpaceX except military to isolate or shut down groups of satalites systematically to report in secret to another information gathering for an audit would take how long? Is there someone Hiding the existence of certain satalites in an assembly line sortbof way switching identitieskeeping a certain number hidden by deactivating and sending it's designation to the next onethey arw hiding commands in? Who would allow this type of test? A faked report anddocumentation falsified everything and AI glitch would be their cover up? What then would ittake to cease everything? If it were to be an AI attack? Responsible parties? First andforemost creators! Team involved satalite access command lines. Duration of the crime!Polluting peoples minds to influenceband convince to continue and recruit more adolescentminds! Until a force so great is required to put everything back into balance! I just wonderwhy on our earth and God's universe they I'm just at a Loss for words this is America! It has just been relayed to me that the file that contains the view of my ability will only be soldto the GOVERNMENT AS IT IS PROPERTY OF SPACE X. I GRANT YOU FORWHATEVER PURPOSE TO USE AS YOU NEED TO. IF HOWEVER THEY DELETE THERECORDS ALL THAT NEEDS DONE IS THE SECRET WEB OF SATALITES THAT AREINTERCONNECTED BE SHUT DOWN AND YOU ALL WILL SEE WHAT IS BEING HIDDENFROM THE USA MILITARY!! Sent to Kremlin: Ask the USA if they will allow you to assist and demonstrate what you cando by neutralizung the harmful signals and Terrorist manned technologies that everyoneunited with Russia and China in preparation for these American Terrorists secret attacks.Their is concern that your CIA and NSA can not handle the situation as they are emotionallycompermised and incapable of pursuing their own. Your signals, encryption and security iscompermised! We believe Mark Crowe and that he would not jeopardize his credibility! Hehas been honest with us and you. We will be happy to accept peace Terms. Yourinvolvement in l future security plans will take some time for us to trust! We needreassurance that the USA has not gone soft in its ability to protect delivering Justice! When isthe USA going to take care of the issues that have been disclosed. DO YOU MR TRUMPNEED ASSISTANCE OR CAN YOU GET YOUR PEOPLE IN LINE? WE WOULD BEHAPPY TO HELP RID YOUR COUNTRY OR TERRORIST! IF IN FACT THEY DO NOTREPRESENT THE USA. MAY WE TEST OUR TECHNOLOGY ON SATALITES YOU DONOT HAVE CONTROL OF? OUR COUNTRIES WANT PEACE! LETS US DEMONSTRATEAS ONE UNIFIED FORCE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN COUNTRIES WORK TOGETHERAGAINST TERRORISTS OF THE WORLD AND HIDE WITHIN YOUR SECURITYCONTRACTS! Back to Defense designing you probably don't need help with. Take the same amount ofavailable functions and combine with pin point gps targeting and combine every functionavailable to every available gps targeting signal. They will need the capability to be on standby or any combination of activity per target signal! BCI frequency modulator and emitters willbe needed!The satalite will need power boost if only provided by a solar constellation to increaseintensity of signal with the right technology the right combinations combination with myenergy will produce new discoveries in technology. Figuring out how to recreate my energy isthe issue as Space x CIA and NSA and military are going off my idea which has never beenexplained correctly. But like I said they figures out how to heat up a skull and interrupt organfunctions! Spying to get ideas limits the mind that creates the ideas since they have toprotect themselves from thriving technologies and people. So a lot of this research moneyhas been wasted. Don't be fooled with a security agreement that is designed to make youvulnerable to a secret source regardless of encryption. You can't trust the tech or specs atthis time. How can you when they attack their own and dint even stop when being exsposedto a country that we could go to war with! Instead use this situation to obtain peace. To where you can create and they have to work at finding the corrupted while requesting information like 3 partners in business help Helping each other obtain the same goal. Having a new or revamped central computers notone mainframe with all as Elon Musk and Business Partners arw attempting to achieve! Nota bad idea but to much security risk and way too much responsibility for any one mainframeas we can not guarantee every single person will not fall into temptation of taking informationto where it doesn't need to be. Countries have the capability of just requesting temporaryaccess I'm sure. A world central would end up in what is going on now as they opperate andhave operated as their own country that no one has access to! In the future after we have allproved ourselves trust worthy in many ways that will come naturally and possible slowly. Myhopes is that it wouldbbe obtained very quickly at least the way I would end up attempting toachieve it. The mainframe that exists for BCI needs shut down. Thoughts are thoughts and itis where we filter right from wrong. The more wrong that is introduced the longer it takes tomake a decision in my opinion. Every file they have needs wiped as they have beengathered incorrectly. In secret you get many false readings.... I apologize I will end thismessage A major function of these businesses is to generate markets for satalites and evenemployees watch other employees in secret so they all know to keep their mouth shutespecially because of the known capabilities that they use everyday to conduct their BCIinformation gathering system. Now currently they haven't perfected the brain reading part butit is masked by the communication of Brain to Brain study that will be never ending if theyhave a choice in it. These people are so treturous they will watch each other in fear as eachother's minds are watched in secret just as they use standard surviellence on one another.That provides at the very least a need for themselves. The security agreements as you haveseen in my previous messages gives them control over surviellence device ordering throughCIA and NSA ordering systems. This was never expected to be an issue and our trust inthese employees of CIA and NSA as well as Elon Musks Space X is a huge concern isn't it?Once again as you can all see I have been connected illegally for years. I am not the onlyvictim. Even employees of Elon Musk are victims of harassment and threats by means of theterm breach of contract of employment. When terrorism exists there are no contracts. Theybecome null and voided permanently untill revised to exclude the possibilities of blind spotsof the government and surviellence companies to prosecute for victims! Remember while some of this makes me look or sounds however you want to describe me,remember the great inventors of history mystics scientist and philosophers! I would like tobelieve the end of times is merely a mind set that we can remove. Make no mistake thosedays may come. In my belief system we die of old age, peaceful and with memories ofpeople of the world coming together in harmony! Messages Designed and sent to President Putin copied To Trump and Kamala duringelection. Well I think some might of had to be intercepted by our intelligence, I tried to makesure I kept our people in the loop! Good afternoon, My name is Mark Crowe Jr. I have information about the brain interfacetechnology that does not require a chip. I am very familiar with spy tactics and know aboutthe plot to secretly gather information through the technology brain interface as well ascontrol with such interface as the Military in the US is developing. Elon Musks research anddevelopement team studies me with it illegally against my will for 3 to 4 years now. I havebeen messaging the White House for some time and now am messaging Mr Trump. I am theone who informed the United Nations of the Satalite issues being missmanged and tested forweapons capability for non combative satalites. Mr Trump and Kamala should be working onretrieving my file. I will have more to say later I just wanted to introduce myself since I amtrying to get put from under the secret study that these people are doing on me since I havean extraordinary gift that they can not duplicate! It is my goal to have a new study that canbenefit everyone in a unified study or experiment. Depending on what each country wants out of it and what investment they wish to put into it! Scientists technology to be combined with other countries technology all with being properly managed to maintain peace. There will be a chance for new types of weapons in the future but first we need shield technologies forthe next generation of satalites. I am informing you of a very serious issue over Springfield, IL in the USA. As it involvessatalites, surviellence and , security it is everyone's business and has a right to protectthemselves. Any communications to you I hope to achieve a certain amount of trust from thehonest truth that I am about to disclose to you! While nothing in this letter is of any technicalknowledge and I hope to keep it that way to secure my saftey from being arrested in theUSA. When I introduced myself to the Kremlin I said I was very familiar with spy tactics!While I have no equipment to verify I would like to acknowledge the new watcher behind thescenes with surviellence tech. My indeed sent me a Russian message either you or CIA arealready blown...lol I like to laugh and we are not at war so in that instant check mate! =) Nowsince I know my email was more then likely intercepted and my phone listened to andwatched live what do we do? I haven't had the opportunity to give you permission to watchmy phone like I did MI6 and the Chinese! It's expected I'm not upset more honored that somefrom there is. However now not much information of any importance has been disclosedbecause I have to talk about you watching me potentially or saying hello to the CIA in Russia.HI EVERYONE! So now I feel like only informing you that there is a problem with a rouge group operatingsome satalites. It is unknown where the source of the problem is and involves secret testingor a new weapons platform being developed and is still unperfected and being tested oncivilians in the very least the USA! If you choose to believe me you would not be wrong intaking a leap of faith since I am nice and brave enough to warn the nations that I havealready. Also it is a good guess that you already know a lot about what is going on since youhave already shown secret interests which means you want to know what all I know. Call 2-9-25 Weakest Telecommunications Security in History! We need Marshal Law declared on Telecomunications in the country! We have the weakestsecurity in the history of the USA right now! The Fact that this has gone in as long as it hasshows the lack of security in the United States it self! What is more important? Securing it forthe military who it is contracted out with and developed for, or securing the saftey of thepeople by exposing and declaring a certain type of Marshall Law on Telecomunications. If wewere another country we would be at war and the USA would have been called on to helpput an end to the Terrorist Technology! What is this demonstration to show how bad theBiden Admistration was by taking too much time to resolve it, or secure the people's safety?The Technology Treaty us exactly that! NO BCI ALLOWED IN ANY FORM OF IT NOENCRYPTION NOTHING! Very simple, the states that allow the relaying or routing will owethe government excluding the Pentagon! Yes we are talking about my devices leading to theGuilty states! The foreign nations will stay connected even after the issue is gone. There isno need to watch me in any way that is being done. Since I am the Test let the Marshall lawon Telecomunications be the next step to BCI Liberation! MARK CROWE JR MSC 2173415375 DOWN WITH TERRORISTS PERMANENTLY! LEAVE OUR COUNTRY! MARSHAL LAWON TELECOMUNICATIONS From:Myra Saxena To:Council, City Subject:Partner with Sparklez to Empower Palo Alto"s Young Entrepreneurs! Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 4:12:11 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Members of the Palo Alto City Council, My name is Myra Saxena, and I am a 10-year-old social entrepreneur, founder of Sparklez,and a passionate advocate for empowering youth through entrepreneurship and STEM innovation. I started my journey at age 7 and have since raised over $15,000 to supportchildren in need through my nonprofit work. Today, I am reaching out with an exciting opportunity to partner with the City of Palo Alto tobuild the next generation of Kidpreneurs right here in our community. I am a proud Palo Alto resident at Herbert Hoover Elementary School. Sparklez proudlyorganizes the Sparklez Children’s Business Fair, a vibrant two-hour marketplace where children ages 6 to 16 launch and showcase their very own businesses. This event plants theseeds of entrepreneurship, confidence, and leadership, skills that are critical for building the future of Silicon Valley. I have learned immensely from my own journey and now want toprovide an opportunity to other children like me and grow an entrepreneurial mindset. In Virginia, we grew this initiative from 35 young businesses to over 300 in just a few years.Since moving to California in 2023, it has been my dream to bring this same spark to Palo Alto, a city known for nurturing innovation and big ideas. We would love for the City of Palo Alto to be an official partner by supporting us with: Access to a public space where our young entrepreneurs can set up their businesses.Feedback from our first year was that we need a bigger space and close to the main areas for more footfall. Here is a quick snippet of last year'ssuccess: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKZt0ra_D18 City support and visibility to help champion youth entrepreneurship in the heart ofSilicon Valley. Together, we can inspire hundreds of young minds to dream big, solve real-world problems,and become tomorrow’s leaders. Sparklez Children’s Business Fair is more than just an event for me, it’s truly a movement to empower kids to believe in their ideas and inthemselves. I would be honored to meet with you or your team to discuss how we can make this happenfor our city. Thank you for considering this bold vision and for always supporting the future innovators of Palo Alto. Looking forward to hearing from you! With gratitude and excitement,Myra Saxena Founder, SparklezSocial Entrepreneur | STEM Advocate | Youth Leader From:Planning and Development Services To:Council, City Subject:San Antonio Area Plan - Community Advisory Group Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 1:53:17 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of openingattachments and clicking on links.     San Antonio Road Area Plan Community Advisory Group (CAG)   Apply to be a member of the Community Advisory Group (CAG)! The San Antonio Road Area Plan is an initiative to reimagine land use, transportation, and community development along and around San Antonio Road. The project is scheduled to run through late 2027 or early 2028. Community engagement is a key priority of the planning effort underway. A Community Advisory Group (CAG) will serve as an advisory body to the project team. The application process is now open! Apply by 5 p.m. on Friday, May 30, 2025 to be considered. The San Antonio Road Corridor has been designated for mixed-use residential and multi-family housing in the City’s 2023-2031 Housing Element Update. Creating new opportunities for residents, businesses, and visitors, the San Antonio Road Area Plan objectives are to establish policies, development and design standards, and to plan for necessary public infrastructure, including improving bike and pedestrian access along and across San Antonio Road. The CAG will provide perspectives from multiple stakeholders during the planning process. The group will meet up to six times throughout the project. Meetings will be open to members of the public and held on weekday evenings for approximately 1.5 to 3 hours. Meetings are anticipated to occur over a 2-3 year period. While not a decision-making body, the CAG will provide valuable insight and take on the following roles: Discuss vision and principles. Review and respond to key information collected for the plan. Provide input on goals and policies; housing, land use, and transportation options; and key issues and trade-offs. Provide feedback on the draft plan. Apply Now!   Connect with us!   Planning and Development Services | 250 Hamilton Ave 5th Floor | Palo Alto, CA 94301 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice Constant Contact From:Petersen, Joe To:Shikada, Ed Cc:Sauls, Garrett; Perez-Ibardolasa, Val; Gerhardt, Jodie; Colleen Petersen; Chikashige Nii; Tran, Vickie; Planning Commission; ptc@caritempleton.com; ptc@allenakin.com; forest@voteforest.org; Armer, Jennifer; Yang, Albert; Lait, Jonathan; Mindie S. Romanowsky; Council, City Subject:RE: Objection to Comments - 3886 Magnolia Drive #25BLD-00025 Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 9:49:18 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mr. Shikada, I write to follow up on my email below and to respectfully request thatyou confirm receipt. Respectfully, Joseph Petersen Joseph Petersen JPetersen@ktslaw.com Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP 1302 El Camino Real | Suite 175 | Menlo Park, CA 94025 T 650 614 6427 | M 917 859 9680 | F 650 644 0570 Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP 3 Times Square | New York, NY 10036 T 212 775 8715 | M 917 859 9680 | F 212 775 8815 My Profile | vCard * Admitted in California and New York From: Petersen, Joe Sent: Sunday, May 4, 2025 8:06 AM To: 'Ed.Shikada@paloalto.gov' <Ed.Shikada@paloalto.gov> Cc: 'Sauls, Garrett' <Garrett.Sauls@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'Perez-Ibardolasa, Val' <Val.Perez- Ibardolasa@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'Gerhardt, Jodie' <Jodie.Gerhardt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'Colleen Petersen' <colleen@guildtheatre.com>; 'Chikashige Nii' <chikashigenii@gmail.com>; 'Tran, Vickie' <Vickie.Tran@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'Planning.Commission@CityofPaloAlto.org' <Planning.Commission@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'ptc@caritempleton.com' <ptc@caritempleton.com>; 'ptc@allenakin.com' <ptc@allenakin.com>; 'forest@voteforest.org' <forest@voteforest.org>; 'Armer, Jennifer' <Jennifer.Armer@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'Albert.Yang@CityofPaloAlto.org' <Albert.Yang@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'Lait, Jonathan' <Jonathan.Lait@CityofPaloAlto.org>; 'Mindie S. Romanowsky' <msr@jsmf.com>; 'City.Council@PaloAlto.gov' <City.Council@PaloAlto.gov> Subject: RE: Objection to Comments - 3886 Magnolia Drive #25BLD-00025 Dear Mr. Shikada, I write to request your prompt attention to a narrow—but important—permitting disputenow pending in the Planning & Development Services Department. My wife and I areseeking approval for a small, aging‑in‑place remodel of our lawfully permitted single‑familyhome in Barron Park (which was built long before Barron Park was annexed by Palo Alto).That remodel entails lowering an upstairs closet in our primary bedroom andaccommodating some displaced utilities under an existing roof line over a permitted“rumpus room.” The project does not enlarge the building envelope, add floor area, orreplace any space that is “damaged or destroyed.” Despite the modest scope, the Director has repeatedly and steadfastly invoked Palo Alto Municipal Code § 18.70.100 to require that we “remove all non‑conformities” dating back to the 1940s construction of the house—effectively forcing a teardown. This position is neither consistent with past practice nor supported by the Code itself. Three key points: 1. § 18.70.100 is being applied inconsistently. I know for a fact (and will demonstrate in litigation if litigation cannot be avoided) that the City selectively invokes Section 100. Such ad‑hoc enforcement undermines confidence in the City’s permitting process and in fact is an invitation to corruption. 2. § 18.70.100 does not apply on its face. Section .100 is expressly triggered when “additions or enlargements are made to replace damaged or destroyed portions of a non‑complying structure.” We are not replacing fire, flood, or earthquake damage—only modernizing interior space to meet accessibility needs. The more specific and directly relevant provisions— §§ 18.70.080 and .090—control here, as they have for decades and our plan was meticulously designed to comply with these provisions. 3. The current stance puts the City at significant legal and fiscal risk. By conditioning a permit on removal of long‑grandfathered features without statutory authority, the City is interfering with vested property rights. Such overreach invites challenges under both the California and U.S. Constitutions (regulatory‑takings jurisprudence), as well as under the Housing Crisis Act of 2019 and the Housing Accountability Act, which limit a local agency’s ability to down‑zone or impose new standards mid‑stream. Litigation would consume scarce staff time and potentially subject the City to attorneys’ fees. Requested path forward Clarify to staff that § 18.70.100 is reserved for true replacement of damaged or destroyed space, and that routine interior remodels fall under §§ 18.70.080/.090 as they have for decades. Direct Planning leadership to apply a consistent, written threshold for invoking Section 100 in a manner that is consistent with the City’s housing goals. Prioritize small aging‑in‑place projects in recognition of the City’s Comprehensive Plan goal to enable residents to remain in their homes through all life stages, thereby advancing both equity and sustainability objectives. The relief we seek is modest: the ability to improve safety and accessibility in our longtime home without being compelled to demolish legally built, character‑defining portions of the structure. Timely intervention will spare everyone protracted appeals and public controversy, restore trust in the permitting system, and align City practice with the letter of its own ordinances. I am happy to meet at your convenience to discuss this matter. Thank you for your attention. Respectfully,    Joseph Petersen Palo Alto homeowner Joseph Petersen JPetersen@ktslaw.com Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP 1302 El Camino Real | Suite 175 | Menlo Park, CA 94025 T 650 614 6427 | M 917 859 9680 | F 650 644 0570 Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP 3 Times Square | New York, NY 10036 T 212 775 8715 | M 917 859 9680 | F 212 775 8815 My Profile | vCard * Admitted in California and New York Confidentiality Notice:This communication constitutes an electronic communication within the meaning of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, 18U.S.C. Section 2510, and its disclosure is strictly limited to the recipient intended by the sender of this message. This transmission, andany attachments, may contain confidential attorney-client privileged information and attorney work product. If you are not the intendedrecipient, any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of any of the information contained in or attached to this transmission is STRICTLYPROHIBITED. Please contact us immediately by return e-mail or at 404 815 6500, and destroy the original transmission and itsattachments without reading or saving in any manner. ***DISCLAIMER*** Per Treasury Department Circular 230: Any U.S. federal tax advice contained in this communication (including anyattachments) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the InternalRevenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein. From:Palo Alto Forward To:Council, City; Architectural Review Board; Planning Commission Cc:Feign, Robert; Krishnan, Vishnu Subject:5/28 Kiku Crossing Tour San Mateo Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 9:48:10 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Honorable City Council, Commissioners, and Board Members, You are cordially invited to a Kiku Crossing transportation tour and talk. Palo Alto will have affordable housing projects coming to our downtown soon. What can we learn about what works for transportation? Wednesday, May 28th from 10:00 - 11:00 a.m. Kiku Crossing, 480 E 4th Ave, San Mateo RSVP here: https://secure.hlcsmc.org/a/kiku-tdmi-tour-ahm image.png Join us to learn what is working to help people reach their destinations using affordable, sustainable, and efficient transportation options – such as walking, biking, public transit, and carpooling, while also reducing traffic congestion and pollution! This tour will show how affordable housing can support healthier, more sustainable ways to get around and will include: A conversation with the Resident Services Coordinator about how the free transit pass program works A look inside the secure resident bike room A walkthrough of the 5th Avenue Garage, including public, shared, and private parking areas This event is co-hosted by MidPen Housing, One San Mateo, Palo Alto Forward, YIMBY Action, Peninsula for Everyone, and Menlo Together. -- Amie AshtonExecutive DirectorPalo Alto Forward650-793-1585 From:Utsav Gupta To:Julie Lythcott-Haims; Burt, Patrick; Reckdahl, Keith; Council, City Cc:Nose, Kiely; Kurotori, Alan; Clerk, City Subject:Finance Committee - Comments re Gas COSA and Cap and Trade Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 8:17:27 AM Attachments:2025-05-07_Palo Alto Gas COSA Comments.pdfreso-9487.pdfreso-10077.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Finance Committee, These comments address the proposed gas Cost of Service Analysis (COSA) and associated rate changes before the Palo Alto Finance Committee. While I currently serve as a commissioner on the Utilities Advisory Commission (UAC), the views expressed here are my personal comments and do not reflect the position or opinions of the Commission. - The COSA should be remanded to UAC for further review. The UAC was under the impression that it was obligated to accept the findings, which is not true—other cities have revisited and revised their COSAs. Adopting the revised COSA making such drastic changes increases litigation and/or ballot initiative risk more than remanding the COSA for further review and maintaining the current, compliant COSA. - The $1.6 million allocation from Cap and Trade to subsidize fossil fuels and mask gas rate increases for one year violates the City’s policies and intentions for the use of these funds, including the City’s 2015 Resolution 9487 establishing the fund that explicitly intended using these funds for greenhouse gas reduction projects, such as energy efficiency programs and other carbon-cutting measures, "before providing rebates" to customers —and also Resolution 10077 stating that “its intention [is] to use revenues from the sale of City’s Gas Cap and Trade allowances for building, appliance and vehicle electrification”—and thus this transfer should be rejected. It’s a precedent that Palo Alto has refused to set before, and it’s not one that Palo Alto should adopt now. Thank you for your service to our community. Best, Utsav — Utsav Gupta Resolution No. 10077 Resolution of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Amending the City’s Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap-and-Trade Program and Authorizing the City Manager to use $1.25 million from the Gas Utility Cap and Trade Reserve for the Advanced Heat Pump Water Heater program R E C I T A L S A. The Global Warming Solutions Act, also known as Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32), as amended by Senate Bill 32 (2016), requires that California's Greenhouse Gas {GHG) emissions be reduced 40% below 1990 levels by 2030, and authorized the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to develop regulations to reach this goal. B. Under the terms of CARB's cap-and-trade regulations, including Title 17 California Code of Regulations Sections 95892 (d)(2) and 95893 (d)(3), the City is required to sell a portion of these allocated allowances in the auctions conducted by CARB and utilize the auction sale proceeds “exclusively for the benefit of retail electric ratepayers” (for the electric utility) or "exclusively for the benefit of retail ratepayers of each natural gas supplier" (for the gas utility) and "consistent with the goals of AB 32". C. On January 26, 2015 the Council approved a Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State’s Cap and Trade Program (Resolution 9487). D. The Council of the City of Palo Alto supports the state's AB 32 goals and intends to implement the City's Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap- and -Trade Program (formerly titled the Cap-and-Trade Revenue Utilization Policy) in furtherance of these goals. E. The Council has approved a Sustainability and Climate Action Plan Goal of 80% emissions reduction from 1990 levels by 2030, a Framework, and an Implementation Plan. A preliminary impact analysis reviewed by the Council on April 19, 2020 demonstrated that building and vehicle electrification was a critical part of achieving these emissions reduction goals. F. The Council intends to establish various progra ms to promote building, appliance and vehicle electrification, which will require significant funding. The Council wants to amend the previously approved policy to clearly state its intention to use revenues from the sale of City’s Gas Cap and Trade allowances for building, appliance and vehicle electrification. The Council of the City of Palo Alto (“City”) RESOLVES as follows: SECTION 1. The Council finds that the use of revenues from the auction of freely allocated Gas Utility allowances under the State’s Cap and Trade program to promote building, appliance and vehicle electrification, when such conversions also reduce greenhouse gas emissions, 6056672 DocuSign Envelope ID: C22AC74B-ADCA-44DE-8FFF-3FE9B5B1D035DocuSign Envelope ID: 9CDCD8E9-478A-42EF-907F-75217AB6B1A8 6056672 provides a variety of benefits to the City’s gas customers, including: a.furthering State and local climate protection goals by reducing natural gas-related emissions due to the long-term and orderly transition away from natural gas to carbon neutral electricity; b.avoiding increasing environmental and transmission charges on gas use; c.decreasing the energy cost of operating equipment, vehicles, and appliances due to Palo Alto’s low electricity costs; d.avoiding increasing natural gas distribution system maintenance costs. SECTION 2. The Council finds that because nearly all members of the community use both natural gas and electricity, fuel switching from natural gas to electricity reduces energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions and facilitates an orderly transition away from natural gas at the lowest feasible cost, it is of benefit to both gas and electric ratepayers to use revenues from auction of both gas and electric allowances under the State’s Cap and Trade program to promote fuel switching. SECTION 3. The City's Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap-and-Trade Program is amended as shown in Exhibit A. SECTION 4. The Council grants the City Manager or his designee the authority to implement the Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap-and-Trade Program and to use allowances and allocate auction revenues to projects or expenditures as defined in Exhibit A. SECTION 5. The Council affirms the use of up to $1.25 million in revenues from gas utility participation in the State’s Cap and Trade program to fund an Advanced Heat Pump Water Heater Pilot, as described in Staff Report 14606. SECTION 6. The Council finds that the implementation of this Policy, including the use of revenue derived from it, and the expenditures of funds necessary to implement it, represent the City's cost of regulatory compliance with the state's cap-and-trade program and are consistent with the goals of AB 32. Such costs therefore represent the reasonable costs of providing service to CPAU's gas customers. // // // // // // // DocuSign Envelope ID: C22AC74B-ADCA-44DE-8FFF-3FE9B5B1D035DocuSign Envelope ID: 9CDCD8E9-478A-42EF-907F-75217AB6B1A8 6056672 // SECTION 7. The Council finds that the amendment of this policy does not meet the definition of a "project" under the California Environmental Quality Act, as defined by Ca lifornia Public Resource Code Section 21065. INTRODUCED AND PASSED: October 3, 2022 AYES: BURT, CORMACK, DUBOIS, FILSETH, KOU, STONE NOES: TANAKA ABSENT: ABSTENTIONS: ATTEST: City Clerk Mayor APPROVED AS TO FORM: APPROVED: Assistant City Attorney City Manager Director of Utilities Director of Administrative Services DocuSign Envelope ID: C22AC74B-ADCA-44DE-8FFF-3FE9B5B1D035DocuSign Envelope ID: 9CDCD8E9-478A-42EF-907F-75217AB6B1A8 Exhibit A to Resolution No. 10077 Adopted by Council on 10/3/2022 CITY OF PALO ALTO POLICY ON THE USE OF FREELY ALLOCATED ALLOWANCES UNDER THE STATE’S CAP-AND-TRADE PROGRAM This Policy applies to freely allocated greenhouse gas (GHG) emission allowances from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to the City of Palo Alto’s electric and natural gas distribution utilities (“Allocated Allowances”). The City Manager or his designee is authorized to use Allocated Allowances and any resulting revenue in any lawful manner consistent with this policy. The City’s Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances for the Electric Utility is as follows: 1.The City shall abide by CARB’s regulations by using the auction proceeds and allowance value obtained from the City’s allocated allowances for the exclusive benefit of the City’s electric retail ratepayers, consistent with the goals of the Global Warming Solutions Act, also known as Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32), and not for the benefit of entities or persons other than such ratepayers. 2.The following uses of the City’s auction proceeds are permitted: a)Purchases or investment in renewable resources (outside Palo Alto or locally) for the electric portfolio; b)Investment in energy efficiency programs for the electric portfolio and retail customers; c)Fuel switching from other fuels to electricity that reduces greenhouse gas emissions; c)d)Investment in other carbon reduction activities, including those required to achieve a carbon-neutral electric portfolio; and d)e)Rebates to electric retail ratepayers. 3.Allocated allowances may also be used to meet the City’s electric utility’s compliance obligations for electricity scheduled into the California Independent System Operator Markets, should state law eventually permit this action. 4.Council will receive annual reports on the allowance revenues and expenditures associated with complying with CARB regulations and this policy. 5.Additional Council approval will be required for any rebates to electric ratepayers proposed under this Policy. The City’s Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances for the Gas Utility is as follows: 1.The City shall abide by CARB’s regulations by using the auction proceeds for the exclusive benefit of the City’s natural gas retail ratepayers, consistent with the goals of the Global Warming Solutions Act, also known as Assembly Bill 32 (AB32), and not for the benefit of entities or persons other than such ratepayers. DocuSign Envelope ID: C22AC74B-ADCA-44DE-8FFF-3FE9B5B1D035DocuSign Envelope ID: 9CDCD8E9-478A-42EF-907F-75217AB6B1A8 2.A portion of the Allocated Allowances can be used to meet the City’s natural gas utility’s compliance obligations, and the remaining Allocated Allowances will be consigned to auction. 3.The following uses of the City’s auction proceeds from the sale of Allocated Allowances are permitted, with a preference that greenhouse gas reduction measures be pursued before providing rebates: a.Investment in energy efficiency programs for the natural gas portfolio and retail customers; b.Purchases or investment in cost effective renewable bio-gas resources for the gas portfolio; c.Fuel switching from natural gas to electricity that reduces greenhouse gas emissions; c.d. Investment in other carbon reduction activities for the natural gas utility, including system maintenance or replacement to reduce fugitive gas emissions; d.e. Rebates to natural gas retail ratepayers. Rebates, if provided, must be allocated on a non-volumetric basis as stated in Title 17 CCR Section 95893 (d)(3). 4.Council will receive annual reports on the use of Allocated Allowances, including the use of auction revenues and expenditures associated with complying with CARB regulations and this policy. 5.Additional Council approval will be required for any rebates to natural gas ratepayers proposed under this policy. DocuSign Envelope ID: C22AC74B-ADCA-44DE-8FFF-3FE9B5B1D035DocuSign Envelope ID: 9CDCD8E9-478A-42EF-907F-75217AB6B1A8 6056673 Resolution No. 10078 Resolution of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Adopting a Carbon Neutrality Goal to Further the Climate Goals of the Sustainability and Climate Action Plan R E C I T A L S A.In December 2007, Council adopted the City’s Climate Protection Plan which set a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction goal of 20% reduction by the year 2020. B.In March 2013, Council approved Resolution 9322 directing staff to achieve carbon neutrality for the electric supply portfolio by 2013 through the use of a combination of hydroelectric resources, long-term renewable resources and short-term renewable energy resources and/or renewable energy certificates (RECs). C.In 2013, Council established the Office of Sustainability to work with other City departments to bring a sharper strategic focus, better interdepartmental synergy, and greater momentum to the City’s sustainability and climate initiatives. D.In April 2016, Council adopted a GHG emissions reduction goal of 80% reduction by the year 2030, relative to a 1990 baseline (the “80 x 30” goal). In 2016, the City and Community reduced GHG emissions an estimated 37% relative to the 1990 baseline. E.In December 2016, Council approved Resolution 9649 directing staff to achieve carbon neutrality for the natural gas supply portfolio by 2018 through the use of high-quality environmental offsets and physical “biogas” or “biomethane”. F.In September 2018, Governor Brown issued California Executive Order B-55-18, setting the goal to achieve carbon neutrality as soon as possible, by 2045 at the latest, and achieve and maintain net negative emissions from that point forward. A s defined by the California Air Resources Board, “Carbon neutrality means that all GHG emissions emitted into the atmosphere are balanced in equal measure by GHGs that are removed from the atmosphere, either through carbon sinks or carbon capture and storage”. G.In 2020, the City and Community reduced GHG emissions an estimated 50.6% relative to the 1990 baseline. H.In April 2021, Council directed the Mayor to form a Sustainability and Climate Action Plan (S/CAP) Ad Hoc Committee to guide the development, implementation, communication, and future community engagement of the S/CAP. In April 2022, the S/CAP Ad Hoc Committee began discussions on carbon neutrality. The “80 x 30” goal is an interim step that supports California’s statewide goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045. I.As a result, the Council wishes to adopt a carbon neutrality goal to further the climate goals of the S/CAP beyond the “80 x 30” goal, and direct staff to evaluate how the City would meet a carbon neutrality goal. DocuSign Envelope ID: 9CDCD8E9-478A-42EF-907F-75217AB6B1A8 6056673 The Council of the City of Palo Alto (“City”) RESOLVES as follows: SECTION 1. The Council hereby approves a goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030. SECTION 2. The Council finds that the adoption of this resolution is not subject to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review because it is an administrative government activity that will not result in any direct or indirect physical change to the environment (CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(5)). INTRODUCED AND PASSED: October 3, 2022 AYES: BURT, CORMACK, DUBOIS, FILSETH, KOU, STONE, TANAKA NOES: ABSENT: ABSTENTIONS: ATTEST: City Clerk Mayor APPROVED AS TO FORM: APPROVED: Assistant City Attorney City Manager Director of Utilities Director of Administrative Services DocuSign Envelope ID: 9CDCD8E9-478A-42EF-907F-75217AB6B1A8 Certificate Of Completion Envelope Id: 9CDCD8E9478A42EF907F75217AB6B1A8 Subject: Complete with DocuSign: S/CAP Resolutions Source Envelope: Document Pages: 19 Signatures: 19 Certificate Pages: 5 Initials: 0 AutoNav: Enabled EnvelopeId Stamping: Enabled Time Zone: (UTC-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada) Status: Completed Envelope Originator: Vinhloc Nguyen 250 Hamilton Ave Palo Alto , CA 94301 Vinhloc.Nguyen@CityofPaloAlto.org IP Address: 199.33.32.254 Record Tracking Status: Original 10/4/2022 1:50:41 PM Holder: Vinhloc Nguyen Vinhloc.Nguyen@CityofPaloAlto.org Location: DocuSign Security Appliance Status: Connected Pool: StateLocal Storage Appliance Status: Connected Pool: City of Palo Alto Location: DocuSign Signer Events Signature Timestamp Amy Bartell Amy.Bartell@CityofPaloAlto.org Assistant City Attorney City of Palo Alto Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Signature Adoption: Pre-selected Style Using IP Address: 199.33.32.254 Sent: 10/4/2022 1:58:55 PM Viewed: 10/5/2022 4:13:07 AM Signed: 10/5/2022 4:17:42 AM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Accepted: 7/16/2015 5:52:40 AM ID: d8ecb53d-ef81-4016-8886-1560c48de42a Kiely Nose Kiely.Nose@CityofPaloAlto.org Director, Administrative Services/CFO City of Palo Alto Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Signature Adoption: Uploaded Signature Image Using IP Address: 73.162.77.140 Sent: 10/5/2022 4:17:44 AM Viewed: 10/5/2022 9:36:57 AM Signed: 10/5/2022 9:37:41 AM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign Dean Batchelor Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org Director of Utilities City of Palo Alto Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Signature Adoption: Pre-selected Style Using IP Address: 199.33.32.254 Sent: 10/5/2022 9:37:44 AM Viewed: 10/5/2022 9:42:34 AM Signed: 10/5/2022 9:43:09 AM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign Ed Shikada Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org Ed Shikada, City Manager City of Palo Alto Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Signature Adoption: Pre-selected Style Using IP Address: 199.33.32.254 Sent: 10/5/2022 9:43:12 AM Viewed: 10/5/2022 5:09:53 PM Signed: 10/5/2022 5:10:06 PM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign Signer Events Signature Timestamp Patrick Burt pat@patburt.org Mr Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None)Signature Adoption: Pre-selected Style Using IP Address: 98.37.159.0 Sent: 10/6/2022 11:02:12 AM Resent: 10/13/2022 10:43:14 AM Viewed: 10/13/2022 2:47:51 PM Signed: 10/13/2022 2:48:31 PM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign Lesley Milton Lesley.Milton@CityofPaloAlto.org City Clerk City Clerk Security Level: Email, Account Authentication (None) Signature Adoption: Pre-selected Style Using IP Address: 199.33.32.254 Sent: 10/13/2022 2:48:33 PM Viewed: 10/13/2022 2:52:52 PM Signed: 10/13/2022 2:53:12 PM Electronic Record and Signature Disclosure: Not Offered via DocuSign In Person Signer Events Signature Timestamp Editor Delivery Events Status Timestamp Agent Delivery Events Status Timestamp Intermediary Delivery Events Status Timestamp Certified Delivery Events Status Timestamp Carbon Copy Events Status Timestamp Witness Events Signature Timestamp Notary Events Signature Timestamp Envelope Summary Events Status Timestamps Envelope Sent Hashed/Encrypted 10/4/2022 1:58:55 PM Certified Delivered Signing Complete Completed Security Checked Security Checked Security Checked 10/13/2022 2:52:52 PM 10/13/2022 2:53:12 PM 10/13/2022 2:53:12 PM Payment Events Status Timestamps Page 1 of 4 Palo Proposed Gas COSA Comments May 7, 2025 Utsav Gupta These comments address the proposed gas Cost of Service Analysis (COSA) and associated rate changes before the Palo Alto Finance Committee. While I currently serve as a commis- sioner on the Utilities Advisory Commission (UAC), the views expressed here are my per- sonal comments and do not reflect the position or opinions of the Commission. SUMMARY - The COSA should be remanded to UAC for further review. The UAC was under the im- pression that it was obligated to accept the findings, which is not true—other cities have revisited and revised their COSAs. Adopting the revised COSA making such drastic changes increases litigation and/or ballot initiative risk more than remanding the COSA for further review and maintaining the current, compliant COSA. - The $1.6 million allocation from Cap and Trade to subsidize fossil fuels and mask gas rate increases for one year violates the City’s policies and intentions for the use of these funds, including the City’s 2015 Resolution 9487 establishing the fund that ex- plicitly intended using these funds for greenhouse gas reduction projects, such as energy eYiciency programs and other carbon-cutting measures, "before providing rebates" to customers1—and also Resolution 10077 stating that “its intention [is] to use revenues from the sale of City’s Gas Cap and Trade allowances for building, ap- pliance and vehicle electrification”2—and thus this transfer should be rejected. It’s a precedent that Palo Alto has refused to set before, and it’s not one that Palo Alto should adopt now. 1 https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/1/city-clerk/resolutions/reso-9487.pdf; see also https://www.paloalto.gov/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes-reports/reports/city-manager-reports- cmrs/year-archive/2015/final-staF-report-id-5397_use-of-cap-and-trade-compliance-revenue.pdf (“The UAC generally supported the proposed policy for how the auction proceeds could be used, but expressed a pref- erence that the revenues be used for programs to reduce GHG emissions, rather than being returned to gas ratepayers in the form of a rebate. StaF agreed with the UAC's recommendation and revised the pro- posed policy to incorporate the recommendation. The minutes of the UAC's October 1, 2014 meeting are pro- vided as Attachment D.”) (emphasis added). 2 https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/1/city-clerk/resolutions/resolutions-1909-to-pre- sent/2022/reso-10077.pdf ( Page 2 of 4 COSA SHOULD BE REMANDED TO UAC The gas COSA should be remanded to the UAC for additional feedback regarding the rates and the changes from the prior COSA that were made by the consultant. The prior COSA is Proposition 26 compliant. Proposition 26 does not require any particular methodology or timeline—it is simply meant to protect ratepayers from unfair taxation by ensuring that costs are recovered appropriately. The UAC had very little time to consider this gas COSA that makes such drastic changes to rates. The gas COSA was not presented at the UAC Budget Subcommittee, upon which I serve, and was first made available as part of the regular meeting packet discussing it. Com- missioners were under the mistaken impression that they were obligated to accept the find- ings. Public acceptance is key to a COSA, and cities can revise or reject COSAs. Of course, this makes sense—that is precisely why it requires approval by city council. The following cases illustrate how California utilities have revisited their cost-of-service analyses. Adopting such large changes increases the risk that residents either sue or, more likely, seek the adoption of a ballot measure. This has happened at several cities before, as detailed be- low. Examples of Cities Revising COSAs and Rate Plans 1. Fresno: In 2013, Fresno approved water rate increases to fund infrastructure up- grades, backed by a COSA. Facing heavy public opposition, a referendum drive, and a lawsuit arguing the rates were excessive and improperly approved, the Fresno City Council unanimously voted in July 2014 to repeal the rate hikes (and had to pay $150,000 in attorney’s fees to the citizen’s coalition).3 The city canceled the in- creases, issued bill credits, paid legal fees, and revisited the plan to find a compro- mise acceptable to ratepayers. 2. Davis: Davis adopted a new water rate schedule in March 2013 based on a "Con- sumption-Based Fixed Rates" (CBFR) model to fund a surface water project. This model was criticized as unfair, particularly to single-family homeowners. A success- ful referendum (Measure P) in June 2014 repealed these rates, compelling the City Council to discard the original COSA and conduct a new rate study. By September 2014, Davis adopted a revised COSA and a more traditional rate structure aligned with community feedback.4 3 https://abc30.com/fresno-city-council-agrees-to-repeal-water-rates-hike/231407/ 4 https://www.cityofdavis.org/city-hall/public-works-utilities-and-operations/water/water-rates; https://bal- lotpedia.org/City_of_Davis_Water_Rates_Repeal_Referendum%2C_Measure_P_%28June_2014%29 Page 3 of 4 3. Glendale: Glendale discovered serious flaws in its 2011-2012 COSA, which misallo- cated customer usage data, leading to undercharges for some and extreme increases for others. The city scrapped the flawed analysis and commissioned a new COSA in 2014 to correct the methodology and rebalance cost allocations. This revision was prompted by customer complaints and revenue shortfalls.5 The new COSA was adopted in July 2014. 4. Oxnard: Oxnard revised its COSA and rate plan in 2017 following community back- lash to an initial 2015-2016 proposal that included an 87% cumulative rate increase. After residents launched Measure M to repeal the steep rate hikes, Oxnard proactively revisited the COSA. A Utility Ratepayers Advisory Panel was formed, leading to a new, more gradual five-year rate schedule implemented in mid-2017 (but was still arguably noncompliant with Measure M).6 The City continued litigation for several years to challenge Measure M and justify the rate increase from the URAP, where it finally suc- ceeded on appeal, and the more gradual rates decided upon the URAP were held. LITIGATION RISK FAVORS REMAND, NOT ADOPTION The examples above show that residents will either: (1) sue and/or (2) seek a ballot measure to overturn unfair COSAs. The Finance Committee should get ahead of this potential out- come and return the COSA to the UAC for further review. Indeed, in Oxnard, not only did the city have to revise its COSA after it was the subject of a successful ballot measure, it then had to litigate the onerous eYects of that measure for several years. The original measure passed in November 2016, but litigation continued well into 2021. CAP AND TRADE TRANSFER RUNS CONTARY TO CLIMATE GOALS AND CITY POLICY The proposed $1.6 million transfer from our Cap and Trade reserves to mask the gas rate increase impact on residences directly contradicts both our climate goals and Palo Alto City Council's established policy governing the use of these revenues. In January 2015, the Coun- cil adopted a policy (Resolution 9487) establishing how Cap and Trade funds should be used that explicitly intended using these funds for greenhouse gas reduction projects—such as energy eYiciency programs, renewable biogas purchases, and other carbon-cutting 5 https://www.latimes.com/socal/glendale-news-press/news/tn-gnp-xpm-2014-04-02-tn-gnp-city-set-to- pay-consultant-to-fix-water-rates-20140402-story.html 6 https://oxnard.granicus.com/Docu- mentViewer.php?file=oxnard_5a0fece5e6118fcafd4a42b4bcae0fa1.pdf&view=1 (at page 7: “Due to the chal- lenge of the rate increase for Wastewater the City was granted a stay by the court until the City completes a new Cost of Service Study that is scheduled to begin in February 2017.”); https://www.movingoxnardfor- ward.org/wastewater_bond_rating_improves_after_oxnard_loses_measure_m_lawsuit. Page 4 of 4 measures—"before providing rebates" to customers. In adopting this policy, the Council signaled that climate programs would take priority over bill credits.7 This policy was further strengthened in October 2022, when the Council unanimously ap- proved an updated policy (Resolution 10077) to "clearly state its intention to use" the gas allowance revenues for building, appliance and vehicle electrification programs. At the same meeting, Council authorized using $1.25 million of gas Cap-and-Trade funds for an Advanced Heat Pump Water Heater Pilot program.8 More, this information was not presented to UAC, which is another reason justifying remand. Using these funds to subsidize gas rates directly contradicts both the letter and spirit of these policies, and is a misuse of resources specifically designated for combatting climate change. CONCLUSION Because of the limited review from UAC and significant community concerns, it is prudent to return the gas COSA to the UAC while maintaining the prior COSA with proportional rate increases that are fair to both residents and businesses. Additionally, the Finance Commit- tee should reject the proposed use of Cap-and-Trade funds for rate relief and instead direct those funds toward their intended purpose of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Thank you for your service to our community. Respectfully Submitted. Utsav Gupta Palo Alto Resident UAC Commissioner (speaking in personal capacity) 7 See Footnote 1. 8 See Footnote 2. Resolution No. 9487 Resolution of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Amending the Cap­ and-Trade Revenue Utilization Policy to Cover the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances for the Gas and Electric Utilities RECITALS A. The Global Warming Solutions Act, also known as Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32), requires that California's Greenhouse Gas {GHG) emissions by 2020 be at 1990 levels, and authorized the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to develop regulations to reach this goal. B. The GHG emission cap-and-trade program is one of several tools designed by CARB to achieve the state's GHG reduction goal, and has been in operation since November 2012. C. As of January 2015 and in accordance with CARB's cap-and-trade regulations, as a natural gas supplier, the City of Palo Alto will be GHG emission allowances (allowances) free of charge by CARB, to be utilized in a manner both consistent with the goals of AB 32 and exclusively for the benefit of retail gas ratepayers. D. Under the terms of CARB's cap-and-trade regulations, including Title 17 California Code of Regulations Section 95893 (d)(3), the City is required to sell a portion of these allocated allowances in the auctions conducted by CARB and utilize the auction sale proceeds "exclusively for the benefit of retail ratepayers of each natural gas supplier" and "consistent with the goals of AB 32". E. The Council of the City of Palo Alto supports the state's AB 32 goals, and intends to implement the City's Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap­ and-Trade Program (formerly titled the Cap-and-Trade Revenue Utilization Policy) in furtherance ofthese goals. The Council of the City of Palo Alto RESOLVES, as follows: SECTION 1. The City's Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap-and-Trade Program is amended as shown in Exhibit A. SECTION 2. The Council grants the City Manager or his designee the authority to implement the Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap-and­ Trade Program and to use allowances and allocate auction revenues to projects or expenditures as defined in Exhibit A. SECTION 3. Should California's cap-and-trade program and/or the CARB regulations implementing that program be suspended, discontinued or materially altered such that the City 150105 mf 6053201 of Palo Alto Utilities no longer receives allocated allowances of significant monetary value, the Council reserves the right to terminate the Policy on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances Under the State's Cap-and-Trade Program and discontinue any programs funded from the City's allocated allowance revenues. SECTION 4. The Council finds that the implementation of this Policy, including the use of revenue derived from it, and the expenditures of funds necessary to implement it, represent the City's cost of regulatory compliance with the state's cap-and-trade program and are consistent with the goals of AB 32. Such costs therefore represent the reasonable costs of providing service to CPAU's gas customers. SECTION 5. The Council finds that the amendment of this policy does not meet the definition of a "project" under the California Environmental Quality Act, as defined by California Public Resource Code Section 21065. INTRODUCED AND PASSED: January 26, 2015 AYES: BERMAN, BURT, DUBOIS, FILSETH, HOLMAN, KNISS, SCHARFF, SCHMID, WOLBACH NOES: ABSENT: ABSTENTIONS: ATTEST: ~ ~( ~1 City Clerk ~ APPROVED AS TO FORM: ~ctt~ Mayor APPROVED: r!Lti,L ~a ATTACHMENT A EXHIBIT A TO RESOLUTION NO •. __ ADOPTED BY COUNCIL ON: __ _ CITY OF PALO ALTO POLICY ON THE USE OF FREELY ALLOCATED ALLOWANCES UNDER THE STATE'S CAP-AND-TRADE PROGRAM This Polley applies to freely allocated greenhouse gas (GHG) emission allowances from the california Air Resources Board (CARB) to the City of Palo Alto's electric and natural gas distribution utilities ("Allocated Allowances"). The City Manager or his designee Is authorized to use Allocated Allowances and any resulting revenue in any lawful manner consistent with this policy. The City's Polley on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances for the Electric Utility Is as follows: 1. The City shall abide by CARB's regulations by using the auction proceeds and allowance value obtained from the City's allocated allowances for the exclusive benefit of the City's electric retail ratepayers, consistent with the goals of the Global Warming Solutions Act, also known as Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32), and not for the benefit of entities or persons other than such ratepayers. 2. The following uses of the City's auction proceeds are permitted: a) Purchases or Investment in renewable resources (outside Palo Alto or locally) for the electric portfolio; b) Investment In energy efficiency programs for the electric portfolio and retail customers; c) Investment In other carbon reduction activities, Including those required to achieve a carbon-neutral electric portfolio; and d) Rebates to electric retail ratepayers. 3. Allocated allowances may also be used to meet the City's electric utility's compliance obligations for electricity scheduled into the California Independent System Operator Markets, should state law eventually permit this action. 4. Council will receive annual reports on the allowance revenues and expenditures associated with complying with CARB regulations and this policy. 5. Additional Council approval will be required for any rebates to electric ratepayers proposed under this Polley. The City's Polley on the Use of Freely Allocated Allowances for the Gas Utility Is as follows: 1. 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From:Sky Posse Post To:Council, City; Shikada, Ed; Stump, Molly Cc:Horrigan-Taylor, Meghan Subject:Re: Request for Council and City public outreach on City"s response to SFO DEIR - SCOPE due on May 30 Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 8:05:05 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Please use this CORRECTED April 30 CEQA Notice regarding SFO. Thank you. On Tue, May 6, 2025 at 3:56 PM Sky Posse Post <skypossepost@gmail.com> wrote: Dear Mayor Lauing, City Council, City Manager, City Attorney, Upon the April 30 CEQA notice for a Draft Environmental Impact Report (04/16/2025) regarding an “SFO Recommended Airport Plan” to expand SFO airport capacity from currently serving 52 million passengers to 72 million passengers, we request that the City please establish regular updates to residents about what is happening and the City's response. SFO’s expansion plan drawn up in 2016 and 2019 (postponed during Covid according to SFO) does not consider Palo Alto and neighboring cities' complaints and it leaves citizens without any consideration of noise, air pollution or safety concerns. We expect the City to forcefully defend Palo Alto from SFO’s expansion plans. Families move to Palo Alto for quality of life, our schools, the weather and outdoors. Our community places extraordinary value on our local parks, open space preserves, clean air, and nature. Peaceful nights, and to be able to think, study, and work without industrial level noise pollution are essential to quality of life and Palo Alto’s economy, built over generations - NOT to be damaged by an out of control airport. We did not move to the airport. SFO is 20 miles away, managed by San Francisco 30 miles away. Please represent that we have been working since Nextgen was implemented for a REDUCTION in impacts. In 2019, the City Manager wrote a thorough letter to SFO to inform SFO’s DEIR scope with some of our concerns; the need to include noise impacts on Palo Alto and other cities within at least a 50 mile radius of SFO; measurement of emissions on the ground, specifically the level of ultrafine particles in locations where aircraft fly below 5000 feet; permanent noise monitoring, and a cumulative impact of noise and emissions of all current and anticipated air traffic operations at all three of the Bay Area’s international airports (SFO, Oakland and San Jose). The Bay Area Air Quality Management District which has Palo Alto’s Vice Mayor on the board also sent a 2019 letter on air quality issues. The 2019 inputs from Palo Alto continue to be critical, and below we recommend adding attention to what was NOT contemplated in 2019 - or 2014, and 2015 when SFO’s plans were being hatched while the airport tried to convince us that “nothing has changed” with the Nextgen implementation. First, in the last decade not enough has been done to address how airport CEQA airport reviews prioritize airport building construction disruptions which are temporary but exclude flight path impacts on populations while the FAA’s flight path reviews do not evaluate airport capacity expansions or air traffic increases; an arrangement that we suggest demands legal and safety review. NEPA being a disclosure law should have guidance when two agencies that share responsibility for an issue are effectively denying an airport’s core and most consequential impacts on populations. We are also concerned about what is considered “significant impact” for CEQA because A. the noise metric and threshold historically used by the FAA and airports are under review precisely because local and national public outcry prompted FAA studies that substantiate that the NEPA significance threshold is insensitive and inadequate and B. We argue that the historical noise metric and threshold policy has been improperly applied to produce NEPA public disclosures because 65 DNL was meant for a completely different law for land use planning/a voluntary Part 150 insulation program which a DEIR is not. To further inform the City’s response to SFO, we ask that the following key concerns also please be considered. SFO evidently can refuse to provide any analysis or responses even as their operation and all airports enjoy perennial federal subsidies, but we recommend that it is incumbent on all cities (including San Francisco) and counties impacted by SFO to obtain both the environmental information laid out in Palo Alto’s 2019 letter, and the information below, to adequately represent citizens: SAFETY Review: The FAA repeatedly stated in their implementation of Nextgen, including in court, that the agency did not consider or review airport capacity expansion. Safety should be part of a CEQA analysis for any transportation impact. A safety analysis for SFO traffic should include a review of how SFO has been reducing the distance between runways (less safe); an analysis of go-arounds over time; the number and historical tracking of airspace procedures that the FAA manages for SFO; a comprehensive review of all the “letters of agreement” between SFO and FAA; a list of operating procedures, and an overview of any and all know airport safety criteria. Flight Path Governance and Oversight Review: The decision-making structures for flight paths that FAA services for SFO operations needs attention. Currently, the jurisdictions that profit from the airport have an advantage with the FAA to address noise for their constituents from SFO’s landlord San Mateo County and San Francisco; cities like Palo Alto are handled on the side with no accountability to Palo Alto citizens. The last outreach from SFO using the City of Palo Alto was to sell SFO’s GBAS project as a noise reduction project which is an example of how FAA staff and community time and resources are used by SFO practically for SFO’s and San Mateo County’s sole benefit because GBAS can increase noise. Given adequate scrutiny, there are obvious conflicts of interest with these arrangements, lack of transparency, and very real risks. Audit of OAK, SFO, and SJC growth projections: It’s overdue to have an explanation of Bay Area airport projections, why they rely on Million Annual Passenger (MAP), how the FAA is one of the sources for these types of numbers - what does the FAA base their estimates on; when was the last time the agency updated their projections that are fed into the airport projections. We have seen first hand with Nextgen and our own Palo Alto airport that aviation plans are meant to promote aviation; driven by industry aspirations, featuring benefits for the public while denying local community needs and concerns. At the very least SFO, OAK and SJC airport projections need an independent review. Performance statistics for SFO’s flight paths: The FAA’s Nextgen Advisory Committee (NAC) has started to produce some flight path efficiency/performance planning information that includes SFO. The DEIR should explain the efficiency statistics and Nextgen PLANS; how these ongoing airline and airport initiatives can affect noise and air quality emissions. And ideally, it’s time for an EIS for SFO to finally correct the problems with the Metroplex EA done in 2014. Improved environmental impacts analysis that the public can digest: It is unreasonable that hundreds or thousands of pages can be produced for a CEQA document and still leave virtually ALL of the environmental impacts that are causing public outcry off of a report. It happened with Oakland airport’s CEQA report and yet their officials certified it. Local officials have a leading role and responsibility to see that environmental reviews are not used to hide problems and that noise and emissions assessments reports are produced with high standards and the most updated methods. Consideration of Regional Consensus: In response to meetings with community groups in Santa Cruz, our grassroots organization in Palo Alto, and congressional officials, the FAA issued its Initiative to Address Noise Concerns of Santa Cruz/Santa Clara/San Mateo/San Francisco Counties leading to a Select Committee of Bay Area officials who called for the need to use more noise metrics than DNL to address flight path concerns, particularly to address bass frequency noise which is not reflected in CNEL or DNL but can make up a major part of noise because this frequency travels farther and penetrates buildings. As the Select Committee’s technical advisor, FAA spent months in Palo Alto and FAA leadership made recommendations to address nighttime noise for Mid Peninsula cities. After the FAA left, the potential solutions for SFO arrivals affecting MidPen have held a backseat to SFO Roundtable priorities which exclude Palo Alto; a decade later, nothing that the FAA recommended to help address night time noise for MidPeninsula cities has been instituted. In short, there are serious SFO air traffic impacts and governance problems that are unresolved. SFO’s recommendation for its own expansion is happening with no oversight. Not from the FAA, not state or regional. San Francisco does not attend the SFO Roundtable meetings where noise is discussed, but its planning department repeatedly scopes an environmental review without looking at the Nextgen flight paths that make the airport operable; protecting no one suffering 24/7 from SFO’s impact or future impacted people and areas. Any SFO action, much less an expansion, in the age of Nextgen, can quickly become OUT OF CONTROL. It is simply irresponsible. The City of Palo Alto must please stop this madness and lead on establishing better governance of SFO’s and other airport actions that impact our City which only the City and Council can negotiate on behalf of its current and future residents. Thank you, Sky Posse Palo Alto From:Aram James To:Shikada, Ed Cc:Stump, Molly; Council, City Subject:Cupertino council places city manager on leave Date:Wednesday, May 7, 2025 7:39:08 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. https://sanjosespotlight.com/cupertino-council-places-city-manager-on-leave/ From:Sunita Ram To:Council, City Cc:Ed@EdLauing.com; Vicki@VickiforCouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; LydiaKou@gmail.com; Clerk, City; gstone22@gmail.com; Reckdahl, Keith; Julie@JulieforPaloAlto.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 5:09:43 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott-Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kouproposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjectiveaesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCCOrder regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuitalmost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please:Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell towerapplicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approvingthem is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so muchradiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is goingto be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a celltower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely,Sunita From:Francesca KautzTo:Council, CityCc:Clerk, City; ed@edlauing.com; georgeglu@gmail.com; gstone22@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; LydiaKou@gmail.com; pat@patburt.org; Reckdahl, Keith; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.comSubject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues MemoDate:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 4:29:52 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links. ! Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott-Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draftResolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying itsPalo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feetfurther than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Francesca and David Kautz This message could be suspiciousThe sender's email address couldn't be verified.This is their first mail to some recipients. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast From:Arlene Rosenblum To:Council, City Subject:Fwd: February 27th message relating to bikers Date:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 3:57:21 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Arlene & Peter Rosenblum <rosenbl@mac.com>Date: Thu, Feb 27, 2025 at 9:40 PM Subject: February 27th message relating to bikersTo: <city.council@cityofpaloalto.org> CC: Arlene Rosenblum <arlenerosenblum@gmail.com> Dear Council members, I have questions and concerns which are linked to safety issues. I understand the need for bikers (and scooters) to ride on the sidewalks on Middlefield Rd.. and throughout much of thetown. The students at Greene Middle School ride fast and often two abreast leaving no room for pedestrians. Most fail to indicate that they are behind walkers or intending to pass butinstead swerve around them. I am also in a quandary as to why bikers at night(riding on the sidewalk and in the street) are not required to have headlights and tail lights, since they are vehicles and are difficult to see asa pedestrian (as well as in a vehicle, unless headlights shine on them). I hope the town, schools and police department will look into this very dangerous situation. with appreciation, Arlene Rosenblum2551 Middlefield Rd. Palo Alto 94301 From:Sky Posse Post To:Council, City; Shikada, Ed; Stump, Molly Cc:Horrigan-Taylor, Meghan Subject:Request for Council and City public outreach on City"s response to SFO DEIR - SCOPE due on May 30 Date:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 3:57:09 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, City Council, City Manager, City Attorney, Upon the April 30 CEQA notice for a Draft Environmental Impact Report (04/16/2025) regarding an “SFO Recommended Airport Plan” to expand SFO airport capacity from currently serving 52 million passengers to 72 million passengers, we request that the City please establish regular updates to residents about what is happening and the City's response. SFO’s expansion plan drawn up in 2016 and 2019 (postponed during Covid according to SFO) does not consider Palo Alto and neighboring cities' complaints and it leaves citizens without any consideration of noise, air pollution or safety concerns. We expect the City to forcefully defend Palo Alto from SFO’s expansion plans. Families move to Palo Alto for quality of life, our schools, the weather and outdoors. Our community places extraordinary value on our local parks, open space preserves, clean air, and nature. Peaceful nights, and to be able to think, study, and work without industrial level noise pollution are essential to quality of life and Palo Alto’s economy, built over generations - NOT to be damaged by an out of control airport. We did not move to the airport. SFO is 20 miles away, managed by San Francisco 30 miles away. Please represent that we have been working since Nextgen was implemented for a REDUCTION in impacts. In 2019, the City Manager wrote a thorough letter to SFO to inform SFO’s DEIR scope with some of our concerns; the need to include noise impacts on Palo Alto and other cities within at least a 50 mile radius of SFO; measurement of emissions on the ground, specifically the level of ultrafine particles in locations where aircraft fly below 5000 feet; permanent noise monitoring, and a cumulative impact of noise and emissions of all current and anticipated air traffic operations at all three of the Bay Area’s international airports (SFO, Oakland and San Jose). The Bay Area Air Quality Management District which has Palo Alto’s Vice Mayor on the board also sent a 2019 letter on air quality issues. The 2019 inputs from Palo Alto continue to be critical, and below we recommend adding attention to what was NOT contemplated in 2019 - or 2014, and 2015 when SFO’s plans were being hatched while the airport tried to convince us that “nothing has changed” with the Nextgen implementation. First, in the last decade not enough has been done to address how airport CEQA airport reviews prioritize airport building construction disruptions which are temporary but exclude flight path impacts on populations while the FAA’s flight path reviews do not evaluate airport capacity expansions or air traffic increases; an arrangement that we suggest demands legal and safety review. NEPA being a disclosure law should have guidance when two agencies that share responsibility for an issue are effectively denying an airport’s core and most consequential impacts on populations. We are also concerned about what is considered “significant impact” for CEQA because A. the noise metric and threshold historically used by the FAA and airports are under review precisely because local and national public outcry prompted FAA studies that substantiate that the NEPA significance threshold is insensitive and inadequate and B. We argue that the historical noise metric and threshold policy has been improperly applied to produce NEPA public disclosures because 65 DNL was meant for a completely different law for land use planning/a voluntary Part 150 insulation program which a DEIR is not. To further inform the City’s response to SFO, we ask that the following key concerns also please be considered. SFO evidently can refuse to provide any analysis or responses even as their operation and all airports enjoy perennial federal subsidies, but we recommend that it is incumbent on all cities (including San Francisco) and counties impacted by SFO to obtain both the environmental information laid out in Palo Alto’s 2019 letter, and the information below, to adequately represent citizens: SAFETY Review: The FAA repeatedly stated in their implementation of Nextgen, including in court, that the agency did not consider or review airport capacity expansion. Safety should be part of a CEQA analysis for any transportation impact. A safety analysis for SFO traffic should include a review of how SFO has been reducing the distance between runways (less safe); an analysis of go-arounds over time; the number and historical tracking of airspace procedures that the FAA manages for SFO; a comprehensive review of all the “letters of agreement” between SFO and FAA; a list of operating procedures, and an overview of any and all know airport safety criteria. Flight Path Governance and Oversight Review: The decision-making structures for flight paths that FAA services for SFO operations needs attention. Currently, the jurisdictions that profit from the airport have an advantage with the FAA to address noise for their constituents from SFO’s landlord San Mateo County and San Francisco; cities like Palo Alto are handled on the side with no accountability to Palo Alto citizens. The last outreach from SFO using the City of Palo Alto was to sell SFO’s GBAS project as a noise reduction project which is an example of how FAA staff and community time and resources are used by SFO practically for SFO’s and San Mateo County’s sole benefit because GBAS can increase noise. Given adequate scrutiny, there are obvious conflicts of interest with these arrangements, lack of transparency, and very real risks. Audit of OAK, SFO, and SJC growth projections: It’s overdue to have an explanation of Bay Area airport projections, why they rely on Million Annual Passenger (MAP), how the FAA is one of the sources for these types of numbers - what does the FAA base their estimates on; when was the last time the agency updated their projections that are fed into the airport projections. We have seen first hand with Nextgen and our own Palo Alto airport that aviation plans are meant to promote aviation; driven by industry aspirations, featuring benefits for the public while denying local community needs and concerns. At the very least SFO, OAK and SJC airport projections need an independent review. Performance statistics for SFO’s flight paths: The FAA’s Nextgen Advisory Committee (NAC) has started to produce some flight path efficiency/performance planning information that includes SFO. The DEIR should explain the efficiency statistics and Nextgen PLANS; how these ongoing airline and airport initiatives can affect noise and air quality emissions. And ideally, it’s time for an EIS for SFO to finally correct the problems with the Metroplex EA done in 2014. Improved environmental impacts analysis that the public can digest: It is unreasonable that hundreds or thousands of pages can be produced for a CEQA document and still leave virtually ALL of the environmental impacts that are causing public outcry off of a report. It happened with Oakland airport’s CEQA report and yet their officials certified it. Local officials have a leading role and responsibility to see that environmental reviews are not used to hide problems and that noise and emissions assessments reports are produced with high standards and the most updated methods. Consideration of Regional Consensus: In response to meetings with community groups in Santa Cruz, our grassroots organization in Palo Alto, and congressional officials, the FAA issued its Initiative to Address Noise Concerns of Santa Cruz/Santa Clara/San Mateo/San Francisco Counties leading to a Select Committee of Bay Area officials who called for the need to use more noise metrics than DNL to address flight path concerns, particularly to address bass frequency noise which is not reflected in CNEL or DNL but can make up a major part of noise because this frequency travels farther and penetrates buildings. As the Select Committee’s technical advisor, FAA spent months in Palo Alto and FAA leadership made recommendations to address nighttime noise for Mid Peninsula cities. After the FAA left, the potential solutions for SFO arrivals affecting MidPen have held a backseat to SFO Roundtable priorities which exclude Palo Alto; a decade later, nothing that the FAA recommended to help address night time noise for MidPeninsula cities has been instituted. In short, there are serious SFO air traffic impacts and governance problems that are unresolved. SFO’s recommendation for its own expansion is happening with no oversight. Not from the FAA, not state or regional. San Francisco does not attend the SFO Roundtable meetings where noise is discussed, but its planning department repeatedly scopes an environmental review without looking at the Nextgen flight paths that make the airport operable; protecting no one suffering 24/7 from SFO’s impact or future impacted people and areas. Any SFO action, much less an expansion, in the age of Nextgen, can quickly become OUT OF CONTROL. It is simply irresponsible. The City of Palo Alto must please stop this madness and lead on establishing better governance of SFO’s and other airport actions that impact our City which only the City and Council can negotiate on behalf of its current and future residents. Thank you, Sky Posse Palo Alto From:forest light To:Council, City Cc:d@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 11:40:59 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Subject: Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, I understand that the date for the City Council’s consideration of revisions to Palo Alto’s wireless ordinance is now scheduled for May 19, 2025. Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to PaloAlto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. Make the much-needed changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Ed Lauing and former Mayor Lydia Kou have proposed without further delay. Thank you. Michael MaurierGreenacres One Resident This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. This is their first email to your company. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki; Council, City; Human Relations Commission; jgreen@dailynewsgroup.com; LotusFong; Roberta Ahlquist; Rodriguez, Miguel; Dana St. George; Gerry Gras; Mickie Winkler; Binder, Andrew; JayBoyarsky; Jeff Rosen; Jeff Conrad; Jeff Hayden Cc:Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; board@pausd.org; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; josh@joshsalcman.com; Josh Becker; Ed Lauing; Lauing, Ed; Reckdahl, Keith; Gardener, Liz; planning.commission@cityofpaloalto.0rg; ParkRec Commission; Emily Mibach; Dave Price; EPA Today; Gennady Sheyner; Diana Diamond; GRP-City Council Subject:Why Palestinian Films Need To Be Widely Distributed Date:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 9:10:32 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Farah Nabulsi.mp4 Watch now Why Palestinian Films Need To BeWidely Distributed Award-winning director joins Mehdi to talk about the release of ‘TheTeacher’ in the US and self-distributing it in the UK. MEHDI HASAN AND TEAM ZETEO MAY 6 ∙PREVIEW READ IN APP When the ugliness of Israel’s crimes in occupied Gaza overshadows the ugliness of its crimes in the occupied West Bank, films like Farah Nabulsi’s latest release, ‘The Teacher,’ become all the more important. The BAFTA-winning, Oscar-nominated Palestinian Director joins Mehdi to discuss her latest film, which centers around the struggle of Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank through the lens of a school teacher there. “The film is set in this sort of brutal, oppressive reality of militarily occupied Palestine, a place of apartheid that has been suffered by Palestinians for decades,” says Nabulsi, adding that highlighting that reality is not an easy task. “You really do have this reality unfolding around you that you're trying to do justice to in your film. So a lot of pressure.” The movie, which was entirely shot in the occupied West Bank prior to October 7, 2023, was a complicated one to film, according to Nabulsi, “One evening we finished at two in the morning shooting a scene in the heart of Nablus only to wake up four hours later and receive messages that the Israeli military entered Nablus and blown up a house about two kilometers from where we were shooting.” Upgrade to paid After crossing the hurdles of filming under heavy militarization in the occupied territories, Nabulsi still faced the hurdles of distributing a film that centers around the Palestinian struggle for liberation. “What's crazy is this is a British-Palestinian film, and I am a British-Palestinian filmmaker, and you would think that we would have got distribution in the UK, considering this film has won now 20 international awards… it ticked all the boxes, and yet we didn't have distribution.” Nabulsi went on to self-distribute the film, which was released in the US just last month. Head to theteacher.film to find a screening near you. Paid subscribers can watch the full interview above to hear some of Farah’s horrifying stories while filming in the occupied West Bank, and to see what she has in store for her next film. Free subscribers can watch a 5-minute preview. Do consider becoming a paid subscriber to Zeteo and skip the paywall every time!... Subscribe to Zeteo to unlock the rest. Become a paying subscriber of Zeteo to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content. Upgrade to paid A subscription gets you: Support Mehdi’s brand of accountability journalism Unlimited access to all exclusive content (shows, podcasts, newsletters) Live Q&As with Mehdi + more! LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2025 Zeteo1640 Boro Place 4th floor, McLean, VA 22102 Unsubscribe From:San Mateo County Transit DistrictTo:Council, CitySubject:SamTrans Next Stop e-News Spring EditionDate:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 9:10:07 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious ofopening attachments and clicking on links. i • Spring Edition 2025 | View online • This message needs your attentionNo employee in your company has ever replied to this person. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast All Aboard Bay Area Transit Hop on SamTrans, check out our custom playlist, and share your ride on social media for a chance to win some swag! Take the challenge Mix your modes May is Bike Month — and SamTrans is the perfect partner for your ride, with bike- friendly buses that help you go farther, skip the traffic, and enjoy the journey. Pedal farther with SamTrans A winning formula Discover how a bold network refresh and innovative services are fueling a remarkable ridership rebound — surpassing pre-pandemic weekend levels and reshaping local transit. See what’s driving growth • • • Get Next Stop sent to your inbox | Subscribe• • • See the 2024 winners and their artwork. Art Takes a Bus Ride - 2025 SamTrans will announce the winners of the annual county-wide student art competition Art Takes a Bus Ride on Wednesday, May 7. The awards ceremony will take place at the May board meeting where the newly wrapped buses with the winning designs will be shown for the first time to the public. The winning artists — who are in first grade through 11th grade — were asked to illustrate the theme “Connecting Our Community with SamTrans.” This is the 17th year that SamTrans has partnered with the San Mateo County Office of Education to sponsor the contest. More than 100 submissions were received this year from schools throughout San Mateo County. A panel comprised of members from the San Mateo County Arts Commission selected the winning contestants. See previous years! UPCOMING EVENTS May 6 - All Aboard Bay Area Transit Day - All Routes May 15-17 - Bike to Wherever Days - All Routes Join our team! Bus operator Mechanics & Utility Workers Various See more openings Forward Next Stop to your friends, so they can subscribe too! Editor: Randol White WhiteR@SamTrans.com Copyright (C) 2025 San Mateo County Transit District. All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: 1250 San Carlos Ave. San Carlos, CA 94070 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe From:Barbara Kelly To:Council, City; Ed@EdLauing.com; Vicki@VickiforCouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com;Julie@JulieforPaloAlto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Tuesday, May 6, 2025 8:18:39 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker, and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott-Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s WirelessCommunication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standardsthat were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please:Restore the Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications.Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home;Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of cell tower applicants' “technicalfeasibility” assertions. Sincerely, \Barbara Kelly From:Penny Proctor To:Council, City Subject:Thank you for Eleanor Restroom in FY 2026! Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 8:32:31 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Members of the Palo Alto City Council, It is wonderful to see the Eleanor Pardee Park restroom included in the FY 2026 budget! Thank you!! I have had an Eleanor Community Garden plot for 35 years. We have 101 plots now. 62 of those gardeners are over 60. And we have 7 families with little kids. We garden for hours. Many have medical conditions that make no restroom difficult. Several have had to give up their beloved plots for this reason. A couple of weeks ago I thought I was over the norovirus, but had a sudden relapse and a nervous quick trip to Rinconada library. We work hard to make Eleanor Community Garden beautiful and welcoming to visitors, with lots of flowers, and cherry tomatoes and berries for visitors, and the Butterfly Garden. We pull foxtail weeds to keep the dogs safe. There are so many birds! We have phoebes, swallows, bluebirds, and a pair of hawks. On past clean up and weeding days we have had to clean up human waste, which is a health risk for our volunteers. Hitting soft “solid waste” hidden in ivy or weeds with a weed whacker is very bad! It sprays in all directions in an 8 foot circle! It will be wonderful to have a restroom! The Master Gardeners Demonstration Garden hosts many well attended free classes, but cannot host school group classes now with no restroom. They will be so happy to be able to do so! Eleanor Pardee Park is almost 10 acres full of happy people! Playgrounds, soccer, lots of picnics and birthday parties. And little kids need to “go” often. A friend recently walked with her grandaughter to the park. When the child had to “go” they walked home, but could not make it and the little girl had an accident, and was mortified. They will not walk to the park again. My connection to Eleanor Park started when I was a toddler, (I’m 69 now,) and my mother, Helen Norman Proctor, ALSA (American Society of Landscape Architects,) designed the southern 5 acres. She wanted to include a restroom then. She will be pleased in Heaven! Thank you so very much for putting it in FY2026! It will make such a difference! Penny Proctor From:Shashank Divekar To:Council, City Cc:Kallas, Emily; Lait, Jonathan; Jayashree Divekar Subject:Palo Alto Commons - May 5 at Council Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 6:56:45 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Honorable Council Members, Thank you for this opportunity. I'm Shashank Divekar, a 20-year resident of 4054 Wilkie Way. Like my neighbors, I support my neighbors’ concerns about Palo Alto Commons expansion that brings traffic and parking problems, loss of privacy in our backyards, loss of quality of life and so on. Today, I speak from the heart also about our homes—the culmination of our life's work and dreams. This expansion threatens to drastically devalue Wilkie Way properties. My wife and I have poured everything into this house where our children grew up. It's not just our shelter; it's our single largest asset—the financial security we've sacrificed for decades to build. To see it diminished would be to watch our children's inheritance slip away through no fault of our own. The collective loss we as neighbors face reaches millions. One neighbor has already sold and left, anticipating these changes. With each departure, our community weakens. We support senior housing but believe there are better solutions. Palo Alto Commons, a for-profit Utah based company, could build the 7 internal units or develop on the front side without devastating our properties. Their profit shouldn't come at the cost of our life savings. I ask you to help find a balance where Palo Alto Commons can grow while respecting neighbors. Please protect not just our property values, but the legacy we've built for our children and this community. Thank you, Shashank Divekar (4054 Wilkie Way, Palo Alto, CA 94306) From:Karin Thorne To:Council, City Cc:Ed@edlauing.com; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 5:58:25 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott-Haims,Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Karin Thorne From:Leo Povolotsky To:Council, City Cc:Ed@EdLauing.com; Vicki@VickiforCouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@JulieforPaloAlto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 5:45:46 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance” The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) isgoing to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Leo Povolotsky, Palo Alto resident for 34 years From:Charlene Liao To:Council, City Cc:Ed@EdLauing.com; Vicki@VickiforCouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@JulieforPaloAlto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 5:18:10 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Altocontinues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begunmodifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, sevendays a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Charlene Liao From:Lynn Hollyn To:Council, City Cc:Ed Lauing; Vicki@vickiforcouncil.com; pat@patburt.org; georgeglu@gmail.com; Julie@julieforpaloalto.com; Reckdahl, Keith; gstone22@gmail.com; Clerk, City; LydiaKou@gmail.com Subject:Urgent: Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 5:12:04 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. re: Please approve the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo Dear Mayor Lauing, Vice Mayor Veenker and Councilmembers Burt, Lu, Lythcott- Haims, Reckdahl, and Stone, Please vote to approve the changes to the wireless ordinance that Mayor Lauing and then-Councilmember Kou proposed in their Fall, 2024, Colleagues Memo, a Memo cum draft Resolution titled “Restoration of subjective aesthetic standards to Palo Alto’s Wireless Communication Facilities (WCF) ordinance”. The City’s wireless ordinance is egregiously out of date. In particular, Palo Alto continues to adhere to a 2018 FCC Order regarding standards for cell tower design and siting—standards that were thrown out by the Ninth Circuit almost five years ago. An update is more than overdue. Please: Restore Architectural Review Board review and public hearings for cell tower applications; Remove the ordinance language that OKs locating unsightly, hazardous cell towers 20 feet from a home; Prioritize locating cell towers as far as possible from homes and schools; and Require review by non-industry-aligned experts of the “technical feasibility” assertions made by cell tower applicants. All of these changes are spelled out in the Resolution that is part of the Kou/Lauing Colleagues Memo. Approving them is more urgent than ever. AT&T has begun modifying its Palo Alto cell towers so that they now emit so much radiation they need to be shut down if any worker (e.g., a Palo Alto Utilities employee, an AT&T worker) is going to be within 21 feet of the antennas for any length of time, no matter how short. How can it make sense for a cell tower like this to be operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, only a few feet further than that from residents’ homes? Thank you for your consideration. Lynn Hollyn 455 Seale Avenue Palo Alto From:Karen Lally To:Council, City Subject:A Small Request for a Big Impact at Eleanor Pardee Community Garden Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 4:06:17 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Hi there, My name is Karen Lally, and I work with HandsOn Bay Area—a volunteer-powered nonprofitbased in the Bay Area. One of the places we’re proud to support is the beautiful Eleanor Pardee Community Garden in Palo Alto, where we help organize volunteer days alongsidemaster gardeners and deeply dedicated community members. It’s a special place. Tucked into a quiet corner of the park, the garden is full of color, buzzingpollinators, and the kind of peace that feels rare these days. On a recent visit, we saw lots of bees and happy pups. The garden is alive—not just with plants, but with heart. What stands out most, though, are the people who show up. Week after week, volunteers arrive - often early in the morning - ready to dig, prune, and nurture this space for everyone toenjoy. They bring tools, knowledge, and joy. Their commitment to the garden and to fellow gardeners is magical. As I often tell our volunteers, “We show up to do good—but we also want to leave feeling good.” That’s part of why I’m reaching out. One of the ongoing needs at Eleanor Pardee is something small but meaningful: a restroom. For the years that I've been coming down, we've occasionally rented a porta potty whenbudget allowed, or directed folks to the library (a 20-minute round trip). But it’s not sustainable, and it interrupts the flow and joy of the work. A permanent bathroom would show these volunteers and the broader community that their time, effort, and care are truly valued. It would also support the garden’s long-term vitality bymaking it more accessible and welcoming to everyone who visits or volunteers. I know projects like this take planning and resources. But I also know that this garden has adeeply committed group who would not only use such a space responsibly but take pride in maintaining it. Thank you for considering this request. A bathroom might seem like a small addition but here it would make a world of difference. Warmly, Karen Lally -- Karen Lally (she/her/hers) | Why Pronouns Matter?Community Agency Relations Manager HandsOn Bay Areawww.handsonbayarea.org We have MOVED! Please update our address listing and send all correspondence to:HandsOn Bay Area 275 6th StreetSan Francisco, CA 94103 From:Joe Penko To:Council, City Subject:Restoring resources the healthy way FY26 (a message from your Palo Alto Firefighters) Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 4:01:09 PM Attachments:image002.png CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. i Esteemed Council Members and Finance Committee, Local 1319 has reviewed the Fire Chief’s recommendations for the FY26 budget and wouldlike to highlight several important considerations before tomorrow afternoon’s meeting. On April 1st, the Finance Committee provided clear direction to staff: develop a budget thatincludes both a fully staffed Engine 64 (additive) and a peak-hours ambulance (additive), with consideration for phasing in a single-role model in a fiscally responsible manner. While the proposed FY26 budget meets an earlier midyear directive to make permanent the three positions required to staff the cross-staffed Engine 64, it falls short of the most recentdirective: to fully staff Engine 64 as an independent, full-time unit. 1. Progress on E64 Staffing is Appreciated, but Incomplete We are grateful that the proposal includes the three FTEs needed to support the overtime Captain currently covering Engine 64. This is a critical step forward that improves firefighterwell-being and moves us incrementally closer to our goal of a fully staffed, stand-alone engine company. 2. Opposition to a 12-Hour Overtime Ambulance Staffed by Firefighters The department is proposing the addition of a 12-hour peak-time ambulance staffed entirelythrough firefighter overtime, beginning in October. We have consistently expressed our strong opposition to this model in previous meetings. The proposed October start date is based on anticipated relief after fire season ends. However, even with the addition of new FTEs, firefighters will likely be covering five daily overtimepositions throughout next summer—a level that is unsustainable. We appreciate the staff’s recognition of this concern in the report. Page 4 outlines analternative: This message needs your attention This is a personal email address. This is their first email to you. Mark Safe Report Powered by Mimecast "The City Council could choose to not implement the 12-hour peak ambulance on overtime asearly as October and wait until the single-role 12-hour peak ambulance program and staffing are ready..." This would reduce immediate overtime burdens and avoid exacerbating the retention and morale issues we have experienced in the past. 3. The Best Path Forward: Invest Fully in the Single-Role Division The most balanced and sustainable solution is presented on page 5 of the staff report under“Alternatives”: “To address both the system capacity needs and the desire for a full-time engine at FireStation 4, the Committee could recommend adding both a full-time ambulance and a 12-hour peak ambulance in the single-role model. Once implemented, this would add 14 FTEs and cost$2.2M in ongoing annual costs, with approximately half that amount needed in the first year.” This approach would: Support full restoration of Engine 64 as quickly as possible Eliminate the need for firefighter-staffed overtime ambulances in a shorter amount oftime Accelerate the implementation of a sustainable EMS model. Given that the administration has identified $1.1M in ongoing revenue through increased EMS billing and fee adjustments, now is the ideal time to commit to the full implementationof this division. We believe the creation of the Single-Role Division is a worthy and necessary investment—but it will not be easy. Assuming this division alone will solve the E64 staffing problem within a year is ambitious. Relying on firefighters to bridge the gap through additional overtimereplicates the very staffing crisis we’ve been trying to fix. Therefore, we urge the Council to provide the Single-Role Division with the fullresources it needs from the outset. 4. E64 Restoration Still Needs a Clear, Accelerated Path The current plan does not propose any new options to fully staff Engine 64 as soon as possible beyond the long-term single-role timeline. Given economic uncertainties and public demandfor restored services, delaying full restoration of Engine 64 carries risk—to both public safety and public trust. We respectfully ask the Council to remain open to any viable opportunities that emerge to restore E64 sooner. Local 1319 stands ready to work with you toward that goal. In Summary: Our top priority is the full staffing of Engine 64—without delay.We do not support the addition of a 12-hour ambulance staffed by firefighterovertime.We strongly encourage full and early investment in the Single-Role Division to support both EMS expansion and E64 restoration. Thank you for your continued partnership and dedication to the safety and well-being of ourcommunity. Joseph Penko Palo Alto Fire Department Local 1319 President C: 650.392.5589 | E: josephpenko@gmail.com From:Aram James To:Vicki Veenker; Veenker, Vicki Cc:Jessica Speiser, Educational Leader for California Democratic Delegate, Assembly District 23; assemblymember.berman@assembly.ca.gov; Josh Becker; Zelkha, Mila; board@pausd.org; Jay Boyarsky; Jeff Rosen; boardfeedback@smcgov.org; BoardOperations; Emily Mibach; Gennady Sheyner; Gardener, Liz; Templeton, Cari; planning.commission@cityofpaloalto.0rg; Pat M; Sean Allen; Dave Price; EPA Today; Diana Diamond; jgreen@dailynewsgroup.com; Gerry Gras; Dana St. George; Lotus Fong; Kaloma Smith; Vara Ramakrishnan; Palo Alto Free Press; Ed Lauing; George for Palo Alto; Reckdahl, Keith; Council, City; Perron, Zachary; city.council@menlopark.gov; citycouncil@mountainview.gov; Binder, Andrew; Wagner, April; Barberini, Christopher; Rowena Chiu; Bill Newell; dennis burns; DuJuan Green; Tom DuBois; Drekmeier, Peter; Raymond Goins; Figueroa, Eric; Foley, Michael; <michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com> Subject:Re: How Hamas Sees the Current Moment: An Exclusive Interview With Osama Hamdan Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 3:49:45 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links. How Hamas Sees the Current Moment:An Exclusive Interview With OsamaHamdan Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more How Hamas Sees the CurrentMoment: An Exclusive Interview WithOsama Hamdan In a wide-ranging interview with Drop Site, the senior Hamas leaderdiscusses negotiation strategy, why disarmament is a red line, his directtalks with U.S. officials, and more. JEREMY SCAHILL MAY 5 READ IN APP Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan in his office in the southern suburb of Dahiyeh in Beirut, Lebanon. January 18, 2024. (Photo by Oliver Marsden/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images) In an exclusive interview with Drop Site News, a senior Hamas official said that the movement will not capitulate to any demands from Israel or the U.S. to lay down its weapons and vowed that Hamas will reject any temporary ceasefire deal that does not include a clear path to a total Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the genocide. “No need for a short-term ceasefire,” said Osama Hamdan, one of the longest serving senior officials within Hamas. “What the Israelis are offering is: We will give you a ceasefire for a short while and then we will come back to kill you again. So what's the idea of giving you food for 12, 40 days, two weeks or three weeks, and then coming back to kill you? It means that you endorse the genocide and you accept that for your own people.” It has been two months since the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal, signed in January between Hamas and Israel, came to an end and Israel imposed a full spectrum blockade—the longest in recent history. Since March 2, Israel has prevented all food, water, medicine, fuel, and other supplies from reaching the besieged enclave, plunging Gaza into the worst humanitarian crisis of the 19- month war, according to the UN. On March 18, Israel resumed its scorched earth bombing, killing more than 2,400 Palestinians, mostly women and children. During this period, regional mediators Qatar and Egypt have failed to convince Israel to return to the original three-phase framework, which stipulated a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the declaration of a permanent ceasefire. Instead, Israel has issued a series of sweeping new demands as a condition for any halt to its genocidal operations. Central among these are the total demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, the exiling of Hamas leaders, and the removal of Hamas as the governing authority in Gaza. “I believe the Israelis don’t believe in any solution with the Palestinians. When they talk about disarming the Palestinians, it's their idea of killing the hope of the Palestinians to be liberated. And then if they want to push them out, the Palestinians will have no way to defend themselves," Hamdan said, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s stated plan for a “final stage” to the genocide that includes forcibly removing the population from Gaza. “When they talk about disarming the Palestinians—not only Hamas, the Palestinians—it means that they want the Palestinians to surrender. And when you surrender, you have to accept the will of the occupier.” Hamdan said that Hamas was surprised to witness Egyptian mediators present an Israeli plan that included terms about total demilitarization of Gaza. “Why were we astonished to see them talking about this issue? Because it's an Israeli issue, and as a mediator, you are not supposed just to admit any suggestion from the Israeli side. You have to deal with that. You have to talk directly to the Israelis [and say], ‘This will not work,’” Hamdan said. “If Hamas said we want Netanyahu to hand [over] power and to give up Tel Aviv for the Palestinians, for example, they will directly answer, ‘This will not happen.’ Why [are they] not talking to the Israelis in the same way?” Hamdan said that Palestinians have both a moral obligation and a legal mandate under international law to employ armed resistance to fight an Israeli occupation that has been repeatedly ruled illegal in international courts and is condemned as a system of apartheid by the world’s leading human rights organizations. “You can't talk about de-weaponizing the nation who is under occupation, while they are occupied by the most powerful army in the region,” he said. “Hamas did not invent the resistance for Palestine. In fact, the Palestinians resisted the British occupation and, since then, the Israeli occupation for decades. Talking about de- weaponizing the Palestinians, it will not solve the problem. The new generation will fight because you are oppressing the nation all the time. So there is no option for the Palestinians to get rid of this occupation without the resistance, no other option.” Drop Site News is reader-supported. Become a free or paid subscriber. Upgrade to paid Hamas has repeatedly proposed arrangements to end the occupation since the early 1990s, and Israel has rejected them all. Last week, it dismissed Hamas’s most recent offer, which would have seen all Israeli captives in Gaza returned to Israel as part of a multi-year deal. “They have rejected it and they may reject it another time, but this is also an answer for the international community when they keep asking the Palestinians, ‘OK, how can we solve the problem?’” Hamdan explained. “You can't solve the problem by talking about the security of Israel. You have to solve the problem by talking about the rights of the Palestinians who are giving you the option which can fit exactly within international law, with the international resolutions, which can solve the problem and give the Palestinian people their rights.” In the interview with Drop Site, Hamdan also outlined Hamas’s rationale for offering a five to seven year truce with Israel, known as a hudna in Arabic. “The main goal for this long term hudna is that each side has to believe that he will not be attacked by the other side, which can at least generate a kind of security. And it's a chance to build trust that there may be a chance for a kind of stability and security,” he said. “That was the experience, for example, in South Africa; it was the experience in Vietnam; it was the experience with every situation of occupation— not only the Palestinian situation. So we are still committed to a very serious political idea, which is the long-term ceasefire.” Israel Does Not Want the U.S. Talking to Hamas Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan in a Hamas regional office against a backdrop of occupied Jerusalem. May 2025. (Photo by Jeremy Scahill) Osama Hamdan joined Hamas in 1992, a few years after the group’s founding, and has served as its representative in Iran and Lebanon as well as its chief of international relations. He was one of the top advisers to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated by Israel last summer in Tehran. After October 7, 2023, Hamdan became a regular fixture on Arabic language media, conducting regular press briefings from Lebanon. In the wide-ranging interview, Hamdan said that Hamas believes the January ceasefire agreement would have been unlikely had Donald Trump not won the U.S. election. “I think it helped. If Kamala Harris won the elections, I think it would be the same policy of the Biden administration policy, which supported the Israelis totally… they [made] themselves as a part of the war and the fight against the Palestinians,” he said. “We know that the Trump people, they have done a good job in order to make [the January ceasefire] happen. But it's not enough. We have to be honest and serious, it's not enough.” Hamdan rejected what he called an Israeli propaganda term to describe what should happen in Gaza after the war ends. “The Israelis, they have used this ‘the day after’ term in order to convince everyone that what will happen in Gaza [is] that they will take over the situation within a few weeks and they will get rid of the resistance and there will be an issue of some people who are living on the land of Gaza,” he said. “There is a day after the genocide stopped. And this day is supposed to be a Palestinian day, a Palestinian national day, because we have stopped the genocide and we have to decide by ourselves as Palestinians what we are supposed to do.” Hamdan said once a political solution is reached to end the genocide, Hamas would be willing to relinquish governance of Gaza to an independent body of Palestinians or a technocratic committee. “There was a suggestion from the Egyptian side to have a committee of leaders, independent leaders, from Gaza, to take control in Gaza for a while and then we can go to general elections. We've said yes, because if they were nationalist and they are working for Gaza’s benefit and the people’s, why not have them?,” Hamdan said. He added that Hamas and other Palestinian political parties had put forward 40-45 names to the Palestinian Authority as nominees for a 15-member body to assume control of Gaza once Hamas formally steps down. They have not received any answer. “We are ready to handle the things to [assist] this committee, knowing that if that was one of the options which can help the Palestinians to get through this massacre and this genocide, it's part of our duty to do that,” Hamdan said, adding that Hamas supports holding democratic elections, not just in Gaza but across all the territories of historic Palestine. Hamdan was one of two Hamas officials who led direct talks with Donald Trump’s special envoy on hostages in late February. “When the meetings with Adam Boehler took place, there was a real possibility [for a long term deal]. This is why the Israelis were furious and they were angry,” Hamdan said. “We've talked about politics, not only about the prisoner exchange issue. And I believe he heard something he didn't expect to hear from Hamas.” Hamdan and another senior Hamas official who participated in the direct talks with Boehler described the meetings as productive and diplomatic. They said Boehler seemed genuinely interested in understanding Hamas’s position, both historically and related to the ongoing negotiations. Since those meetings, however, and the launch of an Israeli smear campaign to portray Boehler as having been duped by Hamas, there have been no further direct talks. “I believe one of the reasons why the Israelis have assassinated some of the Palestinian leaders was because they have the chance to talk directly to the United States,” Hamdan contended. “They want to prevent any kind of contact between the Palestinian resistance and the United States administration because they have a narrative that those are terrorists.” He said that the direct talks with Boehler and other U.S. officials for the first time circumvented Israeli control of the narrative about Hamas. “The administration discovered that they are freedom fighters and they have a political narrative and they have a political stand, and they are seeking to have a political solution,” Hamdan said. “This is what the Israelis are trying to prevent.” In the talks, Bohler also raised the issue of Eden Alexander, the dual U.S.-Israeli citizen who enlisted in the Israeli military and was taken captive by Palestinian fighters at the Israeli military base where he was stationed on October 7, 2023. "He's an American citizen, but he was a soldier in the Israeli army," Hamdan said. "Why is he allowed to be a fighter or a soldier in another army, not any other army, an army who occupies the Palestinian lands, who was killing the Palestinian people?" Hamdan added, “You want to guarantee that no Americans will be held as prisoners because they were soldiers in the Israeli army. So, let's prevent the Israeli army from killing the Palestinians. And that opened the door for a political talk. And I respect that [Boehler] has the courage to talk about this, to listen. He listened carefully.” Last month, the spokesperson for the Qassam Brigades, Abu Obeida, said they had lost contact with the group holding Alexander after Israeli airstrikes targeted the area where he was being held. Hamdan and another senior Hamas official told Drop Site that they have not received any updates on Alexander's fate since contact was lost. Hamdan and the other Hamas official told Drop Site that the meetings with Boehler were meant to lead to direct talks with Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East and the administration’s lead negotiator. Hamas believes Israel succeeded in derailing those meetings. “We expect more from Trump’s administration, not just to keep the security of Israel, not just to listen to the Israeli side. All the world, mainly the United States administration, has to listen to the Palestinians. You have to listen to their side of the story,” he said. “You can't solve it just by listening to Netanyahu who is lying to his own people, not only lying to the Americans or lying to the Arabs, he's lying [to] his own people.” LISTEN: Drop Site’s Full Interview With SeniorHamas Official Osama Hamdan Hamdan also had sharp words for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. In a televised April 23 speech before the Palestinian National Council, the 89-year old leader called Hamas “sons of dogs,” and demanded the movement surrender its weapons and release the Israeli captives. Hamdan said that for the past 19 months Abbas has been reserved in his denunciations of Israel’s genocidal war while attacking and denouncing the Palestinian resistance. “I believe he lost his credibility as a Palestinian leader and he is not anymore respected by the Palestinians,” Hamdan said. “He's just destroying his reputation and his image. I don't know how his sons and grandsons will walk among the Palestinian people after his death.” Hamdan addressed the Palestinian Authority’s collaboration with Israel in its ongoing assault on the occupied West Bank. He cited the example of the Jenin refugee camp, where Palestinian Authority security forces imposed a siege for 40 days, dismantled resistance cells and seized weapons, clearing the way for an Israeli invasion that lead to the destruction of over 600 homes. More than 40,000 Palestinians have been forced from their homes in the West Bank since January, the largest displacement there since 1967. “I think the Israelis, their main goal is to take over all the West Bank,” he said. “I believe they will be mistaken if they felt for a while that the Palestinian Authority will keep controlling the situation. The people will resist.” Hamdan characterized Abbas’s forces as akin to “security guards” for the occupation, keeping watch over Palestinians “who are supposed to live as slaves,” saying, “No one in the Palestinian Authority is trying to say ‘enough is enough.’ They don't want to resist.” Hamdan also blasted the recent appointment of Hussein Al-Sheikh, a longtime member of Abbas's ruling Fatah Party known for his close ties to Israel, as vice president of the Palestine Liberation Organization, saying it was evidence of Israeli influence. Since 2007, Sheikh has served as the head of the General Authority of Civil Affairs—the main body coordinating with Israeli forces operating in the occupied West Bank. “If you heard him talking in a closed room, you'd feel that you are talking to an Israeli soldier,” said Hamdan. “That is not my words. It's the words of some significant leaders of Fatah.” The Israelis pushed for Sheikh’s appointment as Abbas’s deputy and likely successor, Hamdan alleged, because “they know that he is willing by himself to handle this dirty job on their own behalf.” Hamas’s official position since 2017 is that it would accept what is commonly referred to as a “two state solution” by Western leaders. The movement has said that if the Palestinian people voted for a state along the lines of the borders as they existed prior to the June 1967 war and with East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital, Hamas would not oppose it. “I think the Israelis have shown that they are not willing to have even the two state solution, and they are talking about what they have called the final solution to get rid of the Palestinians. According to those circumstances, everyone expects this will not happen,” Hamdan said, though he added: “I still think that there is a real possibility for that, if the international community wants to keep the order. Otherwise, I think we will face a complete failure for the international order and this will lead to more complicated consequences, not [only] on the Palestinian situation, but all over the world.” Hamdan said that if the world refuses to hold Israel accountable for the Gaza genocide, it will have far reaching implications. “If they have immunity, it means that others can do the same thing in several places in the world. What if that happened? Some other superpowers, growing superpowers in the world, have given this right to small countries supported by those superpowers,” he said. “I think we will turn the world to a kind of, not a jungle, maybe worse than a jungle, because even in the jungle, the animals, they kill to eat but they don't kill more than this. But when you commit a genocide, it's really a disaster which cannot be explained by words or by saying, ‘Sorry, I have done this and I will not do it again.’” Upgrade to paid If a Political Solution Fails, the Resistance Will Continue Hamdan rejected the characterization that Hamas is waging a war against Israel because it is a Jewish state and said this portrayal was aimed at undermining the legitimate cause of liberation and self determination. “We've said clearly, we are a people under occupation. We are not fighting just because we like to fight or it's a good idea to fight others. We are not fighting the Israelis because, for example, they are Jewish people. We don't have a problem with the Jewish people,” he said. “Even if a Muslim came to occupy my land, I will fight him. It is not related to the religion. It is related to being an occupier or not an occupier.” Despite reports in Israeli and some Arab media outlets that Hamas indicated it would consider temporarily storing its weapons in Gaza or handing them over to a neutral third party, Hamdan said there have been no formal talks about such a proposal. “What about the Israeli weapons? Are they going to store their weapons, too? What is the meaning of storing the weapons?” he said. “Such an experience happened in Northern Ireland. But there was a real political arrangement, which was accepted by both sides.” Short of that, he said, Hamas will not surrender its weapons until Palestinians achieve full statehood. “If there was a Palestinian state, those weapons would be handed to the Palestinian government,” he said. “Even the [resistance] fighters, they will turn to be part of the army or the police of this government.” Over the weekend, Netanyahu vowed to intensify Israeli attacks in the coming weeks and to expand the army’s ground operations inside Gaza. On Monday, Israel’s cabinet approved a plan to seize large areas of the Gaza Strip where Israeli forces would remain entrenched indefinitely. Code-named Gideon's Chariots, the operations would also reportedly include forcibly displacing Palestinians into small areas of southern Gaza. An Israeli security official told YNet the details of the plan were revealed as a pressure campaign to force Hamas to accept a short term truce agreement that would result in the release of large numbers of Israeli captives without agreeing to end the war. These leaked proposals are directly linked to Donald Trump’s scheduled visit to the Middle East slated to begin May 13. Trump will join a series of summits with Arab leaders in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. There are indications the U.S. is pushing Israel to enter into a short-term truce with Hamas to serve as a backdrop for Trump’s trip and Israeli officials said their threats to seize “all conquered areas” of Gaza were aimed at forcing Hamas into a deal before Trump’s trip. In the interview with Drop Site, conducted before the Israeli plans were leaked, Hamdan was emphatic that Hamas will not enter into any temporary agreements that do not include a path to a permanent ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. “Is the United States administration and President Trump seeking to have just a short-term ceasefire or is he willing to have a permanent ceasefire which may lead to a political solution?” Hamdan said. “[Trump] has to make the choice, whether to make the Israelis accept the long-term ceasefire and to go to the political solution which leads to a Palestinian independent, sovereign state.” The alternative, Hamdan said, is indefinite war that will continue to destabilize the region and impact the rest of Trump’s Middle East agenda. “We are fighting to be liberated from the occupation. If that can happen in a political way, this is good. We will accept that, if it [happens] in a peaceful way. We don't want to be killed. We don't like to kill others. But if it doesn't happen in this way, we will fight,” Hamdan said. “Let's talk about liberating the Palestinians from the occupation. Let's talk about the Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Palestinian lands,” he added. “This will be the start of creating confidence and stability after that. If this happened, it will be a very good idea. If it doesn't happen, no one can give up his weapons while he's being killed, tortured, jailed.” If Trump actually wanted to achieve the release of all Israeli captives and a swift end to the war, Hamdan said, he could utilize the extensive levers of U.S. influence over Netanyahu as Israel’s largest financial benefactor and arms supplier. “It's not sufficient pressure. They know that they can do that,” he asserted. “If they said, ‘OK, we are not providing you with the new weapons,’ I think just saying that, it will show the Israelis that the administration is serious and they have to go to the ceasefire.” Hamdan said that the ultimate responsibility for confronting Israel's apartheid, occupation and war of annihilation against the Palestinian people rests on the international community. And how it handles the fate of Palestine will reverberate for generations to come. "The will of the Palestinians to be liberated is still reserved after 70 years of occupation and it will be until the Palestinians can get rid of the occupation," Hamdan said. "It will be an important turn, not in the Palestinian history, but I think in international history, because it will express a kind of balanced justice in the world. Otherwise, I think it will be a sign of the end of this international order and who knows what that will lead to." Drop Site News journalist Jeremy Scahill interviewing senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan in a Hamas regional office. May 2025. (Photo courtesy of Jeremy Scahill) Drop Site News Middle East Research Fellow Jawa Ahmad contributed to this story. Leave a comment ____________________ To listen to the full audio podcast interview or to read the complete transcript of Osama Hamdan’s wide-ranging, exclusive interview with Drop Site, click below: DROP SITE NEWS Hamas on the Record: An ExclusiveInterview With Senior Hamas OfficialOsama Hamdan DROP SITE NEWS ·6:59 PM It has been 576 days since Israel initiated its genocidal war against the Palestinians of Gaza. The Gaza Strip, a territory roughly the size of Las Vegas, has been reduced to a moonscape of death and destruction with more than 90% of the population dis… Read full story Become a Drop Site News Paid Subscriber Drop Site News is reader-supported. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber today. Upgrade to paid A paid subscription gets you: Access to our Discord, subscriber-only AMAs, chats, and invites to events, both virtual and IRL Post comments and join the community The knowledge you are supporting independent media making the lives of the powerful miserable You can also now find us on podcast platforms and on Facebook, Twitter, Bluesky, Telegram, and YouTube. LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2025 Drop Site News, Inc.Drop Site News Inc., 4315 50th St. NWSte 100 Unit #2560, Washington, DC 20016 Unsubscribe From:Kai Porter To:Council, City; Kallas, Emily Subject:Public Comment Item 14, 5/5/35 City Council Mtg Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 3:10:58 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear City Council Members, I have lived at 4080 Wilkie Way since 2005. I walked or biked to school for 6 years. That has been scary due to the high congestion. I am concerned about increases to the parking congestion and traffic from the new expansion at Palo Alto Commons. In addition, growing up, I did not like playing in the backyard, because I felt like everyone at Palo Alto Commons was looking down at me. More recently, I discovered that Palo Alto Commons has not followed rules for commercial buildings for daylight plane. That does not surprise me, because our backyard is almost always dark and cold. I went to multiple meetings with developers and multiple City meetings to hear plans and to explain my experiences. In my previous comments to the Architectural Review Board, I gave many recommendations about the draft transportation demand management plan. I urged the City to enforce compliance better in the future. I do not feel that the developers have taken the neighbors’ concerns seriously. In addition, I agree with all comments submitted already from Kevin Ji. Please do not reward their bad behavior by approving their current proposal for 16 new residential units and 2 new offices. I recommend the Planning and Transportation Commission (PTC) compromise for Palo Alto Commons to approve the interior 9 living units, disapprove the 7 rear-facing living units, and to move or shrink the 2 offices so they will not be less than 11 feet from our back fence. Thank you for considering my comments. Sincerely, Kai Porter From:James Porter To:Council, City; Kallas, Emily Subject:May 5, 2025 City Council Agenda Item 14. Palo Alto Commons Expansion Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 2:44:54 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear Major Lauing and City Council Members, I have lived at 4080 Wilkie Way in back of Palo Alto Commons since 2003. We bought our house with the understanding that the commons building was "fully mature". I have supported more services for seniors and our neighborhood has already recently absorbed the significant impacts of the Avant project which serves more seniors. However. I'm writing to express my opposition to the proposed expansion of Palo Alto Commons. I urge the Council to vote against the expansion project in its current form. The current Palo Alto Commons configuration is quite massive, resulting in significant shading, cooling and loss of privacy in our back yard. Thank you to all the city council members who have visited our backyard to better understand the impacts of the expansion. We are okay with the current configuration as we were able to access this impact before our home purchase. Our appraisals over the years for refinance reflected a significant reduction in value ~$50,000 back in 2011 due to the large structure. We fear the expansion with its abandonment of the step-back design would result in significantly larger loss of value, privacy, light and home utility. Palo Alto Commons originally committed to a “step-back” design along Wilkie Way to reduce the impact on adjacent residents. This approach was intended to preserve privacy and minimize the sense of mass and scale facing single-family homes. The stepback keeps us from losing all utility and value of our backyard due to the open areas of the structure which allowed some light through. However, the current expansion plan proposes a near solid wall of construction that fills in the entire step- back area. This is a clear violation of past assurances. We respectfully ask that Palo Alto Commons honor its original promise and keep the step-back design to reduce the negative impact on Wilkie Way residents. I also have significant concerns with daylight plan and understand the new Wilkie-facing units would violate current daylight plan standards which would further devalue property, utility and privacy our Wilkie Way properties. Both City Council (I believe in pre-screening) and the PTC recommended focusing on adding additional interior units or units on the el camino way side of the property. We have seen no proposals on expanding in these areas which would have far less impact financially, emotionally and otherwise on wilkie way residents. Internal expansion or additional units over the front of the building preserves the step-back design, lowers massing effects and privacy impacts of the project. Furthermore, PTC recommended removal of 2 offices facing the rear which also violated setbacks. No change to the plan was taken there either. In conclusion I urge you to vote no on this project unless modifications can be made to lessen the community impact of the project. Thanks, James From:Sharon Hoffman To:Council, City Subject:support for Palo Alto Commons Date:Monday, May 5, 2025 1:27:19 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links. Dear council members,I am writing in support of the proposed expansion at Palo Alto Commons. As alongtime Palo Alto homeowner who lives in the shadow of the proposed mega-development on Willow Rd, I am certainly sympathetic to the residents on Wilkie Waywho are concerned about traffic, noise, and other impacts to their neighborhood. Theprospect of significant change to our residential neighborhoods can be unsettling.However, this particular proposal calls for a mere 16 new units to be built amidst anexisting structure in order to better support our community's vulnerable seniors. ANIMBY approach, particularly during a regional housing crisis, does not paint ourcommunity in a positive light. I strongly encourage the council to support reasonableefforts -- like this one -- to facilitate complementary new housing wherever possible.Thank you,Sharon Hoffman 429 Ruthven AvePalo Alto