Important Meetings This Week in San Carlos.

Mark your calendars! If you’re interested in the future direction of San Carlos schools or the downtown development, or if you just need a reason to procrastinate your holiday shopping even more, there are a couple of important meetings that are happening this week. I’ve already highlighted them in their respective posts, but it’s worth reminding you of them again:

Town Hall: San Carlos Schools.

Tonight – November 30. This meeting is being hosted by San Carlos School District Superintendent Dr. Craig Baker to discuss the District’s proposal to re-draw the school boundaries in order to alleviate the chronic over-enrollment problems. All of the elementary school principals will be in attendance at this meeting as well. Here are meeting details:

Monday, November 30
7:30 PM
San Carlos Library: 610 Elm Street
Conf Room A, Second Floor

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Wheeler Plaza Community Forum.

The City of San Carlos would love to hear your input on what should be done (if anything) with their Wheeler Plaza parcel, which we know better as the parking lot behind Wells Fargo Bank and Le Boulanger.   This meeting is an integral part of the “listening phase” of the Wheeler Plaza concept, so if you have any ideas about what should be done, including leaving it as-is, be sure to attend this meeting.  Here are the meeting details:

Wednesday, December 2
7:00 PM
San Carlos Library: 610 Elm Street
Conf Rooms A&B, Second Floor

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Community Meeting on Wheeler Plaza: December 2nd…

The City of San Carlos announced that it will be holding its first community-wide forum to get feedback from residents on its Wheeler Plaza development concept.  For those of you not familiar with Wheeler Plaza, it’s the city-owned parcel that’s right behind the Wells Fargo and Le Boulanger on Laurel Street — see the map above.   The idea being kicked around is to develop the existing parcel into a retail/residential complex that will There’s an entire category on this site that’s dedicated to the Wheeler Plaza concept — click here to read those posts and corresponding comments.

Like every development idea that has been proposed recently in San Carlos, Wheeler Plaza has evoked some pretty strong opinions both for and against the idea.   But it’s important to remember that this is just a concept right now — there are no plans in place, nor is it even an approved project.  But if you have an opinion about the City’s ideas on Wheeler Plaza, or you’d like to find out more about the idea,  be sure to attend this meeting.  Here are the details:

Wednesday, December 2, 2009, 7:00 p.m.
Conference Rooms A&B, 2nd Floor
San Carlos Library, 610 Elm Street

For additional information on the meeting, visit this page on the City of San Carlos website.
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San Carlos Holly Street/101 Workshop: October 28

Lately there have been a whole bunch of things happening on Holly Street. First, it was the on-again off-again Palo Alto Medical Foundation complex, and most recently the announcement that In-N-Out Burger is going to open a restaurant there. Even in absence of both of these developments, the trek on Holly Street between 101 and El Camino is a daunting task on most days — after all, it’s the only access to northbound 101 in the entire city.   And this problem will only get worse when these new businesses get ramped up.

The City of San Carlos has long recognized this problem, and has hosted a number of hearings and workshops to discuss ideas with the public on the best way to alleviate this chronic problem. The next workshop is coming up next week — here’s the scoop:

October 28, 2009
San Carlos Library Community Rooms
Plan Viewing: Begins at 6:30 pm
Presentation and Discussion: Starts at 7:30 pm

Whether you live on Holly Street, or rely on it every day to get to where you need to go, this would be a great opportunity to weigh in on potential plans for this critical artery to San Carlos.   For more information on the workshop, click this link:  Holly Street/101 Workshop.

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Is High-Speed Rail a Good Idea for the Peninsula?

I enthusiastically support California’s High Speed Rail Initiative. I believe there’s a very real need for a high-speed alternative to air travel to connect the major metropolitan areas of California.  Imagine how cool it would be to hop on a train, pop open your laptop or favorite book, and in few hours you pull into Los Angeles?  No weather delays, no getting stuck on the tarmac for hours, and no need to navigate the endless I-5.  I’d definitely use this mode of travel.

France, Japan, and now China all run very successful high-speed rail systems, and it’s high time not only California but the entire United States got on board.   Ideally, a standardized high-speed rail system should be extended throughout the Western states…Imagine the possibilities.   But with all the talk about how and where the system should run, there’s one facet of the proposed plan that I don’t agree with:  Running the high-speed rail line up the Peninsula.

California, yes.  Peninsula, no.

Under the proposed route map, the high-speed rail system will connect San Jose and San Francisco via a route straight through the Peninsula, most likely following the existing Caltrain right-of-way. … Continue Reading

San Carlos Wheeler Plaza enters the “Listening Phase”….

Aside from posts that I’ve written on San Carlos Schools, the proposed Wheeler Plaza project is easily the most read and commented topic on this site. For those of you who are not familiar with it, Wheeler Plaza is a city-owned parcel that’s outlined in the picture above. You’ll recognize this area as the parking lot behind Le Boulanger and Wells Fargo, and it includes some surrounding structures. Last year, the City of San Carlos started the wheels turning (no pun intended) to gather ideas on how to develop this area into a mixed retail/living complex.   To see all of the posts on this site about Wheeler Plaza, click here.  There’s also some good info on the City of San Carlos website.

The latest development happened earlier this year when the City chose Silverstone Communities as the design and development firm.   Silverstone has lots of experience with projects like these, as they recently completed similar high-end projects in Millbrae and Los Altos.    Silverstone was a smart choice — they’re based in Redwood City, so they’re local and they understand the unique vibe that makes San Carlos what it is.

This past week, I sat down with Jeff Gilman, Silverstone’s Director of Acquisitions.  Jeff is spearheading a project to gather community feedback on how Wheeler Plaza could best serve the City of San Carlos (more on that below.)  From his research, which includes all of your comments on this site, Jeff is keenly aware how sensitive this topic is,  and he also understands that there are misconceptions that surround Wheeler Plaza.   So part of the information-gathering phase is also to set some of these perceptions straight.

Here are my notes from my meeting with Jeff…

It’s an idea, not a project.

This is probably the most important point that the City and Silverstone are trying to get across.    Right now, the  renovation of  Wheeler Plaza is just an idea that the City is considering.  No plans have been made, and nothing has been committed to this idea to date, short of Silverstone’s involvement to gather information.   The City could very easily decide to do nothing at this point… But it’s obvious that whatever they do, they want community input and consensus, which is good.

Vision and Design

In it’s most basic form, the city envisions Wheeler Plaza as a multi-level residential/retail complex.   Even though no plans have been drawn, there are some parameters that will likely be adhered to:

1. Condos, not apartments.    Most likely, the residential side of the complex will be “for sale”, not rentals.  Current figure is approximately 100 units.
2. Parking.  There are currently 187 parking slots in the existing parking lot.  Any new project will need to preserve this number, at a minimum.
3. Asthetics.  Key consideration will be made to blend the structure in to the surroundings, such as intelligent use of setbacks and gradual height increase, so that it will not be a huge, looming structure.
4. No change to Laurel Street.   Since the existing buildings that face Laurel Street (WFB, Le Boulanger, etc..) are not part of the project, there will be no change to the storefronts on Laurel.

What about the Schools?

In light of the enrollment crunch this fall with several San Carlos elementary schools, the impact on adding more living space will likely be one of the biggest objections to this idea.   But according to demographic studies that Silverstone has conducted, it’s only expected that 8-10% of these units will be occupied by families with school age children.   So if these calculations hold true, the impact on school enrollment should be minimal.  And if you factor in the school fees that this structure will generate, there may indeed a silver lining for the San Carlos School District.

What’s next?

Over the next 90 days or so, Silverstone will be conducting some community outreach exercises to get input on the future of Wheeler Plaza — a listening phase, for lack of a better term.   If you’re interested in expressing your opinion on Wheeler Plaza, Jeff welcomes you to send him an email at this address:

As always, feel free to post your comments on this site as well.    I’ll be sure to keep you posted as things progress…

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New Date for Town Hall Meeting on High Speed Rail Project…

OK, Let’s Try This Again..

The Town Hall meeting about the High Speed Rail Project that was previously scheduled for 7/25 (and subsequently canceled) has been rescheduled to Wednesday, August 26 at the Menlo Park City Council Chambers.   The details of the meeting can be found at this site:  High Speed Rail Town Hall Meeting.

Interested in the High Speed Rail Project?

As I discussed a few weeks ago in this post, the California High Speed Rail Project is moving ahead at full steam – even despite all of the recent budgets woes that are plaguing California. Although the main objective of this project is to connect the main metropolitan areas in California by a high-speed rail link, the plans call for the line to run right up through the Peninsula, sharing the existing CalTrain tracks.

Believe me, a 125 mph train will definitely have an impact on this corridor.

Town Hall Meeting.

US Congresswoman Anna Eshoo will host a town hall meeting this Saturday July 25 Weds August 26 to discuss the High Speed Rail project. It’s an opportunity for the community to learn more, ask questions, and gain a better understanding of the project and the process.

WHAT: Town Hall Meeting on High-Speed Rail hosted by Congresswoman Anna Eshoo.
WHEN: Wednesday August 26, 7:00 PM
WHERE: Menlo Park City Council Chambers, 701 Laurel Street, Menlo Park, C

If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, Congresswoman Eshoo has arranged for the Town Hall Meeting to be viewed over the Internet. The live webcast of the Town Hall meeting will be available at http://eshoo.house.gov. Webcast viewers can also submit questions for the panelists via email at AskAnna@mail.house.gov

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For all articles on this site about the California High Speed Rail Project, click on the High Speed Rail Category.

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The Greater East San Carlos (GESC) Residents Group: Getting Involved…

Community Groups

I love to see when concerned citizens get organized to constructively improve some facet of life in San Carlos. The White Oaks Neighborhood Organization is great example of a neighborhood that has banded together to help the police fight crime and vandalism. But there’s another well-organized and influential citizen’s group that has been in existence for quite some time, and they’re intimately involved in some of the bigger projects that are being planned for San Carlos in the near future…

The Greater East San Carlos (GESC) Residents Group.

The GESC initially formed a few years back as the Laureola Association, and their focus is to work constructively with the City of San Carlos and their development partners on such key project as the San Carlos Transit Village, High-Speed Rail, and the Holly Street Widening Project to provide critical citizen feedback on these projects. … Continue Reading

San Carlos Hosts Walking Tour of Holly Street/101 Interchange Alternatives

Getting out of a Jam

As we discussed in a previous post, the daily traffic jam that occurs every day on Holly Street is one of the top priorities that the Transportation and Circulation Commission would like to fix in San Carlos. This will be a huge undertaking that will not only change the existing 101 interchange at Holly Street, but will likely have a significant impact on Holly Street itself. In previous meetings, the Commission solicited feedback from the community on possible solutions. A good summary of that discussion is posted on the City’s website: Holly Street/101 Access.

Takin’ it to the Streets

Along the lines of Tom Davids’ popular “Walking Tour” of San Carlos History, tomorrow night (August 11) the Commission will host its own walking tour of the project area.   The tour will start at 5:00 PM at the Laureola Building in Laureola Park, and should finish by 7:00 PM.  Check the website for all of the details.  If you’re concerned at all about what’s going to happen with this critical artery to San Carlos, I’d highly recommend seeing it for yourself on this tour.

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