Midtown News

Winter 2004 Newsletter

FROM THE CHAIR - Annette Ashton A Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year to All! Thanks for your membership, suggestions and participation in the Midtown Residents Association (MRA). Let's take time to look back on our mutual successes and look ahead for MRA's ambitious plans. It has been a year of many successes for Midtown. Here are some highlights.

Meetings, Meetings, Meetings - We held a lot of these, both ourselves and with others.

MRA PRIORITIES FOR 2004

We created a survey to get your feedback about Midtown (see pages 3&4 for the full survey results) to determine how to focus our 2004 efforts.

The results helped us develop key areas of: Traffic, Midtown Center, Growing Membership in Midtown and Greeting New Residents, Telling the History of Midtown through the eyes of those who were here! A booklet will be produced when we have a goodly number of stories. Other areas that you expressed an interest in were Emergency Preparation, Art in Midtown, Supporting Our Seniors, Midtown Parks and the Midtown Gardens.

CITY COUNCIL RULINGS that Affected Midtown
	Midtown Traffic Light - On Monday May 19, the City Council approved the installation of a traffic light at the 4th most dangerous intersection in Palo Alto on Middlefield at Midtown Centre. The Midtown Residents Association has been working on this since 1995! The installation is planned for early 2004.
	Traffic Circle - February/March 2003, Residents living in the area of Moreno and Indian Drive were concerned about drivers using Indian as a shortcut to avoid the traffic light at Greer and Oregon Expressway. Under the city's Neighborhood Traffic Calming Program, a traffic circle, lead-up barriers and speed bumps were installed.
	In September, the City approved the Matadero Creek bypass plan. As a result, 450 homeowners west of Alma Street and south of Matadero Creek will no longer have to buy expensive flood insurance. Another 4,000 homes will have their flood danger greatly reduced by the bypass channel.
	Midtown/Charleston Ground Floor Retail - On April 14 the Ground Floor Retail Ordinance was made permanent.
	Charleston Corridor Study - Council passed a comprehensive traffic study for the south Palo Alto Charleston Corridor This area includes 1/2 mile either side of Charleston. Alma Plaza is covered in this loop. The council directed staff to complete the effort by January 2004. Plans for Alma Plaza were placed on the back burner until the study is complete.

EDITORIAL - Palo Alto Council Member HILLARY FREEMAN

As we begin our New Year afresh, there is plenty to celebrate! Although shrouded in the cloak of economic despair, our great city, thanks to our many involved citizens, has continued to move forward (pace debates aside). Two projects important to many Midtown residents are the Matadero Creek channel diversion and traffic patterns in the Midtown retail area..

Good-bye flood insurance!.

Working jointly with the Santa Clara Valley Water District, Palo Alto approved a new flood control channel that will be constructed in the baylands, running from the 101 Matadero Creek underpass, adjacent to the Municipal Services Center, cascading into the salt marshes and finally into the bay. Although made of cement to accommodate heavy machinery that may be used for periodic clean ups, the City Council worked diligently to assure the best possible environmental and aesthetic solution. It is our understanding that within 5 years of vegetative growth, the channel will be camouflaged. The good news is that, when the channel is built, over 400 homes will be removed from the FEMA flood plain designation and will not have to pay flood insurance any more! And there s more hopeful news: the Water District and the City are evaluating the possibility of opening a bike path beside Matadero Creek, under the 101, creating easy creek side access to the baylands from Midtown..

Hello traffic flow!.

In 2003, the City Council majority agreed to add a traffic light in Midtown, on Middlefield at Bryson. With the light will come a right hand turn only lane into the shopping center parking lot. Although there will be three traffic lights within a short distance (the pedestrian light in front of Walgreen's, the new light at Bryson and the existing light at Colorado), the city transportation staff states that the traffic flow will be smoothed and both vehicular and pedestrian safety will be enhanced. After an installation vendor has been selected (approximately January 16) and the parts arrive, city staff expects construction to begin in February 2004.

These highlights, coupled with the impending opening of Como Estas, the finalization of the poetry wall, and the opening of 2 new retail stores - Travel Smith and Territory Ahead - give Midtown reason to smile. And I have reason to give thanks to the MANY Midtown residents who make things happen by staying active through civic participation.

Happy New Year to all!

Hillary Freeman has been a Council member for 2 years and is on the Santa Clara Valley Water District Flood Control Advisory Committee and is the council liaison to the Public Art Commission.

HISTORY CORNER

Back when you could see all the way to Highway 101 from Middlefield Road, Roxy Rapp remembers he and his friends used to build forts and make paths in the three-foot grass of the barley fields, prevalent in Midtown. There was a drive-in on Greer where the soccer fields are now.
	They used to ride their bikes everywhere, over to Page Mill, which was a two-lane dirt road, and then over to Rizzotti's to get a coke. Your parents didn't know where you were, and didn't worry either, so long as you were home by sundown. Families had one car, which husband and wife shared. Lou, Roxy's own father, walked from their home on Ross Road to work downtown. Highway 101, just three lanes back then, was known as Blood Alley. Drivers had to turn their lights on to signal that they were passing. People lived in Midtown and shopped here, too. Wives helped their husbands out at the store and everything was closed on Sundays. This was Midtown in the late 1940's and early 1950's.
Midtown Center had the Golden State Creamery, which pasteurized milk on the premises and the Purity Supreme, with its trademark Quonset hut shape from World War II where Walgreen's is now. Duca and Hanley's was the market then and up until the late 1980's when it morphed into Longs. Back then, Dr. Defeo used to hire kids to pick the apricots in his orchard. He grew pears, too, but he didn't sell them. The first family to have a TV set lived on the corner by Ross and Moreno. They used to rig it up with a big magnifying glass and a color filter to make the picture larger and add color. Before Safeway, A & W Root Beer was there. Roxy said they used to make the root beer with sassafras. Standard Pipe Factory stood where the Winter Lodge is now and Hoover School occupied the site where the apartments are today, next to Coldwell Banker which itself used to be Cornish and Carey. The first and second grade shared the same classroom. Block parties, progressive dinners, the neighborhood and its families were close. When someone was sick, everyone helped. Sid Worthington taught folk dancing and square dancing and then the Beaudoins began teaching ballroom dancing and cotillion over on Colorado. Lou Rapp coached Little League and passed along to the kids the skills he had mastered as a semi-pro in baseball. He later built furniture for their house on Ross Road, using the skills he learned in Palo Alto Adult Education. Roxy's dad Lou had Rapps' Shoes in downtown for years. Now, Roxy carries on the family tradition of clothing stores with two new additions to Midtown: The Territory Ahead and Travel Smith, which opened this week at the former KnoWhere site, which itself used to house Bergman's Department Store. Things change and somehow they still stay much the same.

MRA SURVEY RESULTS

Results and comments are available on the MRA website.

ART IN MIDTOWN CENTER
	The 6 winners of the Midtown/Walgreens poetry competition were Ron LeBlanc, Elizabeth Mittmann, Liz Cowie, Janice Dabney, Amelia Saliba and Sharon Olson from over 100 entries. The poetry made the selection team smile, laugh and even get a bit teary eyed. Due to delayed contract negotiations, the work will start in early 2004 after the rains.
	Holiday Cleaners sports a new mural by artist Kim Domino, which is a village scene of the center.
	The Midtown Art Committee is working on bringing a small but powerful and fun mural to Midtown by a favorite Palo Alto artist. No guarantees, but this is our 2004 project.
	The creek overpasses on Louis and Greer Roads now sport raised sidewalks and decorative railings:

MRA ON COMMUNITY TELEVISION
	May - Community Journal featured an update on the Matadero Creek flood control work
	August - the Neighborhood Retail Forum was shown on community television
	December - Community Journal showed you "What was cooking for Christmas in Midtown at Red Box Culinary"

MEMBERSHIP -- SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

The Midtown Residents Association wants to represent you and your issues. We seek your feedback about our focus issues and ongoing programs. By becoming a member (and sending in your email if you have one) you enable us to work for you and represent your issues to council, staff and the city commissions. There is strength in numbers! Join us! Also we hope that you can fill out the enclosed survey and send it back to us so we can more appropriately represent you!

RENEWALS AND NEW CONTRIBUTIONS WELCOME

Everyone 18 and over living in Midtown is invited to become a supporting member of the Midtown Residents Association (MRA). We rely on your voluntary donations to keep you informed and to fund mailings as meeting announcements and invitations to our annual "Ice Cream and Issues" social as well as other MRA activities. If you haven't gotten around to contributing in the past, now is a great time to do it! If you've given in the past, you are more than welcome to give again! Annual Membership is $10. Please note that the date on your mailing label is the date you last paid. To pay, send your check made out to MRA to our treasurer, Sylvia Gartner. Or pay your membership online. (see membership form). If you aren't subscribing to the twice a month "news you can use", and you would like to keep up-to-date on Midtown Matters, just send a note to MidtownNews@att.net Questions, comments or suggestions for future neighborhood updates are welcome, just contact the editor at sheri11@earthlink.net. If you have concerns or questions you'd like to share with the MRA Steering Committee, just send a message to annette_g@att.net or 321-1280.

WE WELCOME THE FOLLOWING NEW MEMBERS OF THE MIDTOWN RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION!
Lanier Benkard	Cherie & Bob Donald	Brendan Rankin & Pilar Hsue
Flo Beaudoin	Carol Feigenbaum	John & Alex Russell
Annie Bedichek	Pete & Janet Heilman	Chris & Marilyn Sanchez
Maurice Bizzarri	Martha Helseth	Derek & Stephanie Smith
Ken & Heather Brownlee	Mary Jackson	Robin & Scott Susoeff
Deborah Buck	Ken Klingman	Elizabeth Taft
Dan Cohen & Candace Wilhelm	David Labaree & Diane Churchill	Mae & Jared Tinklenberg
Howard & Barbara Cohen	Felix Natis	Jianye Wen & Helen Li
Ann Crichton	Palo Verde School	Allen & Mary Lu Wood

UPCOMING MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT February 24 - MRA GENERAL MEETING - OUR PLANS FOR 2004 Friends Meeting Hall - 957 Colorado 7:00 PM - Doors Open at 6:30 PM

OTHER PLANNED MEETINGS AND EVENTS FOR 2004 INCLUDE
	*  Celebration of Poetry Wall, Recognition of Winning Poets       & Reading of the Winning Poems *  Middlefield Traffic Light Ribbon Cutting *  April - Preparing for an Earthquake and Other Emergencies *  September - Fifth Annual Ice Cream & Issues

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