Date: Mon, Nov 16, 2015 at 4:20 PM
Subject: Vallco EIR Comments - mitigation of attractive nuisance presented by the 30-acre green roof
To: "planning@cupertino.org" <planning@cupertino.org>
Vallco EIR Comments - mitigation of attractive nuisance presented by the 30-acre green roof
We
have been saddened in recent years by the suicides of students from
Gunn and Palo Alto High Schools, several of whom killed themselves by
stepping in front of commuter trains that travel at high speeds through
Palo Alto neighborhoods.
In 2009, four (4) Palo Alto teens killed themselves by stepping in front of trains.
In the 2014-2015 academic year, despite the addition of a security patrol whose mission is to intervene when encountering people loitering by train tracks, possibly contemplating a suicide attempt, eight (8) people killed themselves by stepping in front of trains on Caltrain tracks. One was a Gunn student. Another was a recent Gunn graduate.
For the Palo Alto community, commuter train tracks represent a deadly attractive nuisance for their young people who are vulnerable to fleeting or persistent thoughts of suicide.
When I look at the landscape drawings of the green roof that is part of the current development proposal for the Vallco Shopping District, I am concerned that we will be introducing a different but equally deadly attractive nuisance in Cupertino if this project is allowed to proceed as planned. Our students are under the same academic pressures and high societal expectations as students in Palo Alto; we must be prepared that some of our students will seek a quick, devastating path away from their troubles just as some have in Palo Alto. Without proper mitigation, the Hills at Vallco could be the host of countless suicide tragedies.
The landscaped roof is described as 30 acres total, connecting office and residence towers of heights ranging from 50' to 80' (approximate). Even a fall from the lowest point of the green roof will certainly be fatal, if not mitigated by safety barrier, such as a net. I am struck by the miles of roof edge that will need to be monitored for people contemplating a jump to their death, similar to the way the Caltrain tracks are monitored for loiterers waiting to step in front of a train. Refer to roof drawing page 6 for an aerial view of the miles of roof edges and cutouts that will require monitoring: https://s3.amazonaws.com/the-
Please study the following environmental concerns related to suicide prevention that would be introduced in the community if the development proposal for the Vallco Shopping District is allowed to proceed with the green roof as planned today:
- Who will be responsible for paying for public security on the green roof?
- Who will be responsible for determining how much security is required for maintaining public safety on the green roof during the day when the park is open and at night when the park is closed?
- At the end of each day, what will be the protocol for ensuring that all visitors have left the park before closing?
- How many public and private access routes from the ground to the roof will be included in the project?
- How many security professionals will be responsible for monitoring roof access when the park is open and at night when the park is closed?
- If an intruder is detected on the roof when the park is closed, who is expected to be the first to engage with the intruder: on site security professionals or deputies from the Sheriff's Department?
- From the moment an after hours intruder is detected, how much time is expected to elapse before a first responder will be expected to engage with the intruder face-to-face or within speaking-voice distance?
- What barriers or mitigation measures, such as nets, will be installed in the project to prevent death in the event of a suicide attempt or other fall from the roof?
- If barriers or mitigation measures, such as nets, are installed in the project, who is responsible for rescuing anyone who has fallen from the roof but has been spared death and caught in the safety barrier?
- Will teams responsible for rescuing people caught in safety barriers require special equipment or training to support these rescues? If yes, who pays for the equipment and training?
I recognize that my letter and questions are grisly and disturbing. However, we must consider fully the intended and unintended ways structures that are added to our community will change our community.
Thank you,
Liana Crabtree
In 2009, four (4) Palo Alto teens killed themselves by stepping in front of trains.
In the 2014-2015 academic year, despite the addition of a security patrol whose mission is to intervene when encountering people loitering by train tracks, possibly contemplating a suicide attempt, eight (8) people killed themselves by stepping in front of trains on Caltrain tracks. One was a Gunn student. Another was a recent Gunn graduate.
For the Palo Alto community, commuter train tracks represent a deadly attractive nuisance for their young people who are vulnerable to fleeting or persistent thoughts of suicide.
When I look at the landscape drawings of the green roof that is part of the current development proposal for the Vallco Shopping District, I am concerned that we will be introducing a different but equally deadly attractive nuisance in Cupertino if this project is allowed to proceed as planned. Our students are under the same academic pressures and high societal expectations as students in Palo Alto; we must be prepared that some of our students will seek a quick, devastating path away from their troubles just as some have in Palo Alto. Without proper mitigation, the Hills at Vallco could be the host of countless suicide tragedies.
The landscaped roof is described as 30 acres total, connecting office and residence towers of heights ranging from 50' to 80' (approximate). Even a fall from the lowest point of the green roof will certainly be fatal, if not mitigated by safety barrier, such as a net. I am struck by the miles of roof edge that will need to be monitored for people contemplating a jump to their death, similar to the way the Caltrain tracks are monitored for loiterers waiting to step in front of a train. Refer to roof drawing page 6 for an aerial view of the miles of roof edges and cutouts that will require monitoring: https://s3.amazonaws.com/the-
Please study the following environmental concerns related to suicide prevention that would be introduced in the community if the development proposal for the Vallco Shopping District is allowed to proceed with the green roof as planned today:
- Who will be responsible for paying for public security on the green roof?
- Who will be responsible for determining how much security is required for maintaining public safety on the green roof during the day when the park is open and at night when the park is closed?
- At the end of each day, what will be the protocol for ensuring that all visitors have left the park before closing?
- How many public and private access routes from the ground to the roof will be included in the project?
- How many security professionals will be responsible for monitoring roof access when the park is open and at night when the park is closed?
- If an intruder is detected on the roof when the park is closed, who is expected to be the first to engage with the intruder: on site security professionals or deputies from the Sheriff's Department?
- From the moment an after hours intruder is detected, how much time is expected to elapse before a first responder will be expected to engage with the intruder face-to-face or within speaking-voice distance?
- What barriers or mitigation measures, such as nets, will be installed in the project to prevent death in the event of a suicide attempt or other fall from the roof?
- If barriers or mitigation measures, such as nets, are installed in the project, who is responsible for rescuing anyone who has fallen from the roof but has been spared death and caught in the safety barrier?
- Will teams responsible for rescuing people caught in safety barriers require special equipment or training to support these rescues? If yes, who pays for the equipment and training?
I recognize that my letter and questions are grisly and disturbing. However, we must consider fully the intended and unintended ways structures that are added to our community will change our community.
Thank you,
Liana Crabtree
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