Liang - Conditions for a meaningful Vallco CAC

From: Liang Chao
Date: Wed, Apr 5, 2017 at 9:23 AM
Subject: Conditions for a meaningful Vallco CAC
To: City Council <citycouncil@cupertino.org>

Dear Mayor Savita and City Council Members,

Some citizens under the code name "United Cupertino" have quoted snippets of a letter I sent to Cupertino Courier on Oct. 17, 2016 as a support for Vallco CAC (Citizens Advisory Committee). However, they have quoted my statement completely out of context.

“… we can form a Vallco Advisory Committee with residents, developers and the city staff to study various options for Vallco Specific Plan.” Liang Chao Oct 16, 2016

Here is the context of the snippet from my original letter. The full letter is included below.

To have any meaningful negotiation with Sand Hill, we need to revert to the previous state of Vallco as a shopping center in order to start the negotiation at even footing. The Council shouldn't give away their negotiation power easily by granting massive allocation first. After Measure C is adopted, we can form a Vallco Advisory Committee with residents, developers and the city staff to study various options for Vallco Specific Plan. Then, the City can put the Vallco Specific Plan with a combined vision for a vote in 2018 General Election.

For Vallco CAC to have any meaningful result, we need the following two conditions:

• Revert Vallco to a shopping center in order to start negotiation at even footing.
• Put Vallco Specific Plan to a citizens' vote in 2018 to ensure that the plan is a combined vision of the majority of Cupertino voters.

The City Council has continued to conduct substantive discussion on Vallco CAC while the meeting agenda is either goal setting or Work Program. In order to deliberate and conduct business openly, I urge the City Council to re-conduct any discussion on Vallco CAC under a properly notified agenda item in a future meeting so that all interested citizens have a fair chance to express their views on the subject.

Liang Chao

Cupertino Resident

-----------[Full Text of the letter]--------------

http://bettercupertino.blogspot.com/2016/10/Liang-Yes-C-necessary-true-revitalization-vallco.html

“Yes on C” is necessary for true revitalization of Vallco Shopping District

The City Council allocated 2 million sf office space to Vallco AND removed height limit back in Dec. 2014 without sufficient public input. To have any meaningful negotiation with Sand Hill, we need to revert to the previous state of Vallco as a shopping center in order to start the negotiation at even footing. The Council shouldn't give away their negotiation power easily by granting massive allocation first. After Measure C is adopted, we can form a Vallco Advisory Committee with residents, developers and the city staff to study various options for Vallco Specific Plan. Then, the City can put the Vallco Specific Plan with a combined vision for a vote in 2018 General Election. The City is under no obligation to hold a special election for any project or general plan amendment. If the developer wishes to pay for a special election to speed up the process, the city may choose to accept it. Measure C gives the City Council a way to push back against overly ambitious projects that stretch Cupertino beyond the available supporting infrastructure and beyond the needs and desires of the stakeholder residents.

“Yes on C” is necessary since the City Council has not slowed down to listen to citizens’ concerns in 2014 and 2015 and there is no guarantee that they will after the November election for Vallco or other future mega projects.

“Yes on C” is necessary for true revitalization of Vallco Shopping District.

“Yes on C” is necessary to allow breathing room for Cupertino when the City Council is under tremendous pressure to approve projects with higher density and higher height. The Council can always ask the citizens to revoke Measure C at a future election as necessary.

Liang Chao, 18-year resident of Cupertino