Parkland is often thought of as sacred space in Palo Alto, but a proposal to build a road for buses through El Camino Park is so far breezing through election season without even a whisper of opposition.
Partly, this is because the 0.33-acre site that the bus road would occupy isn’t particularly cherished as far as park spaces go. During a June discussion, Council member Julie Lythcott-Haims called it “unattractive,” while Mayor Greer Stone observed that it’s mostly “bushes and weeds.”
Partly, it’s because Stanford University, whose Marguerite shuttles heavily rely on the University Avenue transit hub, is footing the bill to the tune of $4 million for the needed improvements.
Most importantly, it’s because extending Quarry Road through the park would give the city a rare opportunity to improve traffic circulation in its most critical transit area, between the Palo Alto Transit Center and El Camino Real. If voters approve Measure D in November, bus drivers who need to get from the transit center to El Camino would be able to shave between 5 and 8 minutes off their trips, according to the university.
In the official argument in favor of Measure D, Stone and City Council member Pat Burt stated that the project will “activate an underutilized section of parkland, transforming it into a functional space with improved landscaping and connectivity.
“Every so often, important projects are worthy of overwhelming support,” Burt and Stone wrote.
While it remains to be seen whether voters approve the “undedication” of parkland to make the road possible, it’s clear that today proponents of Measure D have an overwhelming advantage. Stanford has created a committee called Connecting Palo Alto, a Coalition of Transit Riders, Bicyclists, Environmentalists and Stanford University to advocate for the measure and contributed $49,500 to the committee. The principal of the committee is Shweta Bhatnagar, the university’s senior director of government affairs, according to campaign finance documents.
The other side of the debate is effectively nonexistent. During public hearings earlier this year, a few residents and commissioners touted the importance of preserving parkland and suggested that Stanford should be required to contribute parkland elsewhere in the city to compensate for the loss. Shani Kleinhaus, who serves on the Parks and Recreation Commission, argued during a meeting in March that even though the parcel of land only makes up 0.33-acres, creating a road at this spot would split off a larger portion of El Camino Park from the park’s busiest area, which is around the baseball fields. Parkland, she said, is “really, really precious, and the city keeps trying to get parkland and we’re losing parkland.”
These concerns have not, however, crystallized into actual opposition. No one has submitted an argument against Measure D. Nor has anyone formed a committee to oppose the measure or raised any money to fight against it.
The measure reads: “To reduce traffic congestion and travel time for transit riders, shallthe measure undedicating a 0.33-acre portion of existing parkland in El Camino Park for the purpose of creating a new road primarily for transit vehicles linking the Palo AltoTransit Center with El Camino Real, be adopted?”
Transit agencies that rely on the transit center, including Caltrain, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, AC Transit and SamTrans, all strongly support the project, which will also include new bike lanes through El Camino Park, between the transit center and Quarry Road. Carolyn Gonot, general manager and CEO, called the transit center “a vital hub” for VTA’s transit operations.
“The Center is the western anchor for bus route 22 and express route 522, two of VTA’s most productive transit routes,” Gonot wrote in an April letter of support. “The project would improve overall operations at the transit center and would enable VTA to serve the city of Palo Alto more efficiently.”
The plan breezed through the City Council in June without a single dissenting vote. The utter lack of opposition suggests that the greater community is similarly on board. But to further boost its odds, Stanford has offered several additional carrots. The university owns the El Camino Park land, which it leases to the city for $1 per year under an agreement set to expire in 2042. In June, Stanford committed to extending the lease to 2052. It also agreed to work with the city on a broader vision for the transit center, an effort that will explore “future uses and dynamic public spaces that could be implemented,” according to a letter from Robert Reidy, vice president of lands, buildings and real estate at Stanford. He called the transit center a “significant multi-modal gateway for both the City of Palo Alto and Stanford University.”
“The transitway will allow buses, shuttles and other transit vehicles to directly access El Camino Real rather than circle back through University Avenue, creating more efficiency for transit riders and improving transit operations,” Reidy wrote.
