Candidate Visit Summary

Thank you to all those who came out on Mother's Day to show your support and express your concern. Below is a brief summary composed by Teresa:


Summary:

2:00 pm - First to arrive to the meeting at the corner of Fair Oaks Ave and San Benito Avenue was Board of Supervisor candidate Memo Morantes who quickly stated he couldn’t stay long because it was Mother’s day. Welcoming Morantes was Mitch and Andrea, Dave and Teresa. Shortly after, neighbors gathered and other candidates arrived, such as Carlos Romero, Ernie Schmidt and K. Keith who introduced themselves and share the common opinion, among the candidates, that for this meeting all they could do was listen. They would not take sides or favor one version of events as it would compromise future actions regarding the issue if one of them were to become elected Supervisor.

Mitch made a brief presentation of the problem the neighborhood is having with BACE and with the response from the San Mateo County zoning department.

Neighbors expressed persistent disappointment with, and distrust of the County Planning and Zoning department, not just because of the current problem regarding BACE but because other zoning violations brought to their attention on previous occasions and the equally dismissive response the neighborhood received. The mood is of concern regarding expectations of enforcement of zoning regulations as the recently new North Fair Oaks Plan goes into effect.

The candidates offered suggestions as how to go about getting the attention of the commission or, ultimately, the Board of Supervisors.

Carlos Romero suggested we could have a strong case to argue in court, if nothing else works. He also discussed working within the precepts of due process.

Kirsten Keith advised us to be persistent and insist on getting a place on the agenda of the Board of Supervisors to plead our case.

Memo Morantes was of the opinion that the neighborhood problems with BACE and the Planning and Zoning department came with the territory. Basically, as a home owner, you should know "What you buy and Where you buy". In a conversation, separate from the group, he admitted to Mitch and Teresa that he knew Jaime Gonzales, the proprietor of BACE building, who has endorsed his candidacy, and whose sister was also a “dear friend".

Ernie Schmidt offered his help to guide us in the process of dealing with the Planning and Zoning commission.

4:00 pm - The meeting concluded with a outdoor “tour” of the premises where the candidates could observe the conditions of the building, the parking situation, the installation of the blower on top of the building and constant hum from ventilators.