"It's kind of scary — it's like there's a glacier headed in our direction. It's not going to hit us right away but it's almost too late to stop it," said resident Lenny Siegel of the office growth in the pipeline.

~~~~~~~~~~

I would say it's VERY scary...scary enough for me to have put together what I call my "escape plan" and it's heartbreaking to think about. I have lived here for decades and had planned to spend the rest of my life here...not anymore. Now I am biding my time and getting my ducks in a row, while suffering thru what our city manager, city staff & city council have wrought upon the residents of Mountain View.

Someday, in the dystopian future we are on a trajectory to achieve, the history of how Mountain View was destroyed will be viewed as a cautionary tale. It's a shame that it will take so long to see the error of our present day follies.

I think it is wrong to expect that the offices will be filled with employees looking to live locally in Mountain View (or even Palo Alto). People rarely move because they have a new job unless it is in a completely new area. Most two adult households rarely have both adults in walking/biking distance of their jobs let alone one. Many college grads in their first jobs are returning home to live with Mom and Dad if they get jobs near enough to do so.

The reality is that most of these offices will be filled with workers who have a 5+ mile commute. The reality is therefore to improve transit options. The reality is to work with neighboring communities to improve reliable useful transit that people are willing to use because it is efficient and an affordable alternative to driving.

There are many wonderful innovative ideas about traffic on the many threads on the PA Weekly, Almanac and MV Voice town square forums. Is anybody in authority reading these and getting the message that there are some out of the box ideas and taking note?

Space used for new offices means less space for new homes - and thus higher rents and less affordable housing.

Council needs to minimize any new office space anywhere in MV, and use it ALL for housing, especially North Bayshore so people who work there can live near there.

What a mess. My rent continues to go up and there is no end in site.