President Obama Dines with Supporters in Atherton

Air Force One landed at Moffett Field in Mountain View at 6:18 p.m. Wednesday night. Among those greeting the president was Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Menlo Park.

The motorcade went south on U.S. 101 then back up I-280 to Woodside Road exit into Atherton, arrived about 7:10 p.m. at the Atherton home of Doug Goldman, software company founder, retired emergency physician, philanthropist and heir to the Levi Strauss fortune, and his wife Lisa, who hosted a $35,800-a-head dinner.

Among the guests at the Atherton fundraiser: Jan Brandt, vice chair emeritus of AOL; Dennis Troper, Google product management director; Tim Westergren, Pandora Media founder; and Susan Wojcicki, Google senior vice president.
President Obama and Doug Goldman made remarks in a large outdoor tent at around 8 p.m.

Goldman, who said the property has been in his family since 1906, said he and his wife decided to welcome the president with an Hawaiian decoration theme: floral arrangements, tablecloths, potted palms, hurricane lanterns, leis.

Goldman said the Recovery Act was a "brilliant" move, "saving more than one million jobs."

"It worked so well," he told the president, "some of your opponents are trying to take credit for it."

Goldman also credited President Obama for ending the Iraq war, killing Osama bin Laden, and voicing support for same-sex marriage. The last point drew the loudest cheers and applause from the audience.

President Obama said of the Goldmans: "They have had my back from the get-go, and at a time when not many people knew who I was."

He thanked David Crosby and Graham Nash, who performed at the event. "It's not every day you get Rock and Roll Hall of Famers strumming the guitar for you," he said.

And he thanked actor Don Cheadle for his presence and support, but promised not to talk about their recent basketball game. Cheadle responded: "Thank you."

"We've gone through three and a half of the toughest years in our lifetime," the president said, with so many millions of jobs lost. "And we've still got a long way to go. In California and across the country there are still a lot of people who are hurting" from joblessness, risk of losing their homes, unaffordable education.

"Our work is not done. The good news is, we're beginning to steer that ship in the right direction."

President Obama said he's proud of his administration's educational reforms, and said the nation must continue to make scientific advancements in order to remain globally competitive. "America continues to have the best workers and the best businesses in the world -- we just have to get organized, and we're starting to do that."

The Affordable Care act has begun making health care more affordable and accessible; fuel economy standards for cars have been doubled; clean energy production has been doubled; and foreign oil imports are at a 15-year low, he said. The Iraq war is over and Afghanistan is ending, while the U.S. is regaining international respect.

"We continue to be the agenda setters," he said, shaping international rules and norms on issues from terrorism to climate change to poverty. "People are paying attention, people are listening, and people are hungry for our leadership."

But he needs another term to seal the deal, he said.

"This is a country full of decent people who believe in America and are generous and kind and tolerant," the president said.

He talked about being at a high school graduation earlier this week in Joplin, Missouri, which was ravaged by a tornado last year, and meeting a senior who lost both his parents, spent five weeks in physical rehab, and had to care for his sister yet still is graduating and going on to college.

"That captures who we are and what we're about" as a nation, he said, leaving him "more determined than I was in 2008" to carry on.

The motorcade left the Goldman residence in Atherton at 8:58 p.m. and rolled up El Camino Real to Redwood City, where the president arrived around 9:08 p.m. Tickets for this event cost $250 for general admission; $1,000 for premium seating; or $7,500 for a seat plus a photo reception, with up to two additional guests in the photo at $2,500 each.

A campaign official said those in attendance at the Fox Theatre included theater owners Eric Lochtefeld and Lori Lochtefeld, and Redwood City Mayor Alicia Aguirre.

After his talk there, the president headed to San Jose's Fairmont Hotel, where he'll spend the night and hold a campaign fundraiser with Asian American/Pacific Islander contributors Thursday morning before leaving from Moffett Field around 10 a.m.

Republican House Speaker John Boehner was also scheduled to be in the Bay Area on Wednesday to attend a fundraiser in Woodside for the Republican Party.

Republican House Budget Chair Paul Ryan is scheduled to make a fundraising visit to San Francisco on Thursday.

Source: Palo Alto Online News
Pool reporting by Josh Richman — Bay City News Service

High-end Housing Sales in Silicon Valley are Booming...

The Menlo Park Office of Alain Pinel Realtors
just had their

BEST MONTH EVER!!!

The following article appeared in the Sunday
edition of the San Jose Mercury News --

Sales of houses in that price range were up 9 percent in January and February from the same period last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems.

The same trend isn't showing up yet in San Mateo County, where DataQuick shows sales in that range are down from a year ago. But DataQuick hasn't captured complete March figures yet, and agents are reporting a surge of activity in the past three weeks.

Beyond that, not every high-end sale gets into public records or the listings service that real estate agents use. The $100 million paid by Russian investor Yuri Milner for a home in Los Altos Hills on Feb. 3 wasn't known until Wednesday, when Santa Clara County Assessor Larry Stone released official records that had been confidential until then.

"The high end of the market is doing better than it has for the last several years," said Richard Calhoun of Creekside Realty in San Jose.

Twice as many sales

The highest end seems especially hot. Calhoun found that in the first three months of this year, twice as many homes were sold for $5 million or more in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties as there were during the same period of 2010.

Most of those sales for both counties took place in February and March,

Calhoun said. The number of sales in that price range is more than for any similar period since 2000, he said.

And most are taking place in the cities you'd expect: Los Altos Hills, Palo Alto, Atherton, Portola Valley and Woodside.

"People feel like they have money in their pockets," said Wendy McPherson, manager of Coldwell Banker's Menlo Park, Woodside and Portola Valley offices.

Wait-and-see stance
The trend is being repeated around the state. In January, DataQuick reported that the number of California homes sold for $1 million or more in 2010 rose for the first time in five years while overall sales dropped by 9 percent.

Catherine Marcus, who specializes in high-end valley properties for Sotheby's, said "the market right now on the high end is probably stronger than we've seen since 2007."

"Things that are coming on the market are selling," she said. "We're seeing a lot of foreign buyers, a lot of money from China. There are properties we've had where nothing had happened for six months, and all of sudden there are multiple offers."

The high end is "definitely picking up," said Diane Kneis, a Coldwell Banker agent who is listing the Atherton home of 49er football legend Jerry Rice -- 16,000 square feet, not counting a seven-car garage -- for $13.9 million. "There's a lot of interest from agents with qualified buyers who are looking for large homes that are well-built and can accommodate large families," she said.

McPherson of Coldwell Banker said that "all of a sudden in Menlo Park in the last three weeks, we had six sales over $3.5 million. In Atherton, we just had a $17.5 million listing and an $11.5 million listing sell," she said.

She said recent sales in Palo Alto include one for $9 million, two for more than $6 million and "lots and lots of sales" between $2 million and $3 million.

"There's been quite a few recent sales," said Gary Campi of Campi Properties in Los Altos. "It's been pretty promising." Campi is listing an equestrian facility on 11 acres in Los Altos Hills, with plans for a 15,000-square-foot home and eight-car garage, for $26.8 million.

At this point, DataQuick is taking a wait-and-see stance. "It's really early to know how this is going to shape up for the year," said Andrew LePage, an analyst for DataQuick. "In the next two or three months, we'll get a better idea."
Source: By Pete Carey, pcarey@mercurynews.com

inMenlo -- a Hyper Local Blog

My dear friends, Linda Hubbard and Chris Gulker have been Blogging in a new "Hyper-local" Blog about life here in Menlo Park.

They are featured in the January 6th edition of the Almanac.

Here is a link to the Blog -- inMenlo.com

Here is their story --

News - Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Menlo Park blog captures local life, people, vignettes

by Sean Howell


It's a cool winter's day here in Menlo Park, California, latitude 37 degrees, 44 minutes; longitude 122 degrees, 11 minutes. The sky is beginning to show some sneaks of light in the east there, over the Stanford foothills.

The shops on Santa Cruz Avenue are opening up, getting ready for business. They're already open at Peet's at the corner of Santa Cruz and University, serving steaming coffee to the early risers on their way to work, or on their way home from an early morning walk.

Dan Dowler over at Cook's Seafood is preparing crabs; he's optimistic about this year's catch after talking with some of the fishermen in Half-Moon Bay and seeing the first haul. Dr. Bill, a chiropractor and a familiar face around town from his days coaching Little League and chairing the Chamber of Commerce, is greeting patients in his practice in the Sharon Heights Shopping Center.

A custom '53 Corvette is sitting in one of the public lots; a lone protester is standing on Sand Hill, holding a "Condi lied" sign; some road work's going on at one end of Sharon Park.

And in a Sharon Heights home, Linda Hubbard Gulker, Chris Gulker and Scott Loftesness are blogging about it, all of it — that is, assuming they're not out on the street already, talking to their favorite local people, poking around in unfamiliar territory.

They are the founders of a "hyper local" community blog called InMenlo (inmenlo.com), and they're striving to convey some sense of what it's like to live here. While the news divisions of traditional print newspapers, including this one, tend to focus on what's changing — warning residents of land development proposals or pending school expansion, for instance — InMenlo sketches the community, and the people in it.

"We love unearthing characters, scouting out stories," said Mr. Gulker, who handles most of the photography for the site (with rare exceptions, each story comes with a photo).

They catalog local people, hang-out spots, community events, trends, and weather reports. They give shopping tips. They look into complaints of increased ticketing by police — but not too deeply.

"We aren't a news site," said Ms. Gulker, who does most of the writing. "We want to focus on people."

There's not much "negative" news, the blog's founders admit, though they did post a blurb about a community meeting on preventing teen suicide. Though they say they would welcome contributors, they're wary of the blog getting hijacked by political activists.

The stories tend to focus on Sharon Heights and the downtown area, where the founders spend most of their time, though there have been a few posts from east of Middlefield Road. At the moment they are seeking topical rather than geographic diversity, though they say they will look to expand their scope as the number of contributors grow.

For now this is just a hobby; Mr. Loftesness pays the fees to maintain the site out of pocket. Visitors fluctuate wildly day-to-day, a sign that the site hasn't yet gained a toehold, according to Mr. Gulker.

Still, for a project that started on a whim, the bloggers have been remarkably persistent, posting at least one short story per day. The goal is to establish a "daily cadence" that readers can get used to, Mr. Loftesness said.

Ms. Gulker's favorite stories are the ones about places that people tend to overlook. She particularly enjoyed writing about the cemetery on Santa Cruz Avenue, where the street kinks.

"For most people, it's just noise, it's part of the landscape," she said. If her story gets people to pause for a moment the next time they pass the cemetery, she's done her job.

NIMBY Won’t Stop California High-Speed Rail

Source: WIRED: Zach Rosenberg

Democracy, it has been said, is two wolves and a sheep voting on what to eat for dinner. We’re seeing that in California, where resistance to a planned high-speed rail line is mounting in three affluent cities. A vocal, and influential, grassroots movement has sprung up to reroute the line around the San Francisco Bay Area communities or have it run underground.

There is tremendous support — not to mention a concrete plan and $10 billion to get the project started — for a high-speed line linking San Francisco and Los Angeles. But disgruntled residents of Menlo Park, Atherton and Palo Alto could make things very difficult. The cities are home to some of the Bay Area’s wealthiest residents, and they’re suing. Their NIMBY opposition could turn the project into a mind-bogglingly expensive and impractical boondoggle.

This issue goes beyond the Bay Area and California, because other proposed high-speed lines almost certainly will face similar opposition. The plaintiffs simply do not want the trains running through their neighborhoods, and such views are not unique to California. The Obama Administration set aside $8 billion in stimulus funds for high-speed rail and our next transportation spending bill could include as much as $50 billion for it.

As high-speed rail becomes a national reality, planners of potential lines can expect fierce resistance in the courts and intense local political pressure.

The California resistance comes from communities that voted heavily in favor of Prop. 1A, the 2008 ballot initiative that allowed the state to issue bonds worth about $10 billion, or roughly one-quarter the total cost of the project. The measure passed with 52 percent of the vote. Gov. Schwarzenegger has sought another $4.7 billion of the $8 billion set aside in the stimulus package. Forty states are pitching projects — some 272 applications in all — totaling $105 billion.

California’s project is well into the planning process, and the cities of Atherton and Menlo Park have joined some environmental groups in suing the California High-Speed Rail Authority and Caltrain. They’re the two major bureaucratic forces behind the project. The suit alleges two things: first, an improper environmental assessment; second, infringing on Union Pacific’s track ownership.

The first issue is relatively straightforward — the plaintiffs argue studies of the environmental impact the project would have on their communities weren’t handled correctly and therefore underestimate the noise, vibration, displacement and other problems the line would create. Much of this was settled in an earlier lawsuit, but the judge sided with Atherton on a few minor issues, allowing for further suits.

The second point requires a little history: Southern Pacific once owned the tracks California hopes to retrofit for high-speed trains. In 1991, Southern Pacific, which became part of Union Pacific in 1996, sold the tracks to Caltrain for use as commuter tracks, but it retained the exclusive right to use them for freight and to hire an operator for intercity trains. The latest suit claims Caltrain lacks the authority to allow intercity high-speed trains on the tracks because Caltrain is dealing with the High-Speed Rail Authority, not Union Pacific. Union Pacific, which has been happy to allow high speed rail as long as it can still haul freight on the lines, seems puzzled by the lawsuit.

Assuming the plaintiffs aren’t actually outraged at the creek displacement or wholly overlooked violation of California contract law, this appears to be, at its heart, a case of NIMBYism. The plaintiffs worry about the noise, vibration, increased traffic and loss of privacy — and decreased property values — high-speed rail might bring. They also argue that no one involved in the project adequately or honestly studied alternatives, which, in fairness, is true. These are legitimate issues.

So the proposed solutions are to reroute the rail line or run it through underground tunnels (or both). The proposed reroute might require passengers to stop at an Amtrak station and transfer to Amtrak. Burying the line would be extremely expensive, while rerouting and burying it makes it more expensive and impractical.

Huge projects like this always inflame passions and incite litigation. It is a usual and occasionally necessary part of the process. But California’s high-speed rail line, which is currently the country’s best shot at a credible and useful high-speed intercity train, will be built one way or another.

Menlo Park has a new vehicle for Parking Enforcement -- it is a very tiny little Smart Car and replaces a golf cart.

House of the Week...

Well, currently there are several new homes on the market in Menlo Park and Atherton. One that I think is really special is located at 1080 Lassen Drive in Menlo Park. Beautifully done Interior Design by Joanne James, this home is filled with light and lovely finishes.

Priced attractively at $3,540,000.

To see this home please give me a call at (650) 543-1215.

Looks like the winner for oldest building still standing in Menlo Park is the train station, which now serves Caltrain passengers.

Carpaccio -- Everyone's Favorite!

Diego, Mark, Ciya and Jose Luis...

Town Hall Meeting on the High-speed Rail Issue

Senator Joe Simitian and Congresswoman Anna Eshoo invite you to attend a Town hall Meeting on High Speed Rail.

This from Joe "I'll be joining Congresswoman Anna Eshoo for a town hall meeting on California's high-speed rail project. If you'd like to learn more or get a question answered, I hope you'll attend.

"WHAT: Town Hall Meeting on High-Speed Rail hosted by Congresswoman Anna Eshoo
(State Senator Joe Simitian will also be there.)

WHEN: Saturday, July 25 at 2:00 PM

WHERE: Menlo Park City Council Chambers, 701 Laurel Street, Menlo Park, CA

Live webcast at https://mail.apr.com/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://eshoo.house.gov/ and a video will be available soon afterwards at https://mail.apr.com/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.senatorsimitian.com/. This town hall is open to the public, and no RSVP is necessary.

For more information, call (650) 688-6384 or (408) 277-9460.

Housing Info from the Urban Land Institute

Housing starts increased to 582,000 in June, the second straight month of increases after reaching the lowest point since 1970 in April. Single-family home starts are driving this growth, with 470,000 housing starts in June, while multifamily starts declined from 143,000 in May to 101,000 in June. Single-family starts in June were 28 percent lower than in June 2008 while multifamily were 75 percent lower.

Prices for new homes rose slightly in May and are now just 3.6 percent lower than in May 2008. Prices for existing single-family homes increased very slightly according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) data, but remain 16 percent lower than the previous May. At the same time, the S&P/Case-Shiller Index remained about the same. Prices of existing condominiums remained about the same as well but are almost 22 percent lower than last May. Housing affordability remains near historic highs although it declined slightly, reflecting the rise in prices and mortgage rates.

Total existing home sales increased slightly in May, a welcome positive sign, and the inventory of homes for sale decreased, with a nine-month supply, down from 9.5 months’ supply in April. Still, this remains above the historic average of 7.2 months’ supply (since 1982). The number of new homes sold decreased slightly from 344,000 in April to 342,000 in May, and the inventory of new homes for sale declined as well—the months’ supply decreased to 10.2 from 10.4.

Home mortgage rates (30-year fixed) rose slightly in June to 5.42 percent, but remain very favorable by historic standards. Mortgage delinquency and foreclosure rates remain very high.

These housing trends in total suggest continued movement in the right direction, but a healthy and balanced housing market is still not in view.

Source: Urban Land Institute

Huge Losses in Sharon Heights Fire

A Sharon Heights fire Thursday night destroyed two townhouses and caused major damage to a third, according to Chief Harold Schapelhouman of the Menlo Park Fire Protection District.

He estimated the loss at 15 Susan Gale Court, where the three townhouses are in one structure, at between $1 million and $1.5 million.

Firefighters battled the five-alarm fire for about two hours Thursday night.

The fire, reported at 5:11 p.m., was contained by around 7:15 p.m.

More than 50 firefighters, including crews from Redwood City, Woodside, Palo Alto and San Mateo, as well as Menlo Park, fought the blaze. A total of 17 engines, five ladder trucks and two breathing units were involved, supervised by six battalion chiefs.

The fire started in the middle unit of the structure, said Chief Schapelhouman. The fire spread through the walls from the center of the middle unit, and got in between the first and second floors of the middle unit, he said.

One firefighter was injured slightly, with a minor burn to his ear, the chief said.

Source: Dave Boyce, the Almanac

This Week-end in Menlo Park

Connoisseur's Marketplace
For festival lovers, it’s a can’t-miss event on the summer calendar!

Connoisseur's Marketplace celebrates the Bay Area’s best in culinary, visual, and performing arts on July 18-19, along charming Santa Cruz Avenue in Menlo Park.

Presented by the Menlo Park Chamber of Commerce, thousands of visitors are expected to pour onto the downtown streets for this vibrant extravaganza of art, music, food, wine and all-around family fun.

For Artist information, see http://www.pacificfinearts.com/; for Food Vendor information, see http://www.tecproductions.com/; for Sponsor information, see http://www.miramarevents.com/.

Sales are Up and Months of Inventory Down Sharply in West Menlo Park

These Charts represent West Menlo Park Area #303 (Central Menlo Park) ONLY.

Source: Trendgraphix

New "Hyperlocal" Blog -- InMenlo

My friends, Linda Hubbard and Chris Gulker each have their own Blogs --

See www.firstblush.blogspot.com for Linda's Blog about early morning joggers and much more .

Find Chris at www.gulker.com for commentary on technology, photography, brain tumors, France, wine & food and more...

Now they are the co-creators of a new "hyperlocal" Blog -- not just about Menlo Park, but about West Menlo Park; it's doin's, people, scenic spots, good wi-fi and coffee, etc.

Discover the new Blog at http://inmenlo.com/

First things first, then on with the day...

Towns Look to Influence High-speed Rail Design

Source: by Sean Howell Almanac Staff


As the agency that oversees the high-speed rail project begins to plan how high-speed trains will pass through the Peninsula, local cities and towns are trying to figure out how best to get the agency's ear.

Seeking strength in numbers, Menlo Park and Atherton have signed an agreement to formalize an ad hoc group that has been meeting weekly to discuss issues related to the project. A majority of council members say the cities will have more sway if they work together to lobby the High-Speed Rail Authority, and that they will be better able to share resources and ideas.

Rail agency plans
The main question in the minds of local officials has been, and continues to be: In designing the rail, will officials pay attention to how it will affect local communities?

Rail officials have said repeatedly that they plan to work with local jurisdictions throughout the process, though local officials have said they're skeptical that the agency will do more than state law requires. At an April 30 meeting, a state Senate subcommittee that included Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) expressed concern over the rail agency's outreach efforts, holding off on granting the agency its next wave of funding until it showed a better program for "outreach and oversight.

"The rail agency has laid out a plan to meet quarterly between May 2009 and April 2011 with "working groups" from Peninsula counties and agencies.

Mike Garvey, a former San Carlos city manager who's heading up outreach efforts in San Mateo County for the engineering company contracted to design the rail line, said he's sympathetic to the concerns of local residents.

"The (environmental review) process is a formal, ritualized process," he said. "Some people had the impression that that specific, fixed process would be the only opportunity for comment, and it's not. This will be an ongoing, informal attempt to involve grassroots organization, and to hear from every community.

"In convincing local officials that the rail agency is serious about working with local communities, Mr. Garvey has his work cut out for him. Count Menlo Park Councilman Rich Cline among the skeptics.

"Our point is that there needs to be a dialogue. We need to work together to plan this thing successfully," Mr. Cline said. "The work group (plan) doesn't necessarily make it better, because we have to see that there's a proper input and reaction process.

"Mr. Cline characterizes the rail authority as an organization that's still oriented toward promotion of the concept of high-speed rail, rather than the logistics of how trains will pass through the state. He has joined a rising number of people calling for a restructuring of the organization.

The rail agency expects to issue a draft of its analysis of the various design possibilities in January 2010, according to Mr. Garvey. He said it's too early to say whether that report will identify a preferred configuration.

The agency plans to make portions of its analysis available to the public throughout the course of its analysis in the coming months, according to Mr. Garvey. He said he doesn't yet know exactly how that information will be presented, but that "everyone will have access to it.

Local strategy
The group of Peninsula jurisdictions, dubbed the "Coalition of Cities," would include one council member from each constituent jurisdiction. In addition to Menlo Park and Atherton, the ad hoc group has included representatives from Palo Alto, Mountain View, Burlingame, and Sunnyvale.

The group is separate from the "working groups" set up by the rail agency. That group is divided along county lines.

The coalition of cities would likely only take positions on broad issues that affect most of the member communities, Menlo Park council members say.

Menlo Park Councilman John Boyle said he supports the cities working together, but fears that formalizing the group would clog an already complicated bureaucratic process. The rail agency is legally required to listen to each city throughout its design process, he said. And if the group takes a stance on an issue that Menlo Park opposes, the city runs the risk of having its position misinterpreted in the press.

In an interview, Councilwoman Kelly Fergusson said she thinks a "formalized communication strategy" would make it easier, not harder, for news outlets to interpret the stance taken by Peninsula cities.

Peninsula counties would seem to have built-in leverage with the rail agency, because they own the Caltrain corridor. The agency will negotiate to lease the corridor from the joint powers board that oversees it, in order to run trains along it. But some local officials think the board is more focused on securing benefits for the Caltrain system than it is on the impacts to the communities along the rail line.

Mr. Boyle disputed the notion that the board's interests are by definition inimical to those of the jurisdictions it represents.

"They are responsible to their member cities," he said of the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board at a recent council meeting. "I think they would represent our interests, if we asked them to."

INFORMATION
As part of its outreach efforts, the High-Speed Rail Authority has set up a hotline for people to get general information on the project: 510-597-8640. For questions specific to San Mateo County, call outreach coordinator Mike Garvey at 596-9047, or e-mail him at garveycgs@yahoo.com. The project's Web site is cahighspeedrail.ca.gov.

Rosewood Hotel Complex Opens for Business

Source: Almanac News

Officials from Menlo Park, Rosewood Hotels and Resorts, and the Stanford Management Co. gathered to celebrate the opening of the Rosewood Sand Hill hotel, spa and restaurant on Thursday, April 2.

About 150 people were on hand to watch as Michael Casey, managing director of Rosewood Sand Hill, and Menlo Park Mayor Heyward Robinson cut ribbons and delivered speeches.

Mr. Robinson praised city staff, as well as current and former council members, for shepherding plans for the facilities through the city's planning process. The City Council approved those plans in June 2006, with Councilman Andy Cohen casting the lone dissenting vote.

Mr. Robinson said the hotel would provide much-needed jobs for local residents, would offer a space for large events, and would be a boon to the city's tax revenue. The hotel has a 2,800-square-foot ballroom that can hold between 150 and 250 guests, according to hotel officials.

Though the country is mired in a recession, Rosewood CEO John Scott said he sees a silver lining for the "ultra-luxury" hotel. It will have less competition, because he doesn't envision many new hotels opening soon, he said in an interview.

He said he believes the Peninsula's economy is still on relatively solid ground, and that business people will still elect to stay there on trips. And with people tightening their budgets, nearby residents might eschew a trip to a far-away resort in favor of a weekend stay in Menlo Park, he said.

The hotel, spa and restaurant actually opened for business Wednesday, April 1.

Following is the Press Release from the Rosewood Hotel Group

Help Us Celebrate Hotel's Grand Opening
Jan. 19, 2009

Rosewood Sand Hill, the Newest Property in Rosewood Collection Offers Special Opening Rates with Help Us Celebrate Package MENLO PARK, CA - Michael Casey, Managing Director of the new Rosewood Sand Hill which is scheduled to open on April 2, 2009, has announced a special offering for the hotel's first guests. Those who book the Help Us Celebrate package will receive one night of luxury accommodations for two and a celebratory glass of sparkling wine upon check in. In addition, Rosewood Sand Hill will donate five percent of the room rate to Canopy and Trees for Menlo, two environmentally-friendly organizations dedicated to the planting of trees in the local area.

"We have a lot to celebrate when we open in April as the newest property in Rosewood Hotels & Resorts' distinctive collection," explained Casey. "In addition to providing extraordinary accommodations for guests who visit the Peninsula, Rosewood Sand Hill will offer highly refined, yet personalized service and resort-like amenities that include Sense, A Rosewood Spa™ and Madera, our signature restaurant. We are also pleased to celebrate bringing hundreds of new jobs to the area.

"Help Us Celebrate will be available to guests during the opening month of April as a way to introduce Peninsula visitors and locals to the legendary Rosewood luxury and service. The cost of the package is $295 on weekdays and $225 on weekends through April 30, 2009.

Rosewood Sand Hill is conveniently located minutes from high-end boutiques, galleries and restaurants, and just 35 miles south of San Francisco and 14 miles north of San Jose. Reservations are available by calling 888.ROSEWOOD or by visiting Rosewood Sand Hill at http://www.rosewoodsandhill.com/.

Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts manages properties worldwide including Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek and Rosewood Crescent Hotel in Dallas, The Carlyle in New York, The Mansion on Peachtree in Atlanta, CordeValle in San Martin, California, Inn of the Anasazi in Santa Fe, Las Ventanas al Paraíso and Rosewood Mayakobá in Mexico, Hotel Seiyo Ginza in Tokyo, Japan, and a triumvirate of world-class Caribbean properties - Rosewood Little Dix Bay on Virgin Gorda, Caneel Bay on St. John and Jumby Bay on Antigua.

For more information on Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, please call 888.ROSEWOOD or visit rosewoodhotels.com.

Open House Today 1:30 to 4:30 -- 605 Olive Street, Menlo Park

I am hosting an Open House today from 1:30 to 4:30 at 605 Olive Street, Menlo Park. Please come by and see this extraordinary 3 year old Craftsman style home loaded with amenities. It is located in best West Menlo Park and boasts 5 Bedrooms and 4+ Bathrooms.

High Speed Rail Update

The Palo Alto City Council met last Monday, March 2, to discuss the proposed High Speed Rail system. Many residents, including many Southgate neighbors, attended and expressed concerns about the planned elevated track system (see conceptual sketch below). Current plans by the High Speed Rail Authority call for an elevated track structure with concrete walls, 15-21 feet above the ground and 75 feet wide, with overhead electrical wires in the existing Caltrain right-of-way, with trains running at 120 MPH, every 2-3 minutes (at peak times.)

The City of Palo Alto has information on its website, at: http://www.city.palo-alto.ca.us/news/displaynews.asp?NewsID=1223&TargetID=268.

You are also encouraged to send your comments and concerns (which will be responded to in the current environmental review process) to the state Authority at: comments@hsr.ca.gov. Please make sure to send your comments before the April 6, 2009 deadline.

Peet's Reopens to Enthusiastic Menlo Park Crowd

Well, our beloved Peet's on the corner of University and Santa Cruz suffered a fire on March 17th and has been closed ever since. What were we to do? some of us tried to be flexible and we tried Starbucks, some made coffee at home, others headed for the Peet's in Town and Country Village...

Yesterday, at long last, OUR Peet's reopened! They even gave $1 off of each drink to show their appreciation for our loyalty. There were balloons, free samples and even a bunch of cute Firefighters coming to the scene of their heroics (the fire was actually in the walls, so it didn't LOOK dramatic).

I think we all have a new appreciation for our favorite morning hangout, which we tended to take for granted. Here is a little bit about the history of Peet's --

On the day Alfred Peet opened his first coffee store on the corner of Walnut and Vine Streets in Berkeley, CA, he quietly began a revolution in the way Americans experienced the taste and quality of their coffee – a revolution that persists to this day.

Born in Holland, Alfred Peet grew up in the coffee trade and moved to America after World War II. Appalled at the poor quality of coffee being consumed by Americans, he became inspired to open the first Peet’s Coffee & Tea store on April 1, 1966. His style of coffee was a radical departure from what was then available, emphasizing smaller batches, freshness, superior quality beans, and a darker roasting style that produced coffee with richness and complexity.

By 1969, Peet’s Coffee & Tea became a gathering place for coffee devotees, and this success attracted other artisan food purveyors to the neighborhood, which soon became known as the Gourmet Ghetto. Alfred Peet further catalyzed the specialty coffee movement when he mentored and inspired a generation of coffee entrepreneurs, including the founders of Starbucks, whom he supplied with Peet’s roasted beans during their first years of operation.

Over the past four decades, Peet’s growth has been fueled by ever-increasing numbers of coffee lovers in the San Francisco Bay Area and across the nation. With each generation of Peet’s leadership, we have remained true to the quality tenets of our founder, inspired by the same unrelenting pursuit of quality. Our purpose has not changed since 1966 – to seek out opportunities to raise the expectations of American coffee drinkers by attracting and serving those who truly love the taste of coffee, for whom a cup of coffee could only mean a cup of Peet’s.