I am not convinced that cell towers do harm to us but I do not want one plunked near my home and pointed at me. There is evidence and convincing studies on both sides of this non-thermal radation argument. Here, on the Peninsula we live in a general, chemical marinade. The air we breath, the water we drink, the food we eat all falls within some acceptable limit set by various levels of government, but I don’t like to think about the collective effects of all those acceptable limits on me or my family.

It is too hard to control the air I breathe. I would have to wear a tank or move to Osceola Wisconsin to improve it. I drink bottled water, but I am cheap and I drink a lot of water. I secretly refill my bottles from the tap and I don’t think I am alone. Even if I drank bottled water exclusively it would not change the fact that I absorb whatever acceptable limits are in our water through the open pours in my skin when I bathe, and I am not going to give up bathing. I eat and serve many fresh fruits and vegetables. I could buy only organic produce, but remember, I am cheap. So I am left to stew over the cell tower argument and wonder if this is not one area where I can exercise some control.

I contacted my step-brother-in-law, Mark, a scientist of genius proportions who worked at SRI for many years. He told me that there is a long-standing myth about non-ionizing, non-thermal radiation effects, which is the stuff that cell base stations spew. He said that during WW2 sailors would stand in front of radars before going on shore leave with the belief that this would protect them from the unintended consequences of personal contact with the local population. He said that some maintain that this is the source of many of the current beliefs. He told me that the truth is that there is no study done in the past 50 years that has found any detectable impacts of non-ionizing, non-thermal radiation to humans or other animals. He admits however, that most of the studies are more recent and lack long term data.

Los Altos is under siege by cell phone companies looking for those magical, receptive spots to locate their enormous towers. In particular they have schools, churches and parks in their crosshairs. And who can blame them? We are all walking around with phones hooked to our heads, complaining about the lousy coverage. Anyone who drives Foothill Expressway between Edith and Page Mill knows not to initiate a cell phone conversation of any substance in that infamous dead zone. The cell phone companies are willing to spend big bucks identifying and lobbying for sites in an effort to feed our demands.

Cell companies have on their staff real estate savvy employees who research communities and negotiate deals for tower sites. I know this in part because I have another step-brother-in-law who worked at a cellular start-up and it was his job to find sites. When he wasn’t out scouting he would work in his office where he had taped tin foil to his windows in an effort to deflect the radiation from the product which was being tested outside his door. Unfortunately this only caused the engineers to giggle and point the prototype in his general direction regularly.

Our own Egan Middle School is considering a tower. The neighbors on Giffin are fighting a proposal already accepted by the city to have a tower in their neighborhood. Cingular just erected a tower in the parking lot of the Anglican church on Springer. This was especially crafty because the church is an annexed piece of Mt. View property surrounded by Los Altos neighborhoods, thus Mt. View decided they did not have to notice the neighbors. By the time the (Los Altos) neighbors found out, the horse had already galloped from the barn with the tower firmly planted on church soil. I bet that Cingular realtor is marching about with a fancy gold ‘thank you’ phone from her grateful employer.

Los Altos can avoid the neighborhood eruptions against cell towers by adopting ordinances, rather than (the current) guidelines as to where cell towers can go. Prohibiting them from neighborhoods is well within our authority and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Requiring 500 feet between a tower and a house is a good, and most would agree, safe practice. If Los Altos adopted this ordinance it does not eliminate siting in the city, it just forces it where it is appropriate, like City Hall or downtown.

It is common for municipalities to require that carriers work together and share sites to minimize the number of antenna sites, but not necessarily the number of antennas. A typical cell site uses three antennas per carrier. Small, filler sites could use one antenna but it is not as cost effective for the carrier. So why not a multi-carrier site at City Hall? The cell companies will pay high lease rates (up to $3000/month) in cases where there is demand but few options, like Los Altos. The city could keep neighborhoods safe and happy and rake in some much needed cash.

So, with all the ingesting and inflicting on myself and my family I have decided to take a stand on where cell towers go in our town. It seems like the one thing my neighbors and I might be able to control, long term, and why heap a big helping of non-thermal radiation on top of all the other stuff I have to worry about?

• For more information about neighbors working together in Los Altos to limit cell tower sites, contact Christine Vieira Sellers, Phone: 650-216-3541, christine@postini.com

• For research which supports the safety of cell tower radiation visit:

www.mcw.edu/gcrc/cop/cell-phone-health-FAQ/toc.html#1

• For research which points to the harmful effects of cell tower radiation visit:

http://www.emrnetwork.org/research/research.htm

Kathy Putman, Housing Chair

Last month, we decided to list new applications for wireless antenna sites in our newsletter. Our first and only current listing was Cingular Wireless-460 S. El Monte. We have since learned that the South El Monte application is being held in abeyance at the property owner’s request. It is inactive, but has not yet been withdrawn. What follows is the list of approved wireless communication facilities in Los Altos. All are complete except numbers 15 and 16, which are approved but not yet built. This list brings us up to date with current construction. New applications will be listed as they come to our attention.

Many thanks to the community of Los Altos and Mountain View, the commuters that travel through Los Altos and Mountain View, the City of Los Altos, Sergeant Matt Hartley, Officer Brent Butler, Officer Paul Arguelles, the Los Altos School Board, the PTAs of Mountain View and Los Altos, the children, teachers and parents of both school districts, and Bubb School PTA President, Taylor House for all their efforts to make Traffic Safety Person Appreciation Day and the Mid-Winter Walk to School Day on February 11^th such a resounding success. Special Thanks go to Blach PTA Co-Presidents, Debbie Torok and Claudia Hevel who not only co-ordinated but also originated the idea of a special day to show the school crossing guards the appreciation felt by the community for their work.

All of the crossing stations were beautifully decorated! Kids, parents, and commuters took the time to say "thank you" or show appreciation in so many ways to the crossing guards: through balloons, cookies, cards, gift certificates, goody bags, and one commuter even rolled down the window and handed a Valentine lollypop to one of the crossing guards.

AND, thank you to all the wonderful crossing guards in Los Altos, including those at Montclaire School and St. Simon School, who take the time to make sure our community’s children get to and from school safely. As Debbie Torok, so aptly stated: "The guards truly feel happy to be part of the school and community family."

Hopefully, this will become an annual event, and we appreciate the opportunity to say "thank you" to these terrific people, and applaud those in Los Altos who worked to make this day such a success!

1.  04-SC-01 -- D. and M. Nicoli -- 951 Manor Way: Consideration of design review for a new two-story home.  Project Planner: Connolly

2.  04-SC-02 -- D. and L. Strauss -- 710 Rose  Lane: Consideration of design review for a two-story addition.  Project Planner: Rondash

3. 04--SC-03 -- Coast to Coast Development,  Inc./ V. Doyel --1315 Ranchita Drive:  Consideration of design  review for first and second story additions to an existing two-story home.  Project Planner: Rondash

4.  04-SC--07 -- H. Jeong -- 364 San Luis Avenue:  Appeal of staff’s denial of  design review for a new one-story home.  Project Planner: Rondash

5.  04-SC-04 -- G. and Y. Kosaka -- 662 Benvenue Avenue:  Consideration of design review for a new two-story home.

6.  04-SC-06 -- M. Gaskill -- 540 Shelby Lane: Consideration of design review for a two-story addition.

7.  04-SC-09 -- A. Chou --1062 Riverside Drive: Consideration of design review for a two-story addition.

8.  04-DL-01 -- Via Builders Inc.,/ B. and B. Hansen -- 885 Laverne Way: Consideration of a tentative map for a lot split.

Co-President Mike Abrams

Co-President Dianne Edmonds

Vice President Ken Lorell

Treasurer David Jaques

Secretary Kathy Wright

Editor Vickie Clements

Housing Chair Kathy Putman

Membership Chair Leslie Lodestro

Traffic Chair Bill Crook

Contributor Karen Greguras

Webmaster Jerry Wright

Advisors Tom Anderson

Lou Becker

David Casas

Kate Disney

We send a big THANK YOU to parents, community members and area businesses whose donations allowed the Foundation to reach this year's ambitious $350,000 fundraising goal. 

Specifically MVLA High School Foundation funds the following key programs at Los Altos and Mountain View High Schools:  class size reduction, extended library hours, fully staffed Tutorial Centers and College/Career Centers, as well as instructional materials for Alta Vista, the alternative high school program.

The local community accepted and met this year's challenge, ensuring that our schools offer programs supporting excellence in education.  Your support means a great deal to the students, faculty, district staff and MVLA High School Foundation board members.