Hi City Council I am a resident of Menlo Park and the Willows. I cannot attend the meeting tonight. I thank you all for putting the Willows traffic issue on the agenda and wanted to send some written comments to the proposal. Again, thank you for bringing this up for discussion. I think the report that was pulled together by the city is very helpful. I would like to remind all of you that this is just a START. We have waited far too long as a city to address what is a growing problem. Menlo Park, along with many other cities in the Peninsula, has been very eager to accept new corporate development but did not adequately plan for what this development would mean. Now, we are in the midst of a terrible, terrible traffic situation that is a result of many of these local development/partnership decisions and action must be taken. Menlo Park needs to work with the other towns, mainly Palo Alto to start, as well as CalTrans as well as the employers in the area. This is not a tenable situation for anyone. Even the small steps you are taking to fix some of the problems - its just a start. With apps like Waze (much national press on the problems all towns are facing from these apps), drivers will find alternate routes. You MUST work to fix the bigger problem - you don't have adequate infrastructure for all the commuters coming in and out of what used to be small, suburban towns. Willow does need to be widened or consider one way in the evening and this needs to be done in conjunction with Palo Alto making changes to University, Cal Trans making changing to the Dumbarton and Menlo Park also looking at Marsh. We must get smart. This is Silicon Valley and your constituents expect you all to represent us and think big - plan and take action. Employers in this area want a fix as well. I support the temporary changes you are enacting but there has to be enforcement of all these restrictions. And we must be flexible - if Gilbert becomes a mess, we will need a fix there. Etc., etc. Menlo Park has waited far too long to take any action and now things are a mess. Put pressure on Cal Trans.They have a terrible track record of finishing their projects on time - don't let this be another one. Willow Road is too main an artery for this area to watch construction trucks sit idle for days. We are in the heart of the most innovative area in the world. We can do this - you can do this. There is a bigger change going on here - help this area remain vibrant by thinking to the future. If you can't, your residents will happily find representatives who will. Sincerely, Sarah Reilly Received on Tue Dec 05 2017 - 10:46:00 PST
