The Mountain View City Council adhered to well-established protocol and reappointed an incumbent to the Environmental Planning Commission Tuesday evening while also selecting a newcomer to serve on the advisory committee.
The City Council unanimously picked incumbent Tina Pham, an environmental civil engineer, to fill an open seat on the planning commission – an advisory body that weighs in on land use issues, making recommendations to the City Council. Pham was first appointed to the commission in February, following the departure of Chris Clark who was elected to the City Council last year.
A second seat was also open because Commissioner Joyce Yin’s term will expire at the end of the year. In a 4-2 vote, the City Council backed Shwetha Subramanian, a real-estate development consultant, to join the commission. Subramanian edged out IdaRose Sylvester, a former City Council candidate, business owner and educator, after an initial vote resulted in a 3-3 tie between the two candidates.
Council member Alison Hicks initially backed Sylvester but then picked Subramanian, breaking the tie in her favor. Mayor Ellen Kamei and City Council members Lucas Ramirez and Emily Ann Ramos also backed Subramanian while Pat Showalter and Chris Clark voted for Sylvester. Council member John McAlister was absent from the Oct. 21 meeting.
Planning commission openings draw robust applicant pool
The City Council interviewed five contenders Tuesday, including Hala Alshahwany, a retired engineer, and Jerry Wilburn, a social worker. While neither received votes, both were praised for their qualifications and commitment to the community.
“It is a peril of prosperity that we have,” Showalter said, referring to the robust applicant pool. “We have people stepping up because we have good resources to work with and we have very interesting problems, and we have a history of getting things done. So that makes stepping up and being part of the process much more attractive than it could be in some other places.”
Council members expressed a preference for continuity and quickly reappointed Pham, praising the work she has already done on the planning commission. Since February, the commission has deliberated on the future of Moffett Boulevard as well as made recommendations on the city’s historic preservation ordinance, biodiversity and urban forest plan, and reviewed major housing projects, like the redevelopment of Chase Bank at 749 W. El Camino Real.
The Council had a more difficult time filling the second open seat, as Subramanian and Sylvester both have a strong urban planning background and experience working on housing related issues.
Subramanian, an architect by training, ultimately swayed the council majority during the interview process, providing answers that focused on the city’s housing and transportation needs as well as the changing economic landscape of the region.
“I think it’s going to be key for us to figure out how to build in flexibility and long-term vision into our planning going forward,” Subramanian said.
Subramanian also noted the impact of state laws, like SB 79, that could increase housing density in the downtown area. She stressed the need for the city to stay ahead of mandates, so that it can balance sustainable development with preserving the character of existing neighborhoods.
Council members commended Subramanian’s responses as both concise and robust. “Those answers were like bangers to me,” Ramos said. “I love them.”
Council members also expressed a preference for adding more diversity to the planning commission, noting that Subramanian was a renter in the Rex Manor neighborhood, an area that is poised to undergo a lot of land use changes in the future.
“I think it’s important… to ensure that we have representation of communities that will probably feel the brunt of the change that will come out of a lot of the land use planning,” Ramirez said. The majority of commissioners live south of El Camino Real, a part of the city that likely will not experience as much change in upcoming years, he added.
Ramirez also noted that the commission lacked representation from renters, a perspective that Subramanian could help round out, he said.
Showalter however pressed hard for the council to select Sylvester, describing her longtime involvement in the community and on advisory committees, including the Human Relations Commission and Environmental Sustainability Task Force.
“I think that connection to our community is really vital,” Showalter said, adding that Subramanian has only been a Mountain View resident for a little over a year.
But other council members noted that it was still possible to be tapped into community issues, even if not a longtime resident.
“The considerations that I have are less about how long someone has lived somewhere, or necessarily where they live in our community, and more about the council priorities that we’re working on,” Kamei said.
For Kamei, Subramanian could play an important role on the planning commission, given her professional background and work on housing affordability, especially with respect to planning for better pathways to home ownership.
Pham and Subramanian will join five existing planning commissioners: Bill Cranston, Hank Dempsey, Paul Donahue, José Gutiérrez and Alex Nuñez. Their appointment will begin in January and run until the end of 2029.
I get wanting to have a diverse mix on the EPC, but a 1-year resident making planning decisions doesn’t feel right. Just an opinion, but living here for a number of years, experiencing the fabric of the community, and understanding the nuances and needs of different parts of town, would seem to be important EPC background qualifications. Especially when there are other strong applicants.