Los Altos voters have rejected Measure D, which would have required a separate public vote before the city could sell, lease or restrict most of its downtown parking plazas, the Los Altos Town Crier reported. KQED’s Associated Press tally, updated at 9:59 p.m. PT on Nov. 9, showed 7,763 no votes, or 60%, to 5,157 yes, or 39.9%. The results remain unofficial. The measure needed a simple majority.
Why it matters: The Town Crier said the ordinance would have prohibited the city from selling, leasing, conveying or declaring as surplus land 10 city-owned downtown parking plazas, or from authorizing new uses or physical changes that would diminish protected trees or parking, unless voters separately agreed. Two plazas that may be developed for affordable housing would have been excluded from that vote requirement, the paper said. City staff warned that passage could have forced Los Altos to amend its housing element to stay in compliance and avoid state penalties.
The Town Crier, in an earlier count, reported a 60% to 40% result with 7,247 no votes and 4,848 yes, out of 12,095 votes cast. The later KQED tally shows a larger vote total and the same outcome, with no still at 60%. Both figures are unofficial until the county certifies the election.