Auxiliary notes meetings on recently discovered flood risks in the Matadero and Barron Creek basins

Notes from preparatory meeting involving BPA, SCVWD, and City of Palo Alto (on 10 October 1997)

Attendees:

1. Barron Park Association (BPA)
   • Doug Moran
   • Inge Harding-Barlow
   • Ken Tani
   • Art Bayce
   • Bob Moss
   • Katie Edwards
   • Erna Glanville
   • Shirley Finfrock
   • Gary Curtis
2. Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD)
   • Greg Zlotnick, Board Member (elected representative), voicemail: (408) 265-2607 x 2081
   • Dave Chesterman
   • Dennis Ely (operations and maintenance for this region)
   • Timmy Yung
   • Iwao Shinfani
3. City of Palo Alto
   • Joe Teresi, Senior Engineer, Public Works Dept.

Meeting announcement:

• Two meetings:
• Wednesday October 15, 7-9 PM, Hyatt Rickey's: primarily for Barron Park residents
• Thursday October 16, 7-9 PM Holiday Inn (625 El Camino): primarily for resident near the section of Matadero Creek below Alma
• People can attend either meeting, but separating two neighborhoods allows more focus on the separate neighborhood-specific arguments.
• Letters to affected residents (in mail Friday 10 October)
• Postscript: many (all?) of the letters sent to Barron Park residents informed them of the "wrong" meeting: Thursday instead of Wednesday
• Announcement in Palo Alto Weekly and Palo Alto Daily News

Presentation at meeting

• Multiple "kiosks" so that people can ask questions before meeting
• BPA attendees at this preliminary meeting to be available to answer individual questions, and to give them information that can help them better phrase questions to the whole meeting
• Greeters (local volunteers): to point attendees towards Water District staff and BPA reps
• BPA: suggestions for presentation
• Both tables of numbers and visually representations (attendees likely to include both types of people)
• Maps of flooding for different options for the key stages of flooding.
  • Problem: take too long to do study to determine exact boundaries. Do not want people taking approximate maps as authoritative ("this map shows my house in the flood zone").
  • Solution: combination of
  • Fuzzy map: show only major streets (omit most streets)
  • Warning that maps are guestimates
  • Use crayons or some similar marker to reinforce the approximate nature of boundaries of flooding.