Press Release – What Led to Deceptive Ballot Question?

CCSensibleGrowth.org

Press Release – What Led to Deceptive Ballot Question?

April 8, 2016

Highlights: Cupertino City Council has misled voters with a deceptive ballot question for a city initiative measure. The measure was placed on the November 2016 election ballot by grassroots citizens. This ballot measure is of vital importance to residents in Cupertino and nearby communities because it would protect the city from uncontrolled growth. By misleading the voters, the City Council has damaged the measure’s chances of passing, severely jeopardizing the future of the suburban city of Cupertino. The negative impacts of continued unconstrained growth will also have serious ramifications affecting traffic gridlock, public safety, environmental risks, and other matters of importance to the entire Silicon Valley.

Discussion: In a hastily called special meeting on April 5, 2016, the Cupertino City Council, by a narrow 3-2 vote, passed a resolution to alter the 75-word ballot question for the Cupertino Citizens’ Sensible Growth Initiative (or CCSG Initiative). The 3-vote majority adopted ballot question wording submitted by attorneys representing Sand Hill’s Vallco office park Initiative Committee. In contrast to counter campaigns initiated by well-connected developers, the CCSG Initiative was prepared and circulated by grassroots citizens’ groups, and qualified for the November 2016 election with an all-volunteer campaign team of private citizens after only five weeks of signature collection.

Just five days earlier, on March 31, the City Council had adopted the 75-word ballot question for the CCSG Initiative by unanimous consent. In the March 31 meeting, the council rejected the neutral and balanced ballot question proposed by the City Attorney. Instead, influenced by Sand Hill’s attorney’s opinion letter, which in turn was based on a biased and inaccurate Elections Code Section 9212 Informational Report, modified the ballot question to make it less impartial. After that meeting, not satisfied with the damage already done, another team of attorneys, also representing Sand Hill’s Vallco office park Initiative Committee, sent in yet another letter proposing even more biased wording to further discredit the CCSG Initiative. On April 5, to the dismay of residents, a 3-person majority of the 5-person City Council sided with Sand Hill’s attorneys once again, and adopted the deceptive and extremely biased wording for the ballot question for the CCSG Initiative.

The goal of the CCSG Initiative, clearly understood by all parties involved, is to strengthen and support the existing city General Plan with concisely specified building densities, heights, lot coverage, setbacks, and other elements to provide for gradual and well-planned city-wide development, encouraging sensible, balanced, and long-term growth. The Sand Hill attorney’s assertion that the CCSG Initiative would “increase maximum height of residential buildings” was a blatant misreading of the measure’s meaning. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The technical details regarding the developers’ distorted legal interpretation of the CCSG Initiative will be provided upon request. In essence, the developers, who are attempting to qualify their own competing initiatives, crafted a ballot question to serve their own business interests. The powerful sway developers command in Cupertino has led to a regrettable decision by the City Council. The City Council’s decisions on March 31 and April 5 demonstrate how easily future decisions might be influenced by developers and other special interests. Therefore, the successful passage of the CCSG Initiative is even more important. We must ensure that the future direction of growth is not determined by the misdirection of three votes on the City Council.

The CCSG Initiative is a forward-looking General Plan amendment designed to ensure Cupertino will be revitalized according to the community’s vision, not the developers’ vision.

Please visit www.CCSensibleGrowth.org to learn more about the CCSG Initiative, find out about future events, and donate to support the passage of the CCSG Initiative in November 2016.

CCSensibleGrowth.org and BetterCupertino.org

Paid for by Committee supporting Cupertino Citizens' Sensible Growth Initiative, PO Box 1132, Cupertino, CA 95015, FPPC# 1381645.

CCSensibleGrowth.org