In the News

Below you will find recent news regarding Karen Holman's campaign for city council and her involvement in the community. If you have any additional clippings that you feel would be worth posting please contact Karen at contact@KarenHolman.org.

Press Clippings

Friday, October 9, 2009

Palo Alto Weekly endorses five for council

"Karen Holman, a longtime member of the city's Planning and Transportation Commission, has been an active neighborhood leader in addition to her activities in support of a Palo Alto History Museum. She has a strong and diverse base of community support. Her knowledge of development policies and practices is extensive, rivaling or exceeding that of Klein and Councilman Pat Burt, also a veteran of the planning commission. She is a strong advocate for earlier release of city staff reports on upcoming items for the council, and for expanding the use of the Internet to get proposals and illustrations disseminated a week or more in advance of the meeting where they are to be considered. Late staff reports or substantive changes by developers should require an automatic postponement of the item, she says. She and two other planning commissioners are working on proposals to reform the "planned community" zone and better define "public benefits" used to justify increased density over baseline zoning. She also feels the city needs to do far more to "support the retail environment" and attract more revenue-producing businesses."

Friday, October 9, 2009

Post Endorsement

"Nobody will dispute that Holman is a strong voice for neighborhoods that have been attempting to fend off more traffic and overdevelopment.

But she’s also a champion for small, independent businesses. In an interview, she railed about the city’s lack of commitment to the business community. She said the city should be promoting the town’s small businesses, not making the lives of business people more difficult. In line with that, she’s against the business tax.

Holman is a problem-solver with good ideas. With eight years on the planning commission, and a keen intellect, she understands the issues and the law better than many city employees. She’s ready for a seat on council."

Friday, October 9, 2009

The candidates next door

by Gennady Sheyner

"There's a reason why just about every leading conservationist and neighborhood leader in Palo Alto is supporting Karen Holman's campaign for City Council.

For years, Holman has been among the harshest critics of the dense housing developments that have cropped up around town and a leading proponent of more transparency in the planning process.

Holman, who lists her job as a "conservation consultant," was born in Missouri and moved to Palo Alto 25 years ago. She is the executive director of the Palo Alto History Museum and has spent the past eight years on the city's Planning and Transportation Commission, which she chaired twice...

When discussing Alma Plaza -- a project the commission rejected 5-1 -- she described the limited hours of the proposed community room as "another broken promise" by the developer before voting against it. The community room was one of the public benefits the developer was required to provide to attain approval for the controversial project...

While land-use and transparency are the main issues Holman is focusing on, economic vitality isn't far behind. Holman said she hopes to make it easier for people to open small businesses in Palo Alto by coordinating the city's notoriously tangled permitting process..."

More News

September 11, 2009

Organizations Endorse Karen Holman

Karen Holman's candidacy for Palo Alto City Council was recently endorsed by the California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV), the Sierra Club, the Santa Clara County Democratic Party, and Assemblyman Ira Ruskin.

On September 10th, Terry Trumbull, Chair of the Santa Clara CLVC Chapter, notified Holman that "the CLCV board unanimously endorsed your candidacy for Council at its board meeting tonight."

And in a letter to Holman also dated September 10th, Sierra Club Political Committee Leader Diane Allen wrote, "We were impressed with your knowledge on a range of issues and your obvious passion for serving the public. Your extensive environmental record and many years of service to the community show us you are the kind of candidate we can be proud to endorse."

"I'm honored by these endorsements," said Holman, who currently serves on the Palo Alto Planning & Transportation Commission. "I'll work tirelessly on City Council to zone for what we want, live within our budget, and ensure an open, transparent, and level playing field for all citizens and interested parties."

The Santa Clara Democratic Party endorsed Holman at its meeting on September 3, 2009.