Los Gatos’ equity, diversity report calls for community engagement, affordable housing

The Los Gatos Planning Commission took a first look last month at a plan designed to identify ways to make the town a more inclusive place for all residents.

“I think this is a necessary step to take these abstract concepts and turn them into meaningful actions we can take in the town,” Commissioner Melanie Hanssen said at a March 22 meeting where the Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, or JEDI, report was introduced.

All commissions and committees, as well as the general public, will have the opportunity to provide feedback on the report, which included recommendations for community engagement and building more affordable housing in town.

Last year the town council was verbally harassed by a far-right group that criticized the council’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and critical race theory. Then-mayor Marico Sayoc and her family became the target of some of the vitriol, which included anti-LGBTQ comments.

There was also anti-Semitic graffiti left at the Addison-Penzak Jewish Community Center in Los Gatos during the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur.

These incidents served as a call to action for the town to speak out against the hate and sparked the United Against Hate march that drew more than 3,000 residents.

Council voted in the summer of 2021 to work with the American Leadership Forum Silicon Valley (ALF) and the consulting firms Silicon Valley Insights and ReadySet to develop a preliminary JEDI report, which audited the town’s current policies and procedures and surveyed residents.

The latest report identifies tangible goals, policy changes, metrics for success and timelines to make the town a more welcoming and inclusive place. Goals include developing safe spaces in town, funding a committee to tackle JEDI efforts, engaging the schools and youth commission and building affordable housing

Ron Meyer, a longtime resident of Los Gatos, said at the planning commission meeting that there were “aspirational, socialist, utopian ideals” in the JEDI plan and that time spent on the plan was taking away from essential services for the community as a whole.

“I don’t know what the problem is you’re trying to solve. What is DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) going to do for the citizens of Los Gatos?” Meyer said. “The first problem I saw was over a year ago, when a bunch of Black Lives Matter people paraded through downtown Los Gatos and created havoc at the behest of the former mayor. That is a problem.”

Commissioner Kathryn Janoff said she wants to see some efforts to engage residents who aren’t already involved in JEDI efforts.

“I don’t see a problem, but I know it’s there,” Janoff said. “I know personally from my own family’s experience that my family members who aren’t White don’t feel comfortable in Los Gatos. So I know there’s a problem, and I know there are meaningful ways to go about working on it.”

The town’s General Plan also includes a racial, social and environmental justice section that includes definitions, goals and policies for JEDI efforts. The section was added after the General Plan committee heard from residents in 2021 that they did not feel welcome in town and wanted to see some changes.

To develop the report, ALF held listening sessions with the Chamber of Commerce, faith-based organizations, business owners and local school districts to hear what residents wanted out of the efforts.

Commissioner Susan Burnet  said some of the recommendations felt like “overkill” and that she wanted a more diverse range of voices included in the report because it felt “one-sided.”

“To form a commission, to start funding, I think that’s going a little bit in the wrong direction,” Burnett said. “How are we going to measure success?”

Commissioner Kylie Clark said investing in the recommended changes is important to show the town is committed to make change.

“We have to put our money where our mouth is, in my opinion,” Clark said. “We could sit here and talk about it, but unless we’re actually investing in it, I don’t think we’re actually committing to anything.”