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residents of Laguna Oaks. They care about teaching their children history and about the Ohlone Indians. He referred to the Laguna Oaks tree and the plaque that describes the families and Indians in earlier times. The residents are not against the park, they just think the silo is ugly and is a visual impact to all the residents. He felt that because the silo is at an elevation far above the residences in Laguna Oaks, it looks much larger than it actually is. Tom Begley, 2769 Lylewood Drive, said he had not participated in this process before but after the story poles were erected, he felt it was necessary to address Council. He does not have a direct line of sight to the silo, but he felt the silo was very objectionable. He grew up on the east coast and there was a water tower in his town. He related several incidents of graffiti and felt sure the Class of 2003 will be painted on the silo. He felt there was a liability concern if a young person fell off the silo when attempting to paint on it. Christine Ellis, 3219 Belvedere Court, agreed with prior speakers and also felt the silo would be a graffiti magnet. She urged Council not to approve the silo. Sheryl Thompson, 8213 Regency Drive, said that when she and her children drove by the story poles for the silo, her daughters asked why it was put up to cover the pretty hills. She objected to the silo. Claire Heppner, 2506 Arlotta Place, agreed with the other speakers and objected to the silo because of the cost and aesthetics. She approved of the park and felt it would be a wonderful site for education. She felt the silo was a had addition. She did not understand why Council wanted the silo when the residents so vehemently opposed it. Jim Brennan, 3368 Prairie Drive, President of the Foothill Knolls Homeowners Association, said the Foothill Knolls residents had been open to the park and the silo up to this point because they thought they could not see it. Now that the story poles are up, they realized they can see the silo and are about ten to one against it. The residents wonder why the City is spending the money. They also wonder why the City would do this when it has spent so much time and money to preserve the hillside. He felt there was enough room and trees to put the silo somewhere else if it must be built. Dan Torbeck, 2577 Arlotta Place, emphasized a previous point that this silo is not just in Laguna Oaks' backyard but in Pleasanton's backyard. The story poles don't tell the whole story since the silo will be solid. He felt there was clearly no value to the silo. This will be a great educational park, but he could see no value for a child to walk up and see a tall white cylinder. Regarding the fact that there will still be a white barn there, that will sit farther on the hill and the silo was to be right next to the road and could not be hidden by trees or anything else. From Foothill Road the barn will not be as visible and there can be landscaping to screen it. There being no further speakers, the public hearing was closed. Ms. Ayala appreciated having the story poles for the silo, but she felt certain that if poles had been erected to demonstrate the barn, that the residents would be complaining about it as well. She said she has not liked the location of the silo from the beginning. Now that it has been Pleasanton City Council 22 08/20/02 Minutes