Out to launch over Moffett IN BUSINESS | P.13 APRIL 2, 2010 VOLUME 18, NO. 13 INSIDE: WEEKEND | PAGE 17 650.964.6300 MountainViewOnline.com Water use flowing downward, city finds ECONOMIC RECESSION, LOCAL INITIATIVES AND OTHER CHANGES LEAD TO INCREASED CONSERVATION By Daniel DeBolt use are in the works as well: As reported last week, the city is he economic recession proposing to require water-effi- appears to have been good cient landscaping on new devel- Tfor water conservation, opments. City staffers hosted a with total water use in 2009 public hearing on the issue last reported to be the lowest in Wednesday evening, and a hand- Mountain View since the mid- ful of residents attended to put 1990s. forth, among other concerns, the The city used about a billion question of who exactly would be gallons less in 2009 than in 1997, subjected to the ordinance. when water use peaked at 13.25 Flegel said it would only apply million gallons per day. Last year, to major new development proj- an average of 11 million gallons ects which require planning per day were used. permits — typical homeowners There are several reasons for the downturn, said Elizabeth See WATER, page 10 Flegel, the city’s water conserva- MICHELLE LE Robert Baertsch, vice president of software engineering for Unimodal, shows off a SkyTran pod prototype tion coordinator. A declining at NASA Ames on Tuesday. economy causes businesses to cut water costs. Drought-tolerant landscaping has become popular, Crash victim as have water-efficient faucets, Could investors fund city’s shower heads and toilets. And was football Mountain View is no longer home to a number of computer component manufacturing com- star, soldier transportation future? panies which used more water than the office buildings that FUNERAL SERVICES HELD COUNCIL RESOLUTION FAVORS GENERAL CONCEPT OF ‘PERSONAL RAPID TRANSIT’ replaced them. THURSDAY FOR 21-YEAR- Several city initiatives may By Daniel DeBolt getting all of the funding from unanimously supported “the help lower water use. The city’s OLD KYLE SIMPSON private investors. general concept of an automated company that has set new recycled water system north By Daniel DeBolt “Investors have told us, bring personal rapid transit (PRT) of Highway 101, which waters up shop at NASA Ames us a project and we’ll finance it,” system in Mountain View” after Research Park claims its Shoreline Park and Google’s he 21-year-old Moun- A said Robert Baertsch, Unimod- being lobbied by another PRT landscaping, is capable of reduc- system for automated tain View man who company — one not ing the city’s water use by 1 mil- pod travel could lift located at Moffett — Tdied in a solo car crash Mountain View out of lion gallons a day. If expanded in Cupertino early Friday The city is considering a PRT called ULTra. south of Highway 101, the system its traffic and public The city is morning was a well-liked for- transportation woes — could save millions more, said mer football star at Los Altos system from the downtown train considering a PRT sys- Greg Hosfeldt, assistant public and the city may not tem from the down- High School who possibly fell have to spend a dime works director. asleep at the wheel. station to the Shoreline area. town train station to Meanwhile, a green build- on it. the Shoreline area, Kyle Simpson had just So claims Unimodal ing code is in the early stages returned home from Army where young employ- of development that may call Inc., which says that for the first al’s vice president of software ees from Google and Microsoft training before the crash. city to say yes, it can build its for water-efficient faucets and On the night of the accident, engineering. are expected to embrace its fixtures in new Mountain View SkyTran system — small cars or Though the jury is still out cutting-edge means of moving friends say, he had just left “pods” which move about auto- developments. Several cities on his job as a security guard at on the merits of such a system, people around. the Peninsula are working on matically on a network of rails, the City Council has already a South Bay bar and grill and heading to their destination at similar indoor water-use regula- was still adjusting to the time made a preliminary step in its tions, Flegel said. the push of a button — while favor. On Feb. 23, the council See RAPID TRANSIT, page 8 New rules for outdoor water See SIMPSON, page 11 INSIDE GOINGS ON 22 | MARKETPLACE 23 | MOVIES 20 | REAL ESTATE 26 |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q/#,1-#% -2,1#),)&3q!-**#/%-#% -0#1-0 2 ■ MOUNTAIN VIEW VOICE ■ APRIL 2, 2010 New Start Year, Smiling New More You. 7PJD FT Treat yourself to a complimentary consultation with Dr. David R. 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