OMVNA was formally organized on Sept. 20, 1992, but it grew out of efforts to improve the quality of life here dating back to the late 1960s. At that time the neighborhood banded together to oppose completion of a four lane arterial road that was slated to connect California (at Hope) with Dana (at Bush) using an S-curve between those two intersections. Had the S-curve been built, many unique and lovely homes would have been destroyed, and the character of the neighborhood damaged beyond repair.
California Street was indeed widened to four lanes from Shoreline to Hope, as was Dana from Pioneer to Calderon, but the S-curve was stopped by the neighborhood activists of the late 60s.
The redevelopment of Castro Street that began in 1989 reawakened the neighborhood, this time in search of a traffic strategy that would route cars around the neighborhood instead of through it. The neighborhood worked with City staff in 1989-91 in drafting the Old Mountain View Neighborhood Preservation and Improvement Plan which was published in February, 1991, and adopted by the City Council on July 30, 1991. As part of this process, a set of design guidelines were formulated for our neighborhood.
In the mid-90s, OMV residents succeeded in partially repairing the damage of the late 60s by getting Dana turned back into a two-lane street between Pioneer and Calderon, and the City also narrowed California Street between Shoreline and Hope in 1998.
The names and roles of previous Steering Committee members are available on the web.
