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Gennady Sheyner
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About Gennady
Gennady Sheyner has been covering Palo Alto since 2008. His beats include City Hall, with a special focus on housing, utilities and transportation. He also covers regional politics for the Palo Alto Weekly, Palo Alto Online and its sister publications. He has won awards for his coverage of elections, land use, business, technology and breaking news.A native of Ukraine, Gennady grew up in San Francisco and graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a bachelor’s degree in English and from Columbia University with a master’s degree in journalism. Prior to joining Embarcadero Media, he spent three years covering breaking news and local politics for The Waterbury Republican-American, a daily newspaper in Connecticut. He is a massive fan of English football, marathons and churros.
Stories by Gennady
Palo Alto takes aim at construction 'blight'
The chain-link fence around the "mystery project" went up next to Gail Wooley's house on Mariposa Avenue nearly seven years ago and has remained since, bringing blight and crime to the Southgate block. On Monday, the City Council voiced support for a new law that would set time limits on delinquent construction projects such as this one.[Monday, September 23, 2013]
'The Unwinding' is a requiem for the American Dream
In his new book, George Packer demonstrates that you don't need a passport to chronicle misery, poverty, destruction and resilience. The book's title refers to the whittling away of long-standing American institutions, a phenomenon that in Packer's account begins at around 1980, when union jobs began to fade away.[Saturday, September 21, 2013]
Palo Alto seeks to recoup more program costs
If the city budget is a reflection of community values, it's safe to say Palo Alto residents have a particular fondness for animals, community theater and nature hikes.[Friday, September 20, 2013]
City looks to make every new house electric-vehicle-friendly
As Palo Alto revs up for a celebration for electric vehicles later this month, a trio of council members are calling for the city to consider a new law that would require every new house to include charger-friendly infrastructure.[Thursday, September 19, 2013]
Rail foes seek to bar further spending on project
After scoring a victory in a Sacramento court last month, opponents of California's proposed high-speed rail system are now asking the judge to bar the agency responsible for the line from spending any money on the $68 billion project until a new business plan is in place.[Wednesday, September 18, 2013]
Palo Alto explores two roadmaps for digital future
As a city that views itself as digital paradise, Palo Alto rarely looks to places like Louisiana, Kansas and Utah for technological guidance. But now that the city is once again exploring an "ultra-high-speed" network, officials are looking far and wide for success stories it can emulate.[Tuesday, September 17, 2013]
City's effort to curb traffic hits its first speed bump
It could be an ominous sign that Palo Alto's first discussion of a broad and ambitious traffic-management program kicked off with optimistic plaudits and ended in legislative gridlock Monday night. Or it could be yet another reminder that when it comes to curing the city's traffic and parking woes, nothing is ever simple or straightforward.[Tuesday, September 17, 2013]
New tool, same quandary in debate over Jay Paul project
Palo Alto officials on Monday unleashed a new tool for appraising the most ambitious development in the city's pipeline -- a proposal by Jay Paul Company to build two four-story office buildings next to the AOL headquarters at 395 Page Mill Road. It didn't take long for them to realize this tool -- an independent economic analysis -- is both imperfect and insufficient for making a decision on the massive development.[Tuesday, September 17, 2013]
Palo Alto appoints acting city auditor
Palo Alto has appointed senior auditor Houman Boussina to head the City Auditor's Office while officials are looking for a permanent replacement for departing Jim Pelletier.[Monday, September 16, 2013]
City delves into economics of Jay Paul Co. proposal
On Wednesday, the city unveiled a new tool for answering the question of the value of a zone change: a pro forma analysis that seeks to gauge whether Jay Paul has offered enough in "public benefits" to merit the requested zone change.[Friday, September 13, 2013]