In her years of volunteering in Los Gatos, Diane McNutt's two most memorable moments come from events that she helped create.

McNutt remembers standing with then-Mayor Joe Pirzynski and Town Manager Debra Figone last year at the end of the town's first Fourth of July celebration.

"The moon was coming out, and there was music from the street," McNutt recalls. The three—all involved in planning the event—joined hands and jumped up and down, shouting like children.

McNutt also remembers the first Los Gatos Film Festival, which took place last October. As the first cartoon was shown on the screen at Oak Meadow Park, the searchlight turned to show the crowd of hundreds.

"I was like, 'Oh my gosh, this is so great,' " McNutt says.

"I just get too much pleasure out of those kinds of moments," McNutt says.

McNutt says her involvement in community events and programs is spurred by one desire—to give the community those moments. "I like to make memories for people," McNutt says.

McNutt has a track record of making memories, through the Fourth of July celebration, through the film festival, and through Leadership Los Gatos, the town's leadership training program, now in its second year.

In the nine months of last year's program, McNutt arranged for participants to take a bus tour of town, visit the local landfill and recycling center and tour Van Meter School, where the adult residents did a third-grade science project and received valentines from kindergartners.

"If you have something in there that's a little unexpected, a little fun, then you do talk about it," McNutt says. "There's a lot of personal satisfaction that comes from that."

"I love starting with a blank page, pulling together leadership and resources and then making it all happen," McNutt says of her creation of the programs.

McNutt aims to do just that—pool resources and leaders to make things happen—as a Los Gatos Town Council member. Being on the council, McNutt says, "is to be a leader, and to be a leader is to set a vision and involve the community to set that vision. The government is the catalyst for bringing together individuals and groups to find solutions and to make things happen."

The 30-year Los Gatan doesn't think being on town council is merely about land use decisions and parking issues, as some other candidates have implied. "Yeah, we decide on permits to take trees down, but we decide on a whole lot more," McNutt says. "Land use issues may be 70 percent of the agenda items, but it's not 70 percent of what the council is considering and discussing."

Rather, McNutt says, the real issue is quality of life in town—"what is it like for people to live and work and play and learn in Los Gatos?" Real leadership and vision for the community is what's needed, and "there's been too much focus on small, individual land use issues," McNutt says.

The way to do that? Emphasize that "outstanding customer service is expected," McNutt says, which is a trend that the current council and staff have already started. The town should do its best to serve its residents and businesses, she says.

And the way to do that, McNutt says, is through communication, which is what the candidate is all about. With her own public relations firm, a background in media, involvement in the Chamber of Commerce and a husband, Michael Cronk, who is a reporter, McNutt says, "This is what I do for a living—help cities communicate with their constituents."

Some examples: McNutt handled a campaign to inform Mountain View residents about light rail in a successful attempt against Sunnyvale for the VTA station; McNutt helped in "educating the San Jose community about what redevelopment is, what economic development is, making them feel pride" in San Jose's first phase of redevelopment; and McNutt wrote an application and presentation that earned the city of Santa Clara the All-America City Award last year.

According to McNutt, Los Gatos should have worked harder to inform residents of the Town Plaza Park renovation project that happened this summer. Posting the information on the town's website and pointing to newspaper articles wasn't enough, McNutt said; many Los Gatans were still confused and upset.

Similarly, McNutt thinks there should have been more notice about the now-defunct proposal to construct a temporary skatepark at Blossom Hill Park. On the fliers to inform residents of a neighborhood meeting, there was no mention that the proposal was for something temporary, McNutt says, giving neighbors the impression that the skatepark would be permanent.

"Just thinking in terms of, 'What does the public need to know in terms of process and situation so that they can react in the appropriate way?' " McNutt says.

Along with better communication, McNutt has a handful of specific ideas that she'd implement as a councilwoman. McNutt has brainstormed the idea of e-permitting—a practice already used by other municipalities, as she said at a recent forum—that would allow residents to receive minor permits through a quick and simple online process.

McNutt also hopes to form a youth commission and an economic development advisory committee or commission "to really identify and monitor those key indicators that would tell us how we are doing," McNutt says. The town "can't be making decisions based on anecdotes," as it has been, McNutt says, and needs information like how much townwide commercial space is vacant and the number of business licenses today versus a decade ago. The committee or commission would do that research and find that information.

"I'm concerned about the economic viability of the community in the future," McNutt says.

The new parking plan is a good short-term solution for alleviating parking and traffic concerns, she says, but she wants to consider some sort of parking garage for downtown employees only. If the employees "weren't in municipal lots, then we would have enough parking," McNutt says.

Traffic, on the other hand, "is a combination of a regional problem and a lifestyle problem," McNutt says. The lifestyle problem means Los Gatos residents cause service vehicles to crowd the streets, with Internet deliveries, home services and construction equipment. McNutt proposes neighborhoods banding together to use the same kinds of service on the same days of the week to lessen congestion.

McNutt is celebrating two anniversaries this year: the 20-year anniversary of her company, and three decades of living in town. McNutt first moved in as a college graduate working for Guitar Player Magazine, where the Guitar Hospital is these days.

McNutt and her family currently occupy a Jackson Street home. McNutt is an avid reader, spending time on her current book each day, and is equally passionate about the San Francisco Giants, for whom she has season tickets.

Through her job, McNutt has been exposed to everything from municipalities to high-tech companies to hamburger stands. "I don't think there's hardly a kind of business that I've not worked with," McNutt says, giving her "broadbased knowledge and experience."

Diane McNutt

Age: 54

Occupation: Has had her own public relations firm since 1982 and teaches marketing/communications at San Josˇ State University

Education: BachelorÕs degree in journalism and masterÕs degree in mass communications, both from San Jose State University

Community Involvement: Chaired the committee for the Los Gatos Fourth of July celebration in 2001 and 2002; started and runs Leadership Los Gatos; chaired the Los Gatos Film Festival; established the information center in the Town of Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce office; was on the Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors for six years; served on the Los Gatos Museum Commission from 1987 to 1989; founded the Certificate in Marketing Communications Program at San Josˇ State University; is a member and past president of South Bay Public Relations Roundtable and the local chapter of Women in Communications; sits on the board of several local nonprofits, including Arts Council of Santa Clara County and San Jose ChildrenÕs Health Council; member of St. MaryÕs Catholic Church

Family: Husband Michael Cronk, daughter Jill