The roundtable meeting, hosted by the Town of Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce, was attended largely by merchants, but a few landlords, property managers and a real estate attorney rounded out the group of roughly 30 people.

Turning to the merchants, Councilman Mike Wasserman, who leases out several properties, said landlords would rather work with and come to an agreement with a tenant than to be left with an unoccupied building. Otherwise, the landlord would need time to find a new tenant and, on top of that, offer a couple months of free rent, resulting in a loss of a few months' worth of income, he said.

"Landlords don't want vacancy," Wasserman said.

After some merchants mentioned that they had asked their landlords for rent relief because profits were down from what they were two years ago, Wasserman noted that Silicon Valley happened to be blessed with good fortune a couple years ago. A few merchants nodded in agreement with Wasserman's estimation that current profits are comparable to what they were five years ago.

The real issue affecting merchants' profits is the economy itself, said Antiquarium owner Shirley Henderson and Azita Aghevli, owner of In The Olde Manner. In general, they said, people are not shopping because of the recession, not because of the streetwork or parking situation around town.

Attorney Mark Millen advised merchants to consult a real estate attorney and to find out what the area around a certain building is worth before seeking rent reduction. He also said merchants should be prepared to disclose their financial statements to their landlords when asking for rent relief. Lastly, Millen said tenants can ask their landlords for documents that show where the triple-net expenses they pay monthly as part of their rent end up.

Another topic that merchants discussed extensively was the potential competition coming from Santana Row.

"Everyone should take heart in the fact that [Santana Row] is trying to mirror Los Gatos," Millen said.

Responding to comments from merchants that Santana Row has offered months of free rent and cash upfront to merchants who relocate, Millen said setting up business in a corporate location means "you work for them" and that such locations do not care whether a business has the space to develop.

"I'm not concerned about Santana Row because it doesn't have charm," Wasserman said. "This is Los Gatos. It has charm, trees, hillsides."

Nevertheless, town Redevelopment Manager Marty Woodworth said competition stemming from Santana Row and businesses in Campbell is a "wake-up call" for the town to consider undertaking new projects.

The town has invested money in fixing up streets and is helping to fund the production of commercials for airing on cable networks. It also has a group working to set up gateways around town.

"What we're trying to do is sparkle around you," said Mayor Sandy Decker.

The town also adopted a policy last year by which chain stores looking to move into Los Gatos must go through a public hearing process and be approved by the planning commission to ensure neighborhood compatibility.

This allows the town more control than in years past and more than what Palo Alto exerts, Woodworth said.

"We don't want to become Valley Fair Mall or any other mall," Woodworth said.