Portola Valley Weekly Update November 3, 2022

This week's update:

• Housing Element Update Environmental Review Now Available
• Sheriff’s Contract Update – Share Your Thoughts
• Districtwide SMC Alert TEST Nov 9th
• County Road work and traffic Delays on Arastradero Road Nov 2-22
• Wildfire Preparedness Committee Tip - Lithium Battery Safety; New WPC Meeting Day
• Are You Prepared for the Winter Storm Season?
• Draft Safety Element Available for Review
• Sudden Oak Death Results Are In
• $80 50-gallon Rain Barrels While Supplies Last!

Housing Element Update Environmental Review Now Available

As part of the Housing Element and Safety Element Update process, the Town has conducted analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). That analysis takes the form of an Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND). The IS/MND is now available for public review and comment. Please visit www.portolavalley.net/housingelement to view the document under the Environmental Review tab.

Comments can be submitted to housing@portolavalley.net or they can be mailed to Laura Russell, Portola Valley Town Hall, 765 Portola Road, Portola Valley, CA 94028.

Please provide comments by November 28, 2022

The Town’s Planning Commission will consider the IS/MND during a public hearing on November 16, 2022, at 7:00 PM. Residents are encouraged to attend and provide comments. That meeting will be hybrid via zoom and in person at the Historic Schoolhouse.

To stay up to date on the process, please sign up for Town eNotices and choose Housing (calendar) and Housing News.

Useful Links

Town's Housing Element Update webpage

Town's Ad Hoc Housing Element Committee's webpage

Sheriff’s Contract Update – Share Your Thoughts

What are your public safety concerns? How would you like to see public safety enhanced in Portola Valley? What public safety efforts in Portola Valley are working well?

The 5-year public safety agreement between the Town of Portola Valley and the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office expires in June 2023. The Town needs input from Portola Valley community members as it enters into discussions with the Sheriff’s Office about a new public safety contract.

There are several opportunities for you to provide input on your feelings about public safety. This input will be used to inform discussions about a new contract:

Learn how you can participate in the process

Districtwide SMC Alert TEST Nov 9th

On November 9th there will be a TEST as we transition our emergency notification system from one hosting platform to another.

You will receive two emails back-to-back.

The first email will be on the old system and will notify residents that they will be receiving another email from the new system, which will contain info on how to complete registration. The second email will be on the new system and will provide instructions on how to complete registration.

County Road Work and Traffic Delays on Arastradero Road Nov 2-22

Santa Clara County Roads and Airports Department will be doing road work on Arastradero Road near Alpine Road Nov 2 – Nov 22. Expect traffic control and delays.

Please note this is not a project run by the Town of Portola Valley. If you need more information, please call Santa Clara County Roads & Airports Department at (408) 573-2400

Wildfire Preparedness Committee Tip - Lithium Battery Safety; New WPC Meeting Day

The Wildfire Preparedness Committee has created a series of tips to help the community prepare for wildfire season. You can see the current tip and download any past tips on the website.

Are You Prepared for the Winter Storm Season?

This week we had some much needed rain in Town. While we do not know exactly how much precipitation we will get this year, we do know that living in an area of relative isolation means we must be prepared to be on our own for up to several days in the event of a severe storm or natural disaster. Are you ready?

The Town of Portola Valley's Emergency Preparedness Committee and Public Works Department put together a check list of suggestions of how you can prepare

1. Review the preparedness checklist
2. Know where the sandbag station is.
3. Go to www.smcalert.info and sign up to receive alerts on your cell phone and email.
4. Preset your portable and car radios to 1680 AM for emergency broadcasts from the Town of Portola Valley. To listen to a streaming online broadcast, visit http://bit.ly/PortolaValleyAM1680.

Draft Safety Element Available for Review

The Public Review Draft of the Safety Element is now available for review and public comment. The Town’s technical team, including staff and consultants, have developed this draft based on the content of the existing Safety Element, State law, guidance from the State and regional agencies, and best practices. This draft was guided by preliminary comments received from the Sustainability Committee, Geologic Safety Committee, and Emergency Preparedness Committee on early memos prepared by the technical team.

Town Committee Review of Draft Safety Element

View the recording of the October 26 Joint Committee meeting with the Wildfire Preparedness, Emergency Preparedness, Sustainability, and Geologic Safety Committees. The technical team presented the Draft Safety Element at the meeting. These committees will have opportunities to further discuss the Draft Safety Element at their individual committee meetings.

Opportunities to Provide Input on the Draft Safety Element

There are several opportunities for members of the public to provide input on the draft Safety Element:

Submit written comments

• Submit electronic comments using the form on the Town’s website at www.portolavalley.net/safetyelement.
• E-mail comments to safetyelement@portolavalley.net

Provide input at public meetings.

• TBD Emergency Preparedness Committee meeting
• TBD Geologic Safety Committee meeting
• TBD Sustainability Committee meeting
• TBD Wildfire Preparedness Committee meeting

Members of the public are encouraged to engage in these committee meetings and provide feedback at any stage in the process. Comments on the Draft Safety Element are requested by January 13, 2023.

In addition to the committee meetings, the Planning Commission and Town Council will review the Draft Safety Element. These meetings will provide additional opportunities for community members to provide input on the Draft Safety Element. Dates for these meetings will be added to the Safety Element webpage when available.

To receive updates on meetings and other Safety Element matters, you may sign up for eNotifications on the Town’s website by going to the “Community” page, navigating to “Stay Informed,” then “Subscribe to Town eNotices” and selecting Safety Element. You may directly access the “Subscribe to Town eNotices" page here.

Sudden Oak Death Results Are In

This spring many people in Portola Valley participated in a citizen science program to help track Sudden Oak Death (SOD) in our area. Sudden Oak Death, a serious exotic disease, is threatening the survival of tanoak and several oak species in California. Currently SOD is found in the wildlands of 14 coastal California counties, from Monterey to Humboldt. While patchy in distribution, with each passing year, the swath of infection continues to become more contiguous.

The results from the spring survey are in. Join the webinar on November 10th from 6-8 pm, Learn more and get the link to the webinar on the SOD Blitz Survey Project Landing Page

$80 50-gallon Rain Barrels While Supplies Last!

There are only 258 barrels left at the Daly City location available for pickup on November 12 and 257 barrels left at the Millbrae location available for pickup on November 19. Purchase yours before supplies run out!

With the Countywide Rain Barrel Program, San Mateo County residents, property owners, and property managers can purchase up to two high-quality, 50-gallon rain barrels for $80 each plus tax. This is a significant discount from the barrel's $145 retail value.