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reasserts the values that makeWoodside unique: preserving the rural,scenic, and historic character of thecommunity; supporting the equestrianheritage and lifestyle; and respectingthe natural environment, just to namea few. The new General Plan also moreclearly articulates the Town’s commit-ment to sustainability principles. TheTown Council will now focus onimplementing the Plan, includingupdating the rules and regulations toensure that we are fulfilling the goalsof the General Plan.

The first major undertaking in thatprocess is the update of the ResidentialDesign Guidelines. The new Guidelineswill not only provide guidance on pre-serving Woodside’s community char-acter, desired site planning principles,and the design of buildings and land-scape elements, it will also be a better

tool forexplaining the planningprocess andhow to addressissues such asfire safety andsustainability.A committeemade up of Councilmembers AnneKasten and Peter Mason, PlanningCommissioners Diane Elder andAdolph Rosekrans, and Architecturaland Site Review Board membersBarbara Hoskinson and Thalia Lubinhas been working diligently on theupdate, and it is anticipated that thepublic review and adoption processwill take place between May and Julyof this year. Keep an eye out for thisimportant work, and plan to let usknow what you think.

(continued on back page)

It’s spring, the time of year to cele-brate renewal and new beginnings. AtTown Hall, we have experienced somerenewal and new beginnings.

Part renewal and part new beginning,the Town Council adopted a newGeneral Plan on January 10th. The Planlays out the goals and policies thatwill guide the development within theTown for the next 20 or so years. Notsurprisingly, the main themes of thenew General Plan are similar to theones found in the prior plan whichwas adopted in 1988. Following anextended process which involved 35volunteers who worked for nearly 18months as the General Plan Task Force,the review of all of the Town’s adviso-ry committees, the Architectural andSite Review Board, the PlanningCommission, and the careful review of the Town Council, the General Plan

WES Assistant Principal Steve Frankwill be honored this year as theParade Grand Marshal.

Tickets for the BBQ and carnival maybe purchased in advance at school orat the event. Parade forms and food/carnival ticketing advance orders areavailable at the Woodside ElementarySchool Office at 3195 WoodsideRoad. Parade registration forms aredue by Monday, April 30th

The 90th annual May Day Parade,sponsored by the Woodside ElementarySchool PTA, will be held on Saturday,May 5. Woodside and surroundingcommunities are encouraged to attend.Early arrival is encouraged; theWoodside Road parade route willclose at 8:00 a.m.

The event theme this year is “VivaWoodside” as the parade falls onCinco de Mayo. Everyone is invited to dress up in accordance with this funand festive theme.

A TOWN NEWSLETTER THE WOODSIDER SPRING 2012

Schedule of Events7:30 a.m. Fun Run sponsored by

the Woodside Rec. Com.8 – 10 a.m. Pancake Breakfast

Woodside Village Churchsponsored by the RotaryClub

9 a.m. Parade registrationin front of WES office

10 a.m. Parade11:15 a.m. Amphitheater program

May Pole DanceCitizen of the Year Award

12 – 2 p.m. BBQ12 – 3 p.m. Carnival games/crafts

May Day Parade & Carnival VViivvaa WWooooddssiiddee Sat. May 5

WWooooddssiiddee Recreation Committee

AApprriillClasses run year-round at Independence Hall andWoodside Village Church. For information onevents and activities or to register for classes,call the registrar at 650-851-3534.Visit our website: www.woodsiderec.com

All meetings are held in IndependenceHall unless otherwise noted.

2 ASRB, 4:30 p.m.10 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.16 ASRB, 4:30 p.m24 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.25 Special Planning Commission

meeting, 7:30 p.m

For updates on schedules, current issues,agendas and other information, visit TOWonline at: www.woodsidetown.org

Yoga for Everyone Spring session weekly classes are currentlyfilled. No drop-ins.Please call to be added to the waiting list:851-3534.

Exercise Classes Classes held Monday and Friday7:45 - 9:00 a.m.Independence Hall.

TToowwnn HHaallllCalendar

A short training session on SuddenOak Death /Phytophthora Ramorumwill be held on Saturday, June 2, at10 a.m. at Woodside Town Hall. Atthis meeting volunteers will learn to:� Identify bay trees, frequent carri-ers of the disease. � Collect samples of bay leaves.� Record sample locations usingaddresses or GPS. Samples may becollected anywhere in the area,including areas sampled in previousyears.� Use distributed materials for spec-imen collection and labeling.

Matteo Garbelotto, AssociateAdjunct Professor in the Departmentof Environmental Science, Policyand Management at U.C. Berkeleywill answer questions about SuddenOak Death and this study.

Samples will be collected by volun-teers on Saturday, June 2 and/or

Sunday, June 3. All samples will bereturned to either Portola Valley TownHall or Woodside Town Hall for pick-up by 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Berkeley diagnostic laboratory willanalyze samples through microscopicand DNA analysis. A map will be generated confirming the presence orabsence of the pathogen in the area.This map will expand the mappinggenerated by the SOD-BLITZs held2008 through 2011. To see resultsfrom previous years, visit:www.matteolab.com.

Next fall a U.C. Berkeley SOD expertmay be available to visit local SODhotspots discovered during the Blitzand give disease management recom-mendations.

For more information, contact:Town Manager Kevin Bryant at 851-6790 or kbryant@woodsidetown.org.

MMaayy2 Planning Commission, 7:30 p.m7 ASRB, 4:30 p.m.8 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.16 Planning Commission, 7:30 p.m.

21 ASRB, 4:30 p.m22 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.28 Town Hall Holiday Closure

JJuunnee4 ASRB, 4:30 p.m. 6 Planning Commission, 7:30 p.m.

12 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.

18 ASRB, 4:30 p.m

20 Planning Commission, 7:30 p.m

26 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.

JJuullyy2 ASRB, 4:30 p.m. 4 Town Hall Holiday Closure10 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.

16 ASRB, 4:30 p.m

18 Planning Commission, 7:30 p.m

24 Town Council, 7:30 p.m.

Woodside & Portola ValleySOD-BLITZ ~ June 2 and 3

Poetry Reading & ReceptionThurs. April 26 at 7:00 p.m. Local poets Lorene Zarou-Zouzounisand David Glick will be reading fromtheir works.

Uncle Jer’s Bee showSat. May 12 at 11:00 a.m. Learn the fascinating secrets of beesat this family program which includespuppets and two-frame observationhives with real live bees!

Saturday, April 28Friends of the Woodside Library

Book Sale10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

WWhhaatt’’ss HHaappppeenniinngg aatt tthhee Woodside Library Reduce Waste from

Energy Leaks!Woodside has teamed up with a localnon-profit, Acterra, to provide a free,step-by-step approach to savingenergy — without making a signifi-cant impact on your home operation.

The High Energy Homes programoffers you customized recommenda-tions for finding “free money” inyour utility bill. Using an innovativesoftware program, Silicon Valleyresidents in four towns similar toWoodside are now saving an averageof over $700/year on their PG&Ebills.

Using SmartMeter data, this easy,online analysis is specificallydesigned to reduce energy usage inlarger homes by offering recommen-dations tailored to your home’s ener-gy use profile. It doesn’t requiresomeone to come to your home andall data is held confidentially.

Discover how you can stop homeenergy waste and pick up this “freemoney” by going to:www.acterra.org/highenergy.

Based on a grant from the CaliforniaEnergy Commission, the HighEnergy Homes program is availablethrough April 22nd to 180Woodside residents. Sign up todayand stop your energy leaks!

Events/Programs

Clean-Up DayWoodside School

Sat. July 21 ~ 8 to 11 a.m.Proof of residency is required. Comeearly — event may end before 11 a.m.if trucks are full.

Go to Greenwaste.com for a list ofacceptable and unacceptable materials.

Primary Election ~ June 5, 2012

A ballot box for vote-by-mail ballots will be located in the Town Hall lobby.

Flute for KidsMon. May 14 at 4 p.m.Jennifer Henderson presents an inter-active program for young children.

The Bubble LadyMon. June 11 at 4 p.m.Interactive show for children featuresgiant bubbles.

Wednesday Musical Storytimes(Note: No Storytimes in May)10:00 a.m. - Babies and Books11:00 a.m. - Toddler Storytime

Rummage SaleWoodside Village Church

Thurs. May 10 & Fri. May 11

Everyone is invited to this popularsemi-annual event, first held in 1937.Great treasures at great prices. Forinformation, call the church office at650-851-1587.

Keep the Woods in Woodside

The Open Space Committeeis now accepting applicationsfor the 2012 BackyardHabitat program. Anyoneinterested in learning moreabout the program or nomi-nating their property forevaluation may visit theTown’s website at:www.woodsidetown.org/boardsandcommittees/ backyard-habitat.

The 2012 deadline for applications is June 1st.

TThhee WWooooddssiiddeerr2955 Woodside RoadP.O. Box 620005Woodside, CA 94062

POSTAL CUSTOMER LOCAL

TToowwnn ooff WWooooddssiiddee PRSRT STD

U.S. PostagePAID

Redwood City, CAPermit No. 205

***ECRWSS***

For another new beginning, you willnote that for the first time in nearly 20years, Susan George is no longer theauthor of this piece. I feel honored tohave been selected by the TownCouncil to serve this wonderful com-munity as Town Manager. Woodsideis a visually stunning place, a truerespite from the urban and suburbanenvironments that sit nearby.However, the primary attraction ofworking in Woodside is the passionatepeople who lead this community, fromthe Town Council and all of its volun-teer committees. That so many peoplevolunteer their time to preserveWoodside and strive to make it a bet-ter place to live is, to me, what reallymakes Woodside so special.

You will find in this Woodsider, asyou do in most, more fruits of theTown’s volunteer labor. Town adviso-ry committees are responsible for theBackyard Habitat program, the

Sudden Oak Death Blitz, and organiz-ing recreation classes and events.Volunteers are also responsible for thelong-running traditions of the MayDay Parade and the Rummage Sale.Notably, the May Day Parade is nowin its 90th year and the Rummage Saleis in its 75th year. This is just a smallsample of the things that get accom-plished thanks to volunteers.

April is the month of Earth Day and Ihope you will take advantage of aunique opportunity to go online andlearn how you can reduce energywaste in your home and save moneyas well. Participants in the ActerraHigh Energy Homes program are sav-ing an average of over $700 per year.This opportunity, which has an April22nd deadline to enroll, is featured inthis edition of the Woodsider, as well.

Finally, I’d like to call your attentionto a very important organization, the

Citizens Emergency Response andPreparedness Program (CERPP).CERPP’s goal is to promote emer-gency preparedness and responsecapability at the citizen and neighbor-hood level. It grows out of the knowl-edge that in a major emergency, thefirst line of response will be neighborshelping neighbors, for up to 72 hoursuntil emergency response personnelcan respond. CERPP is working torevitalize itself, including establishingsome new communication tools,including a Twitter handle: @beready-today. To be most effective, CERPPneeds everyone’s participation. Pleasecall me if you would like to getinvolved, or you can visit their web-site at www.bereadytoday.org to learnmore.

We at Town Hall are here to serveyou, so don’t hesitate to call if you’vegot a question, suggestion, or com-ment. We’d like to hear from you.

Kevin Bryant

(From the Desk of the Town Manager, continued from front page)