HomeMy WebLinkAboutNovember 10Los Altos Hills
Environmental Design and Protection Committee
Meeting Minutes
Date: November 10, 2020 at 5:45 p.m.
Location: by Zoom Video Conference
Committee Members: Vijay Chawla (chair), Peter Brown (vice-chair), Buvana Dayanandan (secretary),
Carol Gottlieb, Hajime Murakami (absent), Nancy Couperus, Phil Mahoney, Teresa Yang
Associate Members: Kjell Karlsson
Council Liaison: Michelle Wu
Guests: Neal Mielke, Denise Gluhan, Birgitta Indaco, Zach Dahl, Jim Waschura, George Tyson, Peter
Evans
1.Call to Order and Roll Call
2.Presentations from the Floor
Moved up agenda item: 5c, 5d. Yeas: All. Nos: None.
EDPC and Fire safety – Neal reviewed PPT.
a.Commissioner Indaco – EDPC only deals with new development, publishes landscape
guidance.
b.Mayor Wu – EDPC has to balance fire protection and quality of life. Can we concrete
over a full acre? Greenery improves quality of life.
c.Fire Captain Gluhan :
i.0-5 Feet defensible space. Embers are problematic when have low humidity,
ii.high temp, high wind. Hence, recommend removing anything flammable in the
0-5 feet defensible space.
iii.5-30 feet vegetation can become denser. Screening is ok. Canopies touching is
OK as long as home owner maintains vegetation. Must remove fire ladders.
iv.What the fire department is doing: Shaded fuel breaks.
v.Canopy shade is good to keep cool. Grasslands are more problematic.
vi.LAH is not a forest of conifers. We have lower oil content. Junipers, pines, etc
are problematic trees.
vii.WUI is designated. LAH is WUI but not designated as such. We need to get LAH
back on WUI map. Education is not happening.
d.General Manager J Logan:
i.Fire district is pushing up line of fire breaks: 280 boundary on the west, Palo Alto
boundary on the north, Cupertino/Open Space on the south.
ii.Make all of LAH a “fire wise” zone. Community wide to be reassessed by
insurance.
iii.Homeowners must do Property hygiene. Clean up dead, diseased, dying,
damaged trees. Respect 0-5 zone. Home hardening for older homes.
e.Peter –
i.100 years ago, there were fewer oak trees. Depends on where in history you go
back for natural history.
ii.Owners planting redwood trees under power lines.
iii.SOD is becoming more prevalent. Will reduce oaks in future.
iv.EDPC is mandated to mitigate new construction of larger homes. Because we
lack architectural review. Can there be a conflict?
v.Landscaping guideline: Can have an amplified fire safety section.
f.Director Dahl :
i.The state has landscape efficiency mandate. Drought tolerant species are dryer.
This is a conflict.
ii.Staff recommends the minimum amount necessary to screen. Property owners
can do what they want, and do a minimum of what we want. In the past, staff
would have required more, today is more balanced.
3.EDPC Charter discussion Phil
a.Expand charter of EPDC to protect town from fires.
i.Discussion on concerns such as riparian habits, removing fuel in pathways and
who is responsible
b.Fire Captain Gluhan:
i.Creeks are a problem. But they are regulated.
ii.Fire district priority is life safety. Road clean up. Hardening exit routes.
iii.Staff is now in place.
4.Adjournment. Vote to move rest of agenda items to December 2020 meeting. Yeas: All, Nos:
None.
Any writings or documents provided to a majority of the Environmental Design and Protection
Committee regarding any item on this agenda will be made available for public inspection in the City
Clerk’s office located at Town Hall, 26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, California during normal
business hours.