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Woodside Fire reports online scheduling, community map, fuel mitigation and grant activity
Summary
Woodside Fire briefed the committee on online home‑assessment scheduling, an interactive community map that will show Firewise layers, postcard outreach with QR codes, ongoing right‑of‑way fuel reduction, grant‑funded broom removal and a planned community risk assessment to support grants.
Kim (Woodside Fire Bureau of Fire Prevention and Life Safety) gave a district update outlining several operational and outreach initiatives intended to improve defensible‑space compliance and community preparedness.
Kim said the district launched an online scheduling feature for home assessments and resale life‑safety inspections to streamline appointments and help residents book inspections. The district has one dedicated defensible‑space inspector and is hiring a second per‑diem inspector to meet demand. Kim also demonstrated an interactive community district map on the district website that will include layers for Firewise communities and, later, Firewise leader contacts.
Outreach steps include a postcard to all residents (three QR codes linking to CERT, WPV Ready, and the district Instagram account), door‑hanger QR codes to the scheduling site, and short social videos showing mitigation work. Operational work described: right‑of‑way fuel mitigation, broom and eucalyptus removal, hydrant maintenance, and targeted planting through a grant (example: Sand Hill Road project). Kim said some work is grant funded through Fire Safe Council partners and that some grants exclude higher‑income towns, which complicates Portola Valley’s eligibility.
Kim answered technical questions: residents seeking prescribed burns on private parcels must apply to the district and generally require a permit and third‑party contractor; Woodside Fire will post right‑of‑way work lists and fuel‑reduction tallies on its website; and the district plans to conduct a community risk assessment (likely using consultants) to support future grant applications and better document local needs.
No formal votes accompanied the update; Kim said the district will circulate more detailed scheduling and mapping information as it becomes available.
