Conservation committee sets 2026 priorities, names subcommittee leads and clears volunteer broom pull

The Portola Valley Town Conservation Committee on Wednesday set its 2026 priorities, assigning subcommittee leads for multiple open‑space sites, agreeing to revive a backyard‑habitat program and confirming the annual volunteer broom pull could proceed after legal review.

Chair Marian Flander opened the meeting and led a roll call; the committee approved the prior meeting minutes as amended after a motion and second and with at least one abstention. Flander then outlined the committee’s recurring responsibilities for 2026 — review of building permits that include tree removals, discretionary review of some landscaping plans, and monitoring town code items such as erosion control and a 25% front‑yard rule that the committee has not yet seen as an application.

Why it matters: committee members said tasks without assigned leads rarely get done, so the meeting focused on pairing each major effort with volunteers and clarifying who will carry work forward. Judy Murphy accepted overall lead responsibility for open‑space oversight (framed by the committee as “open space management”), and members confirmed specific site leads: Megan Richards for Town Center, Sarah Gilbert for Frog Pond, and Nona Cherello and others for Fort Field. Members also agreed to list subcommittee participants so duties are clear.

The group discussed resurrecting a backyard‑habitat program. Marian Flander asked Chris Morris to lead the program; Morris accepted, and three to four volunteers signed up to form the initial subcommittee. Flander said the program’s historical problem was too few applicants, not a lack of volunteer support, and offered a list of potential Westridge applicants to contact.

On outreach, Richards agreed to lead the committee’s "Tip of the Month" feature with assistance from Eliza Low and another member; the committee also discussed using established citizen‑science apps (iNaturalist and common bird/plant apps were cited) and agreed to compile a short recommended list for residents.

Members debated whether to press the town to route fence‑permit reviews to the committee. Flander described a past intervention in which a committee review led an applicant to scale back a perimeter fence: according to her account, the applicant said, “Oh, no problem. I’m not going to have a perimeter fence. I’m just going to have a small fence for my dogs,” after learning of restrictions. Several members favored an initial “experiment” in which the committee would accept fence reviews if the town agreed; others warned that staff reorganizations and formal assignment procedures could limit the committee’s role.

Legal and operational notes: the committee discussed Brown Act constraints on subcommittees and serial communications, confirming subcommittees should limit membership and present work at full committee meetings rather than conducting broad outreach outside permitted channels. Separately, Marian and a colleague reported they delivered plant‑management plans to public works staff (Darcy and Robert), who responded positively. Legal counsel reviewed liability concerns for the broom pull and cleared the committee to proceed with volunteer activities.

The committee set the annual broom‑pull date for Saturday, March 14, and began assigning organizational tasks and outreach responsibilities. Members also raised administrative changes to improve meeting efficiency: proposals included labeling agenda items as "discuss" or "decide," moving lower‑priority or quarterly items to a separate cadence, and giving subcommittees more autonomy to reduce full‑meeting length.

Data point: Flander reported the committee processed 37 significant tree‑removal applications and 26 site‑review requests in 2025, which members said represented a heavy workload for volunteers.

What’s next: subcommittees will meet under Brown Act constraints, the backyard‑habitat subcommittee will begin outreach to potential applicants, a short list of recommended apps and an outreach plan for the Tip of the Month will be developed, and broom‑pull logistics will be finalized ahead of the March 14 event. The committee’s next regular meeting was scheduled for Feb. 3.

Attributions: quotes and specific recollections in this report are attributed to committee members recorded in the meeting transcript, including Chair Marian Flander and committee members Judy Murphy, Megan Richards, Nona Cherello and Chris Morris.