Los Altos Hills group readies Heritage House opening, plans De Anza anniversary program and digital archive

Volunteers and Heritage Committee members in Los Altos Hills agreed on steps this week to prepare the town's restored Heritage House for a public ribbon-cutting and exhibit program.

Committee members said boxes of historical materials will be moved from the maintenance barn to the Heritage House later this week and scheduled a volunteer work session for Monday morning to inventory and sort the items. A committee member said the move has been delayed by access issues and lack of keys, and members agreed to coordinate with town staff to secure entry and file cabinets.

Why it matters: The Heritage House is the committee's primary local-history project; getting artifacts, photographs and donor records into order is necessary for exhibits, interpretive placards and public programming. Committee members emphasized that a complete inventory will make future curation and interpretation easier.

Committee discussion and next steps Committee members reviewed options for a ribbon-cutting ceremony tied to town council timing. One member said the committee is recommending an event after the August council meeting and proposed August 21 as a tentative date, but members noted the council must still confirm and that staff availability could change the schedule. The committee decided volunteers will sort materials the following Monday at 10:00 a.m., bring gloves and work clothes, and check what items remain in the maintenance barn.

The committee also discussed the first planned exhibit and logistics for moving larger items, including an historic "De Anza" display. Members agreed to produce a set of placards and a short PowerPoint background for the fall presentation and to contact the town for room reservation and recording. A committee member said: "We'll work with the museum photos and make a slick presentation" and the group reserved the council chambers for October 11 pending confirmation.

Digital archive, signs and donor records A member who maintains digital records told the committee there is no single, public-facing list of town-owned properties or a clear link to the GIS maps on the town website. The member said she will compile an online album of town properties, donor information and artifact provenance to support exhibits and public access.

On signage, the committee authorized staff to produce durable signs for heritage oaks in Burn Preserve; a committee member said staff will install the plaques in July or August and the committee will review samples before production.

Quotes from the meeting "When all the boxes come back, then when people unpack boxes that have our stuff, hopefully they won't throw it away," a committee member said, urging careful handling of relocated materials.

Administrative items and wrap-up The committee reiterated that some items will need council approval (for example, purchasing plaques or accepting loans) and agreed to return draft plaque text and mock-ups for review at the next meeting. Members asked that staff post meeting recordings promptly; one member noted some past meetings were not uploaded and asked staff to confirm the Heritage House meeting recording is archived.

The committee adjourned after confirming volunteer plans and the tentative schedule for the ribbon-cutting and fall program.