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Conservation committee and neighbors urge denial or daytime-only event, warn of precedent
Summary
The town's conservation committee and several long-term residents urged the commission to deny the Priory's request for temporary night lighting, citing CUP language, dark-sky protections and the risk of precedent; they recommended a daytime or Saturday alternative.
Opponents—ranging from the conservation committee to long-time neighbors—urged the planning commission to reject the Priory's proposed night lighting and to hold any similar celebration during daylight hours. Judy Murphy, speaking for the conservation committee, said the committee “strongly urges the planning commission to include the planning staff's recommended conditions that no nighttime lighting be allowed when approving the Priory occasional event permit.”
Several residents said the gym and new athletic facilities had been approved with the understanding that no night lighting would be used; they warned that allowing one night of lights could become a precedent that erodes the town's dark-sky policies. Long-time resident Richard Merck said approving the lights would be “a wedge driving into a crack” that would change the character of Portola Valley. Other commenters requested a renewed traffic study and asked that any noise or light exemptions be considered only through code changes, not one-off approvals.
Commissioners and staff noted these concerns in their deliberations; the commission asked the applicant to consider a daytime alternative and required additional noise-analysis documentation in any revised packet.
