The Woodside Town Council voted 5-0 at noon on Friday, January 6, in the absence of Council Member Brian Donkowski, to ratify Town Manager Kevin Bryant’s declaration of a state of emergency in response to the storm. .
On December 31, he issued his first state of emergency, authorizing the town to use public funds to respond to the emergency and banning the town from using water, sewers, stormwater, roads, public tenders, etc. facilities.
“Northern California experienced severe winds and rainstorms that threatened to block culverts and bridges throughout the town of Woodside with vegetation and other debris, closing roads and damaging public and private property.” said the staff report. “Town center sewer pumps were also flooded at times, requiring monitoring and temporary bypass sewer lines to minimize overflow and maintain system flow. Emergency work is underway to ensure safety.”
Bryant declared a second state of emergency on Tuesday, January 3, with funding from county, state, and federal agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the California Emergency Management Agency (Cal-EMA). I asked for help.
Bryant said at the meeting that staff will assess what changes need to be made to the poststorm capital improvement project.Workers are actively trying to replace two culverts between storms. said he.
The crew worked to clean up Woodside’s Old La Honda Road on Sunday 1 January 2023 after the storm on 31 December 2022. Courtesy Chris Shaw.
City Councilman Ned Flewett has asked that the town work with the Woodside Fire Protection District to plan a special wood chipper collection day because so many trees have fallen during the storm.
“I hate having so much fuel on the side of the road,” he said.
Deputy Mayor Jen Wall has asked the town to create a page on its website that answers frequently asked questions from residents about responding to storms, such as stream maintenance. Bryant clarified that while residents are responsible for maintaining the creek, the cove and bridge are managed by the town, and he will help set up the web page.
Mayor Chris Shaw praised the cleanup and preparation work for the storm.
“There’s a scary story out there, but without the pre-storm preparation work and the 12 hours a day of preparation they (the crew) put in, things could be much worse.
The town council must ratify the state of emergency within 7 days of it being issued. The Council shall review the need to continue the local state of emergency at least once every 60 days.
Atherton
At its January 11th meeting, Atherton City Council will vote to ratify the state of emergency initiated by Mayor George Rodericks on December 31st.
Town officials reported, “On 31 December 2022, the town of Atherton faced storm-related conditions in which inundation from the storm and subsequent flooding threatened the safety of people and property in the town. It started.” “Staff determined that the conditions caused by the storm and flooding were likely beyond the control of the Town’s services, personnel, equipment, and facilities, and immediately directed, through the County Emergency Services Agency, support personnel, We requested assistance with sandbags, sand, and other contract services.”
Staff recommends that the state of emergency remains in effect for as long as San Mateo County’s state of emergency remains in effect.
According to the staff’s report, “By maintaining local certification, any action taken by the town in response to the event is eligible for financial reimbursement under the guidance of the state’s OES (Emergency Services Agency) and FEMA. It is guaranteed to be.”
The meeting will be held directly on Zoom at 4:00 PM at Council Chambers, 80 Fair Oaks Lane.
