09-17-2026 WPC Agenda Packet

TOWN OF PORTOLA VALLEY Wildfire Preparedness Committee Meeting Thursday September 17, 2026 10:00-11:30 AM MJ Lee, Chair Wanda Ginner, Member Patty Dewes, Member Vivek Ragavan, Member Kimberley Cashin, Member Elizabeth Gillbrand, Member Chris Morace, Conservation Committee Liaison and member VIRTUAL PARTICIPATION VIA ZOOM To access the meeting by computer: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87264593721?pwd=Rda9T44qkILgTqFR8BODxrN1PSvD5P.1 Webinar ID: 872 6459 3721 Passcode: 925772 To access the meeting by phone: 1-669-900-6833 or 1-888-788-0099 (toll-free) Mute/Unmute – Press *6 / Raise Hand – Press *9 HISTORIC SCHOOLHOUSE– 775 PORTOLA RD. – PORTOLA VALLEY, CA REMOTE MEETING ADVISORY: On March 1, 2023, all committees in Portola Valley will return to conducting in-person meetings. A Zoom link will be provided for members of the public to participate remotely; however, the Town cannot guarantee there will be no technical issues with the software during the meeting. For best public participation results, attending the meeting in-person is advised. ASSISTANCE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, please contact the Town Clerk at (650) 851 -1700 or by email at towncenter @portolavalley.net. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the Town to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting. 1. CALL TO ORDER & ROLL CALL 2. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA Speakers' time is limited to three minutes 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: a. August 20, 2026 4. NEW BUSINESS: a. Welcome new WPC member Elizabeth (Beth) Gillbrand b. Fire Marshal Update – FM Kim Giuliacci c. 100% Firewise update – Patty Dewes d. OneShoreline update – Chris Morace e. Sep-19-2026 Town picnic and WPC webpages – MJ Lee 5. SUBCOMMITTEE AND COMMITTEE LIAISON UPDATES: a. Conservation Committee update b. EPC update 6. OTHER BUSINESS/STANDING ITEMS a. Agenda for next meeting b. Quorum Check for meeting 7. ADJOURNMENT The next regularly scheduled meeting date is October 15, 2026 1 REV 1 - FINAL TOWN OF PORTOLA VALLEY Wildfire Preparedness Committee Thursday August 20, 2026 – 10:00 AM Hybrid on Zoom 765 Portola Road, Portola Valley, CA 94028 ACTION MINUTES A recording of the meeting is here The meeting Agenda Packet is here Call to Order at 10:05 AM: Vice Chair Vivek Ragavan 1. Roll Call Present: Wanda Ginner, Kimberley Cashin, MJ Lee (zoom), Patty Dewes, Vivek Ragavan, Chris Morace, Council Liaison Rebecca Flynn Absent: None Guests: Fire Marshal Kim Giuliacci (zoom) 2. Oral Communications for items not on the agenda Vice Chair Vivek Ragavan chaired the meeting because MJ Lee was isolating due to COVID. Technical difficulties prevented camera video in the Schoolhouse. The following individual(s) addressed the WPC: Beth Gillbrand Elizabeth (Beth) Gillbrand has applied for the WPC and came to the meeting to introduce herself. Welcome, Beth! Her appointment will complete our roster. 3. Approve Minutes of previous meeting The minutes of Jul-16-2026 were approved unanimously M/S Ginner / Dewes NEW BUSINESS 4. 100% Firewise Update – Patty Dewes Brookside / Corte Madera, under Karen Askey’s leadership, submitted their Firewise application. The 100% Firewise team held a kickoff meeting with 9 identified block leaders in Alpine Hills; they are looking for 5 more to cover the 250 homes that will be defined in this community. Blue Oaks and the Hayfields had neighborhood meetings. The team is still looking for community leaders to launch the Willowbrook and Nathhorst neighborhoods. Patty Dewes is also recruiting more block leaders in unrepresented neighborhoods in Westridge Firewise. They plan to stuff mailboxes in the leaderless neighborhoods with introductory Firewise letters in mid-September. 2 5. OneShoreline Update – Chris Morace Chris Morace has been working with Len Materman’s OneShoreline team, Sam Liccardo’s team, and PV Ranch’s Sarah Gilbert. They are investigating PV Ranch as a target for the OneShoreline insurance initiative pilot to get homeowners off the FAIR plan. There are still some questions to answer, and by the end of September, they may be able to decide whether PV Ranch will be a pilot site for OneShoreline. 6. Fire Marshal Update – Fire Marshal Kim Giuliacci FM Giuliacci is working full throttle on WFPD’s Sep-11-2026 evacuation exercise, which is the first in an annual event that also commemorates September 11. The drill will focus on the Los Trancos, Vista Verde, and Blue Oaks neighborhoods (no schools or businesses are involved) starting at around 9:00 AM on Friday, Sep-11- 2026. Subsequent years will see the drill in Woodside and then Portola Valley. This year’s event will direct evacuees to the Town Center, where a de-briefing will be held in the Community Hall, and a wildfire fair will be held with SMC Large Animal rescue, arborists, landscapers, home hardening vendors, and Mister Softee. The event will last until noon. The latest info is on WFPD’s website: https://www.woodsidefire.org/our-district/district-overview/evacuation-exercise 7. Outreach opportunities – MJ Lee The committee discussed upcoming tabling/representation opportunities: • Sep-11-2026 WFPD evacuation drill – WPC will not table because we are working the Town picnic the following weekend. • Sep-19-2026 Town picnic – 100% Firewise team and MJ Lee will table. • Oct-4 to Oct-10 National Fire Prevention Week – this national event educates on in-home fires, e.g. this year’s theme is on lithium battery safety. WPC will instead target the national wildfire preparedness month in May. 8. WPC webpages – MJ Lee MJ Lee distributed draft revisions of the WPC webpages to the committee. Except for the “3 Steps to Preparedness”, most pages have been shortened with links to additional info. Patty Dewes and Vivek Ragavan will provide feedback to MJ. SUBCOMMITTEE AND STAFF/LIAISON UPDATES 9. Conservation Committee Update – Chris Morace Things that have come up lately: the Conservation Committee recommends against top-cutting trees and against excessive limbing-up (e.g. 30 feet) of a tree. They also warned not to let dead vegetation pile up and to keep any eye out for polyphagous shot-hole borer, which attacks coast live oak in similar ways to SOD (Sudden Oak Death). 3 10. EPC Update – Kimberley Cashin EPC will have a booth at the Town picnic. While the EPC is not participating in the Sep-11-2026 evacuation drill, Kim Cashin will be in the EOC walking through the center’s process during the entire drill. WPV-CERT and WPV-Ready Communicators will be participating in the drill. 11. Meeting adjourned at 10:50 AM. Next meeting Thursday Sep-17-2026 @ 10:00 AM /s/ MJ Lee