Safety Element Fiasco
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No resident or committee member was allowed to participate in the first draft of this Safety Element of the General Plan.
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The chairs of the Wildfire Preparedness Committee, the Emergency Preparedness Committee, and the Geological Safety Committee wrote to the Town Council objecting to the exclusion of these committees in the critical drafting of the Safety Element and petitioned the Council for inclusion in the process. Mayor Hughes and the Town Council did not respond to the formal request. In fact, they essentially ignored it.
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This first draft of the Safety Element was to be given to Town safety committees and the public prior to the committee meeting.However, instead of a draft, what was received were regarding the draft and then only before the committee meeting.
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In this initial public review, committee members pleaded with Town staff to allow committee members and residents to participate in the revision of the Safety Plan, only to be rebuffed as “not having the skills to participate.”
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Now the final draft is approaching the committees again. There will be no ability for committee members or town residents to make changes in this draft. Instead, comments will be “noted” and referred to the Planning Commission along with the final draft of the safety element.
DID YOU KNOW that in the current update of the Town’s Safety Element of the General Plan:
Under the direction of Hughes, Town committees—the foundation of Portola Valley’s governance which utilize the technical skills, drive and safety interests of its residents—is rapidly being displaced by Town Staff and consultants.
YET ANOTHER REASON TO VOTE FOR HASKO, PFAU & HUFTY
FOR TOWN COUNCIL.