major community goals

The General Plan clearly states Portola Valley’s common, overriding purpose to preserve and protect our unique and increasingly vulnerable rural open space and natural features in its introductory statement of Major Community Goals:

• “To preserve and enhance the natural features and open space of the planning area because they are unusual and valuable assets for the planning area, the Peninsula and the entire Bay Area.”

• “To allow use of the planning area by residents and others so that the natural attributes of the planning area can be sustained over time.”

• “To conserve the rural quality of Portola Valley and maintain the town as an attractive, tranquil, family-oriented residential community for all generations compatible with the many physical constraints and natural features of the area….”

• “To guide the location, design and construction of all developments so as to:

  • “Minimize disturbances to natural surroundings and scenic vistas.

  • “Reduce the exposure of people and improvements to physical hazards such as earthquakes, landslides, fire, floods, traffic accidents and to provide evacuation routes for emergencies.

  • “Protect the watershed of the planning area.

  • “Ensure that projects complement and are subordinate to their natural surroundings….”

•  “To protect, encourage and extend the use of native plant communities, grasses and trees, especially oak woodlands, because they reduce water usage and preserve the natural habitats and biodiversity.”

• “To ensure that growth and development within the planning area [are] evaluated against required regional environmental standards.”

• “To provide scenic roads, trails and paths to enhance enjoyment of the planning area and to increase convenience and safety.”