LTWCA Newsletter - February/March 2004

Emergency Preparedness Drill a Success

On October 25 our neighborhood participated in the "Wildland Fire" Emergency Preparedness Drill, in coordination with CERPP, the Woodside Fire District, and other neighborhood communities throughout Portola Valley, Woodside, and San Mateo County. We had good participation from the Los Trancos Woods community. Thanks to all who donated time, energy, enthusiasm, and garage space!

As with the previous earthquake drill the single most important thing was COMMUNICATION. Because the community had past drill experience, radio communication was better this time around. More households had "family radios," also known as "walkie-talkies." And more folks were monitoring and reporting on the right channels.

Here is a reminder of a few things to help us all in the event of an emergency:

1. Purchase a family radio, also known as a walkie-talkie or a two-way radio. The Motorola radios (5 mile range) are recommended and are readily available at Radio Shack, Target, Wal-Mart, and Costco ($39.99/pair).

2. Review your Emergency Information Packet for important information about the communication processes in the event of an emergency.

3. Know your District number (I, II, III, IV), the name of your District emergency leader, and the names/addresses of the other families in your District. (We are working to update and distribute new District lists.)

4. Know your neighbors! Know how many adults, children, and animals reside around you.

5. Decide now what you would not want to leave behind if you are evacuated and gather these things together so they can be loaded quickly.

Contact Jamie Sovereign (851-8287, jamie.sovereign@usa.net) or David Smernoff (851-9202, DavidS@Acterra.org) if you need information about emergency preparedness.

Submitted by Jamie Sovereign and David Smernoff

Sewer News

The preliminary sewer design is now complete. The group will continue investigating the alternatives for financing the sewer project.

Submitted by Julie Duncan

Water Board News

The work at the Priest Reservoir on the Hetch Hetchy System was completed the week of the 19th of Jan. and the Aqueduct has already been returned to service. The long awaited conversion of the Hetch Hetchy System disinfectant from Chlorine to Chloramine has occurred and we may already be receiving Chloramine disinfected water. Expect the complete change over by February 10th. During this period you may notice some variations in the taste of water. The sale to Cal Water is progressing well and it should be completed in the summer of 2004.

Submitted by Los Trancos County Water District Board of Directors

District I

Carmel Way residents welcomed their newest neighbor shortly before the Christmas season began. Katherine and Ryan McIntyre's first child, a son they have named Quinn Alexander, was born on December 7, 2003.

Submitted by Julie Duncan

John Shiguera died on October 5, 2003 after a short illness. He and his wife, Jan, have lived here about 3 years. John served as an emergency pod leader and was always willing to help in any way. He was a very kind, gentle, intelligent man who will be missed by all of us who had the pleasure of knowing him.

Submitted by Gale Smith

District IV

Congratulations to Curt and Patty Parkin on their recent marriage. Welcome to the Woods, Patty!

Neighborhood Notes

- Slow Down! and we are not just talking about living life but saving a life. Our roads are narrow and can be dangerous especially for walkers and joggers. Watch out for those hairpin turns. Make sure you are on your side of the road since all of our roads up here are two-way except for the circle which is one-way. Do not forget to alert your guests and workers to road safety up in the Woods.

- We have almost completed the dues collection! Please help your dedicated and busy District Reps. by sending your 2004-2005 dues ($10) and emergency fund ($20) checks for $30.00 to our LTWCA Treasurer, Julie Duncan, at 111 Carmel Way. Or if it is more convenient, give the check to your District Rep. within the next week. Thank you!

- Remember that we have a “Forum” section to our web site, http://lostrancoswoods.org/. This is a good location for discussions and announcements. Please feel free to visit it often and use it for any Woods related items.

- Our hats off to Mary McDonald who put out an effective alert for more poll workers (with pay) for the March election. Several gracious people stepped forward and they now have a full crew for our polling station. As Mary pointed out, “it’s certainly a good way to work for the community.” Be sure to thank our community members when you go to vote.

Next Meeting - 7:00 p.m., 10 Mar., 21 Old Spanish Trail. Agenda includes discussion of future activities, road signage, and dues collection wrap-up. For minutes of the last meeting please see the LTWCA Web Site or your District Rep.

Los Trancos Woods (LTWCA) Web Site

The web site address is:                                                      The group e-mail list is:

http://lostrancoswoods.org/                                              ltwca@yahoogroups.com

^{Thanks to Jerry Jensen for maintaining this site AND Thank you to Alex Kostrikin for copying our newsletter.}