To kick off the new year, the Town team is excited to share some updates and information related to the Planning & Building Department’s work!

STANFORD'S PORTOLA TERRACE HOUSING PROJECT 

You can find updates related to the Portola Terrace Housing Project on the project’s webpage here under the ‘Status’ section. The project site is the 75-acre site owned by Stanford University located at 3530 Alpine Road. Other updates to the website will be made soon, including updates to the project FAQs section.

General Updates:

• A temporary construction fence was installed in late January 2026 without permit approval. Town staff have directed the applicant to remove the fencing until the demolition permit is approved. The fencing is anticipated to be removed no later than February 2, 2026. Construction site fencing is temporary in nature and is required for the duration of construction activities. OSHA requires a minimum 6-foot anchored perimeter fence for construction sites. Fencing proposed at heights greater than 7 feet requires separate Building Department review. Upon approval of the demolition permit, the applicant will be required to install construction fencing in a manner that complies with OSHA requirements and all applicable Town standards, and to the satisfaction of the Town.

• Stanford Property Services will again be conducting their annual wildfire vegetation fuel management work on the Stanford property at 3530 Alpine Road (APN 077-281-020). This work is ongoing work that is unrelated to the proposed Portola Terrace Housing Project. The work will use hand crews and limited mechanical methods to reduce potential wildfire risk and has been approved by the Woodside Fire Protection District. All work will occur on Stanford property, although some activity may take place near existing homes. Stanford will distribute flyers to homes immediately adjacent to the work area by January 30. Work is scheduled for Monday, February 2 through Friday, February 27, 2026, generally between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

Status Update:

Project Status Overview

On December 5, 2024, the Town Council approved the Portola Terrace Residential Development Project. This approval included certification of the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR), adoption of the CEQA Findings and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program, and approval of the Conditional Use Permit for establishment of a Planned Unit Development, Vesting Tentative Map, Architectural Review, Site Development Permit, State Density Bonus, Affordable Housing Plan, and Affordable Housing Agreement.

The project is now in the post-entitlement phase, which means the applicant (Stanford) will follow the process to receive building permits and associated post-entitlement permits. During this phase, the applicant submits detailed plans and technical information to the Planning & Building Department (Department) to be reviewed by staff and consultants. Each review consists of confirming consistency with the approved project, including compliance with the mitigation measures and conditions of approval adopted by the Town Council. If needed, staff and consultants provide comments to the applicant. The applicant would then revise their plans and information based on the comments and submit them to the Department again. Once their plans and information are approved, then they would receive the appropriate permit.

 Planning Entitlements (Approved)

On December 5, 2024, the Town Council approved the Portola Terrace Residential Development Project, which the staff report can be found here. Mitigation measures are set forth in the Final EIR Resolution No. 2955-2024 (beginning on page 51), and the project conditions of approval are included in the Conditional Use Permit Resolution No. 2956-2024 (beginning on page 28).

 Post Entitlement Permits (Under Review)

Following entitlement approval, the project is proceeding through post-entitlement permits, which include building permits, grading permits, demolition permits, encroachment permits, and the Final Map. Five (5) applications were submitted in December 2025 and two (2) were submitted in January of 2026. All permit applications are currently under first-round review by Town staff and consultants. Post-entitlement permit reviews are administrative in nature and are conducted in conformance with the approved Final EIR and Conditional Use Permit. These reviews are not subject to additional public comment. Stanford has submitted detailed plans and information to be reviewed for several different permit applications:

• Demolition Permit (under first review)
  • The demolition permit is under review, which includes review of tree removals, temporary construction fencing, concrete removal, and site structures. Upon approval of this permit, the applicant will be required to install temporary construction fencing and construction staging to the Town’s satisfaction and in compliance with Planning and Building Department requirements.
• Site Development Permits (under first review)
  • Rough Grading
  • Residential Development Area Grading and Landscaping
  • Trails and Fire Maintenance Road Grading – pending fees, to be routed soon for first review
• Building Permits (under first review)
  • Permits for residential structures
• Final Map (under first review)
• Encroachment Permits (under first review)
  • Public Right of Way Permits along Alpine Road – pending fees, to be routed soon for first review

Tree Removals (Under Review)

The project approval includes removal of a total of 177 trees, of which 123 are significant trees and 54 are non-significant trees. No further tree removal is allowed without prior approval by the Planning & Building Director as stipulated in the project approval entitlement document. Please refer to Resolution 2956-2024, which contains a comprehensive list of Planning, Public Works/Engineering, Geology, Fire Department, and Vesting Tentative Map conditions. Tree removals are reviewed as part of the demolition permit.

Biological Resources (Under Review)

The approved Final EIR includes specific mitigation measures addressing red-legged frogs, western pond turtles, dusky-footed wood rats, pallid bats, and nesting birds. For each permit, the applicable mitigation, avoidance, and protection measures will be reviewed and implemented pursuant to consistency and compliance with the Final EIR and Conditional Use Permit. Town staff and consultants are currently reviewing the submitted permit applications to confirm and verify the applicant has implemented the required mitigation measures. At this time, biological experts have not been scheduled, as coordination for several mitigation measures is dependent on permit approvals and includes timing windows that may be as short as 24 hours prior to initial ground-disturbing activities.

All permit applications are being reviewed to ensure compliance with the mitigation measures outlined in the mitigation measures within Resolution 2955-2024 and as outlined in Resolution 2956-2024. Committees are encouraged to direct public inquiries to the Town’s Portola Terrace Housing Project webpage for the most up-to-date and accurate information.

On January 14, 2026, the Town Council authorized staff to submit the Draft Housing Element Amendment (HEA) to California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). Staff submitted the HEA to HCD on January 23, 2026, and are now waiting for HCD’s first comment letter, which should be sent within 60 days of the submittal. More information can be found on the Housing Element webpage here.

In December, the department started providing monthly reports for all planning applications and building permits in review and permits issued. You can find these reports here. The monthly report for January will be provided in early February.

The department is currently working on various annual reports as requested by the state or other entities. Some of these reports include, but are not limited to:

• Department of Water Resource’s Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO)
• CA Department of Finance’s Housing Unit Survey
• HCD Annual Progress Report
• Land Use Survey

To receive future updates on the Stanford housing project or Town Housing News, you can sign up for special eNotifications here if you have not already.