We’ve been trying to get some perspective on the whole Hope Sullivan “resignation” MOO-haha. Since the Town has not been very forthcoming, we have tried to piece it together. The choice of new Planning Director is critical. To get it right, the COWncil should involve the COWmunity in the process and arrive at a concensus about the criteria and qualities our new Director should have.

So just what does the process going forward seem to be? The very short July 22nd meeting held some clues. As we posted in our Roundup, the only mention of Hope was a very short and bland announcement by the Mayor that she had “resigned”. The closed session report shows a settlement agreement under which Hope was paid to resign to avoid litigation. The rest of the COWncil’s public response to this crisis in Town leadership was buried in two consent calendar items, the Town Manager’s Report, and the barely-discussed revision of the Town Conflict of Interest Code.

The first, item 4, was a resolution to amend the Town salary schedule and classification plan. It mentions the “undoing” of the March 2007 reorganization that gave Hope so much power over so many aspects of building in the Town – the reclassification of the position of Director of Planning and Building to “Assistant Town Manager / Director of Community Design and Development.” Those changes, to give such power to an employee, surely were supported by Town Manager Susan George – otherwise it would have come as a tremendous slap in the face to her. Given the vast power she wields in Woodside, obviously this is not the case.

Clearly, irrespective of the secret reason for Hope’s departure, Item 4 provides cover for these changes by stating, “the recent modification of the Town’s organizational structure shifted the responsibility for the engineering and geologic aspects of the development review process to the Town Engineer,” without discussing why those changes were made.

The resolution states that this powerful position was being adjusted because “Further, the change in the title back to Director of Planning and Building should facilitate the recruitment process, as it is more readily understood what the responsibilities of the incumbent of this position include.” Perhaps it’s a sign of something, if professionals in the field wouldn’t know what the heck a “Assistant Town Manager / Director of Community Design and Development” does! It goes on to recommend that the COWncil approve modifying the Assistant Town Manager job back to the previous title and responsibilities of Director of Planning and Building. This item was approved without discussion as Consent Calendar item.

So, while we are glad that the overblown position Hope formerly occupied is being eliminated, trimmed down to something more reasonable and time-tested, we’re still concerned. We’re concerned that there seems to be no sign of pausing to figure out just how it went wrong, how to avoid such management screw-ups in the future, and perhaps, who to hold to account for creating such a lofty and unwieldy job. Instead, continuing the pattern we’ve seen in Hope’s departure- process , there seems to be an attempt to sweep it all under the rug. Moo-reover, instead of outlining a process, with public input, on criteria for the new Planning Director or community involvement in the selection process, the COWncil left for seven weeks of vacation.

We’ve warned about dangers that threaten our pastoral Woodside way of life – fire, for instance, Equine Herpes Virus and Sudden Oak Death. Now we want to make sure you are aware of a threat to agriculture and plants in our area from the light brown apple moth. These creatures have now been found in Woodside.

According to the San Mateo County Department of Agriculture and Weights and Measures, “The Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM) is a small moth, approximately 1/4 inch in length, and is generally tan with some darker markings. It is originally from Australia and has also infested New Zealand, New Caledonia, Hawaii and the British Isles. A picture of the pest is available at the Department’s Apple Moth page.

The moth feeds on hundreds of different varieties of plants. While authorities believe that the imported pest originally found a home in large-scaled nurseries, they now think that the moths are feeding in gardens on flowers, fruits, and other plants. The USDA’s website states, “LBAM is of particular concern because it can damage a wide range of crops and other plants including California’s prized cypress as well as redwoods, oaks and many other varieties commonly found in California’s urban and suburban landscaping, public parks and natural environment. The list of agricultural crops that could be damaged by this pest includes grapes, citrus, stone fruit (peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries, apricots) and many others. The complete “host list” contains well over 1,000 plant species and more than 250 fruits and vegetables.”

As you can see in this quarantine map, moths have been detected in Woodside proper. It’s for that reason - the 79% increase in light brown apple moths since February - that Woodside and other areas of the Peninsula have been put in the quarantine zone. Residents within the quarantine areas are being asked to help prevent the spread of this serious agricultural pest by not moving plants, flowers, fruits or vegetables from their property.

Originally the state and federal governments were planning on spraying chemicals over urban areas in an effort to eradicate or control the moth, but in the face of strong resistance from activist groups, aerial spraying in populated areas has been called off. The groups were concerned over the possibility of impacts on human health and safety from the spraying. The government contends that, rather than backing down to political pressure from citizens, a new technology allowing the breeding of thousands of sterile male moths just happened to be available sooner. We applaud the groups that raised these concerns , and despite government denials, believe that their vocal opposition forced the state to find a safer method of combating the threat of the light brown apple moth.

Along with the releasing of sterile moths, a recent San Jose Mercury article reported on the COWnty’s management efforts which include spreading 3,000 traps to capture moths, as well as the use of pheromones in the coast region to try to disrupt their breeding patterns. We appreciate our COWnty’s efforts. There is some good news – the USDA’s website states that prompt action since the bug was discovered on the mainland in 2007 has contained the moth within the wider initial detection area, and has eradicated the moth from Napa and Los Angeles counties.

As a citizen and homeowner, you can help too. COWnty officials say that citizens who live in the quarantine zone – which of course does now include Woodside – should refrain from giving away flowers, plants, or fruit from their land. Additionally since yard trimmings might also contain hidden moth eggs that could spread the moth further, it should be placed in covered yard recycling containers or composted on site.

Hopefully with strong and smart action, we can all help reduce the impact of this pest and keep Woodside and California green.