Supervisors push to make Skyline Boulevard (Highway 35) safer from wildfires
SAN JOSE – To protect lives and homes against the threat of wildfire, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors earlier this month approved a plan to reduce hazardous fuels along a 16-mile corridor on Skyline Boulevard, between Black Road in Los Gatos in the south and Page Mill Road in Palo Alto in the north.
The affected portion of Skyline Boulevard serves a rural mountain community of approximately 5,000 residents (including the Skyline community) and 2,703 structures. It also serves as a major commute route between San Mateo County and Santa Clara County.
“This stretch of highway has a real risk of wildfire spread because of the grasses, bushes, and overhanging trees along the road right-of-way,” said County Supervisor Joe Simitian, whose District Five includes the entirety of the Central County Fire Protection District (County Fire) territories. “Dead brush and trees increase the risk. Fires don’t respect jurisdictional boundaries. So, although our County is taking these steps along the highway in Santa Clara County, this effort has the potential to save lives and property in Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties as well.”
The objectives of the Highway 35 Hazardous Fuels Reduction Wildfire Mitigation Project are to remove hazardous trees and reduce hazardous vegetation along a 16-mile stretch near Highway 35 and nearby communities, lowering the risk of wildfires spreading from the road to the surrounding areas.
The project will add to Santa Clara County’s developing wildfire hazardous fuel reduction line system, which improves wildfire control and increases safety for people in the area.
“This project builds on an already robust fuels reduction effort in this mountain community, and has the added benefit of protecting a heavily traveled ridgeline road, which is critical in an evacuation,” said Simitian.
To do this work, the County has been awarded $542K in federal funding from the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP). The grant requires a local 10% match of $57,046 that will be met using County Fire staff time. The multi-phase project involves County Fire, as well as the Santa Clara County Office of Emergency Management, Caltrans, City of Palo Alto, County Parks, and the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District.