Welcome to Woodside
For the most part, The Bay Area and Silicon Valley are known for their booming technology centers and cutting edge biotechnology sectors. The two regions are synonymous with progress and innovation. However, sometimes a community will slip by unnoticed. Development never quite happened and commercial progress stopped somewhere in the 1950’s. The community cares more about preserving a rural way of life than it does about making an economic impact. So the city sits, ignored by the outside world, living a peaceful life. Woodside is one of those communities.
Lay of the Land
Though technically located on the San Francisco Peninsula in San Mateo County, Woodside is closer to the Pacific Ocean and Silicon Valley than it is to San Francisco itself. This means less in the way of neighbors and a lot more undeveloped wilderness. Woodside is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Santa Cruz Mountains, which makes for a beautifully hilly western edge of the city. This edge of the city is dominated by redwood trees and the occasional Douglas fir while the lower regions of the city feature numerous oaks trees and eucalyptus groves.The combination of beautiful scenery and proximity to the Bay Area and Silicon Valley economic centers make Woodside a regional destination for executives and corporate leaders. The 5,481 residents of the city enjoy median household incomes of well over $200,000 while the average home value for the city is clear of $1,000,000.
Transportation
The city of Woodside is serviced by Interstate 280 which moves north and south along the edge of the Santa Cruz Mountains from Silicon Valley to the northern end of the San Francisco Peninsula. However, public transportation within the city is limited. This is has much to do with the efforts of the community to maintain a rural atmosphere as it is the isolated nature of the city. However, the city does feature several SamTrans commuter bus stops. These lines then provide access to Redwood City which features public transportation access to the remainder of the Bay Area and down into Silicon Valley.
Local Highlights
While the community of Woodside is dedicated to preserving the natural rural atmosphere of the city they are not specifically opposed to commercial development on principal. The residents and local government are perfectly fine with commercial development assuming that the development in question meets numerous regulations and adheres to the local ambiance with regards to general aesthetics. The functional result has been a few local restaurants and rural themed general stores and no large scale shopping centers or retail locations.However, what the city does have in abundance are volunteer committees. The city features an Arts and Culture Committee dedicated to supporting local artists as well as drawing regional artists and performers into the city for limited engagements. The Circulation Committee is focused on balancing circulation system user needs, while the Livestock and Equestrian Heritage Committee works on reviewing applications related to stable construction. Finally, the Woodside History Committee works closely with the city council in reviewing and maintaining historic locations within the city.
One of the more supported programs within the city is The Backyard Habitat Program. The main idea behind the program is to preserve the natural ecosystem of the city and to restore previously developed land to its natural state. The program is also focused on creating a smooth transition between the city’s natural habitat and the existing residential development and landscaping.
Finally, while the city does not have a dedicated Parks and Recreation department, it does attempt to provide related services to the citizenry. This is done on an entirely volunteer dependent basis with members of the community organizing activities or teaching classes. Events and classes do not follow a set schedule and often vary on a yearly basis.
