Emerald Hills homeowners who fought the “style police” of a previous neighborhood association are worried that plans for a community forum next week is an attempt to resurrect the controversial design review committee.

The Emerald Hills Community Coalition which once successfully pushed the county to disband the committee is even getting a little help from abroad — a homeowner currently serving the military in Iraq who is e-mailing neighbors to attend the forum.

Supervisor Rich Gordon, however, said the planned public meeting isn’t necessarily a first step toward reinstating the committee opponents like Nancy and Michael Mangini said held up projects that didn’t adhere to certain stylistic guidelines. Instead, Gordon said the forum — one of two approved during the county budget hearing in September — is a way of testing the waters to see if enough interest exists in renewing the committee. Otherwise, he said, there is little use in investing staff time and resources on zoning regulations and design standards.

“If there is still tremendous contention in the community it puts us in a more difficult position to put energy into the process,” Gordon said.

Nancy Mangini worries revisiting the design review process will reignite the contention even though she believes quite a bit of the neighborhood rifts had begun to heal.

“I thought we were going in the right direction and, frankly, I thought we were done,” Mangini said. “It is discouraging to do this all over again.”

Nearly a year ago, the Board of Supervisors suspended the committee at the urging of the coalition, a grassroots group that fought the restrictions on house appearances.

 Emerald Hills includes more than 1,700 property owners in unincorporated Redwood City. The homeowners’ association spent two years promoting 32 pages of new design and building guidelines, including types of plants to acceptable exterior colors. Design guidelines are not law, but offer a strict direction for the committee.

Prior to the creation of the design review committee in 1991, rules for housing additions and renovations were simple, coalition members told the board. With time, rules increased, the committee held up projects it didn’t feel adhered to certain stylistic guidelines. Some homeowners saw time and construction dollars slip away while waiting for approval.

In May 2006, more than 600 people crowded into a public hearing to denounce proposed zoning changes. The proposal was withdrawn but committee critics continued asking the county for help.

Opponents pointed their fingers at the Emerald Hills Homeowners Association which oversaw the design review process. The community divide led to accusations of retribution and vandalism of position signs.

When the Board of Supervisors disbanded the committee, Gordon suggested meeting with neighbors this year to tackle zoning as a whole and if the group could be re-established. In March, coalition members Michael Mangini and Adriana Botto were elected to the HOA’s board of directors — a shift thought to ease discussions with the county.

In September, the Planning and Building Department agreed to spend $2,000 for the two community meetings “which would result in recommended revisions in zoning regulations, design standards and the design review process,” according to a memo by Lisa Grote, director of community development.

Mangini, however, said those that opposed the design review committee see the meeting as a way to bring it back. The added support of the enlisted homeowner may help motivate the neighbors to take a deep breath and jump back into the fight, she said.

“We think if it’s this important to someone who is risking his life to fight for personal freedom abroad, the least we can do as a community is come out to fight for his and our freedom here at home to building and live in the homes of our own choosing,” Mangini said.

She wants residents to use the meeting as an opportunity to tell the county they want Emerald Hills and Oak Knoll Manor removed from the design review district.

Learning what the community wants is exactly the point of the meeting, Gordon said.

“We had a request from the homeowners association to look at changing the standards but the meeting isn’t a sign the committee is coming back,” he said.

Michelle Durand can be reached by e-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 102.