Hilltop views draw Redwood City residents outside

White, now chair of the Farm Hill neighborhood association, said the couple found exactly what they were looking for and more in the neighborhood’s quiet calm and warm and sunny weather.

“The weather, the quiet, the access to a freeway, that just gave us a lot of freedom,” he said.

Their ability to reach most corners of the Bay Area from their home has inspired them to explore daytrip destinations such as Pacifica and Montara once or twice a month. The couple has also enjoyed getting glimpses of quail and deer in their own backyard, though White said they are seeing less variety in the animals they’ve witnessed from their windows in recent years.

“I have spent some time in the military, I’ve had a couple of jobs that took me across the country but living in Redwood City and on the Peninsula is the best of what I consider living,” he said. “It really is for us a wonderland.”

Once the youngest residents in their neighborhood when they moved in, White said he and his wife have seen their position flip over the years as older residents have opted for smaller homes and young families take their places.

Former mayor Barbara Pierce has watched a similar trend in the neighborhood, where she has enjoyed living for more than 30 years.

“With the changes in the housing crisis, I think people have decided that maybe it’s a good time to move,” she said.

Also home to Roy Cloud Elementary School at 3790 Red Oak Way and near the Adelante Spanish Immersion School at 3150 Granger Way, the neighborhood has grown in popularity among parents looking for good schools for their children, said Pierce.

But Pierce acknowledged the neighborhood’s walking paths and parks, including Stulsaft Park at 3700 Farm Hill Blvd. and the stretch of Farm Hill Boulevard leading up to Cañada College, may be the neighborhood’s biggest draw for residents and those seeking the outdoors.

“I’m always surprised to see how many people walk up and down Farm Hill,” she said.

Wendy Sneller has been living just east of the neighborhood for 18 years, and said she has enjoyed bringing her 2-year-old grandson Logan to Redwood City parks when she watches him two days a week. But Stulsaft Park is her favorite park, with a water play feature and soft surfaces to ensure Logan’s safety, as well as access to a stretch of creek and a dog park where she can bring her dog while she babysits.

“It’s just a little treasure,” she said.

Lupita Montijo, a 40-year resident of the neighborhood, said she enjoys coming to Stulsaft Park almost every day with her dog Fozzie. She said she’s grateful she is able to walk to the park, just a few blocks away from her home.

“I wouldn’t change my neighborhood for anything,” she said.

But she has been less than pleased with the changes made to Farm Hill Boulevard, which was restriped almost two years ago to make the four-lane road to a three-lane road with a two-way center turn lane between Alameda de las Pulgas and Cañada College in an effort to reduce driving speeds and better accommodate bike and foot traffic on the street. Montijo said the center lane has been used by some as a passing lane, which makes her nervous as a driver.

White said the adjustments to Farm Hill Boulevard have elicited the strongest commentary from residents and drivers who use it frequently, marking the last time a neighborhood association meeting needed to be held around a specific issue.

“There were horrible traffic tie-ups morning and afternoon [at first],” he said. “But then it subsided and I think traffic is much better managed on Farm Hill.”

For the past 12 years, White has been working at a Cupertino Apple store while his wife continues to work at home. Though he has noticed traffic picking up in recent years, he said he is grateful that’s among the few concerns he has about his neighborhood.

“We are just blessed at Farm Hill that the only consistent problem over the years has been traffic,” he said.

anna@smdailyjournal.com

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