Joe Putnam did creek work without town permit Joe Putnam did creek work without town permit (September 29, 2004)

By Andrea Gemmet
Almanac Staff Writer

The moral of the story is, never do anything to a creek without permits.

Woodside Town Councilman Joe Putnam found this out the hard way when a resident's complaint about work Mr. Putnam was having done on his Mission Trail property to shore up a failing creek bank landed him in front of the Planning Commission.

Mr. Putnam told town officials that he considered the work -- installing rock and grass seed along eroding portions of the creek -- to be routine maintenance, and, therefore, a permit was not needed.

Any work in the stream corridor requires permits from the town and from the state Department of Fish and Game, said Planning Director Hope Sullivan.

"We're treating this like every other code enforcement case," Ms. Sullivan said. "We told him what he had to do, and he immediately took steps to come into compliance. He submitted an application to Fish and Game, and plans to the Planning Commission."

In Woodside, anyone doing work without a permit is required to stop the work and apply for whatever permits are necessary to legalize the work. At the Planning Commission meeting on September 15, commissioners voted unanimously to issue a permit for the work on Mr. Putnam's property, pending approval of the project by Fish and Game officials.

Game Warden Kyle Kroll said he can't comment on pending cases.

Woodside planning staff said the rock placement was not impeding water flow in the creek and is likely to be beneficial for controlling erosion; it is also likely to preserve the creek's scenic quality.

Mr. Putnam was out of town and did not respond to requests for comment by the Almanac's press deadline.

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