Nestled in a wooded area at the foot of the Peninsula Range of the Santa Cruz Mountains, is a tranquil enclave for prosperous Peninsula residents.

Located a few miles west of Highway 280, the town offers a handful of restaurants and stores, but is otherwise a bedroom community filled with spacious, expensive homes.

The Town Center forms the heart of Portola Valley, where a large park with sports fields, a playground, picnic grounds below towering redwood trees and community buildings draw residents for leisure and volunteer activities. The center's historic one-room schoolhouse still serves as a community gathering place.

Portola Valley also sits astride the San Andreas Fault. Extensive plans are underway to move buildings in the Town Center to a nearby seismically-safer location.

The town began as a home for lumber industry workers in the 1850s. Residents then turned to agriculture as the logging industry declined. Portola Valley was incorporated in 1964 to prevent encroaching development from altering its rural feel.

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[San Mateo County Community College District]