"This is a tribute to how much we value history and tradition in our town," Mayor Rajiv Bhateja said at the Heritage House ribbon-cutting on August 19. "We care about our open spaces and rural character, but we also really value our tradition and our history."
Los Altos Hills has two anniversaries in 2026. The Town turns 70, and Juan Bautista de Anza's 1776 trip up the Peninsula turns 250. The Town's choices about both follow the same rule. History gets recognized at the size of the people who already walk the pathways, ride at the barns and sit in the committee rooms. That rule shapes the new trail designation, the reopened Heritage House, the horse-show limit at Westwind Community Barn and the fall calendar. Each one shows up in a slightly different place on a resident's week.
A Historic Trail Drawn Only on the Town's Own Map
On August 20, the City Council voted 4-0 to approve a local designation of the Juan Bautista de Anza Historic Trail on Town pathways, with Council Member Tankha absent. The motion did three things. It approved the designation, it called for "as few wooden signs as necessary to identify the route," and it said the trail will appear only on the Town's pathways map "without pursuing broader promotion."
The minutes explain the limits. Several council members and members of the public worried that regional or national promotion could bring visitors who don't know the Town's pathway system, and with them privacy, parking, traffic, maintenance and neighborhood impacts. Mayor Bhateja said he supported recognizing the route locally but shared those concerns about national promotion.
The route itself has shifted twice this year. In June, staff presented an in-town alignment and an alternative over Black Mountain, and Council told staff to go ahead with the in-town option. By August, the alignment had moved onto Moody Road because the Town has no trail easements on Rhus Ridge Road.
The markers will be small. Public commenters suggested small badges on existing pathway posts instead of larger trail signs. Bhateja asked that any signs match the Town's existing pathway signage and be kept to a minimum. At its August 24 meeting, according to a meeting summary, the Pathways Committee discussed medallions on existing posts and a few larger signs at each end of the route, and agreed to recommend a modest approach the Town can build itself.
You may have read a different version. The Town's August 17–21 Weekly recap said Council "did not approve the designation" and would not pursue connection to the designated trail system. The posted minutes record the local designation as approved, with the broader connection and promotion set aside. Staff described the same outcome to the Pathways Committee four days after the vote. The approval of the August 20 minutes was on the consent calendar for the September 17 Council meeting.
Where the Expedition's Record Actually Points
Moody Road is the line the Town can legally mark. It is not a spot the historical record pins down. The National Park Service's guide to the Anza National Historic Trail puts the March 25, 1776 camp at a place the expedition called San Joseph de Cupertino, Camp #93, a name the city of Cupertino still carries. Anza and Father Pedro Font wrote that they could see San Francisco Bay from there.
The NPS names two places where you can see a similar view today: McClellan Ranch Park at 22221 McClellan Road, and the knoll at Rancho San Antonio County Park off Cristo Rey Drive. From there, the small exploring party went north and crossed into San Mateo County at San Francisquito Creek. On the way back south, Font measured El Palo Alto, the tall redwood that still stands at El Camino Real and Alma Street.
So the best place to stand where Anza looked out is the Rancho San Antonio knoll, just over the Town line. The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District's trail-conditions page listed no Rancho San Antonio trail closures when we checked. It also warns that conditions can change from day to day.
The 70th Anniversary Landed in a 1908 House
The Town didn't hold a 70th-anniversary festival. Its anniversary moment was a renovated meeting house. The August 19 ribbon-cutting for the Heritage House Upgrade coincided with the Town's 70th anniversary. County Supervisor Margaret Abe-Koga presented the Town with a Certificate of Commendation for the opening.
The house wasn't built here. According to the Los Altos Town Crier, the Eschenbruecher family built it in 1908 near 2nd Street in Los Altos. It was damaged in 1944 during a Page Mill Army Camp training exercise, and it was designated a historical landmark before it moved to Los Altos Hills in 1985.
The upgrade is mostly practical. Public Works lists an ADA-compliant restroom with a shower, an accessible coffee bar and an exterior access ramp. A $400,000 Community Development Block Grant paid for part of it. The Town Crier reported that the house will host committee meetings, history education, social events and community gatherings.
The first regular use was small. Coffee with the Mayor moved from Town Hall into the reopened Heritage House, starting with Friday sessions from 10 to 11 a.m. in late August and early September, with signs pointing the way on the Town Hall grounds. Mayor Bhateja also takes appointments, and the Town's City Manager Weekly Reports post any schedule changes.
The Same Limit at Westwind Barn
The night Council approved the Anza designation, it also voted on Westwind Community Barn at 27210 Altamont Road. The request was to raise the permitted number of horse shows from five to eight a year and to move the permit from annual review to a ten-year renewal. After talks with the concessionaire, neighboring residents and Town staff, staff recommended keeping the cap at five and adding a yearly compliance review by the Parks and Recreation Committee.
Bhateja explained the review. Neighboring residents wanted a proactive check instead of relying on complaints alone, and the concessionaire had agreed to it. The motion passed 3-1-1. Vice Mayor Linda Swan voted no, and Council Member Tankha was absent.
The two decisions match. On the same night, Council kept the barn's event count where it was and kept the historic trail off regional maps. In both cases, the people living along the route or next to the arena shaped how big the thing could get.
The Fall Calendar Is Built at the Same Scale
The fall events are small, local and mostly within a few miles of Town Hall.
| Date | Event | Where | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun., Oct. 4, 11 a.m.–1 p.m. | Pet a Pony Day, third annual | Town Ring, Purissima Park, 27500 Purissima Road | LAH Horsemen's Association pony-care demonstrations for adults and children |
| Sun., Oct. 11, 2–4 p.m. | "The Anza Expedition – 250th Anniversary" | Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road | History Committee presentation and reception |
| Mon., Oct. 19, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. | Ramble at Rancho | Rancho San Antonio | Seven miles on Wildcat Loop, High Meadow and Rogue Valley trails |
| Mon., Nov. 9, 9:30 a.m.–2 p.m. | Deer Hollow Farm siding maintenance | Deer Hollow Farm | Rescheduled volunteer day, advance registration required |
| Mon., Nov. 16, 8:45 a.m.–4:15 p.m. | Ramble from Rancho to Black Mountain | Rancho San Antonio | 13 miles, reservations open Nov. 2 at noon |
| Wed., Nov. 18, 10:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m. | Annual Turkey Trot | Rancho San Antonio | Five miles on Lower Meadow, Rogue Valley and Chamise trails |
Council approved the History Committee's October program on the same August 20 consent calendar. The Town calendar hadn't named speakers or posted an RSVP link as of this writing. The October 19 ramble goes through the same preserve as the bay-view knoll the Park Service names for Camp #93, which makes it the closest thing on the fall schedule to an Anza walk. Details are on the Midpen event page.
The Pathways the Markers Will Sit On
The medallions will go on posts along pathways the Town is still building. The Magdalena Road Pathway Project adds about 1,300 linear feet of roadside pathway on the south side of Town as part of the planned Magdalena–Ravensbury loop. Council awarded the contract to Pacific Underground Construction on June 18. The July schedule had work starting August 5 and finishing by the end of September. At the August 24 Pathways Committee meeting, according to a meeting summary, staff reported that tree removal and excavation were done, quarry fines were going in, compaction testing was underway, and the contractor expected to finish in about a month. We haven't seen a completion notice yet.
Phase 1 of the Altamont Road Pathway Project runs about 1,300 feet from Corbetta Lane to Altamont Plunge. The Town's own Public Works maintenance crew is building it, with work expected from August through October. Staff told the committee the segment was nearly ready, but a large eucalyptus next to the planned route needs professional removal and stump grinding. Quotes for that work came in around $30,000, and the committee discussed scraping the path in the meantime to keep it open to walkers.
That is the scale of the Town's 250th. A few medallions are planned for posts that a Town crew is still setting, along roadside paths of roughly 1,300 feet each, and the Altamont segment is waiting on one eucalyptus removal.
If you own a home along Moody Road, Magdalena or Altamont and want to know how this fall's pathway and trail decisions could come up when you sell, Drew Doran and The Doran Team can walk through it with you and start with a clear valuation. Get Your Home Value.
