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Burlingame Creeks

"Living with your Creeks" Community Workshop

In lieu of this year’s annual “Living with your Creeks” open house Community Workshop, we encourage Creekside homeowner’s to take the time to review this webpage and download the “Caring for our Creeks” (Creekside Property Owner’s Manual).  If this is the first time visiting this webpage, I would like to welcome you if you are a recent transplant or relocated to a Creekside property in Burlingame.  Those that have attended our past ‘Living with your Creeks’ community workshop are aware that they are care takers of the creeks that make Burlingame so unique.  It is vital that you know your Creekside neighbor(s) as you both can share the responsibility in maintaining the creek, especially during the winter.  If you have any questions or would like further information about your creek, please contact Senior Civil Engineer Martin Quan at mquan@burlingame.org.

The City of Burlingame (City) has seven major creeks (El Portal/Trousdale, Mills, Easton, Sanchez, Terrace, Burlingame, and Ralston) that convey stormwater from the hills to the Bay. These creeks have existed long before Burlingame’s incorporation in 1908, and are a critical natural stormwater conveyance system that protects homes, businesses, and transportation networks from flooding during storm events. It is important to point out that, the creeks west of El Camino Real that run through the side or rear of private properties are owned and maintained by the private properties. The majority of the creeks east of El Camino Real have been constructed to run underground in man made storm drain pipes and box culvert structures.

The seven creeks provide over 11 miles of natural storm drains to our City. In addition, our man made storm drainage lines that flow underground in pipes or concrete lined open channels add an additional of approximately 45 miles to the City’s storm drain system. The City of Burlingame is fortunate to have these natural storm drains as they provide a habitat for wildlife, improves water quality to the bay, and a host of aesthetic benefits.

Our creeks are an irreplaceable natural resource that should be preserved as they are especially valuable to a Creekside property owner since a healthy creek traditionally increases the value of a Creekside property. A degraded creek, on the other hand, can cause serious property damage and can decrease its value. 

If you are a Creekside homeowner, we encourage you to protect, maintain, and care for your creek as it takes care of your property and the City in general during rain storms. The following information is provided to assist you to be good stewards as a Creekside homeowner: