Residents

Palo Alto is home to over 30 neighborhoods, all with their own distinct style and flair. Here are some resources to get involved in your neighborhood, find resources and amenities near you, and more.

• Palo Alto Neighborhood Association
• My Neighborhood: Search Near You
• Street Sweeping
• Connect with the City
• Help the City contact you about emergency situations: Sign up for Emergency Alerts
• Visit the Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo
• Stop by one of the library branches
• Curious about the various ways to get around Palo Alto? Visit Palo Alto Parking Guide for parking information or Transportation for services including free shuttle, bike routes and trip planning
• Explore more amenities that Palo Alto has to offer through our Community Services Department and Open space
• Interested in taking classes, doing activities, or reserving a facility? Register and sign up with Palo Alto’s Enjoy Online

Be Well and Stay Safe! We are encouraging our community to be well, be strong and stay connected with your neighbors, family members, and friends.

Our Office of Human Services assist with providing a safety net of services and work towards enhancing the quality of life in Palo Alto in a variety of ways. 

Project Safety Net mobilizes community support and resources in Palo Alto for youth suicide prevention and mental wellness. Project Safety Net is a coalition working on community education, outreach, and training; access to quality youth mental health services; and policy advocacy.

The City of Palo Alto is proud to offer residents and businesses a full suite of City-owned and operated utility services including electricity, natural gas, water, sanitary sewer, and commercial fiber optic services. The Utilities Department takes pride in delivering quality services to the Palo Alto community since 1896. For questions or assistance on a Utilities-related issue, contact  Customer Service at (650) 329-2161 or email us at UtilitiesCustomerService@cityofpaloalto.org.

• Smell gas? Act fast! Day or night, leave your home immediately and from a different location, call Utilities Dispatch at (650) 329-2579. Do not touch anything or look for the leak yourself!
• Sewer pipelines between your property and the street may be a shared responsibility between you and the Utilities Department. If you experience a sewage problem, contact the Utilities Department at (650) 329-2579 so that we can determine responsibility for the blockage or break and verify the lines are safe and clean.
• Power outages can happen unexpectedly for a variety of reasons. Please call Electric Dispatch at (650) 496-6914 if you are experiencing an outage, or for real time updates, view the outage map at cityofpaloalto.org/outageinfo

• Receive alerts on important news and information by following us on Twitter, Facebook, or Nextdoor.  

Please visit Utilities Ways to Save for information on how to save energy and water.

Community Partners consist of a diverse array of local non-profits, educational institutions, partner organizations or business in Palo Alto that actively support the mission of the City through its services, programs or its ongoing financial support.

• Cool Block
• Canopy
• Friends of the Library
• Friends of the Junior Museum and Zoom (JMZ)
• Grassroots Ecology
• Neighbors Abroad
• Palo Alto Community Childcare (PACCC)
• Palo Alto Arts Foundation
• Palo Alto Recreation Foundation
• Palo Alto Unified School District
• Stanford University

• Sustainability and Climate Action Plan: Learn about our sustainability and climate protection goals!

• Watershed Protection: Learn how wastewater treatment and stormwater programs protect creeks and the San Francisco Bay. For stormwater and wastewater management, pool draining, medicine disposal, RV sewage disposal questions, and less-toxic pest control call (650) 329-2122 or visit cleanbay.org.

• Zero Waste: Learn more about Palo Alto’s Zero Waste goal to achieve 95% diversion by eliminating waste wherever possible, and then managing discards through reduce, reuse, and recycling. For more information, call (650) 496-5910.
  • To learn what goes into your compost, recycle, and landfill container, visit What Goes Where Tools.
  • Did you know that 26% of Palo Alto's residential garbage is composed of food that went bad and was thrown away? Food is too good to waste! Learn tips on how you can reduce food waste.
  • Missed pickup? Broken cart lids? Want to change your cart sizes? Call GreenWaste of Palo Alto, the City’s contracted collector, at (650) 493-4894 or email them at pacustomerservice@greenwaste.com.