Council approves Lafond Subdivision final plat after granting sidewalk waiver; fee-in-lieu amendment fails

Columbia City Council on Jan. 21 approved the final plat for the three‑lot Lafond Subdivision and granted a design adjustment waiving the usual sidewalk construction requirement along portions of Green Ridge Road and Brown Station Road.

The council's vote on the design adjustment was 5-1 in favor; the final‑plat ordinance passed unanimously, 6-0. Council members debated whether the waiver was appropriate in a neighborhood that currently lacks sidewalks and whether the city's planned Colt Railroad Trail, a future CIP project, should have been included in the Planning and Zoning deliberations.

The vote matters because the waiver lets the subdivider create three lots without building about 580 feet of sidewalk now; staff said constructing the sidewalk would cost roughly $41,394 based on the city's estimate. Councilmember discussion ranged from strict adherence to sidewalk code to deferring expensive construction in an older, mostly built neighborhood.

Tim Teddi, community development director, told council the property is roughly 1.7 acres, contains a…