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Woodside council reviews 2025–26 budget, debates $1M Hillside stabilization and $2.2M unfunded North‑side path
Summary
At the May 13 meeting the Town Council received the proposed 2025–26 budget and 10‑year forecast. Town staff recommended a $1 million allocation for stability work on a portion of Hillside Drive, listed a $2.2 million unfunded mark for a North‑side Woodside Road path, and discussed pension and retiree‑health trust funding.
The Woodside Town Council reviewed the proposed 2025–26 budget and capital improvement program (CIP) at its May 13 meeting, focusing discussion on a $1 million stability project for part of Hillside Drive, a $2.2 million placeholder for a possible North‑side Woodside Road path, and whether to add funds to the town’s pension trust.
Town Manager Kevin Bryant described the town’s fiscal outlook and highlighted two CIP items he asked council to note: “You have received a lot of comments about, and we've talked a little bit about in this room, that we've added a project and a line item and allocated out of this budget a million dollars … to do stability work … on a portion of Hillside Drive.” He also described a separate, unfunded entry for an exploratory North‑side Woodside Road path and said the estimated cost “would be about twice the cost of what we would get on the south side.”
Bryant told the council the budget includes a 10‑year general fund forecast that keeps a 30% reserve through year six under current projections, and he reviewed existing trust funds: retiree‑health (OPEB) assets of about $1.5 million and a pension trust that has grown to “somewhere around 2.6, 2.7” million dollars, figures Bryant gave as approximate. He presented a $1 million additional pension contribution as a discussion option and showed how different contribution levels would affect the 10‑year forecast.
Council members debated priorities. Council Member Wall framed Hillside Drive as a safety and access issue: “The road is in a terrible state of disrepair [for] emergency vehicles. I can't imagine them passing easily right now.” Several council members called Hillside stabilization a high priority and cautioned that the project could cost more than the initial estimate, noting geotechnical and drainage complexity.
Members also questioned the North‑side Woodside Road path entry in the CIP. The circulation committee and public commenters explained the committee’s interest in a North‑side pathway to serve neighborhoods between Miramontes and Albion and to improve school access for residents on the north side. Public commenter Asan, chair of the circulation committee, described the segment as “drainage ditches that are not really walkable,” saying the path would serve residents who otherwise must travel to Kings Mountain Road to cross safely. Other council members and residents pushed back, saying the line item is preliminary and that the project is not shovel‑ready; several council members suggested the item be refined by the circulation committee before the council advances funding.
On pension funding, Bryant and councilors noted Woodside is funded relatively well compared with peers when CalPERS obligations and the local pension trust are combined. Bryant described the pension trust history and said the town is “about 70%” funded on CalPERS actuarial measures and that the town’s additional trust assets make Woodside among the better‑funded jurisdictions in the county. Several council members said they were reluctant to make a large additional contribution now given budget uncertainties; others supported steady, incremental contributions to capture compound growth over time.
Other budget items discussed in public comment and by staff included the chipper and defensible‑space programs (the budget shows increased chipper service funding and a defensible‑space matching program line), continuing public‑safety contract costs with the sheriff’s office, and several smaller operational changes. The consent agenda, which included routine budget items, passed earlier in the meeting without modification.
No new appropriations for the Hillside or North‑side path were adopted at the May 13 meeting; council discussion produced direction to refine project descriptions, request more detailed cost and engineering information for Hillside, and send the North‑side path back to the circulation committee for definition and potential grant‑readiness work. The council left the question of a supplemental pension trust contribution open for future budget deliberations.
