Woodside council delays town center plan to broaden scope and seek clearer scope language

The Woodside Town Council on Feb. 25 voted to continue consideration of the town center plan so staff can secure a written scope amendment from the proposer that would modestly broaden the project geography and clarify the traffic-study approach.

Councilors said they want the Town Center plan to address how future changes will affect the entire town, not just the downtown footprint. Councilmembers and members of the public raised questions about whether the request for proposals (RFP) limits the project to reviewing existing traffic studies rather than commissioning new analyses.

A council member moved to continue the item and a second was recorded; after deliberation the council called for public comment limited to the narrow question of continuance. Public commenters urged careful consideration of the geographic boundary. Steve Lubin and Sue Paletti told the council they supported continuing the item so the scope could be clarified for the benefit of neighbors and town planning efforts.

Kevin Bryant, town manager, told the council he had spoken with the proposer and that the consultant was amenable to a modest expansion — for example including specific parcels east and west to incorporate the fire district, a church and the school — and could cost and time-adjust the proposal accordingly. Bryant said staff expects a “fast turnaround” and suggested the item could be returned to the council in about two weeks, without a study session, if the proposer supplies a written addendum that explicitly expands the geography and clarifies deliverables.

Council members who supported the continuance emphasized the importance of clearly written scope language so the town does not send mixed signals to state agencies, and urged staff to return the item promptly. Those who were less inclined to expand the geography said a townwide plan would be a different, larger project and might exceed the consultant’s intended work.

By the end of the meeting council members voted to continue the agenda item. The council directed staff to obtain a written addendum to the proposal documenting the modest geographic expansion discussed and return the item to the council for final action.

The continuance does not adopt any policy change; it instructs staff to negotiate a clarified scope and price and bring the revised proposal back to the council for consideration.

The council also confirmed that public comment on Feb. 25 addressing the continuance was limited to whether the item should be continued, not to the merits of any particular development proposal.

Staff said they will circulate the proposed addendum and a target timeline to the council once it is received from the proposer.