Moscow council approves Woodbury First Edition PUD amendment; preliminary replat OK'd with stormwater condition

Moscow — The Moscow City Council on July 21 approved a major Planned Unit Development (PUD) amendment for the Woodbury First Edition subdivision and approved a preliminary replat of part of the development with one condition requiring an updated stormwater analysis.

Planning staff laid out the proposal during a formal public hearing that ran for more than an hour. Planning staff member Mike Ray summarized the changes the applicant seeks: increasing lots in the first-phase PUD from 78 to 107 and replating a 12.27-acre portion of the subdivision to create 81 lots where 52 currently exist. Ray said the overall master plan covers roughly 82 acres and that infrastructure for phase one — including portions of Woodbury Drive and Sonaker Drive — has already been constructed.

The proposal would create smaller “cottage” and townhome-style lots in several nodes around a proposed town center and add temporary public parking near Rosemary Lane to gauge demand. Ray told the council that engineering staff measured fire flow in the neighborhood business area at about 3,800 gallons per minute and that the city’s water modeling and recent Ponderosa booster station work should allow service for the development, though some individual buildings may need fire-suppression measures at the building-permit stage.

Why it mattered: The council and public focused on three practical impacts of the changes — parking, stormwater and fire/water capacity — because the PUD lowers some off-street parking ratios and increases density near the proposed town center. Resident opponents said they feared increased on-street parking, reduced water/fire capacity and stormwater impacts; supporters and the developer argued the design is intended to create a walkable, mixed-use neighborhood and that temporary measures can be adjusted as the project builds out.

Developer Mark Wentz, who identified himself as the applicant and a resident, said the changes aim to produce smaller, more affordable homes while preserving a consistent architectural character. "We're committed to doing the best we can in this project and we consider the city a partnership," Wentz said. He and partner Levi Wentz said the 41 temporary parking spaces adjacent to Rosemary Lane would be monitored and could be converted to permanent parking or redeveloped in later phases based on use.

Opposition testimony centered on infrastructure concerns. Resident David (Dave) Lametz, who lives on Lanny Drive, said public records showed the Ponderosa booster station and several road and storm improvements had required public money and that parts of the existing storm line had failed. "When this development was first proposed, you were told that the city could provide water and sewer with the existing infrastructure. It was not correct," Lametz said. He urged council to delay approval until outstanding infrastructure questions and prior reimbursements were reviewed.

Planning staff and city engineering said the booster station upgrades were a preexisting capital project and that the city serves as the permitting and enforcement authority for DEQ stormwater matters inside city limits. Engineering staffer Bob Deville said the city required the developer to obtain the applicable DEQ permits once the missing permits were identified and that he could not find a record explaining the initial permitting delay. Ray and Deville said the city expects any building that lacks required fire flow or ladder access to be modified at the permit stage.

Council action and votes at a glance: The council ultimately took three discrete votes related to Woodbury during the meeting. For the major PUD amendment, Council Member Bryce, Council Member Julia, Council Member Sandra, Council Member Hailey and Council Member Gina voted yes; the motion to approve the major PUD amendment with no conditions carried. For the preliminary replat (the 12.27-acre replat portion), the council approved the replat with one condition — that the developer update the subdivision’s stormwater report and include any mitigation required by the city engineer — with Council Member Hailey voting no and the other four members voting yes. The council also approved a right-of-way vacation ordinance that reduces a segment of Woodbury Drive right-of-way from 60 feet to 54 feet and vacates adjacent public utility easements where utilities will be relocated; that ordinance passed 4–1 (Hailey no).

What the approvals mean in practice: Staff and the applicant said the PUD approval allows the developer to proceed with more-detailed plans for cottage lots, townhouses and a small town-center block that will permit ground-floor commercial uses with housing above. Ray emphasized that many technical constraints — fire flow, ladder access, parking counts — will be enforced at the building-permit stage and that some uses may be limited if they exceed available water or access standards. Ray said the Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval of the PUD and the replat with a single stormwater-related condition.

Developer response and monitoring: The developer said they intend to monitor the proposed 41 temporary parking spaces near Rosemary Lane and propose permanent parking only if needed; they also said the homeowner association would help enforce parking and neighborhood rules. Mark Wentz said the aim is a denser, walkable core with narrow streets, front porches and a mix of housing types. "If parking is an issue, then it's going to be a failure and we can't have a failure out there," he said, adding that the team was ``committed to making it work." Applicant partner Levi Wentz explained that short-term rentals will be allowed consistent with the PUD and HOA rules only when an owner resides on site (for example, by moving into an ADU while renting the primary unit), and that the project intends to manage short-term rental impacts.

Next steps and limitations: With approval of the PUD amendment and preliminary replat (subject to the stormwater condition), the developer may proceed toward final plats and building permit submittals. Council and staff reiterated that future building permits must meet fire-code requirements (including sprinkler systems or restrictions on building height where fire flow or ladder access is insufficient) and that additional traffic or stormwater studies may be required when later phases propose new connections (for example, the planned Lanny Drive connection).

The meeting record shows the council also approved a consent agenda and a mayoral appointment earlier in the meeting; those routine items are noted in the vote summary below. The Woodbury approvals were the most substantive matter on the agenda and drew the bulk of public testimony and council discussion.

Ending note: Council and staff closed the formal public hearing before moving to deliberation. Staff said they would work with the applicant to ensure the required stormwater update is completed and any mitigation required by the city engineer is established before final plat approval.