Council Approves Woodside Development Project

A mixed-use planned development that has been at the center of heated debate among city leaders received the go-ahead Wednesday night when Scotts Valley City Council members voted 3-2 in favor of the project.

The Woodside at Scotts Valley project would sit on a portion of an 18-acre former quarry site that fronts Scotts Valley Drive. Originally, it was to consist of three, 6,000-square-foot commercial buildings, 51 single-family homes and a half-acre park for use by the residents, with half of the site being kept as open space.

However, the council voted to approve the project on the condition that the commercial space is reduced in order to accommodate more parking, and that a residential unit is removed from the high-density area to allow for a thoroughfare and more park space. The commercial side was originally planned to have 60 parking spaces, 12 short of what a space its size would require. A reduction in size would allow for the correct amount of commercial parking.

“I feel like the developer has really made changes and I think this project is now better,” Councilwoman Donna Lind said. “I like the look of it and I can see young families being able to get their foot in the door.”

The two dissenting votes came from Councilmen Jim Reed and Randy Johnson who said they were not comfortable with some aspects of the project, including the parking plans for the residential side, the smaller amount of commercial space and the unusually high numbers of exemptions needed to complete the project.

Jim Sullivan, the San Jose-based developer of the project, requested 17 exemptions to the city's zoning code, including reduced lot sizes, reduced road width and both residential and commercial yard setbacks. Sullivan also requested that the site be re-zoned to high-density residential and open space from commercial.

“We are talking about exemptions to our standards that we have never done before,” Reed said. “We are going into unchartered territory here. I don’t believe we have ever granted the exemptions that we are going to be granting if this is approved.”

A big issue of concern in moving the project forward is the number of parking spaces per residential unit. The residential component will have a total of 178 parking spaces, including the two-car garages at each property. There will be no off-street parking, and all residents will be required to park in their garages. But there will be additional guest spots throughout the development.

The Scotts Valley Police Department would like to see more parking spots for a project of this size.

“It’s a dense project, and we are very concerned about that,” police Chief John Weiss said. “How big of an impact is it going to be on us? It’s hard to say. Anytime there is a project with a lot of density, we are going to ask for more. We are going to err on the side of caution.”

Dozens of residents came out to Wednesday’s meeting to speak to the council on the issue.

Keith Tyndall, 29, a dispatcher for the Scotts Valley Police Department and 10-year resident, approved of the project, saying that he has been on the lookout for an affordable home in Scotts Valley for a while.

“I would love more than anything to provide a single-family residence for my family here,” he said. “I urge you to keep in mind that there are young families that are interested in developments such as this and the affordable housing they would provide.”

School board member Art Bubb said in a letter to the council that the development would be good for Scotts Valley. Bubb, who lives in a townhouse complex with 186 units and two fewer parking spaces than Woodside would have, said parking hasn’t been an issue at his residence.

“We have only had to call the police one time [for parking issues],” Bubb said. “We deal with our parking issues via a private security company paid for with homeowners’ dues. Only in emergencies do we call the police.”

Not all residents were in favor of the project. Sheryl Ainsworth said she was concerned that the project came with very minimal examination from the planning commission.

“There are some really aggressive planning things going on with this project,” Ainsworth said. “I would ask that if there is any question in your minds whatsoever as to how it is going to work, if you are not 100 percent sure, take a step back, take a deep breath and make sure you get it right.”

Mayor Dene Bustichi said that while growth shouldn’t be rampant, some growth is good, and the Woodside project is a good thing for Scotts Valley.

“We’re all dependant on funds from the private sector to help the public sector,” Bustichi said. “This project will bring in over a million dollars to the water district in impact fees; over $300,000 will go to the school district for capital improvements; and close to a million dollars in building and planning fees will come in. Those are all positive things for Scotts Valley.”