Comprehensive master plan comes from many sources

Saratoga Mayor John Zeiger originally asked for details regarding a housing study and grant money in a round table meeting earlier this year, Zeiger said. After attending the meeting and asking about available grant money, Zeiger said he requested Cindy Wallace and Voices of the Valley Executive Director KayCee Alameda to talk about the grant in a Saratoga Town Council meeting.

Alameda, Wallace and others presented to the Saratoga Town Council, saying about $20,000 was available with a $6,000 match.

VOV held a housing meeting in October where people in the meeting talked about the grant and also talked about ways to present the information to the council. They also talked about putting money toward the town’s match of a grant.

Before the Nov. 5 council meeting, Zeiger met with several stakeholders, Wallace said, including Alameda and herself. Wallace said Michael Haak, a consultant for the town with no known affiliation with VOV, was also present and talked about the benefits of adopting a comprehensive master plan.

On Nov. 5, during the Saratoga Town Council meeting, Wallace, Alameda and Haak addressed the council talking about the benefits of adopting a comprehensive master plan. The grant money available for a master plan would be $50,000, requiring a 25 percent match from the town. Alameda said in the meeting the VOV board was willing to provide up to $2,500 toward the town’s match.

In the Nov. 12 Planning Commission meeting, Town Attorney Tom Thompson recommended the Planning Commission hire a “competent consultant” to conduct a comprehensive master plan, which could take care of several issues commission members have been discussing.