Developer proposes GIP amendment and 108.8-acre corporate boundary shift for Bishops Bay; commissioners urge master-plan update

Applicant Jake Buns presented a concept-level General Implementation Plan amendment and corporate boundary adjustment that would shift about 108.8 acres from Middleton into Westport and reconfigure proposed uses for future phases of Bishops Bay.

Buns said the amendment reflects market demand for larger single-family lots on the Westport side and proposes shifting multifamily to a different corridor; he described a mix of single-family, multifamily, neighborhood civic space and a commerce node and noted the multifamily buildout could total as many as 850 units in the area shown (which he said would be phased and constrained by utilities). "850 would be the max we could do in that area," Buns said, adding that buildings would be phased over many years rather than built at once.

Staff and commission members flagged issues that would need further study: how the corporate-boundary shift would affect planned connections of Bishops Bay Parkway and implications for the Middleton portion of the master plan; Onken Roads capacity to serve additional access; the length of cul-de-sacs and the preference for a connected street grid; and whether multifamily density should be located where public transit and services can support it. One staff member said the city typically would not approve very long cul-de-sacs and favors distribution of traffic through a gridded street network.

Commissioners asked the applicant to provide a clearer, updated master development plan (a high-level 10,000-foot view), more explicit statements about which roads would remain public or become private or gated, and responses to infrastructure needs such as sewer and water main upgrades and fire access. The applicant agreed to pursue additional coordination with staff and to bring the concept to the Middleton Planning Commission for concept review (staff suggested an April meeting date for further discussion).

Next steps: The commission asked the applicant to return with a clearer master development plan-level update and more detailed infrastructure analysis, and to begin formal consultation with Middleton planning staff and commissioners before any formal GIP amendment or boundary-change filings.