On Wednesday, Dec. 11, at Woodland High School, students from Shari Conditt’s advanced placement government class hosted their first “Civic Power Hour,” a panel discussion featuring city government officials and one concerned resident.
Woodland Mayor Todd Dinehart, Public Works Manager Travis Goddard and vocal community member Donna Butler answered questions prepared by the 31 students concerning zoning, housing and Interstate 5’s effect on traffic and safety. The first half hour of the forum consisted of questions from students, while the second was dedicated to questions from visiting community members.
Students prepared for the event by conducting research on Woodland’s most divisive issues online and preparing questions addressing residents’ most vocal concerns. They printed and placed posters around town, wrote news releases and shared social media posts to promote the event. Conditt highlighted that her students played a key role in the decision-making process.
“It was fantastic … I think one of the things that I’m most proud of is my students’ ability to put together a project,” Conditt said following the panel.
Exit 21, traffic concerns
Woodland’s Exit 21 northbound I-5 interchange faces significant congestion during peak hours as cars often back up near the offramp. To address the traffic problems, the city is in the planning phase for a new interchange. In February, the city secured $2.6 million from Cowlitz County to initiate the preconstruction phase to improve the traffic flow and address backup. The Washington state Department of Transportation requires a “biological assessment” of environmental impacts, however, which may delay groundbreaking from 2026 to late 2028.
Woodland High School student Sam Brown asked the panelists how they would fix the interchange. Mayor Todd Dinehart highlighted that the two options under consideration are enhanced traffic signals or new roundabouts off the exit.
“In Todd’s view of the world here, if you look at … exit 14, they have signals, but they’ve now switched to roundabouts down there by [Ridgefield’s] Costco. You go to Exit 16, the ilani [roundabout] keeps things moving,” Dinehart said. “... My personal preference here is, let’s do what we can to improve safety. Safety is No. 1 to me here. Having cars that are backed up, having school buses there … That is a huge issue to me.”
Goddard noted that this interchange poses a traffic issue not only due to signaling but also because of where the traffic is directed. He pointed out that 30% of northbound cars using the interchange take an immediate right off Lewis River Road to cross the river into east county lands, causing further delays.
The panelists also cited traffic concerns as a main focus when asked what zoning changes they would review. Dinehart suggested, for future housing developments, certain zones should require two-car garages to prevent a surplus of on-street parking near busy roads. Additionally, Goddard noted that an estimated 14% of Woodland’s working adults work within city limits, suggesting that traffic on and off I-5 may be contributing to congestion.
Woodland’s housing future
Turning to housing, Woodland High School student Savanna Doughty, who is the daughter of City Council member Melissa Doughty, asked the panelists if Woodland is experiencing a housing crisis.
Dinehart noted that Woodland has apartments in city limits, and an estimated 400 houses will be developed from a new subdivision. He mentioned that five to seven houses are typically listed on the market and sold anytime between 30 to 90 days.
“We do have roughly 400 houses coming in here. So I look and say for those houses that will take care of our housing crisis, so to speak. Am I in favor of that? That’s a whole other different conversation here,” Dinehart said, noting his inclination to preserving Woodland’s small-town charm.
Butler emphasized that today’s youth will rely on hard work and saving money to secure a down payment on housing.
“I think the American dream is really still alive and well for people who want to pursue it, which is hard work, responsible living, which is good for students to hear,” she said. “There’s a lot of good hope out there as long as you can keep civil dialogue going and listen to ideas, and it’s important to hear people’s ideas and talk to people who are successful homeowners, how they did it.”
Goddard had a different view on the housing market, noting that, nationally, he has seen an upward trend in Airbnb listings as wealthy residents buy houses simply to rent them out.
“As a professional planner, that scares the hell out of me because there are generations of kids who are going through school and growing up, there are going to be no houses on the housing market by the time they get old enough to buy houses because investment companies will own them all. I worry that we will be a society of renters,” Goddard said.
Dinehart said landowners should be allowed to do what they can with their land and properties, though issues tend to arise when gentrification and overdevelopment threaten Woodland’s small-town charm.
“Part of what draws people here, what draws me to this community, is the old charm,” Dinehart said. “Seeing that is really hard on me as a person and a family member and a member of this community. At the same time, I’m torn — hey, that is somebody’s property. It’s not our right to say yes or no. So, the other question was, is there something coming down the pipe? I don’t know that there is an answer to that, but I think it’s a discussion item. I believe that, as a council and the elected body of officials, we need to have a discussion and figure out what we want to do because I see it coming down the pipe. It happens as communities get older and as a 100-plus-year-old community, it’s going to happen more and more.”
