The City Council voted Tuesday night to provide a “middle-ground” of assurances from the developer to the city in the rezoning request of the site of a proposed shopping center.

City staff had drafted three options to determine the procedure by which the rezoning of the Northeast Gateway Overlay District, at the intersection of 13th Street and Interstate 35, would be processed. Each of the three options would cause the city to process the rezoning request differently and would require Wolford Development different levels of accountability to the city.

The council voted 5-1 to pass the second option, which is more restrictive than the first option and less restrictive than the third. Councilman Matthew Goodman opposed it.

“This is a procedural issue,” said Mayor Ted Tedesco. “There will be other times when the rezoning request comes in to speak about the mall.”

The council could have thrown out all of the options and asked city staff to draft a new alternative.

Residents opposed to the mall said they would draft a new option or choose the option that was most restrictive for the developer, requiring Wolford to detail all plans prior to processing the rezoning request.

“There are many reasons to oppose the mall; there is only one reason to support the mall — money,” said Sue Ravenscroft, of Ames. “I’m voting for option four.”

Ravenscroft said the option she would draft would require proof of financing, agreement to pay all associated costs — like rerouting bus lines — that might come up, and complete details of the plan before processing the rezoning.

The council opened the meeting with a workshop on the Pedestrian Walkway Infill Program. The program concerns the development of standards to determine which properties in Ames should be required to have a sidewalk.

The city originally drafted a matrix to determine which properties needed to construct an adjacent sidewalk. This raised concern among residents, as many felt that important issues were overlooked.

Property owners would be required to pay at least part — if not all — of the cost of construction on their property. Residents were concerned about the financial burden being place on them, particularly for those on a fixed income.

“Certainly we don’t want this to be a life-altering experience for anyone,” Goodman said.

Additionally, many residents cited problems with landscaping and trees, low pedestrian traffic and other issues that could make it difficult or unnecessary to construct a sidewalk.

The council voted at an earlier meeting to throw out the original matrix, and city staff held a series of public meetings for the expression of concerns.

Before the start of Tuesday night’s meeting, a round table discussion was held with the council and a group of citizen representatives.

The conclusion of the workshop was that a steering committee or focus group should be formed to create a new matrix to determine which properties require a sidewalk.

All members of the discussion agreed that there are properties in Ames that are in need of a sidewalk. In addition to determining which properties these are, the proposed group will work with the city to determine the financial responsibility of the property owner and the city.