Awnings will be the subject of a public hearing tonight (Sept. 24) at the Woodside Town Council meeting.

Intero Real Estate is appealing a decision by the Planning Commission -- on a 2-2 vote with three members absent -- that had the effect of denying Intero its request to install two awnings on its office building.

Planning Director Jackie Young had rejected the awnings element in a letter, and the Architecture and Site Review Board (ASRB) had also advised against the awnings.

While having granted Intero's proposal for two new signs, Ms. Young based her opinion of the awnings on conflicts with the municipal code and downtown planning policies, including the inappropriateness of awnings on a building with Spanish architectural character, according to a staff report.

Intero claims that the awnings do comply with regulations, that the building's architectural character is not Spanish, that the awnings serve a necessary function, and that the decision denying them was "arbitrary and capricious."

The building sits at the intersection of Canada Lane, Canada Road and Woodside Road; according to the ASRB, it is one of the oldest buildings in downtown Woodside, the report says.

The council meets at 7:30 p.m. in Independence Hall in the Town Center complex just south of the corner of Woodside and Whiskey Hill roads.

The council will hear testimony and rule on Intero's appeal de novo, meaning that the council must consider the case afresh and come to its decision independent of the earlier decisions.