Although it wasn’t pretty, the Westbrook City Council did the right thing Monday night in amending and approving a contract zone for a giant retail project in Stroudwater.

The City Council approved the contract unanimously with a list of amendments that were apparently hashed out minutes before the meeting by city councilors Brendan Rielly and Suzanne Joyce and developer Jason Snyder and read aloud before councilors voted on them.

Although it’s unclear why these amendments needed to be hashed out at the last minute, the city has arrived at the right conclusion on two counts: This development should go forward, and amending it to make sure the city gets what it’s bargaining for is appropriate.

With the economy, by all accounts, headed for or already in a recession, the city can’t afford to turn away projects that will generate as many new jobs and taxes as this one, but that doesn’t mean the city should accept whatever the developer offers.

According to numbers provided by the developer, the project has the potential to create 1,200 to 1,400 construction jobs and 4,000 to 5,000 permanent jobs. Although it’s unclear exactly how much it will generate in property taxes, this would likely become the largest taxpayer in Westbrook. While some might argue those numbers could be inflated and many of those retail jobs will offer low wages, it’s clear the project will have a significant economic impact.

Although it will be a shame to lose some beautiful undeveloped land in Stroudwater, the area is ripe for a development of this size. It’s a stone’s throw from Interstate 95. Drivers could access it off Westbrook Arterial without adding traffic to other areas of the city.

That said, it’s unfathomable that some people are demanding this development be approved immediately without amendment. What’s the rush? Snyder has far more incentive to see that this project gets built than the city does.

The project is enormous. At 1.6 million feet, it’s eight times the size of the Wal-Mart once proposed for the Saunders property, and at 60 acres, it’s nearly the size of the Maine Mall property.

And, the city has one chance to get it right.

Considering its size, the Planning Board dispensed with the project fairly quickly and left some of the details for the City Council to work out. City councilors wouldn’t be doing their job if they didn’t.

As long as the project isn’t held up unreasonably, amendments should be expected.

Maybe next time, someone could even type them up before city councilors vote on them.

Brendan Moran, editor