Thought to have been bypassed, train service to downtown Novato is again being discussed as the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit agency heads toward a late 2016 start date.

With a historic train depot, downtown Novato seemed like a natural stop for SMART train service when voters approved it in 2008. But in 2009, the Novato City Council recommended Hamilton and Atherton Avenue as the city’s stops for the Marin-to-Sonoma service.

The Hamilton site, with a high residential area and commercial space, was a slam dunk and was approved unanimously at that time. But the decision between Atherton Avenue, which serves the Fireman’s Fund office complex and other businesses, and downtown was more difficult.

Backers of the downtown station said it could attract diners and shoppers to Old Town retailers. But council members, concerned about the lack of parking and the relatively small job center, decided on Atherton.

Fast forward six years, and there is talk of reviving the downtown station.

At the recent Novato Art, Wine and Music Festival SMART had a booth, with may people stopping by to learn more about Novato service.

“We had about 700 to 800 people come by and they were all eager to see service downtown and when they found out there was no stop, they were surprised,” said Farhad Mansourian, SMART’s general manager.

That prompted Mansourian to talk to city and county officials about options for downtown.

“It’s very early in the process,” he stressed. “It will be up to the City Council and if they want to hear the options.”

Councilwoman Madeline Kellner, a member of the SMART board who voted in favor of a downtown station in 2009, said she would want to take another look.

“I would support bringing this back to the council, if we can get their support, to discuss it in the next month or so,” she said

Councilman Eric Lucan believes the city should take a hard look at the issue before service begins.

“It’s something that I asked about when I was on the SMART board,” Lucan said. “But it requires some planning, and we have to determine a price tag. But it would likely be cheaper to get in now before service starts.”

Service to downtown Novato would likely start as “whistlestop” service after the commute hours are over. Lucan suggested potential alternating service based on demand between Atherton and a downtown stop.

The Southern Pacific passenger depot dates to 1916 and sits on land owned by SMART next to the tracks at Grant and Railroad avenues in Novato’s Old Town area. The downtown plan would likely involve a simple platform versus an entire overhaul of the depot.

Marin Supervisor Judy Arnold, chairwoman of the SMART board, said a downtown station for Novato would be a good fit for the fledgling rail line.

“It would be a great thing for Novato and for SMART,” she said. “I am going to work with the city of Novato to see if we can’t make that happen. But we have to do a study first and the city would have to allocate the money. We have a very short window of time if the city wants to do this.”