Planners OK Copper Ridge plan

Developers planning homes for the base of Canfield Mountain won a victory early Wednesday morning when the Coeur d’Alene Planning Commission unanimously granted their request.

But the battle isn’t over. Neighbors and members of Canfield Mountain Alliance, who opposed putting 40 homes on Copper Ridge, are expected to appeal.

After the seven-hour hearing that continued until about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday, the commission decided that Copper Ridge LLC had resolved most of the concerns with the project.

“They fixed all those,” Planning Commission Chairman John Bruning said. “We made a point during the last meeting we had to spell out what we don’t like.”

The city had previously rejected two other proposals for the housing development on 49 acres at the end of Shadduck Lane. Some of the objections were over private, narrow streets, having the development gated and cutting a roadside into the hill to access a proposed water tank. None of those items were included in the latest version.

Bruning said this development will probably be the first to test Coeur d’Alene’s new rules for building on steep hillsides. About 18 of the proposed 40 lots are on slopes steep enough to trigger the hillside rules.

Plans to develop Copper Ridge sparked public outcry from neighbors and residents who don’t want any of Canfield Mountain developed. The public has used this particular property for decades as a recreational area even though the land is privately owned. The debate ignited conversations with the city about how to preserve open space.

The Parks and Recreation Commission is in the process of appointing an ad hoc open space committee that will look at potential funding options and what areas, such as Canfield Mountain, would qualify for preservation. Canfield Mountain Alliance has criticized the city for moving too slowly.

Bruning said the commission wants the city to aggressively pursue ways to protect open space, such as the nearly 24 acres Copper Ridge LLC pledged to leave undeveloped. The developer said it is willing to negotiate with the city or neighbor groups but that nobody has yet approached them with any offers. Until that happens, attorney Steve Wetzel said the property will be closed to public use.

Wetzel and Copper Ridge LLC representatives weren’t available for comment Wednesday.

One of the conditions of the commission’s approval was to guarantee that no development occurs on the 24 acres slated for open space.

Copper Ridge LLC requested a zone change on the lower portion of the land to allow for 40 homes. The 24 acres of open space, which is mostly steep hillside, would retain its current zoning that allows only one home per acre.

The zone change request automatically will go to the Coeur d’Alene City Council for another public hearing. The subdivision proposal will become final unless someone appeals the commission’s decision within the next 10 days.

Jay Walden of Canfield Mountain Alliance said the commission didn’t pay attention to what the general public wants. He said concerns still remain about stormwater controls and whether the city’s new rules for building on steep hillsides will work.

“You can have all kinds of rules but if you aren’t enforcing them it doesn’t matter,” Walden said.

Nearly 50 people spoke at the hearing, most of whom opposed the proposal, and 263 comments were submitted before the meeting. Last summer more than 1,000 people signed a petition saying they were willing to pay higher taxes if it meant stopping development on local landmarks such as Canfield Mountain.

Wetzel told the commission that this proposal would put homes on the flattest portion of Copper Ridge and is the best way to guarantee that the foothill isn’t covered with homes. He said if the commission didn’t accept this plan that another developer could buy the property and propose covering the entire hillside with homes.