Judge rejects hearing on Chateau de Loire

A district court judge ruled Wednesday that Kootenai County is following the rules and that a proposed French-themed golf retreat is on the fast track.

This means that the July 19 public hearing for Chateau de Loire, a proposed 18-hole golf course and 500 homes on the east side of Lake Coeur d’Alene, is still on.

1st District Court Judge John Luster denied Kirk-Hughes Development’s request for an emergency court hearing. The Las Vegas company filed the motion Tuesday, arguing the county allegedly broke a mediated agreement over the development schedule by postponing the May 31 hearing date until July.

Luster said that he couldn’t consider the request because the company’s initial appeal – filed after the county commission’s July 2006 denial of the golf retreat project – is on hold because the parties approved the mediation agreement.

Yet Luster wrote that after reviewing the request, it appears the county has followed the expedited schedule.

Coeur d’Alene attorney Kacey Wall, who represents the company, was out of the office and unavailable for comment.

In court documents, Kirk-Hughes Development argues that the delay means the county can’t decide by the agreed Sept. 1 deadline whether to approve the multimillion-dollar project. In addition, the postponement will cost the company an extra $135,000 in expenses ranging from engineering services to a $25,000 forfeited consulting fee.

The company wanted Luster to force the county to keep the May 31 hearing date.

Last week the county postponed the public hearing until July 19 so the newly hired planning director has time to take charge.

County Attorney John Cafferty maintained that without the agreement the county would have scheduled the hearing for September.

“I think the order speaks for itself,” Cafferty said.