Large Development Ok’d For Post Falls Plan Calls For 1,647 Houses And Apartments On 640 Acres

Developers could break ground next spring on a housing development that would increase Post Falls by nearly a third.

The Post Falls City Council this week approved a plan to build 1,647 homes and apartments on 640 acres near Chase and Pole Line roads.

“If they went out on their own, they’d probably be the third-largest city in North Idaho,” chuckled Mayor Gus Johnson. “Post Falls has never seen a project this big.”

Spokane developers GreenstoneKootenai Inc. still must reach agreement with city officials on conditional issues like road widths and street lights, but the greatest hurdle has been passed, Planning Director Gary Young said.

“There really aren’t a lot of major issues left,” he said.

Before the project even reached council members, appointed planning commissioners studied it for an entire summer.

“It’s not like they’re bringing this in through the door and we’re turning around and letting it back out,” he said. “We’re doing a thorough job. I don’t know that the planning commission has ever taken four months to review a project.”

Young said the proposal was unlike anything seen in Post Falls before.

The developers, who also did Coeur d’Alene Place - another housing community on Schneidmiller family land - included land for a community center, three parks, a fire station and a school.

The developers also will provide 60 percent more park land than the city requires and are planning a health spa and day care.

“Greenstone is the type of developer that really does their homework,” Young said. “It’s not a schlocky development.”

But some real estate-watchers have complained that the bottom is dropping out of Kootenai County’s housing market because there already are too many homes for sale.

In Post Falls alone, another 1,400 sites have been approved but not developed.

But planners point out the project is phased over 15 years and experts already predict the city’s population will increase a third by 2002.

“I like to see this kind of effort coming forward,” Young said. “It shows foresight. I think it will be very successful.”

, DataTimes