Developer Proposes Panorama Estates

Thu., April 27, 2000

A chunk of land the city Parks Department wants to preserve as natural space may be subdivided into 33 single-family homes.

City Hearing Examiner Greg Smith heard a preliminary plat proposal Tuesday from developer Joe Trenchuck, who wants to build Panorama Estates on 26 acres of land fronting Austin Road.

The Parks Department was negotiating to buy 6.4 acres of that land from Trenchuck a month ago under the Conservation Futures program.

Trenchuck said he was asking $200,000 for the property, but the city offered him $64,000, the fair market value price, according to Paul Crutchfield, administrative assistant for the Parks Department.

Since an agreement couldn’t be reached, Trenchuck decided not to sell.

The Conservation Futures Program is designed to protect natural areas from development. The program uses a voter-approved property tax for acquisitions.

It comes as no surprise that the city wanted to preserve the land Trenchuck owns, because it is home to the Western Bluebird, which was listed as a priority species, and at one point was an endangered species, for Spokane.

Five Mile neighbors who attended Tuesday’s hearing expressed concern about the environmental impact of the subdivision.

Smith is expected to announce a decision within a couple of weeks.

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