Neighbors Oppose Greenacres Project

Neighbors worry a proposed new subdivision in Greenacres is too dense for their semi-rural area and will overwhelm the already crowded schools.

Nicole McCrea said she lives on Sixth Avenue and would overlook the Longview subdivision from her back yard. She said the Central Valley School District is already busing students to other schools from Greenacres Elementary.

She worries that her four-year-old daughter “may not be able to attend school right around the corner,” especially if more families move into the area.

Developer Mike Hume has proposed building 53 new homes on 11.2 acres in Greenacres. The planned development would be built east of Tschirley Road and west of Long Road, generally south of Second Avenue and north of Fifth Avenue.

Spokane County Hearing Examiner Mike Dempsey held a hearing last week to consider the development.

Hume asked Dempsey to approve plans for about 5.8 houses per acre, a higher density than normally allowed.

Developers plan to sell the twostory homes to first-time home buyers. The area is inside the county’s interim urban growth boundaries and is zoned for 3.5 houses per acre.

Hume said it would take two or three years before all the homes are built, so the effects on the neighborhood wouldn’t be felt all at once.

The Central Valley School District did not comment on the subdivision. Lack of input from the school district generally means there is room somewhere in the district for children who would move into the proposed subdivision, said Dempsey.

Other neighbors said they were concerned the new houses would increase the traffic in the quiet neighborhood, endangering the children who walk to Greenacres Elementary. The roads in the neighborhood do not have sidewalks.

Dempsey took the case under advisement and will rule on the subdivision plans in about two weeks.