Zone change approved for Greenacres

Greenacres residents bombarded the Spokane Valley City Council with concerns about a proposed zoning change in their neighborhood but left City Hall disappointed Tuesday night.

The council voted unanimously to allow high-density development at the northwest corner of Barker Road and Boone Avenue.

“I came to this meeting once, and I’ll never come back again,” said Bob Walker, 65, after the decision was made.

The vote changed zoning there from UR-7, which allows seven houses or other “housing units” to be built per acre, to UR-22, which allows 22 units per acre. UR-22 also makes it possible for a medical office to locate there, which isn’t allowed in less dense zones.

John Peterson said the landowner, P&T Partners, would prefer to put a medical building there rather than an apartment complex, as the residents fear.

“We’re in here to try to make this property work for the area,” said Peterson, a property manager for P&T.

Greenacres residents said they’d worry about traffic congestion if 30 apartment units were built on the one-acre-plus property.

Howard Bruegeman, 68, said he “almost threw up” when the Planning Commission recommended making the UR-22 zoning change last month.

“I hope that developers don’t own this new city,” he told the council.

Sue Anderson, 43, said she wanted to maintain the area’s quiet lifestyle.

“This is our home. We don’t need a transient lifestyle there,” she said.

Spokane County changed the zoning from industrial to UR-7 several years ago.

Then, last fall, the new city amended its interim comprehensive plan, making the zoning there UR-12, which would allow 12 housing units per acre.

That decision was remanded, though, when Liberty Lake filed a petition against Spokane Valley’s interim plan and the Eastern Washington Growth Management Hearings Board found that Spokane Valley failed to notify a state agency of changes to its plan within the required time frame.

As the city began to reconsider the remanded zoning changes this spring, the landowner requested UR-22 rather than UR-12 zoning.

Deputy Mayor Diana Wilhite reiterated others’ comments that the landowner bought the land when it was zoned industrial.

“A local person bought that property with the idea of wanting to develop it,” she said.

In other news, the city is ready to start planning for parks.

The council awarded Moore Iacofano Goltsman Inc. of Berkeley, Calif., an $83,000 contract to write a master plan for the parks and recreation department this year.

The consultant will study the current park system to determine whether the city needs more parks and programs.

The plan also will determine whether a fourth swimming pool should be built in the city. Spokane County has $1.6 million set aside for a new pool, if the city decides to build one.

The county’s plans for a new pool at Mission Park were put on hold in 2002 after the city incorporated.

As part of its work, Moore Iacofano Goltsman will survey randomly selected households and hold public meetings.