Hagadone says he’ll reconsider CdA garden plan

Duane Hagadone is considering whether to resurrect his offer to build a memorial garden in downtown Coeur d’Alene but said Tuesday any new plan would still include closing a portion of Sherman Avenue.

The move comes after Hagadone received a letter from the Coeur d’Alene Area Chamber of Commerce asking him to resubmit a proposal to the city for a $20 million flower garden in memory of his parents.

The chamber’s 22 board members unanimously endorsed the letter last week.

“I’m extremely complimentary of the chamber for recognizing the value of the gardens,” Hagadone said. “We will certainly give it full consideration.”

Hagadone added that the memorial garden “has not been on my mind” since December, when he pulled his original proposal to close two blocks of Sherman, a major street that runs through downtown Coeur d’Alene. Hagadone said he feared that a proposed advisory vote on the subject could divide the community and torpedo the library and public safety bonds that were to be on the same February ballot.

Hagadone also said Tuesday that he hasn’t been thinking about Post Falls’ offer to build the garden in the city’s 60-acre Black Bay Park along the Spokane River. Post Falls Mayor Clay Larkin said last week that the offer still stands and the city is ready to help Hagadone anyway it can.

“I do not want to get into playing one (city) against the other,” Hagadone said.

If the Coeur d’Alene plan is resubmitted, Hagadone said there would be minor “tweaks” but no significant changes. The garden would still be created on the 3.4 acres in front of his Coeur d’Alene Resort, and the city would reroute traffic off Sherman Avenue for a block and a half.

Chamber manager Jonathan Coe delivered the letter to Hagadone’s office Tuesday but didn’t meet with him. Coe said he understood from previous conversations that Hagadone planned to talk with other people in the community and assess the support for the garden project before making a decision.

“Our hope is that it gets a full hearing here in this community,” Coe said.

The chamber did not take an official position when Hagadone initially proposed the downtown garden. Coe said that Hagadone unveiled the proposal and then yanked it too quickly for the chamber to take a stance.

In a surprise – and rare – public appearance in October, Hagadone unveiled the garden plan and proposal to close Sherman Avenue to a group of about 100 local business people. Hagadone made a formal presentation during a town hall meeting Dec. 12 and then withdrew the proposal six days later.

Coe said it’s not a competition with Post Falls and that the chamber just wants to ensure the garden idea gets a fair hearing in Coeur d’Alene.

“That’s all we can control,” Coe said.

He acknowledged that proposed traffic changes remain a concern for some downtown merchants.

Consultants hired by the Coeur d’Alene Downtown Association and the city said in presentations this winter that they liked the garden concept, but they indicated that closing Sherman would hurt business.

Many locals were angered by what they saw as a self-serving proposal from Coeur d’Alene’s most prominent businessman.

Hagadone said that after he pulled the proposal many people contacted him and praised the effort, saying the garden would have been a great addition to the area. He said the chamber’s letter also highlights that the attraction would draw thousands of visitors each year.

Allowing Hagadone to build the garden in downtown Coeur d’Alene would mean that he would forgo his ability to build a waterfront restaurant off of Independence Point near the Hagadone Corp. headquarters and the Boardwalk Bar. The restaurant location was approved by the city at the same time as the Coeur d’Alene Resort.

Hagadone said that he started doing some “preliminary design work” on a seafood restaurant after he withdrew the garden proposal.

“If the gardens didn’t go, that was a strong possibility,” Hagadone said.

Hagadone has described the proposed Coeur d’Alene garden as similar in quality to the renowned Butchart Gardens, though much smaller than the Victoria, B.C. landmark. The idea hatched after his father, Burl Hagadone, died of cancer in 1959. Duane Hagadone’s mother, Beverly, died in 1984.