CdA development plan gets second run
A controversial housing development on Coeur d’Alene’s Best Hill is back with few changes and a public hearing set for December.
Halko LLC recently submitted new plans for the 30-acre Nettleton Hills project that would include building 35 homes on the property at the end of Best Avenue.
The company wants Coeur d’Alene to annex the property, which is just east of the city limits.
The Coeur d’Alene Planning Commission is having a public hearing on the proposal Dec. 13.
Neighbors and members of Best Hill Coalition oppose the project and argue it won’t fit in with the more rural character of the area and could potentially harm wetlands.
“It’s the same ol’ story,” said Jeff Coulter of the Best Hill Coalition. “They haven’t changed the project at all.”
City Planner John Stamsos said no significant changes were made and that the proposed development looks nearly identical to the old proposal. Halko withdrew its project in September, just hours before a public hearing.
Halko’s attorney, Steve Wetzel, didn’t return phone calls Monday.
Best Hill Coalition members question why Halko resubmitted the subdivision plans before the court rules on how many homes are allowable on the property. The group filed a lawsuit in 1st District Court in September asking a judge to uphold protective covenants on the property that allow only one home for every two acres regardless of zoning laws in either the city or county.
The former owner of the property agreed in 1986 to a protective covenant that lasts 30 years.
It was one of eight properties included under the Nettleton Estates property owners’ contract.
Recently, seven new property owners in the Nettleton Gulch area signed on to the agreement.
On Aug. 22, 12 of the 15 property owners covered by the covenants agreed to an amendment that calls for only one home for every two acres.
Halko’s subdivision proposal asks the city to zone the property to allow up to five homes per acre.
The Best Hill Coalition is having a public meeting Wednesday to discuss the new proposal. The 6:30 p.m. meeting is at Coeur d’Alene’s 15th Street firehouse.