No traffic emergency
Representatives of the North Indian Trail, Balboa and Five Mile Prairie neighborhood councils are fighting to stop new homes from being built in northwest Spokane. A recent fire near Indian Trail Road increased residents’ concerns about traffic and emergency response to the area north of Francis.
Because of the fire, Spokane police had to close Indian Trail Road, jamming traffic all the way to Francis Avenue during the beginning of rush-hour. Many residents had to wait several hours to get to their homes that evening.
The incident reinforced many residents’ opinions that services in the area are maxed out and that there isn’t a sufficient infrastructure to support plans for 1,380 more residential units in the area.
Assistant City Attorney Mike Piccolo told the City Council during a briefing session earlier this month that the group’s lack sufficient evidence of an emergency to justify a building moratorium.
But Kathy Miotke, former chairwoman of the Five Mile Neighborhood Council said they have requested all the data the city staff used to make its decision.
“We can still go further with the moratorium, because what they decided in the study group was based on some maps and some data that we’re not sure is correct. We’re going to take all the data and go through it and study it, because we have found in the past that (city) staff has made errors in some of their briefs concerning traffic and land use on Five Mile and North Indian Trail,” said Miotke.
On June 20 neighborhood representatives went before the City Council and requested a six-month building moratorium in which the city could finish its residential regulations and the transportation impact fee ordinance.
They also requested a required public hearing to suspend building permits and land-use applications in the Balboa, North Indian Trail and Five Mile neighborhoods.
Last month more than 180 people from the three neighborhoods met at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church to further discuss and define the issues.
Those attending were asked to fill out a survey to determine the level of support for continuing the moratorium efforts and to prioritize the neighborhood issues.
According to Craig Culbertson, co-chairman of the North Indian Trail Neighborhood, the surveys showed overwhelming support for a moratorium.
“We are not antidevelopment; we are pro-taxpayer. We only want the services that others in the city have and what the Growth Management Act demands. We want roads that are built to city standards and can handle the capacity that continued development demands. We all want safe access and egress to and from the Prairie and to and from Indian Trail,” said Miotke.
The city adopted a concurrency management ordinance, which says that infrastructure must be in place before development occurs, or that funds and a plan must be in place to provide the necessary services to support additional development.
In July the City Council agreed to set up a temporary system allowing developers to avoid expensive traffic impact analyses by paying a set amount for new construction. In the northwest area the base fee is $913 for a single-family unit and $560 for each multifamily unit. Fees also are charged for retail and commercial properties.
“We’re not against voluntary impact fees. We just don’t think it’s enough,” said Culbertson.
The city can’t force developers and builders of approved plats to contribute.
The fees will be in place for about six months, while the city works on a more permanent system with neighborhood groups and developers.
At this time the city has approved preliminary plats for an additional 1,380 residential units in the area.
In addition to the approved plats, the city has pending applications for 155 lots in the area.
Spokane County has 249 lots approved in the Five Mile area.
“An interim impact fee is a good first step but no way, no how, does this impact fee define concurrency. It can be part of the strategy used, but it can’t be the whole strategy,” said Miotke.
The neighborhood group is considering challenging the city’s concurrency management ordinance with the Eastern Washington Growth Management Hearings Board. The board determines if a city, county or the state hasn’t complied with the requirements of the Growth Management Act.
The neighborhood group is also working with Future Wise, a Seattle-based group that helps neighborhoods monitor the comprehensive plan.
“There may be other issues that could revive this (proposed moratorium) real fast. Concurrency isn’t just about traffic. It’s about fire; it’s about libraries; it’s about essential police services. It’s about all those things that make up sound management of a city in regards to growth,” said Culbertson.