Examiner sides with Chateau project

Plans for a French-themed golf community near Moscow Bay are moving forward after a Kootenai County hearing examiner ruled Thursday that there is little difference between it and a similar development already approved in the area.

Examiner Gary Young wrote that Chateau de Loire and its 475 condos and homes, plus its day spa, community dock and athletic center, would have the same impact on state Highway 97 and the character of the area as Gozzer Ranch, another luxury golf community that was approved last year.

“I acknowledge the cumulative effect of such projects but recommend that they be held to the same standard of compatibility in their review,” Young wrote.

As a condition of approval, Young recommended that the developers of the luxury golf course, condos and homes help pay for a study that will determine what improvements are needed for Highway 97 to accommodate the increase in population and how to pay for those fixes. The property lies on either side of the highway.

Young’s recommendation contradicts the county staff report that said Chateau de Loire’s proposal for the former 600-acre Flying Arrow Ranch is “not a good fit” for the area. County staff recommends that Las Vegas-based Kirk Hughes Development seek a change to the comprehensive plan, which is the foundation of all county land-use decisions, before moving forward with the subdivision proposal.

The land-use plan designates the ranch as timberland and recommends against development. Young’s findings disagree and conclude that no change is needed.

The Kootenai County Commission will have final say on the project and is expected to schedule a public hearing for this summer.

Project manager Brian Bills said the company is still considering its options and won’t decide until today whether to pursue a comprehensive plan change.

Bills said he was pleased with Young’s “fair and objective” recommendation and ability to counter the claims in the county’s staff report.

In the past, the company has questioned whether it was receiving fair treatment from the county planning department, specifically Planning Director Rand Wichman, whose wife works for neighboring Gozzer Ranch that overlooks Arrow Point.

The county commission said it was aware of Wichman’s situation and didn’t see any conflict because the commission has final say on all development and land-use decisions.

Those concerns arose last fall when the planning department requested that the company postpone a public hearing, arguing too many substantial changes had been made to the project and more review was needed.

At the time, Young agreed with the county staff and asked the company to provide more information because the application lacked sufficient information regarding access along the highway and the protection of area streams and wetlands.

As a condition of Young’s recommendation Thursday, the company must have a minimum 30-foot buffer around wetlands and any disturbance to these sensitive areas must comply with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers requirements.

Bills said Thursday that he was “guardedly optimistic” about the current relationship with the county.