Cheney on Parkside: Let's talk

Cheney’s City Council reached a consensus at its June 13 meeting on a proposal by Mayor Tom Trulove to approach developers of the Parkside Commons student housing project to see if a negotiated agreement could be reached on the contentious issue.

The suggestion to talk with Eastmark Capital Group and Greenstone Development came barely 24 hours after the Planning Commission voted 3-2 to approve a rezone request for the development. Eastmark and Greenstone would like to increase the density on the current multifamily zoning to allow more units per acre, increasing the complex’s size from 76 units to 115.

The commission is sending the request to the council a second time; the first in April carried no recommendation and was subsequently sent back to the commission for further fact finding. This time the request comes with changes, one being a concession from developers to limit the number of units to 96 and maintain a minimum of 2.4 onsite parking spaces per unit.

Trulove cited these facts, the emotional contentiousness of the proposal by residents and safety concerns due to increased traffic from the development as reasons to consider an agreement. He also noted uncertainty over the number of actual bedrooms in the complex, along with an email sent earlier on June 13 from commission Chair Vince Barthels giving an overview of the meeting and his objections about the recommendation.

Trulove said the council could elect to again consider the proposal as a quasi-judicial body, this time with a recommendation.

“If we decided to reject that, the next step would be the challenge to our decision through the courts,” he said. “And I don’t know if we’d prevail or not.”

It was a sentiment voiced by Commissioner Rick Mount, who voted in favor of the rezone. Mount said during deliberations that the commission’s decision needed to be based on defendable facts, not speculation about possible impacts that included those arising from a traffic study done for Parkside.

Barthels said it was the commission’s responsibility to consider those impacts, especially when it comes to safety. He voiced his dissatisfaction with the decision in the email.

“In my opinion, approving this higher density zoning request with a high degree of looming fear of being sued, is an action that can be characterized as acting haphazardly,” Barthels wrote.

The study, done by traffic engineer Bill White of Morrison Maierle and based upon actual trips from larger student housing developments The Grove and Eagle Point, indicated Parkside would generate 855 average daily trips (ADT) on weekdays. During the hearing, Barthels pointed out calculation errors in the study, and said the number of trips could top 1,000 once a 10 percent safety factor was incorporated.

In an email to Cheney planning staff on June 13, White corrected those errors, with the report now showing an ADT of 955. He also did calculations for a 96-unit complex where each unit had three bedrooms — a worst-case scenario — producing an ADT of 867, conditions he said still meet Cheney traffic threshold standards for the surrounding streets.

Discussion among council members centered on mitigating safety issues.

“We might be able to get a better bang for our buck if we sit down at the table and talk those things out,” Councilman Chris Grover said.

Council members Jill Weiszmann and Doug Nixon agreed, with Nixon stressing the need to confirm the number of bedrooms in the final development.

“If we don’t know how many bedrooms he’s going to put in, we’re in trouble,” he said.

Councilman Dan Hilton questioned if such considerations could be included in an agreement. He also expressed concerns about future developments.

“What about the next developer?” Hilton asked. “Are we going to negotiate with the next guy, the next guy? I know at least 10 people who would love to go R-3H in R-3.”

Any agreement would need council approval. Councilwoman Teresa Overhauser said a deal needed to be better than what was on the table.

“When this comes back to us, we better not be rejecting it,” she said.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.