Apartments get Cd'A approval
The Coeur d’Alene Planning Commission unanimously approved a special use permit Tuesday night for a 232-unit apartment complex along Interstate 90 atop the old Wild Waters property.
Developers had originally planned for a hotel on the technically Government Way property that would have stood next to the La Quinta Inn. But Braintree Properties, which owns and is developing the property, said circumstances changed with the arrival of COVID-19.
“Unfortunately, we were hit by this pandemic, and it turned the hotel industry on its side,” Rick Stilovich of Braintree said.
Wild Waters was a popular water park that opened in 2001 but ended up folding in 2010. The abandoned facilities were eventually razed, its grounds sold.
The old zoning on the nearly 7 acres allowed for 45 feet height; the new special use permit allows for up to 63 feet, which will provide for five stories. Tami Stroud said the current C-17 zoning allows up to 119 residential units.
One concern raised Tuesday was the absence of sidewalks on the nearby U.S. 95 overpass. Chris Bosley, city engineer, said the city had no plans to install sidewalks, something he said could be addressed should the Idaho Transportation Department work on the freeway.
The property is accessed by Government Way, a fact that caused concern for some commissioners and staff who questioned whether or not the nearby streets could handle the proposed increase in density and the traffic that would invariably follow.
“Appleway is a very busy street in Coeur d’Alene,” Bosley said. “Those intersections along Appleway near U.S. 95 are very congested. We’ve done some signal work there, but there are some more improvements that could be made there, for sure. I can’t say whether or not this would actually have adverse effects on that intersection, but any growth we have certainly does have a reduction in how many cars can get through an intersection on a given light cycle.”
Commissioner Brinnon Mandel noted the complex would likely mean an influx of school children into the area, which would likely lead to an increase of foot traffic along Government Way, over at least one I-90 overpass and along the nearby streets.
“This development would likely have a lot of school children who’d be zoned for Winton or Borah,” she said. “… How do we address safe routes to school in that concentrated area?”
Bosley said those safe routes would have to be explored.
Locals also wrote the commission with concerns over a bottlenecked access to Government Way, which will likely lead to traffic signage, rather than median barriers, to direct the flow of traffic.
“I’d think there’d be a little bit of a challenge to make your left turn going north coming out of that,” Chair Tom Messina said. “There is traffic in both directions, and perhaps people hanging out in that suicide lane, once they make that left turn, to be able to get over to those two lanes.”
Stilovich said he recognized the traffic concerns brought up at the meeting. Braintree, he said, wants to be a good neighbor to locals, and the company is happy to work with residents and the city to find considerate answers to public safety concerns.
“We drove through there tonight, trying to make that straight across Government Way,” he said. “I think it was, like, two-thirty or three o’clock. It’s difficult. Government Way is busy, and going straight across that street is problematic. We’re happy to work with the neighborhood to find a reasonable way to help them solve their concerns over traffic.”
Ultimately, the commission said problems brought up at the meeting will be addressed as the project moves forward.
“This is good,” commissioner Lynn Fleming said. “We need the housing. We need development, and that land is tough, so I think it’s a good solution. I think we need it, and I think we’ll get over the hurdles.”