No Super Wal-Mart

From Daily News 1/21-22, page 1

Petition denial sparks move against big-box development Moscow City receives application to change comprehensive plan

By Omie Drawhorn
Daily News staff writer

Mark Solomon filed an application Friday morning for a change in the city of Moscow’s Comprehensive Plan that could block Wal-Mart’s application to build a super center.

The filing followed the Moscow City Council’s refusal to accept his 560-signature petition earlier this week. City Attorney Randy Fife said he advised the council not to accept it because the big-box retail store issue is a quasi-judicial matter, plus the council cannot hear testimony for items pending before the city, which the Wal-Mart application is.

The Planning and Zoning Commission will review the application, and, if approved, forward it to the council, said Joel Plaskon, community development director and zoning administrator. The process could take eight to 10 weeks.

“I hope the city will approve the application,” Solomon said. “It’s still curious that we have to present the application to staff, who will in turn present the application to the city’s governing body, instead of just giving the application directly to the governing body.”

Solomon, along with the other Moscow residents and businesses who signed the petition, contend that the changes made to the comprehensive plan contradict the stated goals of the plan.

If Solomon’s application is approved, the existing land-use designation of extensive commercial will be changed to low-density residential for the eastern two-thirds of the property and to light industrial for the western one-third adjacent to the Alturas Technology Park — the proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter location.

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