No Super Wal-Mart

Well maybe the Hawkins project is not a done deal. If so, it takes the wind out of the sails of those who say Moscow needs to capitulate to big boxes before they run across the state line.

Corridor developer wants time to respond

Hawkins Companies asks for chance to answer questions raised by residents, governments

By Michelle Dupler Daily News staff writer
Daily News, Published: 04-11-2006

The developer of a proposed large retail shopping center on the Pullman-Moscow Highway is asking Whitman County for more time to address environmental concerns raised by residents and local governments.

An attorney for the Hawkins Companies asked Whitman County Planner Mark Bordsen to withdraw his determination on its environmental checklist so the company can submit a new, more comprehensive document. If Bordsen agrees, an appeal filed by the city of Moscow will temporarily be rendered moot.

The Boise-based developer submitted its application in January to build a 600,000-square-foot shopping complex just west of the Idaho state line. The design includes space for three large retail stores exceeding 100,000 square feet each, eight smaller retail stores ranging from 20,000-30,000 square feet and eight smaller “pad” areas.

Bordsen approved the developer’s State Environmental Policy Act checklist March 2. The checklist allows local governments to evaluate a development’s potential impact on the surrounding environment. Bordsen’s decision said the proposed shopping center would not have a serious negative effect on the environment, subject to certain conditions involving a traffic study and protection of wetlands.

The city of Moscow appealed Bordsen’s decision, raising questions about the development’s effect on local water supplies and stormwater drainage, as well as the possibility police and fire services will have to respond outside of city limits.

The city of Pullman raised similar concerns in public comments but chose not to file an appeal.

The appeal was set for a hearing before the Whitman County commissioners Monday. But the hearing was postponed indefinitely when Prosecutor Denis Tracy said state law may require the county to combine the appeal hearing with a hearing on the developer’s conditional use permit.

Development is allowed in the Pullman Moscow Highway corridor only by conditional use permit. Each conditional use permit application goes to a public hearing before the county Board of Adjustment. But Washington state law allows only one public hearing on a proposed development.
A new application will start the process over again, including a new public comment period and fresh opportunities for appeal. If Moscow appeals again, it would have to pay the $500 filing fee required by county law. An appellant gets half of the filing fee back if the appeal is successful, said Alan Thompson, assistant county planner. No decision has been made whether Moscow will be refunded any portion of its filing fee if Bordsen’s decision is withdrawn and the process starts again.

A free showing of Frontline’s “Is Wal-Mart Good for America” will take place at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Center on April 20, 7:00 p.m. A community discussion of the film and Wal-Mart’s proposal to build a Supercenter in Moscow, moderated by Kenton Bird, Director of UI’s School of Journalism and Mass Media, will immediately follow the showing. The showing is sponsored by NoSuperWalMart.

And don’t forget: May 1, 7:00 pm, Thompson Rezone Public Hearing before the City Council.

Yes Moscow! No SuperWalmart!

Letter to editor, DNews, submitted Feb 23, appearing April 1.

Last night (last week by the time it published) Moscow did a remarkable thing. 150 people packed into Council chambers to discuss amending the comprehensive plan. They did it surprisingly civilly, for which I thank Jerry Schutz for a well run meeting and each speaker and member of the audience. Paul Kimmel indicated that the Chamber is surveying its members about big box and other retail issues. I would hope that all chamber members return the survey giving us an accurate picture of their preferences. The issue I advocated last night was recommended for denial, but I think that as a community we won, because so many of us are willing to come out and state what we see as important, which is the best way to say, Yes, Moscow!

Nils Peterson
Moscow

So much for Vera White’s rumor mongoring in Friday ’s paper. Maybe she was just a day early for April Fools.

April 1-2 edition, page 1
Moscow-Pullman Daily News: Local (required login)

Wal-Mart spokeswoman says company has no plans for corridor development; Battle continues between retail giant and local opposition

By Michelle Dupler, Daily News staff writer

A Wal-Mart spokeswoman said Friday the company has no plans to lease space in the proposed Hawkins Development shopping center on the Pullman-Moscow Highway.

“We are not looking there right now,” said Jennifer Holder, the company’s Washington spokeswoman.

Wal-Mart has made no changes to its plans to build stores on Southeast Bishop Boulevard in Pullman and on the Troy Highway in Moscow, Holder said.

Both proposed Wal-Mart stores and the Hawkins development have stirred local opposition.

Boise-based developers Hawkins Companies submitted an application to Whitman County in January to build a more than 600,000-square-foot retail center on the north side of the Moscow-Pullman Highway, just west of the state line.

Whitman County Planner Mark Bordsen approved the developer’s State Environmental Policy Act checklist March 2.

The checklist allows local governments to evaluate a development’s potential impact on the surrounding environment. Bordsen’s decision said the proposed shopping center would not have a serious negative impact on the environment, subject to certain conditions involving a traffic study and protection of wetlands.

The city of Moscow appealed Bordsen’s decision, raising concerns about the development’s impact on local water supplies and storm water drainage. Also at issue is the possibility Moscow’s emergency services will need to respond outside the city limits.

The Whitman County commissioners will hear the appeal at 1:30 p.m. April 10.

The fate of the Pullman Wal-Mart store will be decided in Whitman County Superior Court. An appeal hearing to decide whether or not the store will significantly impact the city’s environment will begin April 28.

The retail company submitted an application to build a 223,000-square-foot super center in Pullman in October 2004. Plans for the store have been stalled for about 18 months after opposition organized into the Pullman Alliance for Responsible Development in an effort to block the store from coming to town.

The group appealed the city’s decisions approving Wal-Mart’s State Environmental Policy Act checklist and site plan. The appeals were consolidated and heard by Spokane lawyer John Montgomery over three days in January.

Hundreds of residents turned out to watch the proceedings and express their opinions about the Wal-Mart store. Topics included potential crime, storm water run-off, traffic, lighting, noise, encroachment on the Pullman Cemetery and the possible loss of existing businesses.

Numerous residents and business owners spoke both for and against the store.

Montgomery upheld the city’s approval of Wal-Mart’s plan in a written decision issued Feb. 27. PARD appealed to the Superior Court, arguing the hearing examiner lacked enough evidence about the store’s negative environmental and traffic impacts to make an informed decision.

Plans for a Moscow super center filed in November became tangled up in red tape when the owners of the 77 acres on South Mountain View Road where Wal-Mart wants to build tried to get the land rezoned from agriculture/forestry to motor business. A motor business zoning designation is designed to accommodate businesses that depend primarily on transient motor vehicle-based trade, such as a large retail development.

Spokane engineering consultants CLC Associates, acting on behalf of the owners, applied for the rezone in January after Moscow Community Development Director Joel Plaskon denied their site plan application on the grounds the land wasn’t zoned for retail.

The rezone application was heard by the Planning and Zoning Commission on March 8. The commission recommended denial of the rezone because they didn’t think Wal-Mart’s plan for the land fit the character of Moscow.

Wal-Mart had the option of revising its zoning application to fit the commission’s vision for the neighborhood or asking the City Council for a decision. The developer opted for the latter. No date has been set for the council to consider the zoning application.

Michelle Dupler can be reached at (509) 334-6397, ext. 307, or by e-mail at mdupler@dnews.com.

There are other planning issues in Moscow besides Big Box and Thompson property.

You might be interested in something this Wed 7:30 City Hall called “The Commons.” This is a Planned Unit Development (PUD) to develop some small houses with all the car parking placed over at one side and most of the property reserved as common open space. The current P&Z Agenda (pdf) lists this as the 2nd item, so you might wander in a bit after the 7:30 start time, unless you wanted to use the open mic.

Also, that agenda lists a couple upcomming meetings with interesting topics:

Next scheduled meetings and tentative agendas:
“April 12, 2006 (Planning Sessions: Large Retail Ordinance, Draft Subdivision Code and
New Cities Initiative)
April 26, 2006 (Application Session: Kirkland Addition, Annexation, Comprehensive
Plan Map, and Zoning; PUD Lot Size Hearing)”

Moscow planners recommend against zoning change for land

March 24
By DAVID JOHNSON
of the Tribune

MOSCOW — Members of the Moscow Planning and Zoning Commission voted late Wednesday night to deny an application by persons seeking a comprehensive plan map change for 78 acres on the southeast edge of town.

The recommendation will be forwarded to the Moscow City Council for final action at a time yet to be scheduled.

The 5-0 vote leaves the property, owned by the Gene Thompson family, designated for extensive commercial development, including possible construction of a Wal-Mart Supercenter and other big-box retail stores.

Persons seeking a change wanted a lesser designation for the property, like light industrial and low density residential. The commission heard nearly four hours of testimony.

The application was triggered by a petition signed by more than 550 people and circulated by members of a group called No Super Wal-Mart.

During deliberations before the vote, the commissioners agreed the extensive commercial designation provides the most flexibility for development of the property.

Persons seeking the change said the designation would encourage urban sprawl. Persons in favor said the designation is necessary to encourage growth and keep Moscow a retail shopping leader on the Palouse.

The Thompson family, meanwhile, has appealed an earlier advisory decision by the planning and zoning commission denying a request to zone the entire acreage for motor business.

The comprehensive plan map, which shows the extensive commercial designation for the property, sets the big picture for development, said city officials. Zoning is the tool for controlling the development.

Currently, the acreage is zoned agriculture-forest. It was annexed into the city last year with the stated intention for commercial development.

P&Z rejects change to comp plan; Developers want Moscow land for Wal-Mart Supercenter; rezone proponent plans to take request to City Council

By Omie Drawhorn, Daily News staff writer
March 23

An attempt to block extensive commercial development on 77 acres through changing the city’s comprehensive plan was rejected by the Moscow Planning and Zoning Commission on Wednesday.

Four areas residents filed an application Jan. 20 to change the zoning map to prevent developments like the proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter from building on the land southeast of the Troy Highway and South Mountain View Road. The application was based on a 560-signature petition signed by area residents.

But zoning is control, said commission member Sue Scott after more than three hours of public testimony. She said the comprehensive plan map doesn’t need to be changed in order to maintain that control.

Applicants Mark Solomon, Nils Peterson, Mike Curly and David Wilder wanted the zoning designation to be changed from extensive commercial to a mixed use of low-density residential and light industrial. They contend the City Council’s decision to change the zoning to extensive commercial when it was annexed last summer will hurt the downtown business district and lead to urban sprawl.

“The applicant hasn’t demonstrated an overwhelming need for change,” commission member Art Bettge said, after listening to testimony from a divided crowd.

The land is owned by the Eugene Thompson family. Garrett Thompson, partial owner of the land, said at Wednesday’s public hearing that he didn’t appreciate someone telling his family what they could do with their land.

Former mayor Marshall Comstock agreed.

“It’s disturbing that persons that don’t own the property or adjacent property can apply for a rezone,” he said.

But there needs to be a balance between rights of owners and rights of community, Curly said during the applicants’ presentation. Moscow residents in attendance were at odds as to what that balance might be.

Residents voiced their comments and concerns about mixed use zoning, retaining small town charm, growth, property rights and the economy.

The applicants supported moving the Thompson property toward mixed-use development, which blends residential development with commercial development, as opposed to sprawl. They said decreasing the intensity of the zone designation in the comprehensive plan would allow the city to move in the direction of mixed use.

“Developers and landowners could still make the same amount of money with mixed use (development),” said BJ Swanson, president of AmericanWest Bank.

The commission tossed around the idea of mixed-use zoning two weeks ago after denying a rezone application that would change the same land under debate Wednesday night to a motor business designation. The motor business designation would have allowed for a Wal-Mart Supercenter to be built on the land.

“It’s obvious that (P&Z) is not interested in having that type of scale in Moscow,” Solomon said. “This is a very appropriate time to do this.”

P&Z members said that under the broad designation of EC zoning, mixed use still would be a possibility.

An extensive commercial zone “is the best designation for maximizing creativity” in development, said P&Z member Anthony Georger.

But Rick Beebe, a Moscow real estate developer, said the land in question is not a good location to build homes. If developers thought they could make money with homes in that area, developers would build homes.

“It we built houses there, no one would buy them,” Beebe said.

Mandy Frary of Moscow agreed.

“I wouldn’t want to live next to a trailer park and across from a cemetery,” she said, referring to the land’s surroundings.

Moscow resident Linda Pike said she supported the application, and that whatever is built on the parcel should fit in with Alturas Park, the cemetery across the highway, and the Latah Trail which runs through the site.

Peggy Jenkins of Deary, a petitioner and member of the No Super Wal-Mart coalition, said the EC designation would encourage growth away from the central business district.

Moscow resident Jim Anderson said the city needs land that can be designated motor business.

P&Z members said that’s what the council was trying to address in June, when it changed the land’s designation to extensive commercial.

“I’m wondering why we’ve been here the last few hours,” said P&Z member Wayne Krauss after listening to testimony. “I’m offended that after nine months worth of work that this would come back to us; if that isn’t anti growth, I don’t know what is. There is no way I can support this.”

Solomon said he plans to bring the application before the City Council. Solomon initially presented the council with a petition in January that asked for the zoning designation change. The council refused to accept the petition for legal reasons, which led to the application considered by the P&Z Commission.

n An article in Friday’s Daily News about the Chamber of Commerce’s big-box survey printed the link to the survey. The chamber shut down the link because the survey was for chamber members only.
Omie Drawhorn can be reached at (208) 882-5561, ext. 234, or by e-mail at odrawhorn@dnews.com.

Wal-Mart, landowners want hearing before City Council; Rezone of 77 acres was denied by the zoning commission

Daily News March 23,
Staff report

CLC Associates and the Thompson family of Moscow are asking the Moscow City Council to consider their application to rezone 77 acres of property on the eastern side of Moscow.

The city’s Planning and Zoning Commission recommended denial of the rezone March 8.

The request was a change from its agriculture/forestry designation to motor business.

The rezone would have opened the door for development of a proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter on the land off of the Troy Highway and South Mountain View Road.

“If P&Z recommends the application, city staff will automatically schedule a hearing during a City Council meeting, but if P&Z denies the application the applicant needs to request the application be scheduled,” Joel Plaskon, Moscow community development director, said after the rezone was denied.

P&Z said the proposed scale of the retail development was not a good fit for Moscow and urged the applicants to revise their proposal to create a development more consistent with the city’s goals and the residents’ desires.

The Thompson family is moving forward with the original plan.

If the rezone is approved, big-box stores like Wal-Mart could be developed on the land after acquiring a conditional-use permit.

A large-scale retail ordinance passed by the City Council Feb. 7 requires all businesses 40,000 square feet or larger to apply for a conditional-use permit.
A date has not yet been set for the hearing before the City Council.

Moscow planners get an earful about proposed Wal-Mart

Published 3/23
By DAVID JOHNSON
of the Tribune

MOSCOW — The fire marshal didn’t attend. But a crowd well surpassing the 150-person capacity crammed its way into the Moscow City Council chambers here Wednesday night as people debated development of property that could be home for a Wal-Mart Supercenter.

By press time, city residents and non-residents alike were still offering testimony before the Moscow Planning and Zoning Commission. The hearing was on a petition filed by persons wanting to change the extensive commercial designation of a 78-acre tract on the southeast edge of town.

Those favoring the change called for something geared away from motor business and more to a mix of light industrial and residential.

Those opposed to the change said they favor the status quo because the town needs more property designated for extensive commercial development.

“We are here tonight because our community planning processes are failing us,” Mark Solomon, one of the petitioners, said. “Actions you take tonight could be the first step away from confrontation and towards creating the new tools needed for community collaboration.”

But former Mayor Marshall Comstock said the city council last year voted in favor of annexing the land, owned by the Gene Thompson family, for extensive commercial development. Comstock said he also found it “very disturbing” that people who don’t own the land and don’t live next to it are trying to control its future use.

Peggy Jenkins of Deary, a petitioner and member of a group called No Super Wal-Mart, warned that the extensive commercial designation invites excess retail growth and encourages growth away from Moscow’s central business district.

Dan Carscallen said he looks forward to seeing what the Thompson family and their developer ultimately propose for the site. He also said the hearing seemed moot in light of previous commission action.

Two weeks ago, commission members recommended denial of a Thompson application to zone the property for motor business, which would have opened the door to a Wal-Mart Supercenter, possibly two additional big-box stores and about a dozen other retail outlets. Commission Chairman Jerry Schutz said the denial wasn’t so much a denial as it was a request for the Thompsons to come back with a better plan. An attorney for the developer agreed that a new plan could be presented at a later date.

Nils Peterson, one of the petitioners, said a designation that favors more mixed uses for the property would be best for the entire community. He said the commissioners have an opportunity to preserve “Moscow’s character” and he urged them to “step back from the brink, and buy yourselves some time.” As part of his presentation, Peterson showed a conceptual drawing of the site with residential streets, a green belt, and areas for technology and light industrial development.

Shelley Bennett, a Realtor working with the Thompson family, reminded people attending the hearing that the Thompsons were responsible for developments like Alturas Technology Park and the Eastside Marketplace. She said the Thompsons have always worked to improve the community, to the point of selling some of their property at less than market value.

Bob Greene, owner of Bookpeople in downtown Moscow, said development of the property should be delayed until the realignment of U.S. Highway 95 on the south end of town is decided.

Nancy Maxeiner, a Moscow veterinarian, said she favored a blend of green area, commercial and residential for the property, something that would capture the essence of Moscow.

But Jim Anderson, a retired automobile dealer, warned that Moscow could lose its designation as the shopping center of the Palouse.
“We need more motor business in this community,” he said.

The Council Chambers were packed by a remarkably large crowd, on both (perhaps all) sides of the issue. While the result was a unanimous vote to recommend denial of the application to change the comprehensive plan, multiple Commissioners spoke to the ideas that (1) zoning controls the development and they were comfortable with it and they did not see how changing the comprehensive plan map would help them, and (2) that they were supportive of the goal of a mixed use development in keeping with the character of Moscow, and they felt the goal could be achieved through zoning mechanisms under the current Comprehensive Plan designation.

We also learned today that the Developer will take their rezone application forward to City Council (P&Z recommended denial March 8th ). After going through the administrative committee to get scheduled on Council’s agenda, the issue could make it to Council April 17. (That date is speculation and not official).

Other things to watch for are P&Z working on revising the big box ordinance (cap & dark store provisions) and P&Z working on developing new tools to support mixed-use development in ways that are less cumbersome than current tools. No dates for these activities are available.