BOSETH: No fair hearing

I was disappointed in the Post Falls planning and zoning commission ruling on the Boseth annexation at the hearing on May 9. It is apparent that public hearings are only a required nuisance that developers and the city endure, when it is obvious their minds are made up prior to the hearings.

One vote was cast with an open mind and we are thankful for that. The city and developers are one side when pushing for high density zoning, more houses, more revenue, which allows greed to become the driving force to R-1 zoning and a deaf ear to any objections.

The Boseth annexation could have been implemented with lesser density R-1-S zoning, which has been approved by the city and is 90 percent of the surrounding area in three previous subdivisions with some density down to four lots per acre. With the oral testimonies presented, 13 were against the high density R-1 zoning, which addressed many problems going forward with increased traffic presenting a proposed dangerous intersection at Chase Road a short distance from a railroad crossing.

The P and Z commission could have listened to the merits of the oral testimonies and considered the concerns of the neighbors. The decision could have been a win-win with an open mind and moral decision to have given the annexation with an R-1-S zoning and compromised the density to help mitigate the obvious foreseeable problems, mainly traffic congestion. The outcome with R-1-S zoning: Public trust might start to be demonstrated in city government.

TOM L. KELLY

Post Falls