Meeting to address Prairie school plan
COEUR d’ALENE — Heading into a special meeting Thursday, the Lakes Highway District and Coeur d’Alene School District have entered uncharted waters.
The two local government bodies’ paths crossed when the school district proposed building a new elementary school on Prairie Avenue, a major thoroughfare in Lakes Highway District. The school district wants to get the highway district’s approval for an approach to the school off Prairie Avenue, then begin the construction phase of its project.
On Nov. 5, LHD Director Eric Shanley said a traffic light and a school at that location would affect a large stretch of Prairie Avenue. Highway district commissioners delayed approval in order to have the Kootenai County Area Transportation Team and the Kootenai Metropolitan Planning Organization board of directors first review the matter. Final guidance on Prairie Avenue isn’t expected from the transportation planners until January, said Shanley.
School district officials expressed dismay last month when the highway district stepped on the brakes. But the two bodies started to plan a meeting to find a solution.
This Thursday, the highway district’s commissioners will hold that meeting at 3 p.m. to discuss the Prairie Avenue school project. However, it wasn’t exactly what the school district was hoping for.
School district spokesman Scott Maben said that after the highway district’s decision to hit the brakes, members of both bodies batted around the idea of holding a joint workshop. Maben said that meeting was proposed for Nov. 27.
“There was a great deal of interest in this workshop on behalf of School District patrons who expressed their desire to attend,” Maben said. “The School District has a long-standing practice of allowing its patrons to provide public comments on matters of district business.”
However, the special meeting set for Thursday will differ in two important respects from a joint workshop. It will “largely limit public comment,” said Maben. It will also allow highway district commissioners to take action, said Shanley.
“The highway district requested a workshop setting to discuss controlled access to the school site to ensure safety for the traveling public and school children,” said Shanley. “After concerns were raised that the workshop setting was an appropriate public meeting, the highway district changed the workshop to a special meeting. This is to ensure the board can hear from stakeholders and take action if they decide.”
Maben said the highway district has asked the school district to present its proposal for access at Prairie Avenue during Thursday’s special meeting.
“The change in meeting format initially concerned us, but we have since had a productive staff workshop at which the LHD and School District were able to discuss our needs and concerns and develop some ideas to present to the LHD Board on Thursday,” said school district operations director Jeff Voeller.
Superintendent Steve Cook sounded a cautious, determined note Tuesday.
“Although the school district does not fully agree with all aspects of the highway district’s requests with respect to this interaction, the School District is nonetheless committed to working collaboratively with the highway district and reaching a solution that makes this site a viable option for our School Board,” Cook said.
“Ultimately, our goal, which I believe is shared with the highway district, is to engage in open and transparent discussions in order to find a resolution,” said Voeller.
The meeting takes place Thursday at 3 p.m. at 11341 N. Ramsey Road in Hayden. The public is invited and a public comment period, with a two-minute, per-person limit, will precede the highway district commission’s discussions.