Post Falls tech park plan unveiled
This rendering shows the layout of a proposed 245-acre technology park community northwest of the intersection of Highway 41 and Prairie Avenue in Post Falls. It would include interior industrial uses, housing, open space, trails, landscaping and retail spaces. (Courtesy of JUB Engineers)
This rendering shows a proposed 50-acre retail center at the northeast corner of Prairie Avenue and Highway 41. An application is expected to be submitted to the city in the near future. (Rendering courtesy of JUB Engineers)
POST FALLS — A 245-acre technology park community has formally been proposed for Post Falls on the Rathdrum Prairie.
Prairie West Crossing developers Philip Wirth and Rick Robinson are planning the project with the intent of attracting technology and aerospace manufacturers to the site northwest of the corner of Highway 41 and Prairie Avenue.
The Planning and Zoning Commission will hold a public hearing on March 21 at 6 p.m.
The hearing will include a zoning text amendment request to create a new Technology Mixed zone, amending the city's comprehensive plan to make the property commercial, and an annexation request with the proposed Technology Mixed zone. The commission will make recommendations to the City Council, which will also hold public hearings on the requests.
"The goal is to allow light industrial uses inside the buildings," said Brad Marshall, a planner for JUB Engineers, which represents the developers.
Marshall said the intent is to integrate trails, open space and landscaping, employee housing, a hotel for those doing business at the park, day care and limited retail such as a restaurant. Technology Mixed zones offer a work, shop and live environment.
Similar communities have been created with Intel Corporation in Hillsboro, Ore., and Micron in Boise.
Marshall said the developers are in discussions with multiple companies interested in locating to the park, but he said it's premature to name those companies. He said the companies want the city requests to be approved before committing to the park.
"This property has not even been marketed," said Marshall, referring to the early interest.
Fueling that interest is the high cost of living in Seattle and other economic factors, Marshall said.
"We can make the products here and ship them to Seattle to Boeing," he said.
Pending the city hearing process, Marshall said construction on the project would likely start next year.
"We've been working on a sewer study trying to come up with solutions to assist with the whole Highway 41 corridor, so that slowed us up a bit," he said. "Now that we've got that behind, we're moving forward with the annexation request."
Marshall said a "significant" number of jobs would be created with the park, but a more precise estimate hasn't been determined.
Marshall said he believes the project correlates well with the emerging growth in the Highway 41 corridor and the widening of that highway in 2020.
The location is optimal because it’s centrally located between the cities of Post Falls, Rathdrum, Hayden and Coeur d'Alene.
It’s also near the interstate, the airport and a railroad spur line.
"It is also just 2 miles from KTEC (Kootenai Technical Education Campus) and the (North Idaho College technical center) so we've got a training ground right there," he said.
Marshall said economic conditions are ripe for the tech park on the prairie.
"The economy is roaring," he said. "We have cheap power, abundant water, an affordable cost of living and great quality of life."
Last year Marshall made a presentation to the Post Falls Urban Renewal Agency about the technology park. Urban renewal funds for job creation would be used to help jumpstart the project. He said that's still the plan, although no application to create a district has been submitted yet.
Urban renewal districts have a base tax rate when the district is created. That base tax rate continues to be collected by the county and remitted to taxing entities over the life of the district. As a district is improved, has new construction and increases in value due to improvements, the incremental tax created by those improvements in excess of the base tax goes to the URA to pay for the public improvements within the district.
Marshall said the developers have been doing business in Post Falls for 15 years, including in the Highway 41 corridor and with the Stateline Business Park.
The same development group is planning a 50-acre retail center northeast of the intersection of Highway 41 and Prairie Avenue. A neighborhood shopping center with grocery store, retailers, restaurants and banks are planned. The site is already in the city, zoned for commercial development, and has services.
"We plan to file a subdivision plat application on that in the very near future," Marshall said.