River's Edge fate awaits
Renderings courtesy of River’s Edge Apartments LLC These drawings show the public trail and waterfront greenspace that is being proposed for the River’s Edge project.
Rendering courtesy of River’s Edge Apartments LLC This drawing shows the waterfront greenspace that is being proposed for the River’s Edge project.
Gridley
By KEITH ERICKSON
Staff Writer
The developer of a highly scrutinized housing project along the Spokane River says his proposal would shore up permanent waterfront public access that might otherwise be surrendered to private development.
Lancze Douglass of River’s Edge Apartments LLC said his project provides precisely what the city has long deemed a top priority and the public has lobbied for: public acquisition of riverfront property.
The Coeur d’Alene City Council this evening will consider a planned unit development (PUD) for River’s Edge Apartments, proposed for 25 acres along the river west of Riverstone.
Under a land swap being considered by the council, the city would acquire a 40-foot permanent easement along about 1,600 feet of the river for a public trail, green space and waterfront access to the water.
The alternative, Douglass said, is private development with no waterfront trail and no public greenspace.
According to terms of the PUD, of which the city is a co-applicant, Douglass would trade a 3.9-acre tract he owns fronting Seltice Way for the city-owned railroad right-of-way that dissects his riverfront property.
City attorney Mike Gridley said the land owned by Douglass is valued at up to $2 million while the railroad right-of-way is estimated at about $500,000. Both are similar in size.
The value of the waterfront property is difficult to pin down, Gridley said.
“It is impossible to put a value to the community to the permanent waterfront public trail and greenspace,” he said. However, he estimated at current real estate values “it would likely cost the city in excess of $4 million.”
Under existing zoning, the developer said he could create 28 single-family lots on the waterfront land, which, he says, have an estimated value of about $630,000 per lot based on similar riverfront property to the west in the Mill River development.
Gridley said the city is essentially being asked by Douglass to increase the density of his land by about 170 units over what is allowed under current zoning.
As proposed, River’s Edge Apartments LLC calls for 680 units housed in 21 structures ranging from 55- to 63-feet in height. The city’s Planning and Zoning Commission in December unanimously denied a more dense request for 850 apartments.
We the People, a grassroots group opposing the project, objects to the density of River’s Edge, calling it a bad fit for the area.
But Gridley said the PUD offers a unique opportunity that may never again arise for the city.
“This is the last waterfront within the city limits of Coeur d’Alene that is available for public access,” Gridley said. “Once it’s gone, it’s gone.”
Douglass said that while he hopes to reach an agreement with the city, he will likely move forward with development of his waterfront property if the PUD request is denied.
The council will consider the PUD proposal during its regular meeting at 6 p.m. at the Coeur d’Alene Public Library.