Only one approach to tackle growth

Is growth out of control? If you ask most any candidate seeking election for the various city council seats in Kootenai County, the answer is a resounding yes.

We are told the comprehensive plans need to be updated. Traffic, schools, cost of housing, etc. are creating substantial problems. Identifying the obvious is not a solution but that doesn’t mean there are no solutions. These are significant concerns but people will continue relocating to Idaho and Kootenai County. A Rathdrum City Council candidate stated that Rathdrum is the fastest growing city in Idaho. The population in 2010 was 6,826. In 2018 it had increased to 8,704 an increase of +27.5%. If that rate of growth continues it means 2,611 more people by 2020.

The Kootenai County growth rate was 16.6% resulting in 161,505 in July 2018. This is an increase of 23,039 people. Post Falls is growing. Coeur d’Alene is the 11th fastest growing city. Are these numbers significant? Absolutely. The more important question, though, is are these numbers manageable and controllable through proper land use planning?

As a percentage of the population of these cities in 2010, the increases are quite large. Population growth is and will continue. The problem is, that growth is throughout Kootenai County. Coeur d’Alene’s traffic isn’t restricted to the city limits. Cd’A traffic becomes Post Falls’ problem and Rathdrum’s growth may be a school district problem and people from all over the county may be a lake and parks problem.

When the problems are countywide, updating the comprehensive plans for each city won’t correct the problem. Unless we adopt a countywide perspective and tie our city plans together, our problems may shift around but never go away. Each of our cities through their elected leaders and professional staffs needs to coordinate — work together as many like to say, “see the big picture.”

Be careful now. The anti-bigger government crowd will be stepping up to predict more bureaucrats, higher taxes, etc. That doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad omen if we create more effective and more efficient responses for all of Kootenai County. Our growth may continue but life will go on and not necessarily worsen with proper planning for growth.

The mental picture many see of a small rural community of the 1950s and 1960s where everyone knew each other, lived and worked together, traffic was not a problem and life was better if not perfect is never going to be again and probably never really existed.

Are these problems real? Of course they are. Ask any of our large-city transplants who moved here to escape that which they endured for most of the years of their lives and now view as more difficult than it probably was. That doesn’t mean growth and its negatives should be accepted as a fait accompli.

These problems we, human beings, have created and we can address each of them with good countywide planning along with a countywide perspective which maintains the independence of our cities and rural communities.

The solution can not be political campaign slogans or sound bites intended to help win elections. These are serious issues which require serious people to resolve. The option is coming together with the understanding that we must work together.

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Phil Ward is a Coeur d’Alene resident.