For the week of April 16 - 22, 2003

P&Z given peek at Picabo’s future

Purdy wants to tidy up
village’s ‘fuzzy’ zoning

---

By PAT MURPHY
Express Staff Writer

With a population estimated at 40, and a presence on U.S. Highway 20 that gives meaning to the proverbial spot-on-the-map metaphor, Picabo doesn’t seem to be on the brink of a growth boom.

Not yet.

However, growth could be the outcome of a sweeping effort by rancher and major landowner Nick Purdy to tidy up what he describes as Picabo’s "fuzzy" zoning.

Purdy has asked the Blaine County Planning and Zoning Commission to return some land now zoned as residential to agricultural and other land from agricultural to residential, allow small residential lots to be combined into fewer large lots and to extend commercial zoning on a strip at the town’s eastern entrance.

Purdy, whose family has had ranching interests in the area for several generations, has worked on the rezoning plan for five years. He told the commissioners he’s spent "six figures" on the project and has had to sell off property each year to fund his ranch operations.

"Frankly," he told P&Z commissioners with a hint of exasperation, as he asked for speeded up deliberations and an early decision, "it wouldn’t take much for me to forget about it (the rezoning plan)."

Commissioners nodded in agreement, and said they’d resume deliberations on April 24.

Purdy pointed out that right now the present zoning wouldn’t prevent him from selling land. But he said his plan is to try to protect the town with zoning that is better planned than the original helter-skelter zoning. Purdy has retained Galena Engineering of Ketchum for the planning work.

For example, one element of his plan would convert 80 small lots into 19 to 20 larger lots. He also wants to create a buffer between agricultural land and residential.

"We have lots of wildlife," he said, "that can’t stand a lot of people."

Does Purdy envision the town being incorporated as a city, asked Commissioner Suzanne Orb.

No, Purdy said. "There are so few of us (in Picabo) to pay" for town services such as streets and plowing.

Picabo, 11 miles east of Timmerman Junction at the intersection of State Highway 75 and U.S. 20, literally is only a few blocks long. On the south side of U.S. 20 are homes, a ranch store and storage silos. On the other side of the highway are a convenience store and service station and a grass strip airfield with a few hangars.

For miles in all directions, the flatlands are cattle ranches or potato fields.

A steady lineup of supporters for the plan spoke in favor of Purdy.

Bob Turzian, a seven-year Picabo resident, said, "I like what Nick is trying to do. Something needs to be done. But nobody is doing anything but Nick."

Longtime area resident and rancher Kate Breckenridge said, "Nick has carried the whole ball to make this a better town."

The Nature Conservancy’s Silver Creek Preserve manager, Mark Davidson, approved of the overall plan, but assured the commission TNC would not agree to giving up its easement on 3,500 acres in the Picabo area that protects Silver Creek.

The only major objections came from Picabo residents Ginny and David Glasscock. He was particularly concerned about agriculture spray aircraft that make turns over homes while applying chemicals to crops.

But another resident, Michael Miller, said, "Spraying doesn’t bother me a bit," and urged approval of Purdy’s plans.

Resident Ron Tichner said Purdy’s plans would make Picabo "better than it is now."

Although he did not object to other parts of Purdy’s plan, resident Mike Riedel had technical reservations about extending commercial zoning on one strip of land along U.S. 20.

 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.