In September, the Sun Valley City Council agreed to permanently protect nearly 3,000 acres of city lands as open space. Stewardship of the land came with the City Council's vote to pass the 2005 Comprehensive Plan Update.
The inclusion of an "open space" land-use designation indicates a proactive shift in city government in 2005. The activity throughout the year, from land planning efforts to new laws on affordable housing to the redevelopment of Elkhorn Village promise vitality and a busy 2006 for the city of Sun Valley.
Comp plan guides future
Last fall, the council voted to approve the Comprehensive Plan Update, the city's guiding land-use document, after considerable public input and discussion.
The update establishes a general framework to guide the physical, social, economic and environmental development of the community.
The city worked for more than 16 months to generate the document.
The plan includes "Land Use Planning Area" maps and narrative that outline development for six tracts of land primarily owned by Sun Valley Co. Among those areas, the "gateway parcel" along Sun Valley Road is likely to maintain the interests of the council and the public in the coming year. The signature entry lands include the city's 5-acre park parcel.
The approval of the update serves as the jumping off point for further, in-depth land planning that will begin in 2006.
New city leaders elected
In the November election, voters clearly called for the implementation of the Sun Valley Comprehensive Plan.
Voters elected Nils Ribi and Ann Agnew to the City Council. Both candidates campaigned on platforms to implement action items set forth in the comprehensive plan.
Endorsed by Sun Valley Mayor Jon Thorson, Ribi, 50, chairman of the Sun Valley Planning and Zoning Commission, garnered the most votes. He is the president of Ribi Corp., a venture capital firm.
Incumbent candidate Agnew, 66, won a second term on the council. First elected in November 2002, she currently serves as the council president.
Seeking a fifth term on the council, incumbent candidate Kevin Laird, 57, was defeated. Laird was the only council member who voted against the Comprehensive Plan Update.
Milt Adam, 70, a retired mechanical design engineer, and Dan Pincetich, 58, former Sun Valley city administrator, also made bids for council seats.
The four-year terms of office for Ribi and Agnew begin Jan. 5, 2006, when the candidates are sworn into office.
City changes election format
The city's return to the open-seat election system after a citywide vote in May allowed all five council candidates to run against each other, competing for the two open seats.
In a special election, an overwhelming majority of Sun Valley voters cast ballots in favor of returning to an open-seat election system for City Council. The special election was called in response to an initiative petition signed by Sun Valley voters demanding that the city terminate its designated-seat election system and return to an open-seat format.
Previously, Sun Valley's designated-seat election format asked the electorate to vote for candidates vying in individual races to fill two specific, numbered seats on the council.
Workforce housing mandate
Before the election, debate centered on Sun Valley's historic decision to implement workforce housing regulations. The decision came in April to require nearly all new developments, including single-family homes, to include a degree of workforce housing.
The Sun Valley Planning and Zoning Commission first tackled the issue over a six-meeting marathon, which ended in March with a recommendation to the council.
The ordinances aim to develop housing for professional wage earners, including doctors, emergency medical technicians, firefighters, police officers, teachers and service workers.
The community loudly applauded the adoption of the "Workforce Housing Ordinances." Sun Valley was the first municipality in the county to adopt the progressive housing measures.
Elkhorn village overhaul
Sun Valley also welcomed progress with redevelopment of the former site of Elkhorn Resort.
Developer CG-Elkhorn, a Connecticut- and Chicago-based investment group that includes Ketchum-based partner David Hennessy, is redeveloping the 11-acre site in Elkhorn Village.
The golf clubhouse opened for business in July, coinciding with the opening of the revamped golf course. Closed since fall 2003, the semi-private golf course was partially reconfigured and almost entirely rebuilt.
Work on the first phase of the multi-phase residential and commercial project saw construction of major infrastructure, as well as commercial and residential structures. The initial phase of development includes two multi-story condominium buildings, six paired homes, a restaurant, a country store, and a sales and information office.
Developers also received approval in August for the second phase of redevelopment. Work on the second phase of development, calling for residential construction, ensued in the fall.
In 2006, the new Elkhorn core could invigorate Sun Valley, complemented by in-depth land planning, continued housing initiatives and new leadership.
Sun Valley Co. General Manager Wally Huffman, right, discusses the land-use designations outlined by the city's comprehensive plan update. Citizens, city leaders and stakeholders worked diligently in 2005 to approve and enact the city's new guiding land-use document. Photo by David N. Seelig
