A resolution to alter Blaine County's comprehensive plan that would have greased the skids for a new town south of Bellevue near Timmerman Hill was rejected by the County Commission Tuesday.
But the debate over the merits of a new town in Blaine County should not be abandoned, and a regional planning effort should be initiated with all five cities, the commissioners unanimously concluded.
Tuesday's packed-house meeting at the Old County Courthouse in Hailey was spawned when County Commissioner Dennis Wright proposed a resolution that would alter the county's comprehensive plan to allow for the creation of "Special Planning Areas" in the county, specifically for a new town and new airport.
Wright said he initiated the resolution to foster open-minded planning strategies to solve several ongoing problems nagging Blaine County, most notably a shortfall of affordable, free-market housing.
The new town, which would be called Spring Creek, has been on the minds of community leaders and citizens since it was introduced by developers Bob Kantor and George Kirk, of The Kirk Group, more than a year ago. While still conceptual, the town of Spring Creek would include between 2,000 and 3,000 units in a narrow valley adjacent to Highway 75 just south of the highway's intersection with Highway 20.
Kantor and his partners, including an array of consultants, have advertised the new town as a solution to Blaine County's affordable housing woes, since it would be significantly cheaper to build a development in the south county than inside or around existing city limits.
Kantor said about 70 percent of Spring Creek would be low-cost, but free-market, housing.
Furthermore, according to a 2006 study, about 2,800 Blaine County workers (17 percent) commute from outside the county. On Tuesday, Kirk argued that is essentially like throwing money away.
But the notion of altering the county's comprehensive plan to help facilitate a new town drew heavy fire from a number of citizens and elected city officials.
John Peavey, a former Idaho state senator who owns a ranch northeast of Carey, said he was concerned a new town would negatively impact the cities of Bellevue and Carey, which are already struggling. Peavey noted that the county just completed the exhaustive 2025 planning process, which rezoned much of the south county, and the new laws should be given a chance to succeed.
He added that he was opposed to the notion of placing the county's workforce in a designated area.
"There's something wrong about ghettoizing our workforce," Peavey said.
Trent Jones, a member of the Hailey Planning and Zoning Commission, echoed Peavey and said the 2025 planning process confirmed that the majority of the county's citizens want future density to be focused in and around the cities.
He added that a new town would degrade important wildlife habitat, burden transportation and negatively impact the cities of Bellevue and Carey.
He also said it was "ironic" that the Spring Creek partnership met with farmers and ranchers in Carey and encouraged them to oppose the 2025 process to further their own agenda for a new town, which will only hurt those cities in the end.
Representatives from The Nature Conservancy, Wood River Land Trust, Wood River Rideshare and Citizens for Smart Growth also opposed the resolution. And the mayors of Bellevue, Carey, Ketchum and Sun Valley all cautioned the County Commission that the resolution was too specific about the location of a new town, and more public feedback was necessary.
Larry Schoen, who was elected to the County Commission in November and will fill the retiring Wright's seat in January, also said the resolution is "premature."
"But that does not mean I want to put off discussions about a new town forever," he said.
Commissioner Tom Bowman proposed traveling to each city and holding similar meetings to discuss future regional planning. After naming nearly a dozen new large developments either being built or being proposed in the county, Bowman said, "We're not going to have a problem with inventory in the near future here. We have the luxury of time."
Commissioners Sarah Michael and Wright agreed.
"I'm prepared to withdraw this resolution at this time," Wright said. "I think it can be improved, but what I want to impose on (the commission) today is to truly not fear new concepts."
Marty Flannes, a consultant for Spring Creek, said he and his clients were "pleased" with the outcome of the meeting.
"We've been talking about regional planning for a while," Flannes said. "Let's do it. Let's get started."
