By KEVIN WISER
Express Staff Writer
The platoon of earthmovers working over what was once a field of alfalfa
north of Greenhorn Gulch Road represents the first stage of construction for phase II of
the Golden Eagle Ranch subdivision.
Scrapers, graders, front-end loaders, giant backhoes and bulldozers are
working the land like busy ants, but gigantic ants at that.
"Basically we’re just doing dirt work," said Jeff Plumber,
a truck driver with Desert Sage Excavation. "We’re putting in fill over here and
over there, we’re cutting down 20 feet for a pond.
"It’s like we’re a bunch of kids playing with our Tonka
Toys."
Developer Harry Rinker will turn the 132 acre parcel into 27 high-end,
spacious lots located adjacent to the existing first phase of the Golden Eagle Ranch
subdivision.
Rinker said his part in the development involves the groundwork and
landscaping of the property. Buyers then purchase the lots and build their homes through
other contractors.
Rinker said that since putting the lots on the market a week
ago–which sell for $500,000 to $1.5 million each—15 buyers have put down
deposits.
"We’re very excited," Rinker said.
Residents of the Wood River Valley, however, have mixed emotions about
growth and the dwindling open spaces along the Highway 75 Corridor.
Construction workers such as Plumber depend on growth and development to
make a living and feed their families.
Some residents believe that open spaces and the valley’s scenic
wonders add to their quality of life.
"America is a free country, Blaine County Commissioner Dennis Wright
said in an interview. "We can’t put up a gate at the valley’s entrance and
stop people from moving here."
Others believe that if they have the money, they should be able to build
whatever and wherever they want.
Steve Wagoner lives on Timber Way, just north of Golden Eagle phase II.
"I’m very pleased it’s happening, it’s the best use of
the land," Wagoner said. "The only thing better would have been a golf
course."
Wagoner said the development represents good stewardship of the land since
the zoning of the property could have allowed for more homes to be built.
Still conservationists and slow-growth activists can argue that before the
land along Highway 75 was plowed over, foxes and coyotes could be seen on occasion hunting
a thriving population of ground squirrels across fields of alfalfa. Elk and deer came down
from Timber Gulch and grazed along the fringes. Now, there’s a vast construction
site.
Rinker has earned the reputation for developing quality projects with an
emphasis on aesthetic and environmental distinction.
He said that open space in general is an important attribute in the Wood
River Valley and that preserving open space should be considered in the design of
subdivisions.
"It’s very important to preserve open space within the
development so you don’t destroy that quality," Rinker said. "What
we’ve done is actively mindful of preserving open space."
Rinker said that in the first phase of the Golden Eagle Ranch only 50
percent of the permitted density was developed. Phase II, he said, will only have 25
percent of the homes allowed by the residential land use classification of the property.
Rinker said the development will include 23 acres of ponds and waterways,
250 feet of waterfalls, three miles of shoreline habitat for wildlife such as ducks and
geese, 50 acres of native grasses and shrubs and 40 acres of bluegrass.
The grove of transplanted trees along Highway 75 to the south—which
number 3,000 aspen, 300 spruce and 200 pine—will be used to landscape the property.
"Each lot will have a minimum of 35 trees, 20-to-35 feet tall,"
Rinker said. "It all adds to the environment in a very enjoyable way."
The entire landscaping project will be completed and planted by Nov. 30,
and construction of homes will begin next spring, he said.
