For the week of May 14 - 20, 2003

Heidelberg Inn proposal gets mixed review

Some P&Z members,
public say it’s too dense

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By GREGORY FOLEY
Express Staff Writer

A proposal by a California-based development group to raze the Heidelberg Inn and redevelop the site with 33 townhouse units received a lukewarm reception before the Ketchum Planning and Zoning Commission Monday, May 12.

In a pre-application review of the proposal, commissioners issued a mix of reactions, with comments focused primarily on the proposed density of the project.

"To me this thing falls way short of anything, in clear conscience, that I could approve," said Commissioner Rod Sievers. "It’s way too dense."

However, P&Z Chairman Peter Ripsom said he believes densely developed projects are not inherently good or bad for the community, but believes their value is largely dependent on the design and layout of the buildings included.

At issue is a proposal by Wareham Development, the developer of the Thunder Spring complex on Saddle Road, to build eight separate residential buildings on the Heidelberg Inn site. The approximately 1.9-acre parcel is located at 1908 Warm Springs Road.

The company and its architect, Calthorpe Associates, in April filed a design-review preapplication asking the city to review and give feedback on a set of preliminary plans for the project.

The preliminary proposal calls for 33, two- and three-bedroom townhouses ranging from approximately 1,350 square feet to 1,650 square feet. The new development would comprise approximately 50,000 square feet of new buildings on the site.

The application, if forwarded as proposed, would require approval as a planned-unit development, city planners have noted. A planned-unit development typically offers developers a special allowance—such as increased density—in exchange for a public benefit, such as open space or community housing.

Joey Scanga, representative for Calthorpe, told commissioners and an audience of 35 area residents that the density of the proposed development would be just under 17 units per acre. He said the developers believe the project would have less impact on the surrounding environment than the site’s existing 50 hotel rooms--which have been used over the last two years to house workers building the Thunder Spring project.

"The idea was not to fit the most units, but a comfortable number of units on this site," he said.

The parcel’s Limited Residential zoning allows approximately five units to be developed on each acre of land.

Scanga said the proposed project would be built at a density that is similar to the Four Seasons and The Fields developments on neighboring properties.

A PUD for the site would ultimately need the approval of the Ketchum City Council and would mandate that a specific percentage of the development be allocated for affordable housing.

Scanga said an affordable housing component would be included in plans for the site but had not yet been designated for specific units.

Sievers was the first to comment on the proposal, noting that he believes any project that "approaches the density of The Fields and the Four Seasons" would be too dense for the site.

Commissioner Harold Johnson noted that the snow storage included in the plans appeared inadequate.

Several members of the public voiced concerns about the plan.

Ketchum resident Mickey Garcia said the project would be beneficial because it offered affordable housing. "The cities are where the densities are supposed to go," he said.

Four Seasons resident Tina Fabiano said she thinks the developers could devise a better plan that would have less impact on neighboring properties. "I feel like what you’re doing is the worst-case scenario," she said.

 

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